Generally, people do not trust brands and their messages through their official channels.
There is always a fear that they are underpinned by the need to increase profit margins rather than conveying the wholesale truth, including the challenges that come with side effects, whether they are foodstuff, medication, or hidden costs in technologies that will require additional activation fees, among others.
In that sense the customer is always sceptical, such that entrepreneurial brands that showcase gimmicks rather than reality will not survive in the broader global perfectly competitive markets.
This trust deficit is further exacerbated by rapid technological changes, especially in the age of AI, where issues are accelerated at a runaway pace. However, people trust people rather than corporate promises.
Also having in mind that people don’t buy products/services but a brand.
Then what is left for us entrepreneurial marketers is the brand as an asset and conveyor of what we are really serving.
That is building trust through effective brand management.
Companies and their brands, therefore should rely on reviews and recommendations by their peer customers and consumers in order to improve public perception for an indisputable trust.
Word of Mouth as we knew it then is now Electronic Word of Mouth (EWoM), which has seen the spread of the word through online spaces about reviews, comments, expressions of frustration and satisfaction on any given brand becoming commonplace.
With AI, the number of people accessing the reviews will become unlimited, enhancing the brand exposure or escalating its shortfalls.
As once said by Martin Luther King Jr, “There is power in unity, and there is power in numbers.”
So once a single customer is disappointed through some sort of short-changing by the brand then the whole world will gang on you and eventually boot you out of the market.
Therefore, good reviews become endorsements from third parties in recognition of their strength and performance.
Scaling up the performance ladder should be easier. This is every marketer’s strategic objective.
It is imperative to note that when a brand experiences a crisis and customers’ trust in it collapses, marketers and communication professionals should avoid the default mode of seeking scapegoats and invest in an in-depth understanding of the root cause of customers’ dissatisfaction and frustrations.
When a scandal of this nature consumes a brand, customers’ trust collapses, leading to a brand crisis.
As a thrust of this edition a brand that has lost its trust in the market might get another chance when an effective strategic brand recovery approach is adopted.
Though it is not an easy task.
The process of brand recovery in gaining customer trust begins with the brand accepting its fault lines rather than convincing customers that the scandal was a blander.
The low levels of trust in the brand illustrate that humankind dislikes feeling let down or cheated.
It is, therefore, critical to outline the essential lessons of branding and how to regain customer trust while in the process:
A brand is not about keeping up appearances. A modern brand’s values should run deep and permeate its entire fabric. This entails the brand building a strong internal culture of quality control and benchmarks to prevent failures and upsets from recurring. The stakes are higher on brands with high endorsements; the customers expect more from the brand, especially when it is in a crisis, than the issuance of scapegoat-laden statements.
Don’t preach: 21st century customers do not need to be told what to do, feel, or think. They need to enjoy an experience. Brands should not waste productive time preaching—they should lead by doing!
Consistently deliver on promises: there is a general expectation that brands should set good examples, but the catch is that brands should not promise what they can’t deliver. Such an undoing will affect the brand in the long run unless remedial actions are taken. This was the focus of our last instalment.
Be transparent: when trust is low, it’s imperative that customers can see that brands are not withholding any bitter truth. When you withhold the truth, you sustain the crisis for extended periods and in the social media and AI bubble tower. When the truth finally emerges, it will spread like wildfire.
Act on feedback: When trust is this low, marketers’ role is to ensure they actively engage the stakeholders. Failure to actively engage or come up with scapegoats will increase distrust.
This is even more paramount in the age of AI, where trust bandwidth is low; hence, entrepreneurs need to guard against further diminishing the trust dividend of their respective brands:
Transparent communication: Brands should openly communicate how they use AI, including data collection methods and usage. This reassures customers that their information is handled responsibly.
Ethical practices: Implementing ethical guidelines for AI usage and ensuring fairness, accountability, and inclusivity can address customer concerns and build trust. Hence, such guidelines must be publicised, and customers are encouraged to provide feedback on their experiences. This shows that you are improving the communication ecosystem holistically.
Balanced approach: Combine AI efficiency with human elements in customer interactions. Having human representatives available when needed can enhance trust while leveraging AI for efficiency. This eliminates the suspicions that, as customers, we are now reduced to talking to machines and chatbots. This is even more lethal when a brand is engulfed in a crisis, and customers feel abandoned and left at the mercy of the machines and chatbots without a sense of remedies and recourse.
Therefore, entrepreneurial brand management in the age of AI requires a careful balance between harnessing technological advancements and maintaining the essential human elements that foster trust.
By prioritising ethical practices, transparency, and genuine engagement, brands can navigate the complexities of this landscape while building strong, trusting relationships with their customers.
A strong brand will be heavily invested in customer relationships during a crisis. If the crisis is managed, the relationship will emerge much more vital and beyond the test of external factors.
*Dr Farai Chigora is a businessman and academic. He is a senior lecturer at the Africa University’s College of Business, Peace, Leadership and Governance. He is also a global business modelling practitioner. His doctoral research focused on Business Administration (Destination Marketing and Branding Major, Ukzn, SA). He is into agribusiness and consults for many companies in Zimbabwe and Africa. He writes in his personal capacity and can be contacted for feedback and business at fariechigora@gmail.com, www.fachip.co.zw, WhatsApp mobile: +263772886871.
*Dr Tabani Moyo is an extra-ordinary researcher with the University of North West, South Africa’s Social Transformation School. His holds Doctorate in Business Administration (Research focus on new media and corporate reputation management, UKZN), chartered marketer, fellow CIM, communications and reputation management expert based in Harare. He can be contacted at moyojz@gmail.com @TabaniMoyo (X)
