The Need for Credibility within Your Niche
Most people won't care too much about any of your history unconnected from their specific interests. So we have to be careful when we offer some of our background that's disconnected from our niche's specialties.
What develops the greatest amount of credibility? What someone else says about you. That's one of the reasons testimonials are so important. They develop what is called "social proof." This is just a way of saying people want to see others take 
a risk with you first, and hear what they have to say about it. In other words, these aren't the pioneering type of people that like to try different things whether someone else is or not.
Credibility and social proof are tied together. So how do you develop credibility in the first place. Part of it is what we talked about in the last post. We need to make connections and interact online with people; to develop friendships and relationships.
Once we're in with the crowd, then we come to the place of our need for our products or services to have social proof connected to them. This is where testimonials come in. And I mean real testimonials, not the fake ones that some marketers are tempted to throw up on their sites.
You get them through picking out a specific, small group of people and allowing them to try your product or service for free, and from there giving you feedback on what they thought about it. That's one form of social proof or building credibility.
Anything that can enhance your reputation is a way to build credibility. Of course, the greatest way is to offer great products and services with a commitment to helping anyone that has questions or help in using or implementing your offerings. I know this part of it sounds simple, but if it was, there wouldn't be the numerous opportunities out there that exist at this time.
Other Niche Marketing Resources:
Niche Marketing: Searching for a Profitable Niche
Niche Marketing: How to Define a Unique E-Business Niche
Niche Marketing vs Mass Marketing
Niche Marketing - How to Find Your Perfect Niche Market
Target Marketing Strategy – Find Your Own Niche Market
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Tracked on: June 14, 2008 10:26 PM | Permalink to Trackback