I understand that the goal is to foster trust with your stakeholders, but Rosen almost pushes it to the point that it sounds like a false trust is better than no trust. He quotes Bowden (2004), “Trust is the ultimate goal in any solicitation. Once you have the person’s trust, you will most likely have a positive response.” Take this statement away from the nonprofit arena and anyone would tell you that it sounds like appearing trustworthy is actually more important than being trustworthy.
Of course I agree with Rosen that trust is of utmost importance, but is there a point where you’ve pushed the trust issue so much people become leery of your organization? I’m just playing Devil’s advocate here, but it is something to consider. Is it really about trust, or is it really about building and maintaining an organization that holds itself to the highest of ethical standards. Because if you have a great organization, won’t the trust just follow? I mean of course you’re probably going to have to toot your own horn a little bit to get the word out about how ethical you are, but is that the same as shouting from the roof tops, “hey all you out there with money, you can trust us!” Personally, I would say no…I pretty much am never going to trust anyone who point blank says, “trust me.” They’re up to something, aren’t they?
2 Comments:
At 7:07 PM, March 31, 2008,
abwilli3 said…
I agree that if any organization boasts about being trustworthy, I am more likely to question why they have to say it. I agree also with previous posts that an organization's reputation takes time to build a good image. Most people learn about organizations through word of mouth. I also agree that having someone in the public eye who is trustworthy and someone the public can relate to builds credibility.
At 1:04 AM, April 01, 2008,
Jon Pharr said…
As organizations reputations spread through word of mouth, I don’t understand why they would not tell everyone about what they have been doing and get the word out about their organization. With so many corporations and organizations dealing with problems and scandals it is quite refreshing to hear about an organization who has been doing a lot for the public or even overachieving the people’s expectations or goals. I know these companies send persuasive messages with almost every statement they make public, but what organization does not want to gain publicity. This is just a little rant but I feel that anytime you can send positive messages to the public, the organization should take advantage of their good behavior and let the public know what they have been doing.
Post a Comment
<< Home