Photo Credit Willie Holdman Jeff Jarvis on Trust in What Would Google Do?
February 17th, 2009 by linkPreviously I mentioned that I was reading Jeff Jarvis’ new book What Would Google Do? I was just struck by his comments on market trust: “Leaders in government, news media, corporations, and universities think they and their institutions can own trust when, of course, trust is given to them. Trust is earned with difficulty and lost with ease….Trust is an act of opening up; it’s a mutual relationship of transparency and sharing. The more ways you find to reveal yourself and listen to others, the more you will build trust, which is your brand.” We of course, agree whole heartedly. Jeff does an excellent job of giving us a glimpse of the implications of violating trust in a post google transparent world. His experience with Dell is worth the price of the book alone. How we behave in this financial crisis will effect our credibility, reputation and brand for years to come. Are you behaving in ways that inspire the trust of your stakeholders, especially your customers?
I will resist the almost overwhelming temptation to quote Jeff further and will instead, again, strongly urge you to read this book right away. In times of trouble we need to challenge ourselves to get better and to reframe our thinking. Jeff provokes new thinking that I believe, regardless of your profession or industry, will either excite you about the possibilities of the future or scare you enough to confront reality and change your expectations. You know I read a lot of business books so I have a somewhat informed judgement. I predict that this is another Tipping Point and as such will top the business lists for years to come.
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