Rebuilding buyer trust: The value of personal brand

Only 18-19% of customers trust salespeople1. Yet trust is the top reason buyers choose to engage with a seller. That gap reveals a serious perception issue and a critical opportunity for change. 

 

The data behind the distrust

According to various research:

  • 51% of buyers rank trust as the #1 factor in choosing a salesperson2
  • 62% of decision makers check LinkedIn before engaging3
  • 50% of buyers avoid salespeople with incomplete profiles4

These numbers reveal a major mismatch between what buyers need and how sales professionals are perceived. Buyers want trustworthy salespeople. Too often, they encounter unverified, indistinct profiles that don’t inspire confidence. 

 

What’s causing the trust crisis?

  1. The legacy of poor practice: Pushy, self-interested sales tactics have shaped buyer expectations even when today’s sellers are more ethical and informed.
  2. The rise of self-education: Buyers are 57% through their journey before engaging with sales5 so, they expect sellers to add value, not just inform.
  3. Visibility gaps: Without a means to verify credentials, profile strength, or professionalism, even capable sellers appear generic or untrustworthy. 

 

Understanding trust: The trust equation

To build trust, it’s not enough to be likeable or experienced, you need to demonstrate it clearly. Charles H. Green, co-author of The Trusted Advisor, developed the Trust Equation, which offers a powerful framework to understand how trust is earned:

 

Trust = (Credibility + Reliability + Intimacy) / Self-Orientation

 

Let’s break that down in a sales context: 

  • Credibility: Are you believable? Do your words, experience, and credentials support what you say?
  • Reliability: Do you consistently do what you promise? Are your follow-ups timely and dependable?
  • Intimacy: Are you seen as safe? Can buyers be open with you, or do you feel like a transaction?
  • Self-orientation: Do you focus more on their needs, or your own targets? 

 To increase trust, you must increase the first three and decrease the last. Personal brand helps you do just that.

 

Salespeople should: 

  • Display designations or certifications from trusted sources (credibility)
  • Follow up when they say they will (reliability)
  • Share insights with empathy and openness (intimacy)
  • Put the buyer’s outcomes first (low self-orientation)

By following these four points, you can begin to shift thoughts from “do I want to engage with this salesperson” to “I’d like to hear what the person has to say”. 

 

How personal brand helps rebuild trust

Trust isn’t just about likeability. It’s about credibility + consistency; a strong personal brand demonstrates both. When a salesperson’s digital presence aligns with ethical standards and expertise, trust builds, even before the first meeting.

 

Buyers trust what they can see:

  • A complete, professional LinkedIn profile
  • Verified credentials (e.g., membership of professional body, certifications)
  • Evidence of Continuing Professional Development (CPD) and ethical conduct 

 

Three practical steps for sales leaders

  1. Champion a culture of professionalism: Trust is not a script; it’s a habit and behaviour.
  2. Equip and support your team to invest in their trustworthiness: Membership of the Institute of Sales Professionals, following a sales Code of Conduct and taking the Institute’s Ethical Sales exam, all embrace continuous learning. Build credibility into onboarding and enablement.
  3. Has your team evidenced commitment to trustworthiness: Is each person complete, confident, and credentialed? Encourage the usage of the ISP post nominals and inclusion in the “ISP Registered Sales Professional” database, as well as posting on social media about Ethics Exam passes and the accumulation of CPD points.  

The trust crisis is real, but it’s also solvable. With small, intentional changes in how your team presents, you can move from suspicion to credibility.

 

Personal brand is no longer optional; it’s how trust begins. 

 

References

1 Customer Trust in the Salesperson: An integrative review and meta-analysis of the empirical literature – www.sciencedirect.com

2 11 Sales Influencers weigh in on how to build trust in the buyer journey, LinkedIn 

3 11 Sales influencers weigh in on how to build trust in the buyer journey, LinkedIn

4 LinkedIn Ads Certifications: LinkedIn Marketing Labs.

5 Gartner as cited in https://hbr.org/2012/07/the-end-of-solution-sales