Trust and Transparency – the new consumer buzzwords?
26th April 2010 by Alex Briggs
The 2010 Edelman Trust Barometer is out, and the results show that consumers want independent verification of corporate claims. Trust is no longer granted, it has to be earned.
Some of the key results included:
1) for the first time, trust and transparency as as important to the corporate reputation as products and services
2) Overall, global trust has risen (that may be more about how far it had fallen in 2009!), with the US seeing the largest increase, up 18 points to 54%.
3) Banks continue to struggle, with their fall in consumer trust numbers dropping from their 2007 highs of 68% (USA) and 41% (UK) to 29% (USA) and 21% (UK)
4) Technology is the opposite, with trust ranging from 74% in the UK to 88% in India.
5) trust in the media has continued to fall, now down to 45%
Perhaps the most telling stat comes from the US report, with 83% of consumers naming “transparent and honest practices” as their single most important factor in determining an organisation’s reputation. At the opposite end of the scale was financial performance, which was the 3rd most important factor in 2006; it now ranks as the 10th most important factor for consumers!
Independent, third-party assurance of corporate claims is one way that organisations are building trust with their stakeholders, visit our case studies section to read about how we can help.