Jeff Tabor: My 3 Success Strategies for Building Trust

How do you stand out against your competition? How do you get a steady stream of new referrals? How do you get people to happily pay more to work with you?

One word: Trust.

You’re in a tough spot. You’ve got a lot of competition and everyone is all doing and saying the same things. Everyone says they’re the best. Everyone shows great customer testimonials. Everyone displays the media they’ve been in. Right? And the end result is a confused customer who doesn’t know who to buy from. So what can you do?

You break through to them with trust.

When people trust you then you become the default person to work with. Suddenly, all the other factors, including price, don’t matter as much. They just come to you by default… they seek you out.

So how do you become the trusted expert? Answering this question might be one of the most important things you do with your business this year.

1. Share your story.

People buy from people, not companies. People trust people, not companies. So get personal. Tell me why you started your business. What motivated you to do this? Why is it so important to you? What drives you to keep going? How does it make you feel every day to wake up and help people? What are some of your goals? Who is relying on you to make this business a success?

Make me FEEL something! If I feel connected to you… if I feel like you really care… if I feel your passion for what you do… then I’m going to trust you and I’m going to buy from you.

You don’t have to be a technical genius to share your story. Start with the about page on your website. Put a picture of you / your family / your team on all of your marketing materials. When you get brave enough, create a video of you sharing your story.

When I understand how important this business is for you it makes my decision so much easier to buy from you. (Caveat: Your business has to be important to you and you’re passionate about it beyond just making money) So what is your story?

2. Stand for something.

What is wrong with the world and how is your company making a difference? Maybe you’re an organic farmer and believe that people shouldn’t be eating processed foods. Maybe you’re a computer repair company and believe that technology should make our lives easier, not more complicated. Maybe you’re a training company and believe that people deserve great service from the suppliers they work with.

If you’re a boring company then people won’t care about you. If you take a stance on something and are working to make the world a better place, then people trust you. You’ll also get more ideal clients. The clients who will work best with you are the ones who believe in the same things you do.

If you don’t stand for anything then it’s a crapshoot. You hope that good clients find out about you. But when you stand for something and make it known, then the clients who love that stance will come and find you. They want to help you build a better world. So what do you stand for?

3. Share even more.

I get so many people who write in to me, or meet me at events and start off with, “I feel like I know you.” It’s actually kind of strange for a complete stranger to tell you that. But it’s because in my newsletter, in my videos, on my social channels, at my events, I share myself. I tell people what I’m worried about. I tell people what I’m excited about. I tell people what I’m working on. If you’re authentic, and vulnerable, and just share… don’t sell… share… you’ll earn people’s trust and they’ll want to buy from you.

You know those people who you may hang out with every now and then, and they always have this wall up? They’re always concerned with how people will judge them and so they never share anything personal? You don’t know what makes them tick or what’s good or bad in their lives? Yeah…don’t be that person.

You need to share. When you share you break down barriers and build trust. And trust leads to sales. So what can you share?

BUT I’m shy… I don’t like being in the spotlight

No problem! I’m not asking you to go out and become a master networker. I’m shy too (believe it or not). I’m not the guy who goes up to people and introduces myself. I don’t strike up conversations with the person next to me on the airplane. And it took me a while (years!) to get the courage to share my story.

You don’t have to be an outgoing person to share what you’re passionate about. And you can start by writing it down for your website. Start by writing why you started your business. Write it in your own words. And when you read it and feel proud…you feel excited…you feel like you’re doing something important…then put it up on your website.

BUT it’s not about me…I’m not an egomaniac.

Again, I felt the same way. Why should I share my story? It’s not about me…it’s about the products and services I’m delivering…it’s about the customers!

Here’s another lesson that took me years to understand: People learn through your story. By sharing your story and your journey it’s not to pound your chest and say how great you are. It’s to help inspire others to action. You’re here to help people and you want them to make the right decisions. Your story will help them do that.

So it’s not about you, it’s about them… and the most effective way to reach them is to tell your story.

Believe!

A graduate of University of California, Berkeley School of Business Administration, Jeffrey A. Tabor is Founder/CEO of Corporate Realty Advisors, advising tenants on how to best position themselves in any landlord lease/purchase negotiation. As an Ironman Triathlon enthusiast, Jeff competes nationally and internationally in triathlons, in addition to long distance swimming events, and has completed 14 Ironman triathlons to date. www.tenantrepspecialists.com

What do you think about Jeff’s take on trust? Have you seen these strategies effectively build trust in your life? How about times when you wish people around you would have deployed these strategies? I’d love to hear your comments below.