Images of flying shrapnel and burning flames take over the minds of those familiar with the Ford Pinto.
This tragic public danger in the 1970s gave rise to one of the most iconic examples of the danger of cutting corners.
It resulted in the largest punitive damage of its kind, costing Ford Motor Company nearly 130mm.
If there’s one thing we can learn from this explosive PR failure, it’s that value and indiscretion cannot be confused.
Thankfully, scenarios like this are the exception to the rule, because the more important things or objects are, the more carefully they are usually handled.
Investing is one of the important areas of life that requires caution, which is why advertisers only entrust their marketing dollars to those who have earned their trust.
Fostering this trust should be the highest goal of every paid media professional.
While client trust is essential in any role, the recurring nature of our profession heightens its importance.
This article will demonstrate Why customer trust matters in paid media, and provide tips for cultivating it.
5 great reasons why customer trust matters
1. Your career will be more fulfilling
One of the most humbling aspects of overseeing a digital marketing agency is the number of our long-term partners.
The most valuable aspect of this loyalty is the affirmation of our customers’ satisfaction.
Give me a happy patron and I will give you a client who meets expectations.
The most critical reason you build customer trust is to maintain your integrity.
Prioritize this and you will deepen the fulfillment of what you do.
Achieving your intentions requires character, and the exercise of character can be very satisfying.
2. Trust reduces stress
Who wins when you have the least stress level?
Answer: Everyone.
You, your family, your boss, colleagues and clients.
Do you want to manage an account book infected with permanent turnover, onboard new accounts and learn new advertisers?
of course not.
You’d rather enjoy a more predictable stable book.
Paid Media Specialist There is only so much bandwidth.
If you can achieve high retention rates through customer trust, your segment will consist mostly of long-term customers.
In this kind of performance-based work, you can’t completely eliminate stress; however, you can alleviate it.
Hello, relax and goodbye stress.
The mental, physical, emotional and relational benefits here are enormous, which is a second compelling reason to be a client trust connoisseur.
Unless you have a strange obsession with high blood pressure, you understand how precious it can be.
3. You will make more money
Supporting customer trust will pay dividends.
The increase in revenue will come from your consistently high retention rates and generating customer referrals.
While this may not be the most critical reason, it may be the most tempting.
4. You’ll increase retention
The most profitable customers are those who remain for many years.
The most valuable paid media strategists are those with high retention rates.
This self-evident fact boils down to simple economics: Rather than spending resources to acquire new customers, keep existing customers happy.
The cost of acquiring new customers is much higher than maintaining existing customers.
People will only place valuable assets in the custody of people they trust.
If you want to be and continue to be the marketer of choice for advertisers, building trust is the surest way to get there and stay there.
As your churn goes down, your value as a marketer goes up, which means more money in your pocket.
5. You will earn more and better referrals
Satisfied customers are referred customers.
When considering the lifetime value of a customer, we must consider the referrer, which increases the value of the referrer exponentially.
Second only to upselling and cross-selling existing customers, you will not be your sales funnel than these shoo-ins.
This is closely related to retention rates as they affect profitability, the third most important reason for maintaining customer trust.
Managing dissatisfied customers skillfully usually outlasts customers who never worry.
How to Build Trust in Paid Media
Having established the importance of customer trust, let’s explore some tips to help you cultivate it. Rather than offload the familiar list of customer experience guidelines, I want to share with you something that most paid media experts don’t know.
Dissatisfied customers can be your most valuable customers.
Did you roll your eyes?
Well… keep reading.
Every paid media professional should know the following transformation (a transformation formula…get it?).
I’ve been using it for years and sharing it with my staff because it works Convert dissatisfied customers become a valuable customer.
Managing dissatisfied customers skillfully usually outlasts customers who never worry.
If your client contacts you with concerns, capitalize on the moment by replicating the following process: express gratitude, take responsibility, show sympathy, apologize, compensate, offer reassurance, and end with confidence.
I elaborate on these below and provide an example so you can see this.
1. Express gratitude
The first thing to do is thank your customer for taking the time to detail their dissatisfaction.
If you truly value them and their business, you welcome any feedback that will allow you to ensure they are happy with their overall experience.
Expressing gratitude in this situation provides you with a unique springboard to convey that emotion.
2. Admit your mistakes
We live in an age where individuals rarely admit their mistakes.
Our pride places the blame on anything other than ourselves.
Consider the internal resistance you feel when you need to admit your mistakes.
Ironically, the kind of acknowledgment we try to avoid is precisely the act of taking your customer relationship to the next level.
Resist the temptation to make excuses, rationalize, or justify yourself.
