{"id":2344,"date":"2014-11-21T09:01:51","date_gmt":"2014-11-21T14:01:51","guid":{"rendered":"http:\/\/www.trustacrossamerica.com\/blog\/?p=2344"},"modified":"2014-11-21T08:37:48","modified_gmt":"2014-11-21T13:37:48","slug":"trustgiving2014-the-business-of-being-human","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/www.trustacrossamerica.com\/blog\/?p=2344","title":{"rendered":"#TRUSTGiving2014 : The Business of Being Human"},"content":{"rendered":"
\"TrustGiving<\/a><\/div>\n
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Welcome to\u00a0TRUSTGiving 2014<\/a>, our first annual weeklong trust awareness campaign. \u00a0Join the\u00a0Alliance of Trustworthy Business Experts<\/a>\u00a0as our members help our readers navigate the complexities of trust. We\u00a0will be blogging (several times a day) and posting on Twitter #TrustGiving2014.<\/p>\n

Andy Rosenbloom shares a\u00a0human story about trust and business success.<\/p>\n

The Business of Being Human\u00a0<\/strong><\/p>\n

Why do so many businesses struggle with the concept of trust as a business strategy?<\/em><\/p>\n

Trust is a human emotion – not a business activity.\u00a0 Too many companies are content to work towards their goals of increasing revenue, stock value, and market share without taking into consideration the people they affect and how those people\u2019s opinions shape the company\u2019s profitability. \u00a0\u00a0<\/span><\/em><\/p>\n

When human emotions like empathy, generosity or trust make their way into business, the outcome can be surprising.<\/em><\/p>\n

I expect to be given good pizza\u00a0when I visit my favorite corner pizzeria.\u00a0 I give the restaurant $2.50 and they give me a slice.\u00a0 That\u2019s not trust, it’s merely\u00a0a transaction.<\/em><\/p>\n

Trust in a pizzeria is earned when the owner of the business steps out of the “zone”\u00a0of the business transaction to demonstrate his or her own sense of humanity.\u00a0 Greeting the customer by name, offering a free taste of a specialty slice, or remembering a frequent order go a long way towards building trust. \u00a0<\/em><\/p>\n

And how does this trust make it\u2019s way back towards the business goals described above?\u00a0 In the same way that we humans get excited to introduce our trusted and beloved friends and family to others, the businesses that we trust are the one\u2019s we love to talk about. \u00a0<\/em><\/p>\n

I make frequent recommendations to my friends to visit the restaurant which offered to serve me a free meal when I told them that I lost a $300 gift certificate.\u00a0 On the restaurant\u2019s part, it was a terrible business decision.\u00a0 But the owner of the eatery knew better than to make that call from the standpoint of business alone.\u00a0 She put her trust in me that my story of the lost gift card was true and we shared a moment of humanity that I will never stop talking about. \u00a0\u00a0<\/em><\/p>\n

Andy Rosenbloom<\/strong> is a food marketing specialist who consults with K-12 foodservice programs across the country.\u00a0 He is dedicated to honesty, trust and transparency and rewards trustworthy businesses with his loyalty and referrals. Follow him on Twitter @andyrosenbloom<\/a><\/p>\n

Barbara Brooks Kimmel<\/strong>\u00a0is the Executive Director of\u00a0<\/span>Trust Across America-Trust Around the World<\/a>\u00a0whose mission is to help organizations build trust. She is also the editor of the award winning\u00a0<\/span>TRUST INC.<\/a>\u00a0book series and the Executive Editor of\u00a0<\/span>TRUST! Magazine<\/a>. In 2012 Barbara was named \u201cOne of 25 Women Changing the World\u201d by Good Business International.<\/span><\/p>\n

Copyright 2014, Next Decade, Inc.<\/p>\n