In today’s fast-paced business world, trust is more important than ever. With the rise of cyber attacks, data breaches, and online fraud, companies are facing increasing challenges in maintaining the trust of their customers. According to Edelman’s 2024 trust barometer, more than two-thirds of respondents believe that business leaders are purposely trying to mislead people, leading to a decline in overall trust.
As a chief trust officer, I have seen firsthand the impact that declining trust can have on a company’s bottom line. From costly audits and compliance checks to a decrease in long-term valuation, the consequences of losing trust can be severe. That’s why it’s crucial for businesses to start thinking about trust as a product that can be intentionally built and marketed to customers.
By productizing trust, companies can streamline sales, boost revenue, and support core business metrics. Trusted companies have been shown to outperform their peers by 400%, highlighting the significant impact that trust can have on a company’s success. But building trust is not just about accumulating checkmarks on an IT or compliance list – it’s about creating real business value.
To transform trust into a go-to-market product with significant ROI, companies need to adopt a new trust framework. This includes productizing their processes, setting up a trust shop across all segments of the business, and mapping trust practices to C-suite metrics. By aligning trust practices with business value metrics, companies can demonstrate the importance of trust as a core value driver and ultimately command a premium in the market.
In a world full of misinformation and deep fakes, trust is more valuable than ever. By changing the way they think about trust and treating it as a product, companies can build stronger relationships with their customers and ultimately drive success in the long run. Trust truly matters, and it’s time for businesses to start investing in it as a strategic asset.