This is what Sir Richard Branson wants you to know about Entrepreurship.
This is what Sir Richard Branson wants you to know about Entrepreurship.
Your surroundings are
a key factor
in establishing trust with
your clients/audience.
I reckon you will agree that trust is one of the pillars on which the customer-business relationship stands. Once you get this right, your efforts to market yourself and your business become so much easier.
Your audience will become loyal , and don´t we all yearn for a loyal audience?
Everything seems to be revolving lately around alignment, every post, every coach, they all recommend us to be in alignment as the only way to have a meaningful and successful business.
Well, TRUST is exactly what alignment represents.
Social media audiences are not newbies any more, they don´t buy the fake life that some public figures were trying to sell. People are savvy, they immediately know whether you are living the life you preach about or whether it is just another sly marketing tactic. They can “smell” a put-on personality and a fake lifestyle.
As serious entrepreneurs who are in this because we have mission and because we want to make an impact as well as a living, trust becomes a must, a non-negotiable feature we need to strive for.
The most successful entrepreneurs and I am not just speaking about numbers here, but those with the most loyal followings have achieved that loyalty because they come across as trustworthy, you can clearly see that their life matches their speech, their speech is in alignment with their life and business.
However, it is not an easy trait to communicate, or is it?
You must be thinking, but surely it takes months, even years to build trust, you must prove time and time again that you are the real deal, right?
Well…although time will reinforce the trust you are able to establish with your customers and your colleagues, there is one thing you can start doing today that will help you communicate and build that trust!
I am going to give you a key piece in order to ultimately build trust with your audience. It will immediately make you appear more trustworthy, it goes without saying you should be honing your message and really living your message every day.
Your surroundings are a key factor in establishing trust with your clients. Click To Tweet
As we have learnt in previous weeks, (you can read previous posts in our BLOG), your space and your backdrop are a very powerful communication and marketing tool. When they are not in alignment with your message, you won´t come across as professional, trustworthy and you won´t be able to be seen as an expert.
Let me put it simply:
What you say you can do for your clients and what they see in your surroundings matches, it is cohesive, it speaks the same language, expresses the same message, in the same style and voice.
What you say and what they see, fits perfectly.
When you are in alignment with your business, you transmit trust. Every piece fits in, there is no deceitful feeling about what you say or do.
On the contrary when what you say and what your audience perceives or sees clashes, when it does not “sound and look” the same, your audience is confused. They do not trust that you can actually deliver what you say you can deliver in a way that will benefit them.
To give you an example: a website designer who states they can create a sleek, clean looking, easy to navigate, up to date website that will attract high end clients for your business but who happens to work from a messy, shabby space…well, you would have a difficult time trusting that they can really deliver what they say.
However, if their workspace is clean, tidy, sleek…then you can definitely picture them delivering the perfect website.
So what can you do to start building trust with your audience? Here is an easy test you can do:
Look at your surroundings;
-Do they show your expertise?
-Do they match your level of knowledge?
-Do they communicate your unique way of doing business?
-Do they reflect your success and your clients´s successes?
-Are they able to attract your ideal client?
If you cannot decide for yourself, you can do this simple test:
Without giving any information about what you do, post a picture of your space and ask these questions:
– What do you think the person who works in this space does?
– What would you say is their expertise?
– What would you say is their level of success?
– Would you say they are a well-established business?
– Would you trust them to do business with?
In order for this exercise to work, avoid saying this picture has any relation to your business. A good way of testing this is to post in a group where they don´t know who you are, maybe a group where you have been quiet, or you just joined.
Would you like to let your surroundings speak for you in front of your clients/audience?
Download my FREE CHECKLIST and get all the elements you need in place to create The Perfect Office.
The Power of a Backdrop.
Did you know that your Backdrop can have Superpowers when styled properly?
Today, you are going to learn what you can do to infuse your space and backdrops with your personality, your style and a taste of what you do.
I will be giving you all the facts (for the scientist in you) about WHY you should be paying attention to your backdrop.
THE POWER OF A BACKDROP
What you show and say on camera speaks to your viewers on two different and complementary levels.
Both are fundamental to get your WHOLE MESSAGE across.
Only master one? And you are left limping.
Master both and you have the most powerful communication tool at your disposal.
I like to call these levels:
-Level 1 communication power
-Level 2 communication power
Here´s what each level does, that is, the power that each level has:
1- Level 1 communication power:
What you say, your message, your knowledge, that´s the focal way of communication going on at that moment.
It consists of:
-Your words
-Your voice
-Your tone
-Your speech
This level triggers the audio threshold in your viewer.
2- Level 2 communication power:
What your viewers see when they listen to your message.
It consists of:
-Your setting
-Your backdrop
-Your colour palette
-Your lighting
-Your props
-The set-up of those props
-Your personal image
This triggers the visual and emotional threshold in your viewer.
Your surroundings are the perfect complement to make or break that message.
The right setting that adds to what you are saying, gives you double the impact!
And the huge power of visuals is that they can trigger both the sight and the emotion, it is a two-for-one effect!
Can you see how very important and powerful this is?
Level 1 + Level 2 = Total communication
You can communicate on two levels, at the same time!!!
So here is an easy and fun task that will help you better understand this concept. It will make you aware of things around you and it will probably (I cannot be held responsible) turn you into a decor freak (it has happened before).
Look around your home or office, or even go out to decor stores. Keep your eyes wide open and try to:
Find objects that reflect who you are and your business:
-Look for objects in your business colours
-Objects that represent your field of business (an abacus for a business strategist or an accountant, some nice perfume bottles for a cosmetics consultant, food ingredients or cooking tools for a culinary blogger, a nice picture in your business colour…)
– Objects that represent your personality and likes. What makes you special and unique? Do you love music, show it! Do you love fairy tales, show it! Do you love dogs, show it! Do you love wine, show it…but don´t overdo this one! Lol!
– Objects that show where you acquired your expertise or your background, for instance books, a souvenir from Tibet (if you are a yoga or meditation teacher who went there to live with the monks and grow as an instructor), a product you created (creams, make up, jewellery, cakes, a painting…).
We are trying to get your “level 2 communication power” ready!
For example, on one of my shelves, I have a Vogue Magazine issue because my Cleopatra choker was featured in it- it shows my work and achievement. Besides being an interior designer and stylist, I am a jewellery designer.
On another shelf, I have interior design books, that show part of my training, I also have jewellery books and wedding books as they all reflect what I do.
The list could go on and on about things you can find, just give it a try, it is a fun way of starting to create your Perfect Backdrop.
Show me what you come up with.
Have a lovely and stylish day!
Melanie x
Copyright Melanie Falvey 2016. All rights reserved. No sharing is allowed without crediting the author.
If you would like to learn how to create The Prefect Backdrop for your videos, enroll in our Course.