What is brand trust?
At its core, brand trust refers to the confidence that customers have in your brand’s ability to deliver on its promises. This trust is not built overnight; it grows as a brand consistently lives its values and meets the expectations it has established in the minds of its customers. It’s a belief in the reliability, integrity, and competence of a brand. When consumers trust a brand, they feel secure in their choice and are more likely to develop a lasting relationship.
You can say that brand trust is measured by customer confidence in promises kept.
Free eBook: The state of Brand Experience management
Key factors influencing brand trust
Several key factors contribute to the development of brand trust.
Written out, these key factors of brand trust often include:
- Product and service quality: The consistent delivery of high-quality products and services that perform as advertised is fundamental.
- Data privacy and security: In an increasingly digital world, how a brand respects and protects customers’ data, privacy, and security is a top driver of trust.
- Customer service: Providing excellent customer service, including responsiveness to problems and treating customers well, even in tough times, significantly impacts Trust.
- Transparency: Openness about business practices, how customer data is handled, and clear return policies foster a sense of security.
- Value for price: Customers need to feel they are receiving good value for the price they pay.
- Consistency: A consistent experience across all touchpoints reinforces reliability.
- Ethical conduct: How brands conduct their business from a political, philanthropic, or social perspective, and how they treat their employees, also play a role.
- Positive reviews and reputation: Third-party positive reviews and a generally strong brand reputation can bolster trust.
Cognitive vs. affective trust: Head and heart
Brand trust can be understood through two distinct, yet often intertwined, dimensions: cognitive and affective trust.
- Cognitive trust is built on rational thought and evidence. It stems from a customer’s assessment of a brand’s reliability, competence, and ability to fulfill its promises. For example, a customer might trust a software brand because its products are consistently effective and its technical support is knowledgeable and responsive. This type of trust is based on the “head” — what the customer knows and has experienced regarding the brand’s capabilities.
- Affective trust, on the other hand, is rooted in emotions and feelings. It develops when customers feel a sense of warmth, care, security, and personal connection with a brand. This “heart”-based trust might arise from a brand that shares their values, demonstrates genuine empathy in its customer interactions, or creates a positive emotional experience. For instance, a consumer might have affective trust in a coffee brand that supports fair trade practices and whose marketing evokes a feeling of community.
While cognitive trust ensures customers believe in a brand’s ability, affective trust fosters a deeper, more emotional bond, often leading to greater brand loyalty and advocacy. Truly trusted brands often succeed in cultivating both types of trust.
Why is brand trust essential for business success?
Brand trust as a key differentiator
In today’s competitive marketplace, brand trust can be the vital differentiation that leads consumers to choose your brand’s product or service over another’s. When products and services are similar, the level of trust a customer has in a brand can become the deciding factor. It provides a competitive advantage that is difficult for others to replicate.
Broken promises lead to lost customers
When a customer’s experience doesn’t align with what a brand has promised, the consequences can be severe. Qualtrics research indicates that 65% percent of consumers have switched brand loyalties because the customer experience didn’t match the brand’s image or promises.
Younger consumers, such as Gen Z and millennials, are particularly likely to abandon a brand if their experience falls short of expectations. However, even older consumers have their limits, with a majority indicating they would switch if their expectations are not met. This highlights the critical importance of aligning brand messaging with actual customer experience.
The role of trust in customer loyalty and retention
Brand trust is intrinsically linked to customer loyalty and retention. When customers trust a brand, they are more likely to make repeat purchases and remain loyal even if a rare negative experience occurs. This is because established trust leads customers to view an occasional misstep as an anomaly rather than a reflection of the brand’s typical performance.
Loyal customers who trust your brand are invaluable; they not only provide a stable revenue stream but can also become advocates, spreading positive word-of-mouth. Building trust is therefore a key strategy for fostering long-term customer relationships and sustainable growth.
Consumers expect brands to take a stand
Modern consumers, more than ever, expect businesses to have a voice on important societal topics. According to the 2021 Edelman Trust Barometer, 86% of respondents believe CEOs should publicly address such issues. Consumers are increasingly “voting with their feet,” choosing to support businesses that align with their personal, political, or social beliefs.
This is especially true for younger generations, with a 83% percent of millennials stating it’s important to purchase from brands that reflect their views.
Aligning brand values with actions
Given the expectation for brands to take a stand, it’s not enough to simply proclaim certain brand values; businesses must demonstrate these values through their actions. Brand trust is deeply affected by how well a brand lives by the values it professes. If a company claims to be environmentally conscious but its practices (like using non-recyclable packaging) contradict this, customers will notice the discrepancy and their trust will erode.
Authenticity is key; your business actions, customer experience, products, and services must consistently reflect your promoted brand values to build and maintain trust.
