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Group745
Group745
Group745
Group745
Group745
Group745
Thought Leaders in association withPartners in Crime
Group745

How and Why Advertisers Should Build Brand Trust This Summer

26/05/2021
Out of Home
London, UK
386
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Richard Bon, joint managing director, Clear Channel UK, on why now is the moment for trust

The events of the last 12 months have created a perfect storm for trust – the disruption and uncertainty of these times have ultimately filtered down and caused consumers to reconsider the trust they place in brands. Panic buying became a national phenomenon that impacted supply and resulted in 93% of people being forced to try new brands – and discovering that other products and services can be relied upon to deliver their needs. 87% of consumers have been let down by a brand as a result of the pandemic – perhaps they didn’t get a refund or products didn’t arrive on time. Trust placed in those brands by consumers has been eroded, resulting in long-standing customer relationships being questioned. 

The pandemic has also propelled more demand for certain products and services – things like streaming subscriptions, masks, and food delivery services – meaning consumers are placing their trust in even more brands. 95% of consumers have now purchased from new brands and formed new relationships. It’s no surprise then, that we see that 61% of people are now more likely to consider how much they trust a brand before they part with their cash. 

Trust is a crucial factor for 81% of consumers when making buying decisions, making it a vital ingredient in driving brand value. Our latest research with JCDecaux – The Moment for Trust – uncovered a strong correlation between trust and likelihood to consider. It is clear that developing trust in your brand must be at the heart of media planning. But where should marketers begin?


Use both public and private media 

Trust now sits as the second most important factor in purchase decisions behind only price. This means marketers need to use advertising platforms to promote confidence in their brand as a priority – but is trust alone enough to drive consideration and, ultimately, purchase? Brands that really want to drive effective campaigns that capture audiences and win customers this summer must start with one thing: including a mix of both public and private media in their strategies. 

We researched the extent to which consumers trust different advertising platforms, and found that public broadcasting such as TV and OOH has the highest levels of trust (36% agreeing they are trustworthy), followed by publishing – such as newspapers and magazines – (30%), and then private mediums such as social media (21%). Nothing beats the power of public media to disseminate a message. There is no doubt about the enduring importance of public media and advertising’s ability to build brands’ reputations and increase favourability and trust for everyone to see. The public nature of these advertisements mean they are subject to greater public scrutiny and cannot be misleading or irresponsible. As such, it was no surprise that we found 9 in 10 agree OOH media is not suspicious or intrusive.  

For best results, utilising trusted big-impact media channels to drive mass awareness must be done alongside a personalised approach. When shown the same advert across different mediums, 36% of respondents exposed to an OOH advert said they would consider the brand, at least among others, if they were in the market for the product advertised. This number only fell by one percent to 35% for adverts displayed on social platforms or TV channels, suggesting that combining both public and private media in the marketing mix would increase successful consideration. 

People, particularly young people, are increasingly comfortable with targeted advertising. We found that 36% of respondents feel comfortable with targeted advertising, and this figure rises to 58% for 18-34-year olds. Plus, 50% of people like to see ads that personally mean something to them. Social media ads should be leveraged to drive further engagement and, ultimately, purchase as they can be personalised to ensure products and services are communicated to the audiences they matter to most. 


Get the balance right

While the pandemic has undoubtedly presented challenges and setbacks for many brands, it has also posed an opportunity for brand marketers to re-imagine the media mix for optimal outcomes.

It is widely accepted that the ideal media mix is 60/40, as stated by Les Binet and Peter Field – with 60% spent on brand building, and 40% on activation. Brand building is vital when it comes to generating trust and, without this foundation, the activation won’t land in the way that it should.

According to Ian Whittaker’s 2020 report, the reality in the UK ad space is that brands have been flipping the ratio – allocating just 40% to brand building and spending 60% on activation.

When marketers redress this balance and get it right, they optimise spend and reduce inefficiencies – making sure ad spend isn’t falling on deaf ears. For example, since P&G sought to reassess its media mix in 2019, organic revenue sales and earnings growth have accelerated. Its share price is up 60% in three years, outperforming several peers by 30%+, and it is reinvesting into advertising, suggesting it is delivering results.

Likewise, when Adidas’ spend on Google AdWords went down, the company noticed it had no impact on traffic or revenues from SEO. Instead, Adidas realised that brand spending in fact drove 65% of sales – demonstrating the rewards of brand building when done right. It is no wonder, then, that when the balance is 40/60, we see trust in brands being eroded. 


Consistency without duplication

Advertisers looking to leverage an omni-channel strategy must be telling a consistent brand story across both public and private channels. This is so that the message feels authentic to customers no matter where they see it. Disjointed messaging will only lead to distrust and confusion around a brand’s values and offerings. Take these two advertisements from Lloyds Pharmacy: 

This is a great example of how a campaign can remain consistent with its brand and messaging while utilising the benefits of different advertising platforms. OOH is a great medium for reach and brand activation, humanising the brand without being intrusive. Public advertising such as OOH enables Lloyds Pharmacy to present the brand and build trust in a premium location with a large audience. Meanwhile the social media adverts drive consumers to the point of purchase with a personalised product and a subliminal call-to-action, encouraging the shopper to benefit from the deal before the week is up. 

The end result is a marketing mix made in heaven, guaranteed to take consumers down the marketing funnel – from awareness and building trust, to consideration and purchase. As we continue to emerge from lockdown and with out of home shifting from resilience to renaissance, there’s never been a better time for brands to revisit their advertising strategies and grasp this unique opportunity to (re)build consumer trust. 

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