Do you work in an advisory or service-based role? Here’s how we create content that builds trust on screen.
Marketing is all about relationship building.
Whether it be a networking event, over a client dinner, or through the screen, you’re making connections. You’re demonstrating how you can help people and why you’re the right person to do it.
You’re building trust – in your product, in your service, and in your brand.
While trust is the currency that makes all business go round, it’s particularly important in service positions, such as advisors or consultants.
That’s why we wanted to share our process for creating content that’s intentionally designed to showcase your expertise and forge a relationship of trust with your audience.
How To Create Content That Builds Trust
1. Identify Foundational Themes
Trust starts with an intentional, purposeful brand message and voice that resonates with your target audience and provides value. To develop cohesive messaging, consider what your brand values are, as well as your core messages. Then shape your content themes around that.
For example, a family law firm might have core values of ethics, personal care, and community. A core message might be that the client is treated with respect and dignity at every opportunity, from the moment they walk in until the case is closed. The firm’s content themes could be: the ethics of family law, the value of personalized legal strategies, community causes that support families, and maintaining respect in tough legal circumstances.
“Each theme should be a substantial topic related to your business or industry and represent an important keyword search term,” writes John Jantsch of Duct Tape Marketing.
2. Outline Topic Clusters
Once you’ve established your core themes, you’re well on your way to creating content that builds trust. Next, it’s time to make a list of topic ideas and cluster them according to your foundational themes. Start by writing down at least 10 topic ideas per theme. Think of common questions you hear from clients. Consider misconceptions you wish your clients understood better. Brainstorm all the ways you do things differently from your competition. Do some research to figure out the common search terms your audience is using. Once you have a long list of ideas, group them according to your themes. Now you don’t just have topic ideas – you have a conversation.
3. Develop Your Deliverability Platform
Once you’ve developed intentional content themes and ideas, the next step is choosing how you want to deliver your content. Start with a little audience research to decide which platforms are most effective for the people you’re trying to reach. Try not to overdo it by adding too many platforms to your strategy. Instead choose a few where you can make the biggest impact. Consider varying your platforms, as well. Rather than choosing three social media platforms, for example, opt for an email newsletter, video channel and social account. This allows you to reach customers at different stages in the buyer journey, as well as tell stories in different styles and lengths.
4. Choose Your Content Types
Once you’ve established your platforms, there are a few factors to consider when choosing your content types. First, return to your audience research to see which types your audience prefers most. Think about the types of content that will be best suited for each phase of your storytelling, such as photography for your social media platforms and video for your website. Finally, consider the types of content that are most likely to build trust in your brand. Blogs and videos give you space to highlight your expertise and solve problems for your audience. Print marketing and high-resolution portraits tell your audience you have staying power; you’re in this for the long haul. Reviews and testimonials add credibility and can be incorporated into other content types to really drive your message home. When created with intention and purpose, any content type should work to increase trust in your brand; however these are the specific forms of content that builds trust.
5. Create Consistently
This is the most important step. If you do everything before this step, but then fail to share your content consistently, then none of it will have mattered. Consistency builds trust. Showing up over and over, doing what you say you’re going to do, reliably sharing content with people who come searching for it – that’s how you build trust.
Over the years, we’ve learned that consistency is best achieved with a realistic plan. Our SchlickArt Visual Marketing Strategy & Planning Session teaches you how to plan, create and publish high-quality visual content that accomplishes your marketing goals and feels authentically you. Each session is custom-designed to target your specific objectives and remove the roadblocks standing in your way – so you can craft a visual brand that’s beautiful inside and out.
Marketing Photography in Santa Clarita
When it comes to marketing photography, our goal is simple: We want you to walk away feeling like you have the best headshots in Santa Clarita. That’s why we’ve designed a line of Marketing Photography Sessions that are custom-made to make you happy. How do we do that? Simple. We pay attention to you, your needs and your business. We take the time to create a photography experience – we don’t just point, shoot and send you on your way. We bring our visual marketing background to every session, to help you make smart choices in wardrobe, appearance, posing and expression.
About Our Quality Video Marketing in Santa Clarita
With years of professional experience, Brian not only has an eye for crisp visuals and engaging shots – but also an ear for powerful storytelling. In his vision, marketing video should communicate the why behind your business and present it to the world in the most compelling visual format possible. That’s how you create content that builds trust. With a camera in his hand, Brian can turn a vision into reality and business-as-usual marketing videos into an opportunity to connect.
About SchlickArt
SchlickArt, a boutique photo and video studio in Santa Clarita, started in March 2012 with the simple idea that empowerment creates a kind of beauty and authenticity that shines through every camera lens. Built on a philosophy — rather than a product, service or person — SchlickArt has rapidly evolved, meeting professional portraiture, business photo and business video needs as diverse as the community we capture. It’s the desire to take care of you, the client, that drives us at SchlickArt.