Trust-Paced Marketing and Sales.

In an earlier post titled The Question of Trust, the basic principles of Trust nominated were :-

•  The success of every marketing and sales activity is dependent on the concurrent establishment of an acceptable level of mutual Trust.
•  The DNA of Trust is comprised of 2 components, character and competence. Character has two elements of integrity and intent; the elements in competence are capabilities and results. This core is surrounded by 16 behaviours, encased in an outer layer of values and principles.
•  People in all facets of life assess the trustworthiness of themselves , and the business they represent, by their intentions. They assess the trustworthiness of others by their actions and results.
• The pace of progress for marketing and sales activities cannot exceed the pace of establishing an acceptable level of mutual Trust.
•  Businesses operate a Trust Account for every individual stakeholder – prospect, customer, supplier, distributor, shareholder, employee. Every marketing communication and sales activity will result in a deposit or withdrawal of Trust, and an updated Trust Account balance.

Definitions of Marketing and Sales.

There are many definitions of Marketing and Sales, and I favour the least complicated of all:-
--Marketing consists of all activities designed to convince individuals within the target market to initiate contact, and therefore includes web sites, brochures, advertising, events and displays.
--Sales consists of all activities where the seller initiates contact with individuals within the target market, and therefore includes outgoing telephone calls, face-to-face approaches, letters and proposals.

Peter Drucker summarised the challenge perfectly with “The aim of marketing is to make selling superfluous.”

Until marketing is consistently achieving that aim, selling will continue to be a very necessary activity, and a major determinant of business success.

In the process of converting prospects to customers, a consistent contributor to the erosion of Trust, or the instant and permanent destruction of Trust, is the lack of congruence between marketing and sales activities and perceived attitudes.Too often a sought-after prospect will respond favourably to a marketing activity, but when exposed to the organisation’s sales tactics, the prospect feels like they are now dealing with an entirely different entity.


Trust-Paced Marketing.


To expand on the definition of marketing above, the role of Trust-Paced Marketing is to build a reputation or a brand that inspires Trust within your target marketplace.

One vital change in that marketplace, which did not exist 4 or 5 years ago, relates to the balance of knowledge about your products and services, between buyer and seller.

The one word explanation is the internet.

Previously the buyer approached your marketplace relying on your marketing, and that of your competitors, to compile their knowledge and take a purchasing decision.Apart from a possible testimonial or feedback from family and friends, the buyer gathered information from the seller’s marketing activities, or by attending sales presentations.

Today, the buyer can evaluate your marketing claims against an almost limitless, and rapidly multiplying amount of information via blogs, social media sites , and commercial operations such as Morningstar for financial products.

The buyer can do a detailed evaluation of every aspect of your business and product offerings, without exposing their interest or initiating direct contact. And the exchange rate between deposits and withdrawals in their Trust Account applies. Take your web site content as an example. 99% may be meticulously correct and Trust building, but an incorrect claim in the other 1% can destroy that Trust instantly and permanently, particularly when exposed and “authenticated” via the internet blogs.

And you probably will not get to defend your marketing claim – even if correct.

Harsh, but that’s today’s reality.

The takeaway from this harsh reality is that a commitment to trustworthy marketing is more important than ever. Minor Trust-eroding issues that in previous times caused little or no bottom line damage, can escalate today into business altering events.