What does a brand need to do to gain a consumer's trust and loyalty? Nowadays, this answer is not so straightforward, given the highly competitive market and the volume of information we are bombarded with daily. This is a delicate construction that requires careful handling of the relationship between the parties – which, when well managed, can strengthen the customer's sense of security with the company, their retention, and a significant increase in sales.
According to the latest survey by FGV IBRE, a benchmark for economic monitoring and analysis in the country, the Consumer Confidence Index fell by 2.6 points in February of this year, a loss of 10.8 points over the last three months. There are several reasons for this concerning decline, related to oversights committed by companies that can affect their credibility and damage trust with the target audience.
One of the most common mistakes in this regard is promising what cannot be delivered. Whether it's the delivery timeframe, product quality, customer support, generic or impersonal communication, or communication inconsistent with the brand's values, or any other aspect, any misalignment between expectation and reality is extremely detrimental to this. Another delicate point is the lack of transparency in crisis situations – remaining silent or trying to “cover up” mistakes, which can have a devastating effect on a company's reputation.
Further aggravating this situation is the fact that we live in an environment saturated with content, advertising messages, and stimuli from all sides, creating an inevitable overload that makes consumers much more selective, skeptical, and often distrustful of corporate communications. Today, it is no longer enough just to be visible: one must stand for something.
In this scenario, being authentic as a brand requires more than just polished discourse; it demands consistency between what is said, what is done, and what is delivered. This credibility is built on details: in how a company responds to criticism, how it admits a mistake, how it positions itself on relevant causes, and, most importantly, how it relates to people on a daily basis.
Scaling communication and customer service without losing proximity is another point that deserves attention. After all, although automation and artificial intelligence have brought efficiency gains, many companies have ended up distancing themselves from the human touch. The key lies in finding the right balance: using technology as an ally to optimize processes, without neglecting empathy, active listening, and personalization.
Furthermore, today's public values brands with a clear purpose, which position themselves responsibly and show their behind-the-scenes operations transparently. Being authentic, in this context, involves adopting a more human, vulnerable, and less polished stance. Showing who is behind it all, how decisions are made, and what truly matters to the business generates real identification.
Building this trust and loyalty is not a simple task, requiring companies to know and place their customer at the center of every strategy, maintaining consistency in communication across all channels, investing in creating and disseminating relevant content, and always operating with maximum transparency. To contribute to this success, support can be leveraged from robust tools available on the market, such as RCS.
With this Google messaging system, brands will be able to communicate with their consumers using much more comprehensive features that will enrich the user experience. Messages can include text, images, GIFs, videos, and a full carousel allowing the user to guide their journey within a single environment. All of this is secured by an authenticity seal that guarantees trust in the sender of the content.
This and many other multi-channel communication platforms enable greater agility in customer service and allow the company to be present where its customer is. Combine these tools with integrated CRMs that bring each person's history to personalize communication, in addition to having and monitoring relationship metrics to identify the effectiveness of these actions or the need for adjustments.
One of the biggest barriers to building trust with consumers is the overwhelming volume of information they are exposed to. It is by no means a simple task to achieve, but by following the highlighted precautions, your company's chances of strengthening a closer and more secure relationship will be much greater, attracting and retaining customers who will be loyal to your brand.
