Brand Transparency in the Digital Age
In the modern world with information access dominated by social media sharing, consumers are already familiar with baiting marketing techniques and trickery. This is an easy trigger for consumers to start bashing a brand and damage their reputation in the process. Transparency is one of the aspects consumers have started to deeply appreciate with brands.
Revealing faults is never pleasant, however creating transparent content should be focused on showcasing what you already do. Create brand transparency and a reliable brand image by aligning your values and marketing with authenticity. Consider these transparency practices:
State Your Core Beliefs
Make your vision and mission statement clear and visible. Don’t bury it somewhere on your website. Show your passion by sharing why and what the brand has set out to do. People appreciate sincerity, and sharing your brand’s vision and work principles can help create an accurate perception of the business.
Share Glimpses behind the Scenes
You can increase product assurance and improve customer relations by sharing your ideas, production and delivery plans. This might look like ordinary information to you, but it might be intriguing to customers.
Nowadays consumers want to know the sources of their purchases, and it’s important to show where your products come from. So don’t be afraid to show your facilities, production processes, product demonstrations and how your services are delivered.
Be Transparent About Mistakes
In a time when authenticity is highly valuable, businesses have to own their mistakes. Consumers will get suspicious of companies that try to cover up their flaws, throwing a negative light on the brand’s reputation.
Moreover, sharing a vulnerability can actually lead to increased engagement. At first sight it can seem daunting, but public honesty and brand transparency is the best way to build consumer trust and brand reputation. Every brand should allocate marketing resources to brand perception, with analysis of social media and review websites, to identify popular product complaints to address them openly.
Create Channels for Open Discussion
Customer feedback can be scary, but it shouldn’t put you off from using it to improve your products and services. Customers will appreciate the opportunity to be heard, and consumer insight might just provide the fix for your product. If you make changes to your product following customer feedback, make sure to share it with consumers.
Privacy and Data Policies
One recent particular topic that has garnered the attention of consumers is data and privacy policies of brands. Consumers want to know how their data is being used and shared. According to a Consumer Policy Research Center, 95% of people want businesses to give options to opt out of information collected about them.
Make your policies accessible and easy to read. Even with marketing emails, it’s important to give your audience options for managing their preferences and opting out of future communications. Show customers that their privacy are your priority.
