TrustCloud: Harness Technology to Build a Reputation, by Elizabeth H. Cottrell

I am always on the lookout for ways to connect meaningfully with others, and the new online world makes that both easier and more challenging: 1) Easier because social media tools enable me to connect with hundreds of people in a fraction of the time it would take offline; 2) More challenging because it’s harder to know much about someone you haven’t met, especially when you want to know whether they can be trusted with your money or your reputation.

You’re undoubtedly familiar with the goal of having potential clients know, like, and trust you. As in offline communities, you build a solid reputation by being friendly, generous, helpful, and reliable. You consistently provide value, and you do what you say you’re going to do (when you say you’re going to do it).

You’ve established a track record with those clients or associates who have known you awhile, but is there a way to shorten that process?

I’ve just discovered a service trying to do just that: TrustCloud. It is relatively new, and I learned about it from Michael Martine, Remarkablogger.  Much like a FICO score for credit-worthiness or an eBay score for seller reliability, TrustCloud aims to create a similar score that carries substance and meaning in what the company calls the “Sharing Economy.”

What is the Sharing Economy?

“Sharing Economy” was derived from “Collaborative Consumption,” a concept coined by Rachel Botsman, writing in 2011 for Wired magazine. It consists of “an economic model based on sharing, swapping, bartering, trading or renting access to products as opposed to ownership.” Businesses based on this concept include apartment, car, and house-swapping operations and more.

Most online businesses require a similar kind of trust. When you buy a used book from one of Amazon’s resellers or a product from eBay, you rely on the seller’s reputation and track record for describing their products accurately and shipping in a timely manner.

What can TrustCloud do for you?

Whether you are an author promoting your books, an artist or craftsperson selling your work, or a consultant selling your services, you can benefit from giving potential customers a reliable measure of your past track record and what others have learned about you from their personal experience.

In its own words, “TrustCloud helps you leverage the good behavior you’ve earned in [the] Sharing Economy—and gauge the trustworthiness of others in your sharing community.” Instead of a potential client having to visit several social media platforms to put get a feeling for your trustworthiness, TrustCloud pulls the data from those platforms and, using a proprietary algorithm, creates a portable representation of all the data in the form of a TrustCard and score.

I was intrigued and decided to try it. You can see my TrustCard reflecting my TrustScore in the sidebar of my blogs at RiverwoodWriter.com and Heartspoken.com. On a scale of 1 to 1,000, my first score of 752 was considered “Good.” That’s better than Average but not yet Very Good or Excellent. I hope it will go up once TrustCloud has verified my mailing address.

Will TrustCloud become a meaningful measure of trustworthiness?

Two things will have a lot to do with the future influence of TrustCloud.

1. One will be how effective it is in its ability to integrate more social networking platforms where activities are based on integrity and truthfulness. Right now, the main social media platforms are included, plus eBay, TripAdvisor, Klout, Xeeme, and StackOverflow. Others such as Quora, Ask.com, Yelp, and Yahoo Answers are “coming soon.”
2. The second will be whether TrustCloud members use discretion when they endorse others. If it is used only to swap votes, it will dilute the significance.  TrustCloud is attempting to control this by limiting the points you get for endorsing others.

I recommend you take a look at TrustCloud even if you decide not to display the TrustCard. Besides being a feather in your cap, it will help you understand more about how an online reputation is made.

NOTE: In keeping with Karen’s “New Stuff” theme on her blog this week, you might find further inspiration for trying new things in my recent article published in our local paper Northern Virginia Daily  “Never be afraid to try something new.”

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Elizabeth H. Cottrell, a.k.a. RiverwoodWriter, conceals her analytical side by artistically blogging at RiverwoodWriter.com for small business owners and solopreneurs. Turbo-charge your ability to connect, create, and communicate with prospects and clients. Elizabeth can craft your compelling content, help you get that book out of your head and published at last, or teach you how to use social media sensibly and effectively. Stop struggling and call to see if she can help!

Elizabeth also blogs about connecting with God, with self, with nature, and with others at Heartspoken.com. See what she’s up to on Twitter, Facebook and Pinterest.

