Prioritizing trust over short-term PR fixes

I had to say no to a customer this morning…🤦🏻 I know… It goes against all the instincts of a salesperson and the revenue is important to me plus they have been a long-term customer of ours. It is a dilemma that many businesses face but trust me taking the high road of being brutally honest can be both cathartic and strategically beneficial. They may very well attempt to write their own solution to solve the specific problem, but their legacy systems and history are weighing them down so it’s hard to see a way through the trees. We also enjoy a unique viewpoint being on the outside and can see from our experience and working with many other customers, it’s going to be a disaster and not solve any of the issues. Or if it does it is going to take years to complete. However… Our reputation is critical to me and being open and honest with our customers, staff and suppliers (Candour) is one of our key tenants. And this cathartic honesty can lift a weight off your shoulders, fostering a culture of transparency and trust with all related parties. They may not have been happy, but they know exactly where we stand and what the challenge is that lies ahead. Once they do realise how challenging it is, I would much rather come to their rescue “our way” than be the creator of the disaster “their way”. Of course - they may be successful, and I genuinely hope they are! They may never come back but that is the right decision today for both. In the end, prioritising integrity over short-term gains is not just a moral choice but a strategic one – even if it hurts! And by being honest, you build trust, enhance your reputation, and lay the groundwork for long-term success. So, next time you face the dilemma of pushing for a sale or being transparent, remember that honesty is an investment in your company’s future. #BusinessIntegrity #CustomerRelations #ReputationManagement #LongTermSuccess iasset.com

He had two choices: ❌ Stay quiet, deliver late, and hope the client will understand. ✅ Own the truth, admit the gap, and offer an alternative. A CEO whom I coach recently faced a tough call. One of their biggest clients was over-promised by the sales team. The product team knew, the deadline was impossible. This CEO chose to uphold the values of Integrity & Customer Centricity. He called the client, laid out the reality, and presented a revised plan. Then he reminded his team: “Integrity means we only commit when we can truly deliver. Customer centricity means we protect long-term trust over short-term wins.” How do you think the other party must have responded? They said, “You’ve just proven why we choose to work with you. Most companies would have hidden this until the last moment.” The takeaway, Values don’t live on a website. They live in the pressure moments. When you’re forced to choose between integrity and the easy way out, your decision is your culture.

"I want to increase my sales. That is why I need PR." Red flag. I hear this all the time. But that is not how PR works. PR does not push products. It does not chase sales. PR builds credibility, influence, and trust. The kind that makes people believe in your brand before they even experience it. Think about Airbnb. When it first launched, nobody trusted the idea of staying in a stranger’s home. Hotels were the standard. Airbnb had no big advertising budget to compete. Instead of spending millions on ads, they used PR and storytelling. They positioned themselves as the future of travel, an authentic way to experience a city, something hotels could never offer. Media picked up the story. Travel influencers shared their experiences. Suddenly, the conversation changed from "Why would anyone stay in a stranger’s home?" to "This is the smartest way to travel." That is the power of PR. It does not force people to buy. It shapes perception, builds trust, and makes people believe. I have seen businesses rely only on marketing. They spend on ads, push promotions, and see a spike in sales. But the moment they stop spending, everything disappears. Then, I have worked with brands that invest in strategic PR. One of my clients, a property developer, struggled with credibility. Their projects were great, but buyers were hesitant. Instead of just pushing sales, we positioned them as an industry leader. We secured features in major business publications. We crafted a compelling story about their vision, expertise, and long-term value. Within months, perception shifted. Investors paid attention. Buyers felt confident. The brand became a trusted name, not just another developer. Without PR, you are constantly trying to prove your worth. With PR, your brand speaks for itself. Marketing makes people look. PR makes them believe. And in the long run, belief is what turns brands into legacies. PR takes time. It is not an overnight fix. But the results of credibility, trust, and long-term influence are worth it. So ask yourself, are you fighting for attention, or are you building real influence? . . For more stories, follow #thatbespokeguy, XAVIER MAH. . . #PR #PublicRelations #brandstory #Influence #PersonalBranding #Business #entrepreurship #airbnb #success

