Title: How authenticity affects your business
1Website Design Centre
- Leading Edge Business Options
2How authenticity affects your business
Businesses that are authentic will inspire and
prosper a statement difficult to argue. By its
nature, marketing your business isnt authentic
but in the digital age where customers are
becoming more and more savvy thats a
preconception that must change. The busier and
more online customers lives become the more they
crave something that is genuine. They dont just
want a product or a service, they want an
experience something honest, transparent and
more authentic. Businesses that provide this are
the ones set to survive. What is
authenticity? Being authentic means remaining
true to who you are, what you do and who you
service. Authenticity works for your business
because it
3How authenticity affects your business
- Raises your business above the competition
- Build your image and identity into something
truly influential - Provides substance to your products, services,
brand and business - Ensures customers can relate to your business
- Assists customers to understand the benefits of
what you offer - Explains to customers that what you offer is of
high quality - Identifies your business as a trustworthy,
reliable company - Encourages engagement and can create brand
ambassadors of your audience
4How authenticity affects your business
How to be authentic Be real share your
mission, your passions, your values. Get back to
basics and share who you are and what drives you.
Best way to be seen as authentic is to BE
authentic. Create a purpose for your business
beyond making a profit. Be charitable
affiliating your business with a charity and
building campaigns around it goes a long way to
winning customers over with your altruistic
nature. For real impact a once or twice a year
donation isnt going to work, you must be a true
champion of the cause you choose. Be consistent
giving mixed messages very easily leads to
mistrust and suspicion. Act the same way online
as you do offline, be consistent across digital
platforms. While it is important to always
customise your approach to each different
platform, your core message, style and identity
should remain the same.
5How authenticity affects your business
Back up what you say Authenticity goes hand in
hand with being transparent, so avoid any
embarrassment by never making claims you cant
prove, giving evidence wherever you can, staying
true to your core mission and values, and making
sure you never post misleading information about
your business. Be responsive provide customers
and potential customers with as many ways as
possible to contact you and ensure your team is
there to respond professionally, effectively and
promptly. Be accountable if you make a
mistake admit it and be humble. Fess up and
apologise before anyone else has the chance to
publicly make a harsh judgment that could damage
your reputation further. Handled properly, being
honest about and accountable for your mistakes
could turn an oops into an advantage for your
business.
6How authenticity affects your business
Highlight your reputation its widely known how
much powerful reviews have over potential
customers, so make a show of them on your website
and through social media. A word of caution
never manipulate your reviews you will be
caught out and damage to your reputation and your
business will ensue. Nurture your audience
actively nurturing your audience will keep them
enthusiastic and engaged. Know your audience
intimately and let them get to know you too
through personal interaction, bios, videos,
blogs, behind the scenes coverage and glimpses
into the personal lives of company
members. Dont share everything while its
great to share some secrets and involve people in
some behind the scenes insights, authenticity
does not require the same level of transparency
with every relationship.
7How authenticity affects your business
A business can have many different facets as long
as they are untied underneath the umbrella of
your core identity. How your audience will react
to what you share will vary depending on who they
are, what their needs and desires are, where they
come from and how you are reaching them. Know
your limits Just like each your clients, you
and your business are unique and you will have
your own limits regarding what and how much you
are willing to share in order to build your
authenticity. Dont feel obliged to share more
than you are comfortable with. Be patient you
cant create authenticity overnight, but put in
the work and it will pay huge dividends in the
long run.
8How authenticity affects your business
Being true to yourself and your business and
honest with your clients and customers relieves
anxiety many of us didnt realise we held. It
frees up time, money and energy that would
normally be consumed by maintaining a facade.
That boost can have a huge impact on a business
as a whole and make it a real power to be
reckoned with. This is a trend which is not
going away and an open and trustworthy business
will always be a popular business. Businesses
that are not authentic will ultimately fail
regardless of whatever efforts are made to
promote them and however much money is invested
in them.
- Leading Edge Business Options
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