United States Postal Service (USPS), Amazon and Google are ranked as the most trusted brands in America according to a survey conducted by Morning Consult. The three companies beat out others that include institutions, public figures, and ideas. The State of Consumer Trust report surveyed some 1,670 individuals to rate 2000 brands on how they trusted them.
Those surveyed were asked ‘How much do you trust each brand to do what is right?’. They could respond only with ‘a lot’, ‘some’, ‘not much’, ‘not at all’, or ‘don’t know’. This ranking was determined by which brand had received the most “a lot” responses.
Who to Trust?
Overall, the USPS is the most trusted of all brands, with 42% saying they trust the government-run service the most. Followed closely by Amazon (38.5%), Google (37.9%) and PayPal (36.5).
Some 74% of consumers trust the major companies to deliver consistently on what they promise. Only 20% would admit to not trust a brand to deliver on promises made to them.
On average 55% of Americans say they tend to trust the average American company unless that company does something to erode the trust. In terms of general mistrust, 28% say they tend to trust the average American company.
In fact, of the 100 major brands reviewed, on average 59% of the respondent trusted them while 13 % claimed to not trust them. Only 29% of the respondents say they are ambivalent on the issue.
In terms of trust towards institutions or people, the respondents first picked their primary doctor (50%) followed by the military at 44%. At the end of the spectrum with just 5% respondents ‘put a lot of’ trust in Wall Street and Hollywood (4%). The U.S. media and government also got bad reviews with just 8% and 7% respectively. Indicating that distrust is particularly high when it comes to institutions and major concentrations of power.
It’s All About Demographics
Generation Z consumers are less trusting of brands compared to baby boomers. For Generation Z, the average brand trust rating was +10, compared to +21 for boomers.
Top performing brands seem to be the most trusted. With Google receiving favorable nods from Generations Z and millennials. Netflix also received good reviews by younger generations. On the other hand, the USPS is much favored by Generations X and baby boomers.
Generation Z rated Google, Netflix, Amazon, Youtube and PlayStation as their top picks. Millennials see Google, USPS, Amazon, PayPal and Netflix as deserving of good ratings.
Generation X saw USPS, Google, Amazon, the Hershey Company and PayPal as their most trusted companies. Similarly, Boomers see USPS, UPS, the Hershey Company, the Weather channel and Cheerios deserving their trust.
What Do Customers Want?
Three major issues factored high across the generations: data privacy (73%), not hiding important information in fine print (57%) and treating their employee better (49%).
Younger Americans (Generation Z and millennials) are more likely to prioritize ethical matters when considering which brands to trust.
PayPal and USPS particularly received good reviews in terms of their reliability, their security measures and the guarantee that you get what you ordered.
Most of the top trusted brands are older, with only 2% of the most trusted 100 brands starting their businesses in 2001 or later. Some 23% of them established between 1926-1950 and 21% started between 1951-75. Among Gen Z consumers, all the most trusted brands are new.
Small Business Trust
Small business can take note from the survey and work towards gaining their customer’s trust. They need to work on first creating value for customers by providing the services customers expect of them. This includes quality services, treating customers well and following ethical standards in their operations. Good quality service can guarantee customers will continue to return to your business.
Delivering good service alone is not going to cut it. You also have to consistently be transparent and avoid piling up hidden costs when it comes to the service you deliver. Communicating the value of your products or services clearly can go a long way towards gaining trust. Delivering on your promises is of paramount importance if you want long-term relationships with your customers.
Last but by no means least, businesses need to maintain a set of standards and follow through no matter what. Your customer’s confidence in the company increases if you deliver consistent service, which in turn makes the customer feel valued and thus becomes loyal.
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I can relate to the fact that it is all about demographics. You get to reach the market nearest you.