How To Become a Trusted Authority and Enhance the Online Reputation of Your Business

This webinar was presented by Jennifer DeRosa of TechCare, LLC through SCORE – Fairfield County, CT on July 7th, 2020.

We recommend watching the full presentation to learn how to build yourself as a trusted authority, but if you’re short on time, we’re including some of the most important notes right here below!

Show Notes:

Our Goals

Get More  Leads

Organically
Referrals
Paid Ads
Networking

Turn prospects into customers

Build Trust
Offer Great Information
Be the Authority

Keep our Customers happy

Continue to give great service
Be responsive
Our customers’ best interests drive our business

Steps to take to build trust

Professional Logo

• If you are a real company, show it with a real logo
• Don’t cheap out on this most important thing
• This is your branding possibly for decades
• A logo shows that you are serious and will be a serious vendor

Professional Website

• A website is expected in 2020
• An older looking website will make you look like a company that is out of
• touch, not up-to-date in the latest trends, slow, no attention to detail, non-caring
• Your website builds trust or erodes trust – which one does your do?

Photos on Website

• All times possible, use your own photos
• If using stock, do NOT use super “stocky” photos
• Photos on your website erode trust or build trust whether you like it or not

Portfolio of Work

• If possible, show your personal work on your website
• Have photos professionally taken if at all possible. It is worth the money
• Your work builds trust
• Show smaller jobs and larger jobs to attract different customers

Your Google Business Listing

• Gain Control of your Business listing
  business.google.com
• Fill out ALL information possible (website, phone number, hours, holidays, photos, service areas, description, etc)

Google Reviews and Responses

• This may be the most important item in this presentation
• Get your Google Review link and send personally to cheerleader customers.
• Goal should be 100 by the end of the year. If you are over, then add 100 more this year.
• Respond to all reviews!! Especially negative reviews
• Ask potential and new customers to read yours
• Pull reviews into your website

Facebook Reviews

• Ask your cheerleader customers to leave you a review at: https://www.facebook.com/FacebookPageName/reviews
• Respond to all reviews, especially negative ones.
• Google will list your facebook reviews on your business listing
• You can ask customers to leave both or one

LinkedIn Recommendations

• For self-employed, it will pertain to the business
• From your profile page, directly ask for recommendations
• Personally, ask for one from each role you have had in your career

Industry Review Sites
(Houzz, HomeAdvisor, Angie’s List, etc)

• If you have all matching information, Google will pull in your reviews
• Serve to build more trust
• Check your accounts on these platforms if you have not already. Add content, photos, etc.
• Some require paid membership

Be a Teacher, Not a Salesperson

• Build trust by explaining your industry and trends to potential customers
• Show Don’t Tell
• When you are a teacher, people feel you care about their best interests
• Use this philosophy for any content you generate

Active Social Media

• Choose the platform that best fits your abilities, industry, and desires
• Create interesting content
• LINK to existing content
• Any new blog posts, push out here.
• Pull photos in to your website
• Remember that different potential customers use different platforms
• Don’t forget about YouTube

Blog

• Pick a theme and write about that
• Think of this as a “Learning Center”
• If you feel inspired, write a lot at once and schedule out
• Think about customers in all parts of the buyers journey. Build trust early on in that journey

Guest Post

• Ask other blogs in your industry if you can contribute
• Push your guest posts out to social media, your own website, and email

Email Out Quality Information

• If you have built an email list, send out quality information – not only sales information
• Quality information over time gets people to read your content
• Have the reader’s best interests at heart
• Email links to content on your website or others

Create Video Content

• Showing yourself on a video describing a job, offering advice, etc builds immediate trust
• Create a channel where you host your videos and put that channel on your website
  Lighting, stability both important.
• Edit with title slide if possible.
• Even a lot of quick, useful videos goes a LONG way, especially for HowTo

Create Professional Proposals

• If you get to this stage, impress your potential client. Don’t lose them at this stage.
• Include pricing up front. Describe details following.
• Think about what potential customers want to read here, not what you think would be good.
• Systems exist that: allow you to see when a person has opened the proposal, allow for e-signing, payments, saved content, etc.

Use Professional Payment Options

• This is an easy step.
• We don’t want customers to have a hard time paying. Make it super easy.
• Offer options for CC, ACH, and standard checks.

Go Public with a Podcast,TV Show, Newspaper Articles

• Be creative here
• This step takes a bit of work but can pay off in a big way!
• These are neutral parties. If you are featured, you instantly gain trust
• Push out any of these items to social media, email, blog

Attend Industry Conferences and Share via social/website/email

• Showing that you are participating in industry events builds trust
• Constantly learning builds trust
• Shows your passion for your industry and new trends
• Potential customers will believe that you will take the new information back into your daily routine and processes which will benefit them

Be Everywhere and Let Potential and Current Customers Know

• Do you best to be everywhere.
• Give talks
• Let people know
• Think like a Trusted Authority, believe you are a trusted authority, and have your customers’ best interests at heart

Thank you for attending!
Jennifer DeRosa • [email protected] • 203-984-7444