Trust is in short supply these days, so how do you earn it?
We live in an era of false expertise. Social media feeds are bombarded by fake news and misleading headlines. Institutions and organizations are leveraging the power of content marketing to manipulate audiences and attract more visitors. And anyone who’s done a few hours of research on a topic can bill themselves as an authority on the subject, starting their own YouTube channel and starting to get published on a variety of publications.
Accordingly, public trust in information online has gone down. So how can you be persuasive in this era of false expertise?
Be Authentic
One of your best tools is going to be authenticity. Here’s the great news: you don’t have to try hard to be authentic, since you just have to be yourself. This is a scary thought if you’re used to modeling a more professional or more polished image, or if you have to try hard to align with a brand voice. But if you show off your personality and you genuinely believe what you say, you’re going to have a much easier time cultivating trust with your audience.
Prove Your Claims
Don’t just make a bold claim: work to prove it. If you can back up your claims with evidence, you’ll have a much easier time persuading your audience. Saints statistics when you can and tell anecdotes when you can’t; every piece of information will serve you well.
Acknowledge Alternatives and Weaknesses
Don’t be afraid to acknowledge alternative ideas and weaknesses in your current ideas. It shows that you have a more thorough understanding of the topic and makes people trust what you say more.
Admit and Make Up for Mistakes
Finally, are you willing to admit and make up for any mistakes you make. We all get things wrong from time to time, regardless of how much expertise we have. But people are much more trusting individuals with the courage and integrity to admit those mistakes.
Do you need help building trust and persuading an audience? Quez media can help. Contact us today for more information!