See her TrustScore on TrustCloud

The Internet and Real Relationships, by Randy Mitchell

Ever since Al Gore famously invented the internet (Ha Ha), the personal information we share through our computer keyboards has exploded like the world’s arsenal of nuclear bombs firing off at once. Facebook, Twitter, LinkedIn, YouTube, etc. have each grown at such an astonishing rate that oftentimes these websites periodically shut down for a while trying to catch up with their increased demand. We all frequently post, like, befriend, tweet and whatever else in an attempt to share and promote our opinions and viewpoints, each vying for that coveted piece of the super information highway. And there are us bloggers–the ones who really try displaying our inner emotions. According to Wikipedia, as of February 2011 there are more than 156 million public blogs in existence. My friends, that’s a bunch of fingers dancing along some plastic letter and space buttons!

When I started my social media campaign to promote my book and website, I knew absolutely nothing about how to proceed. I worked with someone who specializes in just this sort of thing, and off we went into the wild blue yonder spreading the word, that I, an unknown personality, had a story to tell and product to sell.

The blogs I write, usually every week, are now read by hundreds of people on a routine basis scattered across several websites. I know, because we all have the unique ability of seeing these numbers as they happen. It’s been lots of fun doing this, and has given me the opportunity to try something I never thought of before–the successful creation of a new, part-time career.

I would venture to guess that virtually every person reading this also has more than one social media account. It doesn’t matter where, because the fact that you have them says something on its own. You see, when you hit that “create account” button a magical thing happened: you opened your life up to the whole world to notice. Shortly afterward, you started searching for people to connect with.

At first, they were those you knew personally: family members, best friends, old college and high school classmates, co-workers, etc. Then, you started getting friends and follower requests from those you’ve never even met, more than likely looking for a professional connection. No matter the reason, suddenly and miraculously, you glance at your network numbers one day and notice you’ve added hundreds of people knowing very little about them, not to mention, never meeting them personally.

Like so many, I read other writers blogs. I really enjoy the creativity which goes behind each and every one. There’s tons of gifted talent online, and you don’t need to walk inside Barnes & Noble and buy the latest bestseller to find it. It’s out here, and at everyone’s fingertips. Sometimes, I find myself reading the comments underneath different articles. Most are appreciative and congratulatory; some are often negative and critical.

Which draws to mind: Who are these people, really: the writers and those who post? What do they actually think? What are their true beliefs? Are they only writing what looks good or popular to say, therefore appearing socially and politically correct? If you met them in person, would you actually enjoy being around them or bolt for the door screaming to yourself, “Whoa, not exactly what I expected!”

Ever since I started participating in social media, I’ve had lots of personal exchanges from those I connect with, and it’s been great. Two which come to mind are one who’s a mega-bestselling author and another that had their book made into a movie. I asked for, and they followed through with some wonderful advice. They graciously gave me their time and counsel without ever even meeting them, although I would jump at the chance.

The people we all meet through social media can be priceless, but we should all guard against replacing them with real relationships, therefore substituting bona fide flesh and blood for focused words on a screen–it kind of goes along with my opinions on replacing personal communication with texting and e-mailing, it just isn’t the same. I for one would love to have a huge party someday with each and every friend, follower, fellow blogger, and whoever else I’m connected to on the internet. To spend time with them, place a hand-in-hand, watch their mannerisms, and listen to the tone of their voices as they speak. It would be an amazing adventure to actually see and sense what brought us all together inside Al Gore’s super creation (once again, Ha Ha).

Now log on and let’s connect, I’d love to meet you!

Randy Mitchell

Mr. Mitchell lives in Dallas, Texas and has spent most of his career as a commercial airline pilot. He’s an avid blogger, movie fan, martial artist, and lover of all things Dallas Cowboys. His first romance novel, Sons in the Clouds, is currently available wherever e-books are sold.

See Randy’s website, The Inspirational Writer.
Connect on Sons in the Clouds on Facebook, Twitter, and LinkedIn.

Watch the Sons in the Clouds book trailer.
Books available online at: Amazon, Barnes & Noble, Sony Reader Store, Apple I-Bookstore, and KoBo.

See Randy’s guest blog from April 26, The Balance of Happiness.