Read time: 3 minutes

If readers don’t trust you, they’ll ditch you.

So how do you gain their trust?

Conventional wisdom says: You have to be an expert. Credibility = knowledge + experience.

This is partly true. Naturally, you shouldn’t write about something you know nothing about. However, there are more ways to credibly engage readers that many writers ignore. They’re missing out.

In this guide, I’ll unpack 3 ways you can build rapport with readers without having to be a guru.

These strategies will help you:

• Retain readers, not lose them
• Write authentically, without having to fake it
• Make you more relatable to readers
• Free you from the pressure to be the foremost expert on any topic

In the digital age, “expertise” is a loose word. Unfortunately, many writers position themselves as experts and can’t pull it off. People can smell a poser. However, the opposite error is to refrain from writing at all—to put off all writing until the day you’re “qualified.” For many, that feeling never comes and readers miss out on your perspective. There’s a better way.

To establish trust, be an reporter, learner, or antihero.

Let’s explore each strategy—one at a time—and while we do, consider how you might implement it into your writing.

#1: Be a reporter

Instead of feeling pressure to “know it all”, glean from the wisdom of other experts, then synthesize their thoughts. This approach is hugely beneficial to readers because you’re saving them the time and effort it takes to research a topic.

A great example is Jordan Raynor’s book, Called to Create, in which he interviews 40+ entrepreneurs. Although Jordan is an accomplished CEO, he humbly and wisely collects insights from other businesspeople further down the road.

Check out how Jordan sets up the book in his intro:

#2: Be a learner

Instead of inviting readers to sit at your feet like disciples, invite them to walk the path with you as fellow learners. This diffuses pretense, creates solidarity, makes you more relatable, and lets you off the hook from having to be omniscient.

Besides, it’s way more fun to discover something than be told something.

Justin Whitmel Early does this so well in his book, Habits of the Household.

Here’s two examples:

#3: Be an antihero

Which of the following stories would you rather read:

1. Hi, I have it all together. Always have, always will. Listen up.
2. Hi, I’ve made a lot of mistakes. But I’m grown a lot, and I’d love to help you avoid some of my biggest blunders.

No contest, right?

It’s counterintuitive, but sometimes your unhealthy habits, regrets, and lowest moments qualify you to be the most helpful to readers.

In The Ruthless Elimination of Hurry, John Mark Comer describes the numbness and exhaustion after yet another Sunday preaching at his Portland megachurch:

Be honest about your weaknesses and flaws. Vulnerability from the valley is far more engaging than a haughty diatribe from the mountaintop.

Yes, eventually you’ll want to inch your way toward resolution throughout the book, but starting with your weakness helps readers trust you more.

To Summarize:

1. Be a reporter: collect and synthesize wise thinkers.
2. Be a learner: write from the trenches and invite readers to join you on the journey.
3. Be an anti-hero: admit your mistakes and help readers avoid making the same ones.

Expert or not, if you implement one or several of these 3 strategies, your readers will trust you (and probably relate to you) much more.

I hope this helps you connect with more readers.