AI and Brand Trust: The Tipping Point is Now

AI is everywhere: in the news, in our search engines, in places we don’t even know it might be.  Consumers are naturally looking to their government, their leaders and, yes, their brands to reassure them that AI is being used responsibly.

A recent study we conducted indicated that AI adoption is still in the early stages for most consumers, with 45 percent of Americans still not using AI at all (to their knowledge). But use is one thing and awareness is another. With headline after headline about AI, questions and concerns abound.

Consumers are naturally wondering: How is AI going to benefit me?  Is it safe? To what extent is a brand using it? Is my personal information involved? Can I trust what I am being told? All these questions are incredibly important.

We believe there’s an opportunity, right now, for brands to get out in front of these questions, to demonstrate leadership and to build trust around AI usage. There are steps organizations can take at this critical stage including:

• Clearly showing consumers the value that AI brings to a brand’s products or services.  (This is by far the most important step.)
• Working to fully understand how AI can build or break consumer trust.
• Connecting and communicating with other stakeholders and audiences impacted by AI (investors, employees, suppliers, media, etc.).
• Being available to answer any questions via trusted partners and advisors.
• Showing consumers how data remains safe, protected---and not misused, if it “touches’ AI.
• When AI is used to improve efficiency, reassuring employees that their jobs are still safe.

The Power of Brand Trust

We see potential for brands to build trust by addressing AI concerns head on. While many brands recognize the importance of measuring trust, they often lack a detailed understanding of exactly what trust means to their customers and prospects and how to build trust in a targeted and effective way.

Like AI, events causing consumers to have trust issues with brands are all over the news and brands that ignore the power of trust, do so at their peril.

SONOS, for example, the home sound system company, had technical issues with their app which was very upsetting to consumers. Even after hiring a new CEO, SONOS continued to face consumer fallout. Then there is Meta that announced they are changing how they monitor hate speech. This development caused advertisers to question the impact on their media placements and many consumers to leave the Meta platforms.

But it’s not all bad news:

Most recently, we conducted a study on consumer brand trust among 1400 respondents, as a close follow-on to our previous study on AI usage. As part of the Trust study, we identified exactly what comprises trust within the consumer-brand relationship across 70 brands and nine categories. Our study showed that brands like PBS, Amazon, and Fidelity use their high trust to help differentiate their brands and insulate them from the potential for a less than positive news cycle or from a competitive threat.

But not all brands scored particularly well for trust. These insights and others suggest a need for change and should be a wakeup call for brands to act.

Our study shows that trust is a multi-faceted measure made up of six factors: dependability, transparency, integrity, customer-first, responsiveness and relevance. These factors are the foundation of trust across all categories and brands. And although most people don’t have major concerns about AI at this point, with all that is happening in the marketplace, we strongly believe this will begin to change quickly. 

Our sense is that the industries most likely to draw consumer scrutiny around AI are the ones that deliver products and services essential to our lives including financial services, government agencies, food services and healthcare. Brands in these sectors (and others) have an opportunity to build trust in a way that strengthens their relationship with customers and prospects.

If AI communications and practices are not handled well, an erosion of trust is inevitable. We strongly believe it’s important for a brand in any category to have an actionable roadmap to measure, strengthen and sustain trust with their audiences.

Now is the time to take pre-emptive steps to protect and deepen trust with dialogue and transparency. Brands that do this will be rewarded with increased loyalty and stronger customer relationships.

Download the report to learn more this new era of brand trust here.