It’s not ESG scrutiny that kills companies, it’s their own false claims. Sustainability is very vital, but when companies oversell their green efforts without real action, the fallout can be massive. I remember H&M’s “Conscious Collection.” Marketed as an eco-friendly clothing line, it promised “sustainable fashion choices.” However, investigations found no proof that these products were better for the environment; some even had a higher carbon footprint than their regular collections. The result? Consumer backlash, lawsuits, and regulatory scrutiny. With evolving ESG regulations like India’s BRSR and the EU’s Green Claims Directive, companies today don’t just face bad PR; they risk legal action and financial losses. So, how can businesses, especially MSMEs, avoid this trap? With one word: Authenticity. Authenticity isn’t about perfection; it’s about credibility. MSMEs may not have massive marketing budgets, but they have something more valuable, proximity. Proximity to their people, processes, and customers. And that’s their biggest advantage in building trust. How to ensure your ESG efforts are real: ✅ Align actions with commitments ✅ Communicate honestly, not opportunistically ✅ Prioritize third-party verification ✅ Show progress, not perfection ✅ Educate internally Because in today’s world, greenwashing isn’t just unethical, it’s a business risk which erodes your trust. And when trust is broken, no PR campaign can fix it. #sustainability #leadership #business #growth

At what point did marketing turn into a psychological game of deception? I found myself fighting an unsubscribe page recently... you know, the one with the super tiny grey text, tricky toggles, and a final guilt trip: "Are you sure you want to miss out?" Honestly? I wasn’t sure if I was unsubscribing or subscribing again. And that’s the freaking problem. Marketing was never meant to be a game of tricking people into staying, clicking, or buying. Yet we see it everywhere. 🤬 Dark patterns in UX that make canceling harder than signing up 🤬 FOMO-driven messaging that preys on insecurity 🤬 “Social good” marketing that’s more about optics than impact (looking at you, brands, that jumped on the BLM movement just to go back to business as usual) 🤬 My all-time favorite (read: sarcasm)... clickbait marketing 🤬 Last but not least... engagement-driven outrage where marketers have learned that divisive content = more clicks As marketers, we need to ask if we are actually building trust... or are we breaking people down? I get that marketers have KPIs to reach but at what cost? Do we really want to feed the social media beast with more anxiety-inducing activities? Social is already having a mental wellness crisis, so why not take a community-first attitude to create safe places where we can connect with our audiences? This is what I think we should be prioritizing: ✅ Transparency > Manipulation Clear pricing, honest messaging, and ETHICAL persuasion. It's not hard. And consumers aren't dumb despite what some unethical marketers think. ✅ Real Community > Viral Moments Sure. Cultural marketing is fun But lasting impact matters more than a one-hit-wonder tweet IMO. (looking at you 🫡 Oreo Superbowl Blackout Tweet of 2013.... I guarantee only marketers remember this moment. NOT consumers. Don't get it twisted) ✅ Long-Term Trust > Short-Term Gains If your marketing strategy hinges on confusion, it's already failing. Marketing is powerful. I think we can collectively choose to use that power responsibly if we can stop chasing these quick wins. #MentalHealth #TrustOverClicks #CommunityFirst

This quote hit me hard: “Disrupting short-term rapport is essential for building long-term trust.” Not wanting to rock the boat. Create tension. Risk being misunderstood. I get it. I’ve made that mistake more than once. Actually, much more than that. Instead of saying what needed to be said, I tried to guide through gentle nudges. Through influence. Through implication. But here’s what I’ve learned the hard way: If you don’t speak the truth, you don’t move the relationship forward. You just delay the discomfort. And invite even more of it later. Frustration builds. Surprises appear. Trust erodes. One of my coaches put it plainly: “There are parts of your job that will never feel comfortable. And as a leader, especially as a CEO, your job is to work through that discomfort.” So I started practicing a simple, effective approach. Ask if there’s trust. Ask if you can share an observation. Speak from your perspective. No blame. Invite a check-in. It’s not always easy. But it’s real. And that’s what builds something deeper. Simple. But not easy. At least not for me.

