If there’s one way to improve your income it’s to become a credible market expert. People who are seen as credible are sought out for their advice. And because their advice is taken seriously people buy more of what they sell.
So how do you be build credibility?
Here are 6 ways.
- Tell, don’t sell. In other words, talk about what you’ve done, not what you want to do. Telling stories about your successes is one of the fastest ways to convince people that you have cred. If you’re new to the game then use the success stories from your company.
- Focus on the customer. If you want to sound shrill, talk about yourself. But if you want to sound credible then start thinking on behalf of your customer. Stand in their shoes, show that you clearly understand the issues they face. People love to do business with businesses that truly care for them.
- Get it out of your head and onto the web. I tell this to agents all the time. If you know something, share it. Write a blog post. If you don’t have one, build one. If you don’t want to do that use Tumblr or Google Plus. Whatever you choose start sharing your pearls of wisdom. Once you get into the habit you’ll soon have the words to produce an email newsletter or a printed magazine. None of it happens, though, without writing.
- Act as a servant to your community. Natalie Hoye does this really well. She’s not only writing, she’s producing a (free) local community resource that lets people in on the secrets to living well in her patch. Flowing from this servant leadership is the fact that she never has to explain to people what she knows about their suburb. It’s already published on the web.
- Be vulnerable. Sure, it’s nice not to burden people with your problems but it’s also good to let people know the limits of your knowledge, your skills and your abilities. And if you’re feeling down, don’t be a hero and keep it to yourself. My most successful blog post is one I was almost too scared to publish. I felt exposed, scared and vulnerable but the story resonated with a lot of people.
- Use all the resources available to you. My mate David James is already a successful sales coach (he was my first boss in real estate). He doesn’t need more customers but he’s in the process of rebuilding his website and is about to increase his social media presence. For Dave, it’s not about getting more customers, it’s about building his credibility and serving his existing customers better.
If you have a tip to share about building credibility please share it in the comments below.