After 20+ years in the online world, it sticks as being the single most important commodity that a community has to trade.
There are of course many different levels of trust, and we'll not discuss the cash register implications here, but rather how trust relates to an entire transaction, and focus on how it comes into play on the web.
To save time, I'll make a couple of assumptions which may or may not be 100% certain, but certain enough to hang a conversation on. Few if any customers do not understand that you are in business to make a profit. Any who don't understand this, are probably not your ideal customer.
That said, I think that the concept of true value is one that we should use as an operating principle. Here in the U.S., it's hard to visit a public bathroom without some advertising message, and most of them appeal to the lowest common denominator.
Buy one get one free....80% off retail... Absolutely ends this week
You get the picture, the point is that for better or worse, this is what the consumer has come to expect from business, and I think that that is sad for all involved. I respect real salesman, and know many successful ones...the above phrases are NOT in their working vocabulary.
I'll get off of my soapbox now...how does this relate to the community project? First and foremost, trust is a process, not an event. No matter how well we do, it is something that is built over time. I'm sure you have a reserve of it with your existing customers. This will be a definite advantage, but we'll still have to prove ourselves on the web.
To really promote an open discussion, one that builds trust, there are some potential liabilities. The customer is going to have to know that they can speak their minds without fear of any sort of recrimination or hidden "pay back".
I have one client who deals in a commodity, and competes on price almost exclusively. He was afraid that he would take a lot of heat in a community setting because his products were inexpensive, and had a fairly high fail rate. What we found was that his customers felt like the value he offered more than offset the inconvenience involved in replacing an occasional faulty part. This was valuable information, but in order to get it, he had to be willing to open up to receive it.
This is not to say that you won't get the occasional malcontent who thinks that bashing you will drive a better deal etc., but if the customer has been treated with respect and dignity; and has received true value you have little to fear here.
Like many things in life, the answer here is simple, but often not easy. Those two words are similar in some cases...but very different in this context. The simple answer is:
Do what you say you'll do, when you say you'll do it. When in doubt, over deliver.
Make sure the customer gets an answer on a timely basis. Very soon your customers will grow accustomed to web time, and what used to be an acceptable response time will no longer be as acceptable. This doesn't have to be the final answer, but an acknowledgement that the question is being addressed at the very least.
A rigorous privacy policy stated clearly. One of the problems in the online world is spam and junk email and popups. My usual rule for this is quite simple. I take all reasonable precautions against spam mail harvesters, and NEVER share customer information with anyone for any reason...it has worked for me so far.
As I said, these things are simple, but not always easy. They all take a certain commitment of time and follow through, and I know that we're all busy as it is. I think however, that you'll find that the extra effort will be worth the trouble.
Unlike products or services, trust cannot be easily replicated by any other company, and they certainly can't do it any faster than we can. Andrew Carnegie the steel tycoon was once asked the secret of his success to which he replied:
Put all of your eggs in one basket...and then guard that basket.
If you substitute trust for eggs, I think that it is still a valid formula for success. There are certain challenges presented by the web in the area of trust, but also some distinct advantages available if we're willing to put in the time and effort.
Well, that's my sermon on trust. I realize that you probably already know and practice this, but I wanted to make clear how crucial I think this is.
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