“We spend so much time worrying about our SEO — how are you optimizing  
for trust? Before you post that thing, before you send out that email,  
how are you optimizing for trust?”  

“First of all, trust you can’t buy. I can’t just go out and spend X amount of dollars and end up with trust. … You can’t buy it, so how do we do this?  
How do we teach people, or cultivate trust, on purpose through our communications? That is something that is worth so much more time  
than any marketer is giving it right now.”   

– KiKi L’Italien CEO & Host of Association Chat 
 

In this episode of OnBrand, join host Sarah Grace McCandless as she speaks with KiKi L’Italien, CEO and host of Association Chat, about what the for-profit world can learn from associations and nonprofits, how community can be a haven when we need it most, and how companies can inject trust into the way they operate.  

When it comes to enabling trust, community, and connection, brands in the for-profit arena can learn a lot from nonprofits. The associations, charities, and nonprofit organizations we engage with constantly communicate their purpose beyond dollars and cents — that’s why we trust them. So if you want to inspire similar trust, create a community of like-minded individuals around a common goal, and demonstrate your higher purpose as a brand, you have to show them you’re in it for the right reasons. 

“The reason that associations are able to oftentimes have that (trust) when other types of organizations don’t is because there’s this underlying understanding that they’re not just there for the transaction — they’re not just here for the bottom-line or to make a buck — they’re there because of a purpose, a mission, and to support their membership,” KiKi says.  

The host of the hit podcast Association Chat, KiKi has cultivated a massive community of listeners since founding the show in 2009. Today, she offers community consulting services through her company Amplified Growth, where she trains businesses to lead and grow communities through trust. 

Join us and find out how communicating your purpose as a brand can help you begin earning the trust of your customers as you work to build community in this episode of OnBrand! 

Episode Resources

KiKi L’Italien (Twitter) 

KiKi’s Website 

 

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