[Ankesh]

The short cut way to build a bond is:

Self Disclosure.

Humble self disclosure will get more people to connect with you and like you. Unfortunately, everyone is not good at it. I know I wasn't. But I've tried to work on it - by modelling after people who are good at it.

Three people whose stuff I read a lot and try to model after - to become better at self disclosure:

Dave Dee
Gary Halbert (although he wasn't always humble)
Gordon Alexander (find links to his stories from the left column on sowpub.com)

Give your readers insights into your life. Your favourite music. Your sun sign. Your favourite team. Your most embarassing moment.

The important thing to do - however - is build up on your self disclosure. Connect your self disclosure story to your self-credibility.

For eg: Gordon's story about how he started selling flowers when he was a kid. The whole story connects with Gordon's credibility... letting you know that he is good at sales now too.

Self Disclosure that shows your skills is the best kind.

Add surprise and rewards to it and you won't only have people who trust you - but you'll have true evangelists. People who actively spread the word about you.