Humility is attractive, and admitting your mistakes is the most effective ingredient in the process.
3. Show sympathy
Empathy is a big deal, convincing you of customer frustration.
This is the moment when they know you believe their attention is worth it.
This sense of recognition is often the underlying motivation for the complaint in the first place.
You need to be specific about their pain points here, highlight how disappointing or embarrassing the specific situation is (whatever applies), etc.
This recognition will support them in a positive, disarming way.
Expressing sympathy in a non-generic way will make you an advocate in their eyes, not an adversary.
4. Apologize
People can recognize fake apologies just as they can pretend to smile.
After thanking them for their feedback, admitting mistakes, and showing empathy, the soil in your client’s heart will be ready to accept your apology.
The probability of acceptance is high at this point because it will feel more real.
5. Indemnity
Saying sorry is one thing, showing it is another.
Enter compensation.
Even if your mistake did not cause any financial damage, I recommend that you provide meaningful credit on your next invoice.
If this isn’t your first negligent act on this client, you might consider getting more creative, such as offering a month of free administration.
Compensation will cement your sincerity in expressing regret and provide advertisers with a sense of justice.
Their ongoing business, not to mention your reputation, is well worth it.
6. Guarantee
In addition to satisfying your customers’ desire for fairness, you need to reassure them.
Make sure they know you have a plan in place for potential future mistakes.
If the appeal is serious enough, you will need to detail what you did to avoid other mistakes.
At this point, it’s clear that you’re committed to not only getting it right, but making sure it never happens again.
Your clients already know you’re imperfect, and that’s okay because that shouldn’t surprise anyone.
They will also know that you have their support, and that is money.
7. Ask for feedback
you will want Ask for feedback About your proposed solutions to make sure they are acceptable.
If they are not satisfied with your response, your purpose is defeated.
Assuming you are reasonable, you will rarely find more or different requirements than what you offer.
This part of the process enables you to reinforce humility and communicate that the relationship is truly collaborative and not one-sided.
8. End with confidence
It is strategic to end with confidence in the future of the relationship.
With the last stroke of a keyboard or conversation, you shift focus from current concerns to future hopes.
Think of this as a reset momentum.
Transformers in action
Here is an example of how I respond to a client:
“Good afternoon, John.
First, I would like to thank you for taking the time to detail your concerns below. As someone who appreciates your business and values you, I find this type of feedback very rewarding.
This thing is clearly our fault, because you’re pretty clear about what you want; so there’s no reason why we shouldn’t execute accordingly. I know how disappointing you feel that you are wasting money, so we apologize for any inconvenience this may cause you and apologize for the oversight.
We would like to offer you a $300 credit against your next invoice as a tangible expression of our regret. Additionally, we have taken steps to ensure this remains an isolated incident. Please let me know if this makes sense for you.
Thank you again for bringing this to my attention and for giving us the opportunity to correct it.
We look forward to providing you with better service in the future! “
Can you imagine how pleasantly surprised and truly impressed your clients will be with your level of professionalism?
This formula works so well that if given the opportunity to practice it, it may be intentional to make a mistake.
Of course, there’s no need to put on a silly hat on purpose, because mistakes are inevitable.
While you still need to be very careful with your customers, you no longer need to worry about oversights.
If you add this to your customer-facing arsenal, an increase in your customer’s trust is inevitable.
Another tip: dealing with customer mishaps
As a bonus, I would like to share one more tip related to the value of dissatisfied customers.
Some of my favorite moments in a client relationship are when my client loses the ball.
Yes, I get excited when they’re late for a meeting, let alone forget it completely.
extended grace
First, as a recipient of infinite grace, I like to be a conduit for it to pass on to others.
Every failure, big or small, is an opportunity for kindness.
Grace, akin to humility, is not something people experience often, and it’s refreshing.
receive grace
Every time I show grace, I increase the likelihood that it will extend to me when it’s my turn to miss.
Do your best to provide grace to your clients, and you’ll stock a reservoir for yourself.
How to operate
Show grace in the face of client failures, empathize with them, and ease their discomfort.
If they apologize for being late, remind them that we’ve all been there, you totally understand.
Then let them know it’s beneficial because you’re able to get other things done, and jokingly thank them for being late.
These little moments, while seemingly inconsequential, will help deepen your relationship with your customers.
bottom line
Ready for an opportunity for a more fulfilling career, healthier life, and financial goals?
Build some customer trust!
While analytical understanding is critical in paid media and non-negotiable creativity, earning the trust of advertisers will help you weather the inevitable storm of performance challenges.
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Featured image: adriaticfoto/Shutterstock