Glad I did not Skip this!! With the constant avalanche of reports on customer insights, it’s easy to skim through most.But I’m glad I took the time to read the 2025 Qualtrics Global Trends Report (https://shorturl.at/EZI0v) last year. It reinforced some critical CX truths that every organization should pay attention to. 🔥 Here are my top three takeaways: 1️⃣ Customer Expectations Are Higher – and Patience Is Shorter ⏳ 💡 57% of customers say they will walk away after a bad experience. But here’s the key insight: a bad experience is relative. More importantly, improving CX isn’t always about massive leaps—sometimes, incremental improvements make the biggest impact. 🔑 A shift from level 1️⃣ to level 3️⃣ service might drive 15% more impact than a jump from level 3️⃣ to level 5️⃣. Why? Because customers prioritize 🔹 accessibility & 🔹 reliability over premium, hyper-personalized service. 💭 Personal Experience: At Interswitch, we leverage our Key Account Management team as a personalized service delivery channel for our largest customers while simultaneously working to fix long-term legacy service gaps. 2️⃣ Trust Is the New Currency 💰 🔎 Globally, 61% of customers prioritize trust in the information they receive—ranking it higher than convenience and even empathy. Clear, timely communication is a major trust builder, yet too often, companies hesitate when things go wrong. 🛑 Lesson Learned: From marketing to customer support, walk the talk—be honest, reliable, and clear in your messaging. Transparency wins customers. 💬 Ian Golding once emphasized in a Women in CX ™ lecture that courage is a core CX leadership skill. Facing customers and communicating transparently—even in the face of disruptions or failures—is what actually builds trust. 3️⃣ Feedback Participation Is at an All-Time Low – Get Creative! 🎭 📉 Traditional surveys—especially those sent via email—are seeing declining response rates. This means Voice of Customer (VoC) programs must evolve. 🔍 It's no longer enough to rely on one feedback method. Instead, we must listen through multiple channels: ✅ 📢 Social media sentiment ✅ 🏆 Brand equity insights ✅ 📊 Operational data (repeat purchases, transaction volumes) ✅ 📉 Behavioral patterns 🎯 Our Approach: We struggled initially with traditional VoC surveys. However, during #CustomerServiceWeek 2024, we relaunched an ethnographic study program 📌, embedding teams across different functions to sit with customers in their environments and observe firsthand how they interact with our products. 🚀 The key takeaway? Innovate how you listen. Customers are always giving feedback—you just have to know where to find it. 👂 There’s so much more to unpack from this report, more insights loading in a following post. 🤔 What are your thoughts? Have you observed similar shifts in customer expectations and feedback trends? Let’s discuss! 👇🏽 #CX #CustomerExperience #Trust #VoC #CustomerInsights #Leadership #Innovation #CustomerEngagement

