Corporate Culture, a creative communications consultancy in the U.K., conducted a Customer Trust Index in 2007. There are three headlines to this study, which are just as relevant today:

1. The future of marketing is about belief in business.

2. The most powerful method of communicating with customers is word of mouth.

3. There are four simple steps any company can take to win customer trust:

1) Your product or service should meet the expectations of customers.

2) You are only as good as the last personal contact you have with your customer.

3) You speak to me in my life.

4) You are seen to act responsibly.

Key survey findings included:

• Tapping into personal beliefs builds trust.
• Trust matters – Nine out of ten people say trust is very or fairly important when they decide to buy products and services from a company.
• People are naturally inclined to trust.
• Of major importance: “Keeping promises and delivering what it says it will.”
• Corporate responsibility is the most important driver overall.
• Most consumers would reward a company by personally recommending them to others.
• Understanding the lifestyles and habits of each consumer group provides insights into how to build a trust relationship.