(This article was originally published in The Productivity Institute (PI) Newsletter)

Communication, even with great content, is nothing without trust.

Elusive and essential, whether personal or professional, trust is an intrinsic part of every successful relationship.  But in our modern age of de-personalization and lightning-quick information transfers, how do you ensure that the necessary trust is developed?

More than words
Effective communication is also an essential tool for relationship development; from a supervisor to her employees or a business owner to his clients, what you say and how you say it has a crucial impact on the ways you build trust.  In our climate of ever expanding social media options, there are countless ways to reach out to our audience; how do we ensure that we really connect?  Every relationship is unique, but here are some commonalities shared by great communicators:

1. Despite the adage ‘no news is good news’, make sure that you do the opposite.
There’s nothing worse than being left hanging – as an employee, a client, or a prospective contractor.  Whether or not you’re the key decision-maker, and even if you don’t have much new information to impart, use all available channels to update your audience.  Thanks to applications like Twitter, Facebook, and endless instant messaging options (not to mention the good, old-fashioned phone), it’s amazingly easy to stay in touch.  A quick note apprising someone of the situation will put them at ease and help them trust you – as well as convince them that you will indeed be in touch as soon as you’ve got real news.

2. When getting the point across, make sure to tell the whole story.
Lots of would-be communicators do a good job of relaying the facts, but that’s not enough; they don’t connect the dots.  Giving someone the whole story and telling them how the facts inter-relate is important. If you assume that the information is obvious you risk erroneous interpretations and misunderstandings.   Understanding the ‘why’ will strengthen commitment levels too: people are more invested in their actions when they know why they’re doing them.

3. Remember that your role as a good communicator includes helping others make good decisions. To do this it’s essential that you’re truthful – have the courage to tell the truth and expect honesty in return.  That’s not to say that you must divulge every piece of information, but telling someone that you’re uncomfortable saying more engenders more trust than dissembling or telling a half-truth.  It’s only when we’re given all the facts that we can make informed decisions.   An effective communication strategy is one that enables good decisions – your audience will thank you for this, and it will go a long way toward building solid relationships.

4. You must be accountable for your own message.
Don’t pass the buck or absolve yourself of responsibility even when the message you’ve got to pass on is a hard one to give.  Don’t hide behind the guise of messenger – email certainly has its place, but a difficult message is better received in person or on the phone.  Choose your words carefully, but remember that people respond to authenticity and this coupled with respect and compassion will go a long way to developing solid relationships, even in tough times.

5. Above all, building trust takes time.
Effective communication is an ongoing and continuous process that evolves and develops alongside your message.  Words mean a lot, but when they’re paired with consistent action you’ve got a truly powerful message.  If they are trust-based, great communication skills will continue to work for you as you build morale, boost a profile or grow your business through the referrals of satisfied customers.

The bottom line
Great communicators know the value and power of trust as essential element of effective communication.  Whether your medium is verbal or textual, developing solid trust-based relationships will make your audience sit up and listen.

By Katie Mead