Reputation’s impact on purchasing decisions
A company’s reputation, largely built on trust, significantly impacts consumers’ purchasing decisions. While it might seem intangible, brand trust is a firm metric that customers use when choosing between brands. A positive reputation, earned through consistent delivery on promises and ethical business practices, can attract new customers and foster loyalty. Conversely, a damaged reputation can be difficult and costly to repair.
Can you buy trust? The limits of endorsements
Many businesses attempt to fast-track brand trust by using endorsements from celebrities, athletes, or public figures, believing that the trust associated with these individuals will transfer to their brand. However, this approach has its limitations. A significant portion of potential buyers do not view such spokespeople or endorsements as a critical factor in their purchasing decisions.
While endorsements might appeal to certain segments, “buying” brand trust in this manner is often not a sustainable strategy for building deep, long-term trust across a broad customer base. True, enduring brand trust is more reliably built by consistently “walking the walk” in all aspects of your business.
How to build and strengthen brand trust
Building brand trust and cultivating loyal customers doesn’t happen overnight. It requires a deliberate and consistent brand management strategy. By focusing on core principles, you can create a reputation that not only attracts new customers but also keeps existing customers from leaving.
Foundational step 1: Set clear and realistic expectations
The foundation of building trust lies in setting and then consistently meeting consumer expectations. This involves a deep understanding of your audience and a clear strategy for communicating how your brand addresses their needs.
Understand your audience deeply
How brand trust is perceived can vary significantly across different demographics and markets.
It’s essential to gather data and develop a granular understanding of your target audience. What are the specific expectations of each customer segment, and how can your brand tailor experiences to meet them effectively? Understanding customer preferences and motivations is the first step in setting achievable expectations.
Guide customers to solutions
Your customers are looking for solutions to their problems or needs. Your marketing efforts should focus on guiding them to the solutions you offer, creating an expectation that you can fulfill their requirements without resorting to aggressive sales tactics.
Customers purchase for their own reasons, not to benefit your brand directly; therefore, your marketing should be as helpful and informative as possible, providing value even before a sale is made.
Don’t make promises you can’t keep
This is a critical aspect of building trust. Whatever you promise your customers — whether it’s next-day delivery, specific product features, or levels of service — you must be able to deliver exactly what you’ve described. If, for example, you consistently fail to meet a promised delivery deadline, you will fall short of expectations and erode brand trust.
Over-promising and under-delivering is a sure way to damage customer relationships.
Promote your values and live them
Similarly, you shouldn’t promote brand values that you cannot substantiate with concrete actions and evidence. For instance, claiming to be the “greenest” option when your environmental practices don’t align will create a disconnect when customers experience your brand. Instead, refine your core values, commit to them authentically, and ensure your business practices reflect this commitment.
Whether your focus is on transparency regarding data privacy, eco-friendly policies, a customer-first approach, philanthropy, or ethical production, make sure these brand values are clearly communicated in your marketing strategy and consistently demonstrated. This will help attract customers who share those values and build genuine brand affinity.
Practice transparency (especially regarding data)
Customers expect brands to be upfront and honest. This is especially true concerning how their personal data is handled. Be transparent about your policies, including your return policy and data usage practices. Clear communication about how you interact with customers sets a firm expectation they can rely on, which is particularly valuable if something goes wrong. This transparency can help frame a negative experience as a one-off incident rather than a pattern that destroys brand trust.
Foundational step 2: Consistently follow through
Once you’ve set clear expectations that your brand is a helpful provider of solutions, the next crucial step is to consistently follow through on those promises.
Deliver a consistent, high-quality experience
Meeting expectations means designing an experience to deliver on your brand promises and then executing it consistently. Any failure to do so can negatively impact your brand and erode brand trust.
One in five organizations still offer sub-par experiences, and more than half of consumers will reduce their spending after just one bad experience, potentially costing your business a notable percentage of its revenue. By consistently following through on the promised customer experience, you build reliability and give customers a reason to return, making you the only brand they trust to deliver every time.
Prioritize product and service quality
While sales volume is important, the quality of your products or services is vital for amplifying brand trust. Selling a million units of an unreliable product that frequently breaks will lead to unmet expectations, negative social media buzz, poor reviews, and ultimately, diminished brand trust. Ensuring your brand’s product is high quality and works as advertised is a cornerstone of building confidence.
Nurture customer relationships
Building trust is an ongoing process, not a one-time task. It’s crucial to maintain and nurture customer relationships even after the initial trust is established. Follow up with customers, not just those who’ve had a negative experience, but also those who are regular purchasers but may not actively reach out. Personalized, automated messages as part of your marketing communications can help customers feel connected to your brand and valued.
Strong customer relationships are key to long-term loyalty.
Foundational step 3: Amplify trust through social proof
Once you begin to instill trust in your business, encouraging your customers to share their positive experiences can significantly amplify that trust.
