When it comes to making a choice before buying, consumers weigh up the pros and cons in their decision: is this product within their budget? Is it good value for money? Does he “like” this brand rather than another? This last question is particularly interesting, as it is abstract and highly dependent on the consumer’s perception of the brand. Just like a human being, a consumer’s relationship with a brand will be determined by their shared values and, above all, by the trust they place in the brand. So let’s take a look at the real importance of trust in consumer relations and, more broadly, the importance of ethics in marketing. 
Can you do without ethics and transparency when developing your brand?
Ethics are a set of behaviors that follow principles recognized as healthy or even admirable by the majority of people.
From this point of view, it’s not hard to understand why a brand wishing to reach as many people as possible should behave ethically.
But how important is this?
The importance of ethics and transparency in a brand’s image
In many ways, a brand’s relationship with its customers is similar to that of a celebrity’s relationship with its fans: the way in which the celebrity speaks or acts will greatly influence the type of audience willing to support him or her.
If a celebrity acts in a way that is deemed unethical by the majority of his or her fanbase, the latter may well turn their backs on the celebrity, as they will no longer recognize themselves in him or her, and will not want to risk being associated with values they do not support.
This is exactly the same phenomenon as for a brand, accentuated by the fact that supporting a brand often involves the consumer displaying visible signs of it (a logo on a garment, for example).
Having a well-cared-for ethic, and following it in all circumstances, ensures that a brand in search of recognition will retain a solid customer base over the long term.
With ethics now synonymous with ecology and social progress, many brands are forced to adopt them for fear of being stigmatized by a majority of consumers.
The problem with this phenomenon is that, as consumers become increasingly alert to these issues, many companies find themselves under scrutiny as to their real commitments, revealing numerous cases of deceptive practices.
For a brand, getting caught lying to its customers is often fatal.
Even for companies with colossal resources, such as Coca-Cola, Apple or Nike, it is extremely difficult to make people forget a lie and avoid a bad reputation that will last for decades.
This is why, in addition to ethical concerns, transparency is increasingly demanded by consumers, as it is this that will justify these ethics and reinforce the trust of present and future customers.
Mistakes to avoid when developing your brand’s ethics and transparency
Not to mention big business and trendy brands, as an e-tailer it’s important to start building solid trust with your target clientele at an early stage, by adopting a consistent and relevant communication ethic.
While building the spirit of a brand is a very personal process for its creator, there are some simple rules that can help avoid the pitfalls mentioned above:
Don’t try to please everyone.
It’s a fact of life, and we have to accept it: creating a brand, especially in B2C, means communicating specific values to a specific audience, and trying to have it both ways means never totally pleasing anyone.
You can hate brands like Diesel or Apple, but there’s no denying that many people identify with them 100% and appreciate the community aspect.
Avoid greenwashing.
Greenwashing is the basic mistake made by brands wishing to capitalize on the ecological trend. It consists of over-emphasizing values and actions in line with sustainable development, without actually following through.
Perceived as hypocrisy, greenwashing can be destructive for a fledgling brand.
Don’t follow an ethic based on trends alone.
This ties in with points 1 and 2: basing a company’s image on a fashion phenomenon in the hope of reaching as many people as possible, even though it doesn’t correspond at all to the brand’s original DNA (and/or that of its owner), puts it at greater risk of having shaky ethics and communication.
Avoid erratic or overly automated communication.
While trust is built in part around shared values, nothing can replace the impact of facilitated, caring communication between the members of a company and its customers.
In this age of chatbots and automated e-commerce stores, it’s worth remembering the importance of a human discussion to make customers feel supported and privileged.
Cultivate ethics and transparency: how?
This gives us a clearer idea of the real importance of ethics in marketing, as well as the decisive advantages of adopting total transparency when developing your brand as an e-tailer.
This may seem like a headache to many, who see it as a quasi-monastic code of conduct that is, above all, incompatible with profit.
However, there are some relatively straightforward behaviors that allow you to build a solid and sincere ethic naturally and without too much effort. 
Adopt values and a way of working that are in harmony with oneself
Let’s say it again: you can’t please everyone, either as a person or as a brand.
Choosing to build a brand not only around a product, service or business model that you like yourself, but also infusing it with values that you personally support, is the starting point for a brand with a strong personality and ethos.
Pretending to share values as a seduction tactic, or simply virtue-signaling (even if it may be a short-term strategy), is a dangerous game that can backfire heavily on a brand.
The first (and most important) building block of an ethical and transparent brand is therefore to create it, from the ground up, on a model and values that correspond to its creator, without trying to please everyone, and to be transparent and communicative on the subject.
A few tips to reinforce transparency and brand ethics
Once the groundwork has been laid, a few more rules can be put in place to reinforce the positive perception and trust customers place in a brand:
Human communication.
As a pillar of transparency and trust, direct communication ensures that customers don’t feel abandoned.
Even if they’re not satisfied with the service, customers who have received help, respect and attention from a brand’s stakeholders will retain a clear positive feeling (there’s no need to abandon automated communication altogether, but retaining a direct means of communication remains essential).
Building lasting relationships.
Like all relationships, that between a brand and its customers needs to be nurtured regularly to ensure long-term loyalty.
This can take the form of regular newsletters, personalized offers to reward those who support the brand (discounts based on seniority, welcome offers) or nominative commercial gestures for anniversaries and other important dates.
CSR actions.
Now an essential component of corporate communications, actions that promote corporate social and environmental responsibility open the door to ever larger markets of consumers concerned about their impact on the environment.
Be careful, however, as highlighting these kinds of practices requires a high degree of transparency and a sense of proportion: it’s better to do too little than too much, and risk being accused of greenwashing!
Subversion and offbeat behavior.
Although this type of communication is clearly not suitable for all brands, using humor, irony and even absurdity can be an excellent way of building trust with a “hardcore” customer base that will not fail to promote the brand if given the opportunity.
Elon Musk, for example, has always maintained a subversive, offbeat tone in his many projects, which has enabled him, despite numerous controversies, to retain a solid base of customers and near-fanatical admirers.
The wacky products of “the boring company” and the offbeat publicity stunts produced for Tesla bear witness to these attempts to create trust and intimacy through subversion.
Just one good ethic for your brand, or an infinite number?
As with so many things, there’s no magic bullet when it comes to being ethical with your brand, because while ethics may admit to universal clichés, the truth is that there are as many as there are individuals.
The right recipe would therefore be to cultivate one in line with your own values before creating your brand, while ensuring that it is sufficiently shared to create a profitable base of loyal customers.
Claiming an ethic that is not that of your brand is a risky gamble, and the slightest deviation can prove fatal.
However, in addition to ethics, there is one thing that remains paramount in creating a relationship of trust with your customers, whatever your positioning: transparency and communication.
I’m an e-commerce expert and developer with over 15 years’ experience on the main cms, so don’t hesitate to contact me to discuss your e-commerce project.
