Building trust with your key stakeholders is one of the most important things you can do. It can be the difference between retaining and expanding an account or losing it to a competitor. But how do you become a trusted advisor? What does it even mean to be one?

What is a Trusted Advisor?

A trusted advisor is a person who has built a relationship of trust with their key stakeholders. They are seen as an expert in their field and are relied upon for their knowledge, insights, and recommendations. Being a trusted advisor goes beyond just providing an excellent customer experience – it means being a strategic partner to your customers, understanding their business goals and challenges, and helping them achieve success.

Building Trust with Key Stakeholders

The first step in becoming a trusted advisor is building trust with your key stakeholders. You can build trust by being proactive, responsive, and transparent.

• Be proactive: Anticipate your customers' needs and take action before they have to ask. Offer solutions to their problems before they become major issues. You can do this by using your industry or product expertise.

  • Is there an industry trend that’s making other accounts in their industry take X action? Share those insights, guide them to understand if they should be taking that action.

  • Is there an issue with a piece of the product that they’ve voiced they rely on day-to-day? Let them know and update them as the resolution is progressed.

• Be responsive: Respond quickly to your customers' questions and concerns. Set realistic expectations and follow through on your commitments. People like people they can rely on.

  • Are you going to need a day or so to get them everything they asked for in an email or following a meeting? Let them know, share what you have, and make sure they’re not left in the dark wondering if you’re still going to get them what they need.

• Be transparent: Keep your customers informed about what you're doing and why. Share your successes and failures openly and honestly.

  • Is there a feature request they’re waiting on that’s a critical blocker for them? Don’t shy away from it. Be the first to bring it up and address where your team is on that request.

  • Is there lagging adoption that’s going to impact their time-to-value? Bring it up. Partner on the solution. (they should want their team to use this tool they bought)

Establishing Yourself as an Expert

To become a trusted advisor, you need to establish yourself as an expert in your field. This means staying up-to-date on industry trends, sharing your knowledge with your customers, and providing insights and recommendations based on your expertise.