Back in January of this year I wrote a piece which spoke to the need for every marketer to remember a certain nine-letter word: Relevance. And while I firmly stand by what I penned then I am here to tell not just every marketer, but every advertiser and brand under the sun as well that there’s a five-letter word that must be treated like gold for when it is achieved, wondrous things can occur.
The word is trust.
Now the word “trust” in it of itself has many different connotations and in the context of advertising, marketing and branding it comes in different shapes, size and meanings, too.
For example back in November 2012 in a piece entitled Is Your Brand Trust Worthy? I wrote about the findings of a survey which showed that employees within a given brand believe consumers trust a brand whose CEO is active and engaging via social media. The survey was conducted by BRANDfog which revealed the ever-growing importance and need for c-level suite folks to use social media as a means to engage its customers and prospects alike and to earn their trust in the process.
One of the questions posed was “Does C-Suite social media engagement make a brand seem more honest and trustworthy?” Nearly 70% of respondents answered in the affirmative.
That’s Gold Jerry, Gold
My homage to Kenny Banya aside, having a consumer trust your brand has perhaps never been worth more than it is today.
Why?
Two words: big data.
No, I am not going to go on a big data tangent here. By now we all have our opinions on this colossal topic and I will leave you to argue among yourselves as to the merits and benefits or lack thereof re: big data.
But regardless of what side of the big data debate you fall on there is no debating the fact that consumers are generating more data than at any point in history. Tell me if you’ve heard this one before. Consumers now create as much information every two days as they did from the dawn of civilization to 2003.
I’m guessing you have and even if you have not, it should come as no surprise to learn of the glut and deluge of data we are dealing with from a marketing and advertising perspective.
“Big data is a big story in the marketing world: Marketers now have access to a wide range of consumer insights that they couldn’t access even five years ago. However, with this eye-in-the-sky, limitless availability of insights, there comes an unprecedented threat to consumer privacy – not least from the perspective of the consumer. And it comes as little surprise that people are guarded about sharing their data.”
The above is culled directly from the summary a data and privacy study recently conducted by SDL.
In releasing the findings SDL selected the following highlight to feature first, at the top of the list. It deals with a certain five-letter word.
Consumers reward trusted brands: Globally, 79 percent of respondents are more likely to provide personal information to a “trusted” brand. The finding underscores the need for brands using digital marketing to develop trust and understand what information consumers are willing to exchange with a brand.
Now replace the words “personal information” with the word “data.”
Additional highlights re: privacy include:
- Privacy meets resistance: Overall, 62 percent of survey respondents worry about how marketers are using their personal information. The results suggest a culture of resistance to sharing data online.
- Older consumers worry more: In the United States, 59 percent of consumers between ages 18 and 29 worry about data privacy compared with 71 percent between ages 45 and 60. There is less concern about data privacy overall in the United Kingdom (48 percent in the younger generation, 63 percent older) while Australian consumers reflected less of a generation gap (60 percent younger, 66 percent older).
- Loyalty programs beat out free products: Overall, 49 percent of respondents said they would give up personal information for a loyalty program, but only 41 percent would do the same for free products and services. These findings show consumers are less attracted to free offers and more willing to engage with a brand when it communicates clearly and focuses on building trust.
I would argue that the last bulleted highlight is a bit misleading re: “findings show consumers are less attracted to free offers and more willing to engage with a brand when it communicates clearly and focuses on building trust.” I would make the case that consumers join loyalty programs because of the perceived value i.e. something in return i.e. something for free or discounted.
In other words, I don’t think the fact that “only” 41% said they would fork over personal data for something free as compared to the 49% who said they would share personal info if it were for a loyalty program is inconsequential.
People are people and if there’s a way to save money, get something for free and so on they will do it. Period. But they will do it (share data) with a caveat which essentially states that Mr. and Mrs. Brand better not do anything the data that causes me to question the trust I placed in you in the first place.
Paging William Joel, William Joel White Courtesy Phone
In the aforementioned Is Your Brand Trust Worthy? article I made reference to the Billy Joel song A Matter of Trust and in particular one line from the tune “constant battle for the ultimate state of control.”
As I said then and will say now, the battle is over; the consumer has won and they are in control. They will decide what and when it is they will share with you and via what platforms all the while knowing they can revoke that privilege at any time.
If a brand is fortunate enough whereby consumers allow access to their data because of a trust that has been formed they better get down on their hands and knees and say thank you and then treat said date as if it were, yes, gold.
A final thought from Mark Lancaster, CEO and Founder, SDL.
“The survey data clearly shows consumers are concerned with the way marketers are using their data, but they are willing to share certain details with brands they trust. Marketers and brands need to earn that trust to be successful. They need to ensure the customer data they use translates to a better experience for their customers and give customers a compelling reason to share their data. Marketers that understand their customers’ privacy concerns and commit to using customer data judiciously will create a strong customer commitment.”
Sources: SDL, One Minute Marketer, Forbes