Your company’s Brand is more than a logo and tag line. It’s more than the sum of your advertising and marketing.  And, here’s where so many people miss the point.  Your Brand also includes all the people on the front-line, the people who represent your business. This includes customer service people, sales people, clerical staff, receptionists, repair team, you name it. Anyone who could possibly deliver an opinion about your company – they’re all part of the equation, and everything that comes out of their mouths contributes to (or takes away from) your brand. But, the most important mouths are your sales people.

The world is overwhelmingly visual.  People want to see you.  If you don’t show them a photo of you, they think you have something to hide or that you are hopelessly introverted and/or socially maladroit.

I’ve just completed a tour of about 75 sites – both small and large firms.  Approximately 70 of them have no photos of the people.  Some don’t even have stock photography of smiling models.  All of them read like the principals take themselves VERY seriously.  What does that tell you?  “Stay away.” 

There is lots of research explaining how people’s eyes move when they’re reading a website.  Maybe 1% of the websites we ever see use any of that information.  Why?  It seems that web designers are more interested in making things pretty and exciting than actually doing the right thing for their clients.  It seems that copywriters have never learned that words = psychology.  So, they miss the psychological boat by miles.

One of the ways Credibility Marketing works for you is by using credible sources to make your points – thus it’s not just your opinion. That sounds reasonable, but is it merely tall on reasonable and short on – well, short on credibility? That’s a question I rarely get asked, but the people who ask it are my favorites because they demand a higher truth.

On an exhausting Monday in December, I delivered (not one, but) two intense presentations on Credibility Marketing during an internet seminar. The audience consisted of people who were either trainers or students of Neuro-Linguistic Programming. NLP enthusiasts have a Dracula-like thirst for knowledge and truth. They asked tons of questions and did not hesitate to interrupt when they perceived a possible weakness in my logic. It was truly the toughest audience I’ve ever had. And in my younger days I was a stand-up comedian!

To substantiate the process of Credibility Marketing, I told them about:

1. Jim Kouzes and Barry Posner’s research in leadership credibility. They surveyed thousands of business leaders to define “credibility.” See their book Credibility.
2. Bill Brooks’ research with more than 6,000 decision makers to determine who they buy from, and why. See his book You’re Working Too Hard to Make the Sale.
3. R.F. Bornstein’s study published in Psychological Bulletin on what causes people to like someone.

Borrowing credibility from sources already perceived as credible by your target market – it’s a powerful way to build an association of credibility. How is that possible? The answer is very simple, and it’s explained by Hume’s Law of Contiguity: (if A appears with B, you will associate them).

In addition to the principles of traditional psychology, Credibility Marketing combines several disciplines to create an irresistible presentation of you and your credibility. Those disciplines include: NLP, non-verbal communication, academic research, journalism, persuasion, public relations, eye-tracking psychology and direct mail.

For more information on Credibility Marketing, contact me personally.

We’ve worked with a lot of individuals and organizations who believed they were credible. When we ask them to rate their credibility, they score it high. When we ask them what elements they used to score themselves high, they answer with things like years of experience, specialized expertise, licenses, degrees, service to customers, good deeds and such.

Even though some of the things mentioned do in fact contribute to one’s credibility, the lesson that most people miss is that It’s not what you think that matters. Credibility rests in the other person’s perception.

No matter how great your personal integrity or competence, it is not you who gets to determine your Credibility. Credibility can only be given to you by other people.

So, if the criteria for credibility is in the mind of the other person, how can we consistently meet that criteria? Stay tuned for next week’s post where we give you the answers.

1. Shorter sales cycle/Higher closing percentage
   With high levels of credibility, your customers don’t feel the need to do as much research, checking, thinking about purchase decisions, etc. as they might otherwise feel they need to do. Trust is already established and this reduces the second guessing and doubt. Ultimately the sales cycle speeds up and the closing percentage increases.




2. More likely to attract and gain higher quality customers.
   With increased credibility, you are able to step up and swim in a larger pool. We see this often play out in the financial services industry. The higher the credibility the more likely you are to attract larger clients with more assets. This is true in all industries.  Think about the automotive industry.  Look at Lexus. High credibility and ability to attract a more affluent clientele.  And it’s not just affluence that comes with this, but also loyalty. Apple – ditto.  Fierce loyalty in spite of higher price points.




