When people consider you to be generally trustworthy or competent, they confer credibility upon you — you become the “expert.” It’s at this point that the messages you say or write will demonstrate your expertise in knowledge, experience, and pride in a particular product or service.
Your messages should first say something about the product or service and the reader/listener will weigh it on desirability, exclusiveness, and believability. An ideal message should be distinct in that it does not apply to every brand in the product category. Most importantly, your message should be believable.
A study conducted by Flanagin & Metzger in 2000 in the US noted that newspapers were rated as the most credible medium. In comparison, the Internet, tv, magazines, and radio were perceived as less credible; however, the differences were only marginal. Of the information types provided by these media, news, reference (factual information) and entertainment information were perceived to be more credible than commercial information. There is a perception that the printed word is more reliable than the spoken word or words presented in electronic form. (A validate reason to write and submit articles to build your credibility.) The Internet was perceived as a relatively credible source of information that may supplement newspapers and other media. Factual information was perceived to be equally credible in the Internet and in the printed newspaper.
So, when it’s all said and done – when people consider you to be generally trustworthy or competent, they confer credibility upon you — you become the “expert.”