Leverage word-of-mouth marketing
When new customers hear about your brand from sources they already believe in, such as friends, family, or peers, trust is more easily established. Nielsen research shows that recommendations from close relations are highly influential — 83% of respondents across 60 countries trust their close relations’ recommendations. This word-of-mouth marketing can rapidly build social proof for your brand, often before a potential customer has any direct interaction with you. Make it simple for satisfied customers to share their positive reviews and spread the word by providing easy access to your social channels and review sites.
Their testimonials can do a lot of your marketing for you.
How to measure and maintain brand trust
Building brand trust is an ongoing effort that requires continuous attention and adaptation. To ensure your efforts are effective and to maintain the trust you’ve earned, it’s essential to measure it consistently.
Why continuous measurement matters
Consistency is paramount in building and sustaining brand trust. Repeating the steps to build trust and regularly measuring your performance are instrumental in creating and maintaining a trustworthy public image.
The business landscape and consumer expectations are constantly evolving. What instilled trust yesterday might not be sufficient tomorrow. Continuous measurement allows you to understand how consumers perceive your brand in real-time, identify emerging issues or shifts in sentiment, and adapt your strategies proactively.
By continually listening to and anticipating customers’ needs and expectations, you can stay ahead of potential brand trust issues. This proactive approach is far more effective than reacting to problems after they’ve already damaged your brand’s reputation. Furthermore, understanding these shifts provides valuable insights into customer preferences and consumer behavior.
Use brand trust surveys for direct feedback
While brand trust can seem like an intangible metric existing in the customers’ minds rather than as a simple sales figure, it can be effectively measured. One of the most direct ways to measure brand trust is through brand trust surveys.
Consistently asking your customers how they perceive your brand can help you identify areas where you are falling short and pinpoint which aspects of your brand’s commitment matter most to your target audience.
These surveys can be tailored to assess various dimensions of trust, including reliability, integrity, competence, and emotional connection. The feedback gathered provides actionable data to refine your brand building strategies and address specific concerns.
Key metrics indicating trust levels
Beyond direct surveys, several other key metrics can indicate levels of brand trust. While some are direct measures, others are indirect indicators that reflect how much consumers trust your brand. These can include:
- Net Promoter Score (NPS): This measures customer loyalty and willingness to recommend your brand, which often correlates highly with trust.
- Customer Satisfaction (CSAT) Scores: High satisfaction levels with products, services, and interactions are often indicative of trust.
- Customer Lifetime Value (CLV/LTV): Customers who trust a brand tend to remain loyal for longer and make more repeat purchases, leading to a higher CLV — sometimes referred to as LTV (i.e., simply “lifetime value”).
- Customer retention rate: A high retention rate suggests that existing customers continue to trust your brand enough to stay with you.
- Review sentiment and ratings: Analyzing the sentiment of online reviews on review sites and social media provides insights into public perception and trust levels. Consistent positive reviews are a strong indicator.
- Social media engagement and sentiment: Monitoring how people talk about your brand on social channels through social listening can reveal levels of trust or distrust. Positive engagement and sentiment are good signs.
- Website traffic and conversion rates: While influenced by many factors, changes in these metrics, especially when correlated with other brand activities, can sometimes reflect shifts in brand trust.
- Employee advocacy: Employees who trust the brand are more likely to be positive advocates.
Measuring these metrics over time, and in conjunction with one another, can provide a more holistic view of your brand trust and its impact on business practices and sustainable growth.
Utilizing comprehensive brand management and CX tools can help track these metrics, offering real-time insights, sentiment analysis, and a holistic customer view. Such tools empower Brand Managers and Market Researchers to make data-driven decisions to proactively manage and enhance brand trust, ensuring the brand messaging aligns with the actual customer experience.
By understanding what brand trust is, why it’s so important, and how to build, measure, and maintain it, your company can foster stronger customer relationships, achieve a significant competitive advantage, and drive long-term success. Trusted brands are not just chosen more often; they are often forgiven more readily and advocated for more passionately.
How to enhance customer experience with brand trust
Once you’ve built brand trust, you can leverage it to not only enhance your customer experience, but to improve your bottom line. Only 28% of marketing leaders link their brand strategy to their CX design and delivery, meaning there’s room for you to be the brand customers trust to give them an unforgettable experience.
Qualtrics Customer Experience software helps you to take actions that improve your brand’s impact. Rather than just measuring brand trust and other important factors in purchasing decisions, our solution helps you to:
- Hear every customers’ view from good reviews to negative feedback, no matter where they express it
- Uncover behavior patterns, understand expectations and predict future reactions
- Deliver targeted actions to your teams to address trust issues
- Give your customers a CX experience they’ll talk about
Free eBook: The state of Brand Experience management