'Trust' Emerges As New Ad Metric, Becomes Media-Buying Factor

Three out of four ad executives say they currently factor for "trust-related attributes" when deciding how to allocate their ad budgets to the media, according to the top-line findings from new research on the role that trust -- especially attributes that make the industry trustworthy to consumers -- plays in advertising, technology and media-buying decisions.

The findings, which are based on a survey of more than 200 ad executives fielded by Advertiser Perceptions in March, are the baseline for a series of regular tracking studies the B-to-B researcher plans to conduct going forward in order to understand the role that trust attributes play in the ad industry.

“Media has an urgent opportunity as trust becomes a paramount issue in advertising,” says Sarah Bolton, executive vice president-business intelligence at Advertiser Perceptions, who will be presenting the benchmark findings during a webinar this afternoon.

“Sellers have nothing to lose, and everything to gain, by seizing the mantle of trust in simple, straightforward ways," she adds, citing the fact that respondents overwhelmingly deem media suppliers most accountable for ensuring consumer trust attributes such as protecting data and privacy are fulfilled (see ranges below).

Among other things, Bolton says Advertiser Perceptions will be drilling into the role consumer -- and trade -- trust practices play, not just in advertising decisions, but in the broader mandates of corporate social responsibility, or CSR, going forward.

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