How Consumer Trust In Brands

Trust is the most important part of building any relationship. Be it personal or professional; no relationship can survive without trust. Similarly, relationship between a brand and its customers is another instance that cannot survive without a certain degree of certitude; especially on the part of the consumers.

However, people’s trust in brands and advertising has hit an all-time low in recent years. Several reasons can be considered accountable as the cause of this downward curve. Let’s take a look.

Why is consumer trust in brands steadily declining?

With the advent of internet in our daily lives, one might think that it is easier to reach out to customers, right?

Well, not really!

Perhaps the internet can also be regarded as one of the reasons for the declining conviction of people on brands.

A survey shows that 42% of the respondents distrust brands while a staggering 69% distrust a brand’s advertising. The faceless nature of brands and businesses is one of the biggest contributing factors for the growing distrust amongst consumers.

Even though the internet has been a boon to marketing, phrases like “don’t always trust what you read on the internet” have also become more relevant in the recent years. Not all the messages sent out by brands are genuine, and that is why many people have reservations when it comes to believing a brand through solely what they read in advertisements.

But how can one remedy the situation?

Let’s find out!

Using brand advocacy as a solution to bridge the gap between consumers and brands:

In recent years, one of the formulas that have proven to be effective in the quest to instil trust among consumers regarding brands is advocacy. Brand advocacy is a great strategy that adds a personal touch to marketing campaigns.

Brand advocates are people who use a brand’s product or service, find it beneficial and then recommend it to other people. The whole process of brand advocacy works in an organic way and without any monetary benefits.

It is seen that most people tend to trust the judgement of someone they know, rather than advertisements when it comes to trying out a new product or service. That is why it is the job of companies to use brand advocacy as a tool for marketing their products.

Creating brand advocates is a definite marketing method because:

• Brand advocates are an unbiased source of information. They are people who have tried a product and found it useful and want to inform other people about the benefits of the products. That is why they are more trustworthy to potential customers.
• Many a time advertisements may come off as insincere because of the sheer amount of money involved in the whole process. Advocates have no monetary incentives and are therefore easier to believe.
• Brand advocacy adds a personal touch to marketing and helps to establish trust between the brand and its potential consumers.

Thus, having authentic advocates goes a long way in making your brand dependable for potential customers.

So if you are thinking of using brand advocacy as a marketing tool, agencies like WOOP might be the answer to all your marketing questions!