I received the following question last week...

With all scams and unethical behaviour found
online, what are some of the most effective
ways to generate trust as a marketer?

Annette Andkjaer
Vacations For Fun And Profit
I'll Teach You How To Travel, Save Money... And Make A Profit!
http://www.UltraValueVacations.com mailto:Annette@UltraValueVacations.com

Good question Annette and thanks for firing it in ;o)

Ok, let's tackle this issue and give you some ideas on what you can do as
business owners to show you are ethical.

I've said numerous times that people do business with people they; know,
like and trust. The best way to gain that trust is to share what you know.
People come online to get information, information that will help them make
a more informed buying decision. Whether that information is about health
and nutirition, pet care or, as in Annette's case, travel.

So what sort of information can you offer that will help build that trust?

Well, of course it depends upon the industry you are in. However, ummm
if I were in the Health and Nutrition industry I would gather information about
the products I was selling. For each product, I would write a little info piece
about what the product does, the results I saw with using the product myself,
perhaps a couple of testimonials from others who are using the very same
product.

If I belonged to an affiliate program that sells leads, then again, I would write
an info piece on what to look for when buying leads, the importance of
tracking, the importance of a 2 step marketing plan, etc.

If my business was a mortgage consultant then I would again write and
share my knowledge with respect to mortgages and things that people
need to be aware of when mortgage shopping. I would offer an incentive -
perhaps something along the lines of shopping for a mortgage on their
behalf.

In EVERY case it is information that will help your potential customer. That
speaks volumes to them.

If you are a member of an affiliate program and if you are just sending people
to your affiliate page, well...you (and your prospects) are left to the reading
of the ad copy that your program has written. Read these pages yourself and
put yourself in the shoes of a prospect. How do you feel when you read the
copy?

The copy written by your affiliate program is written to do one thing "SELL."
There is nothing there to really build trust and rapport with your prospect.
THAT'S WHY YOU NEED YOUR OWN SITE. Obviously I have written about
this before and this is a subject of its own...but needless to say. If you want
to show that YOU are ethical and someone to be trusted in, then do business
right. Get a site of your own, a site where YOU OWN IT and therefore can add
to it with the good quality information that people look for.

It makes doing buinsess easier for you.

Next....

Make yourself available to do business with. With the new FTC Guidelines
now and the fact that we have to include an address and phone number, that
of course helps a little for us. But, what I am talking about is what happens
after a person contacts you initially. Someone takes the time to email you,
asking for more information should set off a few triggers for you:

1st - they are interested in doing business with you, possibly, because they
took the additional time to email you and ask more questions.

2nd - keep track of the email queries you do receive because these can
also be added information that you can include on your site.

Ok, let me continue on here...

When someone emails you then you now have the opportunity to share
your knowledge by answering their question, but, they also get to know
you a little bit more. You are communicating and the words you use and
the way you come across in your writing are important here. Know your
business and that builds confidence not only in you, but confidence within
your potential customer. If there is something you don't know or a question
you can't answer, then say so. DON'T FLUFF your way out to save a sale,
it will turn around and bite you in the butt. Instead, email back saying you
don't have the answer to the question but are on it and will get an answer
back to you as soon as I find out for you.

Honesty is ALWAYS the best policy...you won't lose a customer if you
are honest...you'll gain their trust and respect ;o)

Treat people the way you want to be treated. Hmmm a golden rule that
sounds so simplistic and easy but sometimes forgotten :o( I receive
emails back after a person has purchased an info product from me
wanting their money back. Not a problem, it happens. What I do is email
the person back and ask them what it was that they were after or expecting
from the product. From there is opens up a communicative process. NOT
to rip their head off, but, to help my business...let me explain that further.

I had someone purchase Autopilot Income Streams which is an ebook
that shows you how to create your own eCourse, gives you templates
for your own course and of course gives you ideas and tips for marketing
the course. They sent an email asking for a refund because the product
wasn't what they thought it was. I emailed the person back and asked
them to explain to me what they were looking for. Once I found out what
it was then I fired an email back explaining to them where they could
find what it was they were looking for.

I didn't do this looking to get anything out of it, other than to help this
person. But, by taking the time to do that this person subscribed to
ProfitSpace and has referred others to me. That of course was a huge
bonus and it wouldn't have happened otherwise if I didn't treat them the
way I wanted to be treated and took the time to communicate with
them. Know that this bonus doesn't happen all the time, but when it
does it certainly does give you the sign that you are doing business
the right way. You will certainly come across others who are quite
the opposite and that is ok as well. Just remember two wrongs don't
make a right. If they want to be rude, let them, just ensure you remain
totally professional and deal with them accordingly ;o)

There are false claims out there and of course there are those who are
unethical and it makes it harder for those of us who are. You can't reach
everyone obviously, but the idea here is to really shine through ethically
for those you do come into contact with. People talk about good service
and ethics or bad. Plant the seed by always being ethical and that seed
will spread through many networks...it really does ;o)

I wrote an article "How To Show the Honesty and Build The Trust and Make
Your Business More Believable???" It will give you more ideas on the
subject of ethics, http://www.profitspace.com/belief.html

About the Author
Denise Ryder is a Marketing Coach writing from her home
office in Northern Ontario (Canada). Hey...are you a do-it
yourself marketer? Are you struggling a little? Need just a
little help??? Can you imagine how far your business could
grow with a Marketing Coach in your pocket??? Take a no
cost Test Drive TODAY!!
http://www.profitspace.com/coach