The Marketing Book Podcast: "Trust Signals" by Scott Baradell

Trust Signals: Brand Building in a Post-Truth World by Scott Baradell

About the Book

What is a trust signal?

Let’s say you’re interested in a book you aren’t familiar with—this book, for example.

Before you buy it, you wonder, “Can I trust this author?” Can you trust that their book will be worth your money and your time?

The author, in turn, tries to prove their trustworthiness in a number of ways:

An accomplished and relevant biography
Glowing praise from well-known people on the cover
Five-star reviews on Amazon
Acclaim on social media by people you follow
Coverage in news media outlets you know and respect

These are examples of trust signals, the points of evidence that individuals, companies, and brands use to win one another’s trust.

Mastering these signals is the single best way to build, grow, and protect your brand in today’s post-truth world—where trust is the most precious commodity of all.

About the Author

Scott Baradell is a writer and entrepreneur who grew his PR agency, Idea Grove, with business generated by its popular blog.

Idea Grove is one of the top twenty-five tech PR agencies in the United States, a three-time Inc. 5000 company, and an Inc. Best Workplace in 2021 and 2022.

In 2020, Scott started a second blog, Trust Signals, to provide news, analysis, and practical advice on what it takes to build trust with customers and the public in today’s post-truth world. The blog inspired and culminates in this book.

Before Idea Grove, Scott was the chief communications officer for two billion-dollar companies, the co-founder and CMO of a venture-backed startup, and an award-winning journalist.

And, interesting fact – during a visit to Japan, his tour bus was attacked by snow monkeys, but somehow he made it out alive!

Listen to the Interview…

Links…

Trust Signals: Brand Building in a Post-Truth World by Scott Baradell (Amazon)
Trust Signals (book website)
Trust Signals Blog
Scott Baradell (Idea Grove)
Scott Baradell (LinkedIn)
Scott Baradell (Twitter)
They Ask, You Answer: A Revolutionary Approach to Inbound Sales, Content Marketing, and Today’s Digital Consumer, Revised & Updated 2nd Edition by Marcus Sheridan (Marketing Book Podcast interview)
Sweet Smell of Success (1957 film)
Ivy Lee (founder of modern public relations)
Edward Bernays (the father of public relations)
“”Post-Truth and Its Consequences: What a 25-Year-Old Essay Tells Us About the Current Moment”” (The Nation, 2016)
Buyer Personas: How to Gain Insight into Your Customer’s Expectations, Align Your Marketing Strategies, and Win More Business by Adele Revella (Marketing Book Podcast interview)
Blink: The Power of Thinking Without Thinking by Malcolm Gladwell
Simple Justice: The History of Brown v. Board of Education and Black America’s Struggle for Equality by Richard Kluger
Ashes to Ashes: America’s Hundred-Year Cigarette War, the Public Health, and the Unabashed Triumph of Philip Morris by Richard Kluger
Everybody Writes: Your New and Improved Go-To Guide to Creating Ridiculously Good Content by Ann Handley (Marketing Book Podcast interview)

P.S. – If you have rated and reviewed the podcast on Apple Podcasts, please let me return the favor and mail you some Marketing Book Podcast bookmarks and laptop stickers. Just click here to provide your postal address (I’ll send it anywhere in the world)! ~Douglas Burdett, host of The Marketing Book Podcast.