Companies are always doing their best to position their products or services in a way that appeals to their target audience. With all of today’s commercialization and advertising, the important element of trust can often be overlooked.
Trust is necessary in order to create an emotional connection with consumers. For example, why do companies like Apple have a loyal following? Their customers trust the brand and Apple does a good job of making their products relatable. When you make your product or service seem more human, it becomes something personal and relatable to the end user.
For IT channel partners who may be working with a number of manufacturers and offer a wide range of services, humanizing a brand is essential in today’s competitive market. How can VARs & MSPs accomplish this? Let’s evaluate three ways you can better humanize your business.
1) Be human!
In your campaign imagery, consider featuring happy people interacting with your products or services, contrary to images without people that may feel colder and less personal. One of the biggest mistakes companies make when creating promotional materials or content is that they neglect to incorporate images of people that consumers can relate to. When your audience sees this, they feel less connected and the content seems less relatable. Simple themes such as smiling or shaking hands can do so much in creating a connection with your consumers.
In your copy, try not to sound bland and unapproachable. Your potential customers will easily become bored and uninterested. Make your material sound personal and exciting to read, using familiar language whenever possible. When your consumer is engaged, they will want to learn more.
2) Use testimonials, publish e-books, write a blog
When your audience reads customer-success stories or sees evidence of how your product or service has helped a real human (someone just like them), they will begin to trust your brand. Posting testimonials on your website will make your brand seem more personal and more credible. Offering help in the form of guides or e-books will allow interested individuals or companies to see value in your services. When they see that they can learn something or if your content has helped them solve a problem, they’ll come back for more. Educating and delighting your consumers through blogs will help them see your brand as more than a company but an industry leader and a wealth of valuable information.
3) Be consistent
Whether you’re communicating with your customers or partners, availability is everything. If it’s on a social platform or blog post, continue to be consistent by posting regularly and reaching out to your audience. Follow up when people leave comments and post engaging content that aims to generate further conversation.
Publishing content on a regular basis gives your audience something to look forward to. Now if the content offers real value, that further builds on that trust that you’ve begun to create with them. If they so happen to reach out to you, do not keep them waiting. Respond promptly with a friendly and personal tone and always seek to be available. By being proactive and responsive to your audience, they’ll never have any reason to doubt you.
These tips are meant to help you humanize your brand but what’s even more effective is just to be yourself. Stop overanalyzing different ways to appear human and just think of what your consumer would want. Step into their shoes and understand what problems they have and how you can really offer solutions to help them. How do you talk to people in person? What are things you would like to hear that would make you build trust in a brand? When you approach your campaigns with this perspective, you are one step closer to humanizing your brand.
Are you an IT Channel Partner looking for B2B marketing strategies? Click below for a FREE guide: Marketing Playbook for VARs & MSPs