Like most algorithms, there are essential elements to success.
Now it has been broken down to a simple equation, which we discuss today - The Trust Equation!!
THE TRUST EQUATION
When we think about trust, our mind quickly encapsulates a host of things. Generally we use the word “trust” to:
Interpret what people say
Describe behaviors
Decide if we feel comfortable sharing information
Indicate whether we feel other people have our interests at heart
Trust relationships are core to the way we do businesses today - more so in the digital world, where transactions happen without physical connection even (more so for B2B deals). Interestingly, today the level of trust one has relationships (business), whether internal or external - is one of the greatest determinant of success.
The challenge however is in having a conceptual framework which can analytically evaluate and understand trust. When we do not have a proper framework to evaluate trust, we cannot have an actionable way to improve our trustworthiness.
Over the years, we at Grazing Minds have published and spoken about the "The Trust Equation" through whitepapers and articles in detail. It’s a model of trust that we at Grazing Minds have refined over time and in consultations with various clients.
The Trust Equation is now a cornerstone of our practice: a deconstructive, analytical model of trustworthiness which can be easily understood and used to help yourself and your organization. Now let's decode it:
THE FOUR VARIABLES
The Trust Equation uses four objective variables to measure trustworthiness - Credibility, Reliability, Intimacy and Self-Orientation.
We combine these variables into the following equation:
TQ stands for Trust Quotient.
The Trust Quotient is a number — like your IQ or EQ — that benchmarks your trustworthiness against the four variables.
Let’s dig into each variable a bit more:
CREDIBILITY has to do with the words we speak.
In a sentence we might say, “I can trust what she says about intellectual property; she’s very credible on the subject.”
RELIABILITY has to do with actions.
We might say, “If he says he’ll deliver the product tomorrow, I trust him, because he’s dependable.”
INTIMACY refers to the safety or security that we feel when entrusting someone with something.
We might say, “I can trust her with that information; she’s never violated my confidentiality before, and she would never embarrass me.”
SELF-ORIENTATION refers to the person’s focus. In particular, whether the person’s focus is primarily on him or herself, or on the other person.
We might say, “I can’t trust him on this deal — I don’t think he cares enough about me, he’s focused on what he gets out of it.” Or more commonly, “I don’t trust him — I think he’s too concerned about how he’s appearing, so he’s not really paying attention.”
The Trust Equation has one variable in the denominator and three in the numerator.
Increasing the value of the factors in the numerator increases the value of trust. Increasing the value of the denominator — self-orientation — decreases the value of trust.
Self-orientation, which sits alone in the denominator, is the most important variable in the Trust Equation. We developed the formula this way on purpose. A seller with low self-orientation is free to completely and honestly focus on the customer — not for his own sake, but for the sake of the customer. Such a focus is rare among salespeople (or people in general for that matter).
The truth in selling is that you succeed more at sales when you stop trying to sell.
When all you focus on is helping prospects, they trust you more and buy from you more as well.
IT’S ALL ABOUT PEOPLE
The Trust Equation covers the most common meanings of trust that you encounter in everyday business interactions. What’s important to remember is that the meanings are almost entirely personal, not institutional.
People rarely give over their trust to institutions; really they trust other people.
While companies are often described as credible and reliable (the first two components of The Trust Equation), it’s really the people within the companies that make those companies what they are. And intimacy and self-orientation are almost entirely about people.
Trust in business and selling requires good “scores” on all four variables in the Trust Equation. You want high credibility, reliability and intimacy, and low self-orientation.
Living the four Trust Values is the best way to increase your trustworthiness. The Trust Equation provides a scientific, analytical and actionable framework for how we help organizations and individuals improve their businesses and lives.
If you want to incorporate the modern mantra's of growth -like the Trust Equation, in your company's growth trajectory - let's connect and build the ideal path for you!!
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