Trust and communication are essential to a successful relationship, particularly in business. A company may have a market-leading product, but without the correct promotion, the target audience may be unaware of the brand – let alone trust them – and the offering is redundant. Unfortunately, security vendors aren’t immune to this. In fact, they feel this burden more acutely as they need to build and sell trust.
In light of Cybersecurity Awareness month, we are sharing some of the key takeaways from our survey that investigated buyers’ criteria for selecting a security vendor. It identified communication as a key influencer in securing trust. If you consider that almost 64% of C-Level executives cite cybersecurity as a top priority, you can see why these vendors should seriously rethink their communication tactic, if indeed they have one.
In the battle to win sales, perception is everything. In fact, over 70% of respondents highlighted that a vendor’s media presence is critical in building their trust and loyalty to a particular brand. This doesn’t mean that companies need to dominate the mainstream headlines. Prospects regard trade titles in high esteem as they comprise comprehensive, technical articles specific to their market. For vendors, although offering a fraction of the readership, trade publications provide a targeted approach, often resulting in stronger conversion rates. Manufacturers should also consider who to accredit the content to. Almost 60% of those surveyed favoured articles from technical experts such as CTOs, Security Directors and CSOs. With a deep understanding of the company’s solution, they are considered to have a personal responsibility in the quality and reputation of their company’s offering and therefore more likely to be trusted.
Trade titles are only one piece of the communication puzzle. Being present in industry analyst reports, participating at trade shows and publishing customer case studies all emerged as crucial factors too, indicating the importance of an integrated communication and PR strategy. In fact, almost 50% of respondents considered analyst reports as a reliable source when selecting a vendor. These, along with case studies, comprise informative, accurate and impartial information about a product. In the instance of a case study, this third-party testimonial shines an insightful light on how a particular solution is being deployed by an existing customer.
For many, this advice may seem obvious. Perhaps you’re already deploying PR to a degree although, it’s worth considering how a PR agency can quickly establish trust in your brand, helping you drive sales.
A good PR agency will have knowledge of the wider industrial landscape and relevant target markets, although a great agency will want to truly get to know your business and become an extension of your marketing team. This is in our DNA at Say. We’ve worked with many of our clients for several decades now, helping them to become the trusted provider in their respective fields which we will address in our next blog. For now, I leave you with one final consideration during cybersecurity month – it’s a manufacturer’s responsibility to build trust, while it’s an individual’s decision to trust in it. If you’re considering your marketing plan for next year and want to learn more about how we can help you become the go-to, trusted vendor, contact us.