Ethics In Marketing

Denise Ryder, Marketing Coach
filed under "Marketing"

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