Tag Archives: consumer trust

Building Consumer Trust in an Online Marketplace

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So much has changed in the last six months. As public health concerns impact our behaviors, retailers of all kinds are learning to adapt to “the new normal” by moving their businesses online as much as possible. For some, this is an entirely new sales and marketing paradigm, while others have a head start and online retail experience. From creating and maintaining online marketplaces to finding ways to connect with consumers digitally, there’s a lot to learn.

One of our consistent interests at Eidson & Partners is the building and sustaining of consumer trust. Trust is one of the most valuable currencies in marketing as it enables fruitful relationships and turns loyal customers into brand evangelists. But what does trust mean in a world that is (for the time being, at least) mostly digital? Without in-person or in-store experiences, how do retailers who are newly reliant on online marketplaces establish and maintain trust?
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Go Direct: How to Reach Consumers in the Era of “Fake News”

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Richard Edelman, a leading expert in public relations and marketing, recently gave a speech at the University of Notre Dame addressing the crisis in consumer trust. His firm, Edelman, is a long-standing chronicler of consumer trust in institutions including business and government (we’ve covered past Edelman Trust Barometer results on our blog). In 2017, their global survey found that “trust is in crisis around the world” with trust in media and government reaching record lows since before the Great Recession of 2008.

The results for 2018 offer little hope for rebounding from the previous year. The most recent Trust Barometer “reveals a world of seemingly stagnant distrust” as “people’s trust in business, government, NGOs and media remained largely unchanged from 2017.” What the survey does offer, alongside Edelman’s recent remarks, is a potential way forward for those companies seeking to re-earn and re-establish the goodwill of their consumer base.
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Two Powerful Strategies for Building Consumer Trust

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We’ve been engaged in an ongoing exploration of the state of consumer trust (which has recently reached record lows) and how brands can reverse the trend. Today’s consumers, empowered by technology to choose from a wide range of products and to interact with brands on an unprecedented level, prize authenticity, engagement, and social responsibility. It’s a tall order for brands that previously focused solely on selling a solution to a problem.

Marketing in 2017 is about more than solutions – it requires establishing a brand identity that resonates with many various subsets of our increasingly fractured culture. And as the demographics of consumer groups continue to change, brands must emphasize diversity but transcend tokenism. Does it all make your head spin? It all comes down to trust – whether or not consumers believe that your brand has their best interests at heart.
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Truth, Trust, & the Power of Storytelling

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One of the prevailing themes of 2017 so far has been the erosion of public trust in our key institutions. The Edelman Trust Barometer, an annual global study conducted by a respected communications marketing firm, confirms what many of us have felt: “trust is in crisis around the world.” For the first time since 2012, the public’s trust in government, business, media, and NGOs has declined significantly.

While there is a complex web of cause and effect that has culminated in a large-scale erosion of trust in these institutions, the end result is clear – a populace that is increasingly divided and suspicious of news, marketing, and media messaging. In the era of “fake news,” PR and marketing professionals must examine their methods and recalibrate their strategy in order to reach the general public in an authentic and credible way. But how?
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Crisis in Consumer Trust: How Can Brands Rebuild Trust?

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I recently wrote about the 2017 Edelman Trust Barometer, which revealed that trust is in crisis around the world. “The majority of respondents now lack full belief that the overall system is working for them,” the study found in regards to public trust in four key institutions – business, government, NGOs, and media. Edelman president and CEO Richard Edelman traces the roots of the current trust deficit to the 2008 recession, asserting that the combination of technological innovation and globalization has left many consumers feeling left behind.

In this age of social media dialogue and empowered consumer voices, unique challenges and opportunities are emerging for brands that wish to build trust in their products, leadership, and impact. How can we rebuild consumer trust at a time when the world feels increasingly polarized and consumers, who are eager and able to share their opinions, nonetheless feel that major institutions no longer have their best interests at heart?
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Crisis in Consumer Trust: The 2017 Edelman Trust Barometer

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Early each year, leading global communications and marketing firm Edelman releases the results of their Trust Barometer survey. The Edelman Trust Barometer is the culmination of a global study of consumer trust in four key institutions – business, government, NGOs, and media. The newest iteration, conducted in 28 countries and encompassing more than 33,000 respondents, places a finger on the pulse of consumers across the world.

Would you be surprised to hear that in 2017 Edelman finds that “trust is in crisis around the world”? For the first time since they began tracking these metrics, “the majority of respondents now lack full belief that the overall system is working for them.” What might be at the root of this global decline in trust in our key institutions? How can we begin to rebuild consumer trust in an authentic and sustainable manner?
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