How companies become transparent

A modern business needs to be transparent. This is the idea that you hear everywhere. It sounds reasonable and interesting.

But what does it actually mean? And how can a company actually become transparent?

Some think that transparency is about explaining how their products work and keeping a natural tone of voice in your communications. That is important, no doubt about it. Yet there is something even more impactful and crucial for all businesses: gaining consumers’ trust.

According to Edelman Trust Barometer Special Report, trust is the 2nd most important factor when it comes to purchasing decisions. 51% of consumers say that their purchases depend on if they trust the company that they are dealing with. Only price can impact a consumer’s decision more.

It’s also important to keep in mind that trust in the authorities is waning. Every year people in large economies become more distrustful of governments and big organizations The 2020 crisis eroded their trust even further. It puts companies in the spotlight: people want to trust them, but they are also more cautious than ever.

So how do the companies gain the trust of the consumers? What do they need to reveal about themselves?

First of all, consumers want to know that they are dealing with an ethical company that has strong core values. Talking about these values is good, showing them in action is even better. A study by Cone shows that 68% of millennials buy products with a social or environmental benefit at least once a year, 88% of all consumers are more loyal to a business that supports environmental or local issues and 92% will trust such a company more than the others.

People also like to know who exactly they are dealing with, especially when it comes to small businesses and online services. Seeing the faces of the team members and talking to actual humans instead of robots stilll boosts consumers’ confidence.

Finally, consumers tend to do research when they shop. Now, in the age of the Internet, they do it especially often. And they appreciate it when all the necessary information about a company is easily accessible.

And this is where reviews come in.

Research shows that these are the things that shoppers most often look for online:

• prices
• availability of service or product
• delivery time
• customer support
• special offers
• photos

Let’s assume, that your company has it all: affordable prices, well-stocked storage, fast delivery, helpful support team, great offers, etc. How do you tell the world about it?

Obviously, you can launch ads that show off your strengths. But 74% of consumers actively avoid advertisement and distrust any promotion.

You can also just put it on your website. Simply write that you have fast delivery and great prices. This is straightforward and not really efficient - people tend to disregard such statements when they come from the company itself.

You can post genuine reviews of your business on your website. But only 20% of consumers will believe these reviews. This is why it is preferable to find an independent review platform.

Because if it’s someone else who writes about your company - someone, who was not paid to praise your business - people will be much more interested.

Reviewers can talk about your business from a unique perspective. They can honestly highlight the advantages of your company and remain unbiased while doing so. The very fact that a person decided to take time out of their day to write about your business is already important by itself. And if they are saying good things - that is even better.

Even negative reviews can be beneficial for your business. In fact, having a good rating is better, than having a perfect rating. A study by the Spiegel Research Centre shows that over 80% of consumers look for negative feedback when they do research about a company or a product.

If they do not find any criticism, they tend to distrust reviews. However, if there is some negativity, people trust the company more - after all, they understand that no one is perfect.

Being transparent often requires a lot of effort and can sometimes make business complicated. So it’s reasonable to ask: is it worth it?

The answer is always “yes”. If not for the idea of honesty, then for the profits.A study by Accenture Strategy says that consumer and investor trust directly contributes to a company’s success. About 30% of the competitive power of a business depends on trust.

And losing trust can hit a company’s profits badly. On average, when people start to doubt a company, this company’s revenue growth drops by about 6%. Retailers can lose around 13%. And financial services providers stand to lose up to 22%.

Trustworthy companies are also great for investors. Their stocks outperform the broad market by 30-50% since investors believe in them and keep buying more.

It is also important to cultivate transparency not only outside, but also inside. Research shows a direct correlation between employee loyalty and transparency. When employers are transparent and honest, workers tend to be more engaged and committed to their tasks. They believe that their effort is actually beneficial to the company and to themselves.

If you are ready to employ reviews for the benefit of your business - Revain is your best option. It is a global platform where people from around the world share their genuine opinions and get rewards for them.

By registering your company’s page on Revain, you can get reviews, interact with reviewers and gain useful insights about your audience.

You can also install Revain Widget - a simple web tool that displays reviews of your company and products directly on your corporate website. This way all the visitors will see your ratings and reviews. They can even post their own feedback without leaving your website.

Finally, Revain provides promotional opportunities: review competitions, Featured Companies tab, etc. Let your brand shine in a new way.

If you are interested - send us a message at contact@revain.org so that we can guide you through the options.