Complete trust between people is infrequent, and between companies and individuals even more rare. Trust is not attainable by request or appeal and it is not transferrable. It has to be earned. Trust sits on the three pillars of authenticity, integrity and honesty; promising only what you can give, and giving what you promise. Attitude and preference, as they relate to how a customer thinks about your company, are as likely to be informed by whether a customer feels they can trust you as by the capabilities your company can provide.

However, in many cases, companies have defaulted on their obligations to customers, who feel ignored, poorly treated, and often perceive that their concerns as customers or consumers are rarely heard. I refer to this as the Trust Default.

There is no question that trust in business has become more elusive. According to the Edelman Trust Barometer, just 45% of customers in the US trust businesses. In Europe, the situation is worse. Across the United Kingdom, France and Germany, less than one-third (31%) of customers feel they can trust business. The banking crisis and subsequent bailouts across the world have combined to infect industry in general, and financial services in particular, with a lingering malodorous tumor.

As a consequence of the Trust Default, developing trusted relationships with customers has never been more difficult. On the one hand the consequence of this is that the task of establishing true customer affinity might seem a little ambitious. But, on the other hand, if you are prepared to make the journey, you will find that not many others have joined you on the voyage. When you arrive at the destination you may well find that your only companion will be your customer.

From my perspective, what happened during the economic turmoil of the last decade was not so much a recession as a fundamental restructuring of the economic order. This is a good thing! It has forced us once more to focus on true difference versus positioned differentiation. To address the Trust Default, it has demanded a focus on values and ethics, underlining the value of trust as an asset.

We should recognize that, while honesty and integrity as propellants of commercial energy have not necessarily always been the most comfortable bedfellows with the pursuit of profit and revenue, what is scarce is valuable. If you are prepared to address the Trust Default, you have the opportunity to gain a considerable advantage over your competitors.

If you are hoping to influence the customer’s attitude towards you then you better be sure that what they hear about you from peers, academics, company technical experts, and the regular employees is what you would like them to hear. The reality is that what you, as a business, might broadcast in your public statements is of diminishing value. The actions you take and the value you add to the community in which you and your customer exist is what will fundamentally determine your reputation, and how you are perceived.

10 Steps to Building Trust

1. Invest your time to understand your customers’ industry and their business. If you’re to advise, you must be a subject matter expert.
2. You need to give value first and expect nothing in return. You are building a relationship for the long term, and it is only OK to ask for something from the customer when you’ve earned the right.
3. You need to be authentic, honest and fair – in everything, always.
4. You must focus on areas of Mutual Value, where what’s good for the customer is also good for you – in that order. Explore the customer’s Business Strategy, understand or suggest Business Initiatives to deliver on that strategy, and when you find an area that will make a real difference to the customer, see if you have a solution to their problem. Start with the problem, not the solution. If you discover that it is only good for you but not for the customer, then you should explain that to her and explore alternative approaches.
5. Choose your customers wisely, only applying the resources to customers for whom your products or services can truly deliver value. Don’t try to force-fit your solution. It will only end up in tears.
6. Trust is a two-way street. If you are delivering on your promise, then it is only fair that the customer holds up her end of the bargain.
7. Recognize that some customers don’t want this level of attention or relationship.
8. It boils down to value, and value propositions needs to be business-based, not feature-based, addressing the Critical Success Factors for key Business Initiatives. This means that you must first truly understand the customer’s business.
9. Recognize that the impact on a customer of a bad buying decision is usually greater than the impact on you of a lost deal – and then act accordingly
10. Adopt the customer’s perspective. Sit in the customer’s chair and ask the question: “Would I buy from this company?” If you answer that question honestly, it will guide your actions.

Trust is Personal

Lasting business relationships between the seller and the buyer, like lasting personal relationships, are built on a foundation of trust that for each of us is fundamentally personal. While always important, trust as a determining factor of business transaction efficacy increases or decreases in amplitude at different phases of the business interaction, because risk transfers from seller to buyer before and after the sale. Be conscious of that shift, bearing in mind that while you and your buyer may be engaged in a commercial interaction for your respective companies, trust is fundamentally personal.

Nothing Else Matters is a very personal song written by James Hetfield, singer and rhythm guitarist with the American heavy metal band Metallica. He wrote this song while he was on the phone with his then girlfriend. There are four lines in the song that go to the heart of establishing a trusted relationship:

If you want to be trusted by your customers, you will need to trust them first.

Now you can flip the Trust Default on its head. It should refer to the default position you take – a willingness to trust. If this is not currently your default approach, you will need an open mind for a different view. You may feel uncomfortable about this – but it is a major point that will deeply underpin your future success.

Trust is so important in developing long-term customer relationships that it is not too much of a stretch to say “… and nothing else matters.” Thank you, James Hetfield.

(This post is an extract from #1 Amazon bestseller Account Planning in Salesforce)

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Donal Daly is Executive Chairman of Altify having founded the company in 2005. He is author of numerous books and ebooks including the Amazon #1 Best-sellers Account Planning in Salesforce and Tomorrow | Today: How AI Impacts How We Work, Live, and Think. Altify is Donal’s fifth global business enterprise.