A company can spend millions of dollars on an advanced marketing campaign, but it’s quite impressive to see how little that means compared to a friend of yours recommending or warning you away from a select brand.
We all consider the real, human experience of those we trust to be on a much higher priority level than any marketing effort, even if that human perspective is often just an opinion, and entirely subjective.
At the very least, we know that our friend has our best interests in mind, even if they have a slight bias.
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Now, while you’re unlikely to train a range of double agents to get out there and spread the word in secret (this could make for a cool movie script, though), there are still other ways to improve your social proof mechanisms as a company.
Moreover, this can supplement, not substitute, a broader digital marketing strategy, meaning none of your hard work has to go to waste.
With that in mind, please consider some of the following advice:
Showcase Customer Testimonials
Customer testimonials are great for showing new users that your brand is trustworthy. By putting these testimonials on your website and social pages, you’re sharing real stories from happy customers. They might write about their experience, share a video, or give a star rating, or even become featured in your advetisements. This makes your brand feel more real and helps people trust it. When you have a good number of different testimonials, it helps potential customers see why they should buy from you, and encouraging honest reviews even on other platforms you don’t control can be worth that..
Display User-Generated Content
User-generated content (UGC) is when your customers post about your brand, and you can encourage them to do that in several ways. You might encourage them to share photos, videos, or posts on social media.
Sharing this content on your website and social media pages helps to show off your brand with a sense of connection to the community. You could even send customers free products for review, working with influencers.
This gives the impression that your customers are giving their stamp of approval, which makes other people trust your brand too.
Offer Secure, Recognizable Services
Safety is the most essential concern of any customer, and that’s why offering secure payment or hosting services is key.
That certainly involves trusted payment solutions for high risk businesses. This means using strong security measures for things like payment info and personal data. It also means showing off any awards or certifications your brand has earned in partnership with other platforms.
When people see that your brand follows industry standards and keeps their info safe, they’re more likely to trust you and even risk that first purchase, even if you’re something of a new brand trying to make its way.
With this advice, you can see that not only is social proof the most valuable marketing tool of all, but in some ways, you can automate much of its work.
