Trust Trends: Articles for confident shoppers and trusted businesses

Every customer review is a clue. Most of them point to something fixable. In our workshop, Feedback 101: How to use last year’s reviews to book more work this spring, we asked contractors to do something simple: pull up your last 10-20 reviews and look at what language keeps showing up?

One of the biggest credibility signals is how you handle reviews. AI can help you keep up, without losing the personal touch. Here’s how AI can help you respond consistently and send every prospect a clear signal of how you operate.

You’re not competing with every business on the internet. You’re competing with the ones that show up next to you in local search results and directories. Discover practical strategies to boost your visibility, get chosen more often and earn customer trust where it matters most – close to home. 

Your customers want to feel confident before they hire you. If they don’t find that trust, they move on. Our latest Behind the Sign session spoke to exactly that — making sure your business shows up when online customers are searching, scrolling, comparing, and deciding.

Getting your business noticed means knowing how to communicate your unique value to potential customers. In our latest Behind the Sign webinar, Stacey Danheiser shared practical tips for crafting a value proposition that not only grabs attention but also grows your business.

Our latest webinar featured a panel of industry leaders and marketing experts – David Evans of DaBella, Scott Williams of Lex Brodie’s, and Stacey Danheiser of SHAKE Marketing Group – sharing proven marketing solutions and lead generation strategies specifically designed for small business growth.

In our latest webinar, marketing expert and author DP Knudten talked about ways businesses can employ AI to achieve more and wow their customers. He shared valuable insights into the role of AI in modern business.

Renowned marketing consultant and best-selling author John Jantsch shared insightful strategies for rethinking both the customer and employee journeys. His session centered on helping businesses better engage their customers and employees by optimizing their touchpoints across the board.

In our April webinar, we explored the topic of customer loyalty with small business expert Carol Roth. She shared her framework for moving beyond traditional loyalty programs, emphasizing the importance of connection and care to sustain business growth.

Our latest webinar was packed with insights into the relationship between customer reviews, credibility and conversion. Moira Balangue illustrated how businesses can effectively use reviews to strengthen their online reputation and drive growth.

The marketing coach, consultant, author, and educator left us with a host of takeaways, including some that doubled down on the importance of trust, data, and the need to set yourself apart with your digital content.

Want to unlock the potential of social media for your business? Catch up on the insights shared by Steve Strauss as part of our Behind the Sign Webinar Series.

Are you harnessing the digital tools and strategies that keep your organization competitive? From our Behind the Sign Webinar Series, here are Steve Strauss’s five ideas to get started.

When customers choose to stick by you, they return, recommend you, and stay loyal through the ups and downs. But how do you create this trust, and more importantly, how do you use it to cultivate measurable, long-term value? By becoming BBB Accredited.

There’s no single way to build a business that lasts, but the ones that do have something in common: they didn’t do it alone. Read about the 3 partnerships that turn good businesses into great ones.

Finding new leads is essential for business growth. Getting listed on an online directory with lead-generation tools can make all the difference. Both Angi and BBB can help your business grow, but the choice depends on your priorities.

Speed isn’t just a luxury – it's a necessity. But why the rush? Because faster response times are a game-changer. Companies that respond quickly to customer inquiries are more likely to win their business.

If you’re a small business owner thinking about growing your operation, you’re in the right place. Let’s break down how growing bigger than a small business will involve some serious planning, execution and goal setting.

To break down how to identify customer behaviors, we’ll share how to zero in on demographics, online search patterns, and overall needs. Additionally, we’ll share how customer feedback, online advertising platforms and website analytics can point you in the right direction.

With so much to think about, do you have the time to market your business? (We argue there’s not.) And is there a way to boost your marketing activity without sacrificing your time? (There is.) To explore the issue, let’s start by breaking down how much time you’re currently working with.

For businesses looking to grow, you might have wondered: Is it worth it to hire your own in-house marketing team? To break it down, we’re exploring five questions you should answer first, and then taking a look at how BBB compares to having an in-house marketing team.

Customers want to know what they’re paying for (and you want them to understand what they’re paying for). Seeing as these are warm or even hot leads, simple math says that the more quotes you give, the closer you are to booking your next job.

When you’re investing in your organization’s growth, it’s worth breaking down what kind of growth you’d like to emphasize to steer your company's success. To do that, we’re looking at five different growth categories.

Calculating an annual marketing budget is nuanced. But it starts with knowing what cost-effective options are available to you. Here are 10 marketing campaigns (and cost examples) to consider for your annual marketing plan.