Building Trust in Your Brand

A special report by Edelman has reported that brand trust is critical for developing customer loyalty. In fact, 53% of consumers view trust as the second most influential factor when shopping, right behind price. A finding especially relevant considering today’s climate is that for 74% of consumers, a brand’s level of social impact is a major determining factor in whether or not they can trust the brand. Additionally, 80% of consumers want companies to “solve society’s problems.” In a time of political, social, and economic unrest and a global health crisis, brand trust may be the biggest competitive advantage companies can have when trying to distinguish themselves from competitors as well as keeping customers motivated to shop.

So we know from the numbers that brand trust is important to the consumer, but how does it benefit companies? First, 60% of people with high brand trust say that they’re comfortable sharing personal information with the brand – that means more consumer data made available. Second, 78% with high brand trust say they will recommend the brand to others and even defend the brand against criticism. (As Antony Young details in Brand Media Strategy, word of mouth is one of the most powerful marketing tools.)

The hard part is that brand trust is not something that can be bought – it requires a relationship between the company and a consumer. But how can brands establish this relationship and therefore, loyalty and trust? A Forbes article suggests 2 ways organizations can earn brand trust:

1. Be truthful in their advertising.
2. Be transparent about privacy and handling of consumer data.

How else can brands earn trust from their consumers? What makes you trust some brands over others? What problems within society should organizations take more initiative to “solve”?

Sources:

Waring, J. (2020, October 02). Council Post: Three Steps To Becoming A Brand People Trust. Retrieved October 08, 2020, from https://www.forbes.com/sites/forbesbusinessdevelopmentcouncil/2020/10/05/three-steps-to-becoming-a-brand-people-trust/

Trust Barometer Special Report: Brand Trust in 2020. (2020, June 25). Retrieved October 08, 2020, from https://www.edelman.com/research/brand-trust-2020