𝗧𝗿𝘂𝘀𝘁 𝗜𝘀𝗻’𝘁 𝗮 𝗙𝗲𝗲𝗹𝗶𝗻𝗴. 𝗜𝘁’𝘀 𝗮 𝗦𝘁𝗿𝗮𝘁𝗲𝗴𝘆. ↳ And in today’s market, it’s your brand’s most valuable asset. ↠ 𝗧𝗵𝗲 𝗠𝗮𝗿𝗸𝗲𝘁 𝗜𝘀 𝗟𝗼𝘂𝗱. 𝗧𝗿𝘂𝘀𝘁 𝗜𝘀 𝗤𝘂𝗶𝗲𝘁. ↳ Noise gets attention. ↳ Trust keeps it. Why brands fail? ↳ They focus on visibility, not credibility. ↳ Visibility fades fast. ↳ Trust compounds over time. ↠ 𝗪𝗵𝗮𝘁 𝗗𝗼𝗲𝘀 𝗧𝗿𝘂𝘀𝘁 𝗔𝗰𝘁𝘂𝗮𝗹𝗹𝘆 𝗠𝗲𝗮𝗻 𝗶𝗻 𝗠𝗮𝗿𝗸𝗲𝘁𝗶𝗻𝗴? ↳ It’s not just being honest. It’s being dependable. ↳ Trust = Consistency + Relevance + Empathy + Delivery ↳ If one breaks, trust breaks. ↠ 𝗪𝗵𝗮𝘁 𝗦𝗶𝗴𝗻𝗮𝗹𝘀 𝗧𝗿𝘂𝘀𝘁 𝘁𝗼 𝗧𝗼𝗱𝗮𝘆’𝘀 𝗖𝗼𝗻𝘀𝘂𝗺𝗲𝗿? ↳ Trust is felt, before it’s measured. ↳ Clear promises ↳ Human tone ↳ Fast resolution ↳ Aligned actions across platforms ↠ 𝗠𝘆 𝗘𝘅𝗮𝗺𝗽𝗹𝗲 𝗧𝗵𝗮𝘁 𝗣𝗿𝗼𝘃𝗲𝘀 𝘁𝗵𝗲 𝗣𝗼𝗶𝗻𝘁, 𝗔𝗹𝗺𝗮𝗿𝗮𝗶 ↳ A Saudi brand that sells more than dairy, it sells dependability. ↳ Predictable quality ↳ Local identity ↳ Decades of consistent storytelling That’s why people trust it without needing ads every week. ↠ 𝗔𝗿𝗲 𝗬𝗼𝘂 𝗕𝘂𝗶𝗹𝗱𝗶𝗻𝗴 𝗼𝗿 𝗕𝘂𝗿𝗻𝗶𝗻𝗴 𝗧𝗿𝘂𝘀𝘁? ↳ Short-term tactics often destroy long-term loyalty. → Are your discounts replacing value? → Are your messages aligned with customer realities? → Are your teams empowered to deliver the promise? ↳ Fix the experience before scaling the story. ↠ 𝗪𝗵𝗮𝘁 𝗦𝗺𝗮𝗿𝘁 𝗕𝗿𝗮𝗻𝗱𝘀 𝗗𝗼 𝗗𝗶𝗳𝗳𝗲𝗿𝗲𝗻𝘁𝗹𝘆 ↳ They treat trust like a business objective. ↳ They audit trust at every touchpoint ↳ They train teams on values, not just skills ↳ They lead with meaning—not manipulation ↠ 𝗧𝗵𝗲 𝗥𝗲𝗮𝗹 𝗞𝗣𝗜, 𝗧𝗿𝘂𝘀𝘁 𝗽𝗲𝗿 𝗧𝗼𝘂𝗰𝗵𝗽𝗼𝗶𝗻𝘁 ↳ Every interaction either builds or breaks belief. ↳ It’s not about more reach. It’s about earned loyalty per moment. 💡 𝗠𝗮𝘇𝗲𝗻’𝘀 𝗧𝗮𝗸𝗲 After 23 years in real estate, food and beverage, hospitality, and retail, I’ve learned this: Trust is the key strategy that protects your brand in a crisis, helps it grow in quiet times, and amplifies it when the spotlight is on. Without trust, you’re building on shaky ground. 💬 Let’s Talk What’s one recent action you’ve taken that built real trust with your audience? 🧠 Share below, we all learn from each other. ♻️ Repost if you found this helpful. Like | Comment | Share | Follow me for Daily Leadership Strategic Marketing Insights #TrustIsStrategy #SaudiMarketing #CMOInsights #BrandLoyalty #Vision2030 #MarketingLeadership #RealEstateMarketing #HospitalityStrategy #RetailGrowth #Lebanon