Humans respond instinctively to authority. It’s part of our upbringing and our nature. People who are knowledgeable, credible, and trustworthy exert greater influence through their opinions and recommendations. This is why, in the business world, what’s being sold is often less important than who’s selling it.
Of course, every company claims to be an authority in their field. However, the most successful learn how to incorporate authority cues into their marketing strategy, making them appear more honest, reliable, and capable in the eyes of their customers
Titles
Titles convey a person’s education, skills, and experience. They can also shape our perception, elevating an ordinary individual in the eyes of your customers.
- Academic Titles. Doctors, professors, engineers, etc. These are especially useful in the medical industry or any field requiring specialized knowledge.
- Professional Titles. CEO, Founder, Director, etc. Highly effective in the business world, where expertise must be built up through practical experience. Jeff Bezos graduated summa cum laude from Princeton, but people listen to him because he’s Founder and CEO of Amazon.
- Job Titles. Apple Genius, Shopify Expert, Certified Technician, etc. These sorts of titles build confidence in your customers, assuring them that your staff is well-qualified to meet their needs.
It’s important to remember that in most cases, titles only lend authority when they belong to people outside your company. We don’t buy Crest toothpaste because it’s recommended by the Founder and CEO, but because it’s recommended by 4 out of 5 dentists.
Job titles don’t do much to bolster claims about your products and services. Instead, they tell customers the person they’re talking to has the skills to assist them, which soothes their anxiety and lets them know how much you value their business.
Trappings
We all judge by first impressions. In fact, according to research, we form opinions about people less than ten seconds after meeting them. Because it happens so quickly, how you present yourself has a big impact on your standing.
This goes beyond being well-groomed, well-dressed, and well-spoken. In the digital world, this requires a website with a unique visual design that simultaneously conforms to the expectations of your customers.
In other words, it needs to be different, but not too different. Customers don’t look to Apple and Citibank for the same thing. Therefore, in order to be effective, your website has to tell people you understand what they want from you. Are customers looking to you to be edgy and innovative? Professional and reliable? Sophisticated and exciting? Everything from your typeface to your layout needs to reflect this.
Credibility
Because everyone knows you have a vested interest in promoting your company, whatever you say about yourself is bound to be met with a little skepticism.
However, as stated above, claims made by people outside your company are far more likely to be believed. These can be ordinary customers or recognized social influencers. Influencers come in all stripes but share three important characteristics:
- Attractiveness. People are naturally drawn to beauty. In fact, we typically assume beautiful people are more intelligent, honest, and successful than the average person. However, beauty encompasses more than a person’s physical appearance. Intelligence, grace, and charisma all play a role and allow a person to capture our attention.
- Similarity. People who share our values, attitudes, and background are seen as inherently more trustworthy. For instance, if you make products for college-aged women, a 22-year-old spokeswoman is going to sell more than a 70-year-old man.
- Familiarity. We know celebrities aren’t our friends, but because we see them so often, we feel we know them. When they endorse a product or service, we react almost like it’s been recommended by someone close to us.
Expertise
People with demonstrable expertise naturally enjoy greater authority. In fact, most authority cues (titles, trappings, and testimonials) hinge on your ability to deliver concrete, practical results. This establishes you as an authority in your field, worth being taken seriously, at face value.
Use your website and social media to draw people’s attention to your abilities and accomplishments. Some of the simplest and most effective ways are:
- An About Us Page. This is a great way to advertise the background, qualifications, and experience of your staff. Talk about their education, accomplishments, and time spent with other influential companies. If they’ve been featured in a prominent newspaper or website, mention it as well.
- Awards. List any major awards your company has received on the homepage of your website. The larger the award, the more credence it provides.
- Blogs. Creating a blog lets you talk about your company’s products and services, how they can be applied in real-world settings, and how they’ve been applied in the past. It’s also a chance to talk about industry trends and how they might affect your readers. Even if customers don’t read every word, it shows you understand the space where you operate.
- Photos & Videos. Photos and videos let customers see the benefits you provide firsthand. You can post pictures of a project you’ve completed or live demonstrations of your products, anything that shows you know what you’re doing.