3. Get more opportunities and “first in” opportunities
   You’ll find yourself on the short list, getting calls and requests to bid on choice projects, rather than being forced to seek out potential projects and wading through tedious administrative procedures.




4. More likely to get referrals and introductions
   The more credible the organization, the more likely customers are to refer other customers. In a B-to-B situation, those likely to be giving the referrals are likely to have the Driver personality.  Drivers will give a referral, but only after vetting the firm and making sure the firm will: 1) perform outstandingly, and 2) make them look good. When you make a referral you’re giving away part of your relationship credibility so you’re likely to do it when the firm is highly credible.




5. The more credibility your firm has, the greater the borrowing power and more likely you are to attract investment money.
   Investors are more likely to invest in a company that is credible and can prove it, a company who’s financial projections are not only believable but a company the investors trust to honor and grow the investment. Without ample credibility, investors will automatically be suspect.  That’s called a “negative halo effect,” where the expectation is not optimistic from the get-go.Credibility is also a key aspect of borrowing power. Even though borrowing is more about the numbers, especially now, given the financial meltdown of the last couple of years, the ability to borrow is still based on credibility.  Think about it – when a loan application is rejected, it’s not so much about the application per se, but rather, the applicant’s credibility.  The bank doesn’t believe that repayment will be made. But when it is accepted, what is the bank trusting?




6. Less likely to be damaged by occasional negative press
   When you have credibility, it serves as a kind of buffer, like a Credibility Account with a line of credit.  You get the benefit of the doubt.  You’re more likely to be forgiven when you make a mistake because of this “halo effect.”As we write this, Toyota is testing its credibility and its own halo effect.  Toyota customers are loyal – to a point.  And the tipping point might be the honesty and integrity of the company.  If the company has been forthcoming, then it will likely keep most of its customers.  But, if it turns out that the company attempted a cover up, then the firm will more likely lose many of its customers because it will have sacrificed its credibility.




7. Likely to attract and retain higher quality talent
   Employees want to work for an organization and leaders who are perceived as credible. We know that if you get a couple of really talented, quality people on a team it ups the odds you’ll get more talent on a team because talent attracts talent – in the same way success attracts ever higher levels. It’s a circle – The more credible the employees in the organization, particularly those in key positions, the more credible the perception of the overall organization and the more likely the organization is to attract other credible, top tier talent.




8. Likely to attract higher quality vendors and partners
   In much the same way that you are able to attract top tier employees, you’re also able to  attract higher quality vendors and partners. If you’re the larger firm, and have greater credibility, you no longer have to argue (as much) over peanuts.  Higher quality vendors will seek you out.  If you’re a vendor, you gain credibility by association with a larger enterprise.  Higher quality enterprises will seek you out.




9. Better pricing
   Often companies are willing to work for highly credible big name firms for less money in order to reap the benefits of the association.  We (AboutPeople) did work with Microsoft at a much lower rate than we typically charge because we knew the association would provide us with increased credibility and we’d be much more likely to attract other high quality firms.




10. Customers, vendors and partners pay their bills on time
    In several of the items above we talked about the power of association.  Companies work for less because they want to be associated with and gain from another firm’s credibility. Credible firms attract credible talent and vendors.  The same principles are at work when it comes to people paying their bills. If a company is credible and accountable, which includes paying their bills on time, chances are the firm will attract customers and vendors who do the same thing.

Credibility is in the eye of the beholder. It’s all about how other people perceive you. You can know all there is to know on a given subject, you can be honest, confident, and of the highest integrity, but at the end of the day it is other people that get to decide whether you are in fact perceived as credible.

In this case, as in many others, perception is reality.

We (co-author Michael Lovas and I) have written quite a lot about first impressions. In particular the series of subconscious assessments that go on when we first meet someone. We know that the first thing that goes on is the “am I in danger?” assessment.

Every time a stranger looks at you, he or she makes a split-second determination as to whether you are friend or foe. Also among those split second assessments is an analysis of your attractiveness, likeability and credibility.

According to Princeton researcher and professor Alex Todorov, we are “hard wired” to quickly draw these inferences.

“The link between facial features and character may be tenuous at best, but that doesn’t stop our minds from sizing other people up at a glance. We decide very quickly whether a person possesses many of the traits we feel are important, such as likeability and competence, even though we have not exchanged a single word with them. It appears that we are hard-wired to draw these inferences in a fast, unreflective way.”

For more on first impressions, and in particular what people are “reading” to make these assessments, check out our book Axis of Influence – How Credibility and Likeability Intersect to Drive Success.

For more on Alex Todorov, check out All Things Considered, June 9, 2005 – Scientists Search for Winning Look. Forget political polls. Scientists usually can tell whether political candidates will win or lose by testing voters’ reactions to the contestants’ faces. A study in the journal Science shows that voters chose the face that looks more “competent.”

Professor Todorov’s Princeton Website ]]> http://www.axisofinfluence.com/Blog/first-impressions/feed/ 0 http://www.axisofinfluence.com/Blog/first-trust-then-likeability-then-credibility/ http://www.axisofinfluence.com/Blog/first-trust-then-likeability-then-credibility/#comments Thu, 13 Aug 2009 17:46:37 +0000 pamholloway http://www.axisofinfluence.com/Blog/?p=33 Both Likeability and Credibility begin with the other person’s first impression of you. The first impression is a mental activity that goes on behind the scenes in your old brain. This mental activity takes place in a split second and because the old brain doesn’t have a lot to go on, it uses your face, your demeanor, your clothes and other immediate impressions to decide whether or not you can be trusted.

We know from the research that trustworthiness is the first decision the old brain seeks out and that makes sense because remember the old brain is, well…. old.  It’s still operating in a world where giant predators with enormous appetites were looking to snack on your body parts.  Survival meant quickly being able to size up a situation and choose the appropriate response. Even though you’re not really operating in that world anymore, your old brain still thinks it is.

So in order to increase your credibility and likeability, you have to pay attention to the old brain and get through the trust gate.    It’s a process – First I decide if I trust you, then I decide if I like you.  If I like you, I’ll pay attention long enough to see if I find you credible. The more you can do in those first few seconds to enable the other person to trust you, the better the odds you’ll make it through the likeability and credibility gates.

Of course, you can make sales without credibility, but that’s proving to be a dangerous path these days. If you want long-term success with loyal clients, it’s based on your ability to prove your credibility. If you want referrals, they are too based on your ability to prove your credibility. 

So, the important questions are: 1) are you credible?  2) based on what?  3) does your target market think you’re credible?  4) can you quantify that?

We measure our clients’ credibility in various ways.  Most of them are very decent people who would be immediately seen as credible – if they knew how to display it or prove it.  That’s why they come to us for help.  We wrote the book on credibility (http://www.axisofinfluence.com/) 

How do you rate?  First, what score do you give yourself and your credibility?  What level of credibility would you expect from your own advisors?  100%?  90%:  70%?  Let’s see how you do.

It’s just a numbers game.  If all professionals are credible, you have to prove you’re even more credible.  But, they’re not all credible.  Some are being accused of fraud, so you have to prove that you’re more credible than they.  If you can’t do that, you’re lumped in with them. 

You prove your credibility by displaying it, and you do that in specific ways.  If you don’t use these ways, you already have two strikes against you.  So, let’s look at this short list of ways you could demonstrate your credibility.  Which ones do you use right now:

y/n  3rd party introduction of you
y/n  publishing articles
y/n  publishing white papers
y/n  publishing books
y/n  public speeches (not seminars)
y/n  articles about you, written by other people”
y/n  active listening techniques
y/n  three-level questioning process
y/n  consistent written communication with clients
y/n  frequent face-to-face visits with clients

Those are the easy ones.  Just count the ones you do right now, and give yourself 10 points for each one.  If you score less than 80%, you’re in big trouble.  Would you hire anyone who had so-so credibility? 

So, what are you going to do about it?

Michael Lovas
michael@aboutpeople.com
http://www.axisofinfluence.com/

When those non-verbal messages are received by another  person, that person gains the right to interpret them in any way that’s appropriate for that person.  If he/she interprets your facial expression (for example) as negative, you just lost both likeability and credibility.  It’s just that simple

What does all of this mean?  It means that you need to learn what those non-verbals feel like when you’re doing them.  That’s the first step in controlling your non-verbal behavior.  The consistency (or congruence) of all your modes of communication make it possible for someone else to perceive you as being likeable and credible.  But, inconsistency (incongruence) will most likely cause people to perceive you as fake, hiding something, unethical – or worse. 

So, what does your face say when you first meet a stranger?

– Michael Lovas