Edelman Trust Barometer reveals consumers are seeing straight through the bollocks

by Marketing ON 13 February 2013

A raft of broken promises, a tangled leadership ballot and continued speculation about a slowing economy in 2012 have all informed the latest 2013 figures coming out of global public relations firm Edelman. Declines in trust of all institutions (NGOs, business, media and government) and nearly all industry sectors were prevalent with Australians when the results came in, yet trust globally has increased.

The Edelman Trust Barometer, now in its 13th year, undertook its global study of 31,000 participants in 26 markets, and among the Australian general public 46% do not trust business leaders to tell the truth, with only 32% believing a CEO of a company is a credible source of information.

Among the general public, academics (61%) and technical experts (58%) remain the two most credible spokespeople, while CEOs (32%) and government officials (30%) were more credible than only bloggers (15%), professional athletes (15%) and news anchors (17%).

In this federal election year faith in Australian government leaders is also low with only 32% trusting politicians to tell the truth – down from 38% last year.

Australians’ trust in government declined from 47% in 2012 to 43% in 2013, with more informed Australians (48%) believing a regular employee of a company is more credible than a company’s CEO (34%), while government officials’ credibility decreased from 47% in 2012 to only 36% in 2013.

Michelle Hutton, CEO, Edelman Australia, reveals that lines of communication need to be transparent in order for business and government to reel back the trust of the public.

“Reengaging an otherwise ambivalent public has to start with genuine open dialogue,” she says. “Australian business and government currently has a leadership vacuum that engagement, integrity and purpose should fill.”

In terms of trust in industry sectors, Edelman reveals that its once again technology, food and beverage, and brewing and spirits that were the three most trusted – among both informed Australians and the general public.

On the flipside, media and energy remain the least trusted sectors in Australia, banks and financial services were the least trusted sectors across the globe. Only 52% of informed publics and 49% of the general population trust banks to act accordingly.

Interestingly, trade publications (75%) are the most trusted source of information, with microblogging sites (25%), blogs (33%) and social networking sites (33%) all holding strong as the least trusted sources of information.

Other key findings from the 2013 Edelman Trust Barometer include:

NGOs remain the most trusted institution globally posting trust levels above 50% in 23 of 26 countries – four of the five top markets are in Asia (China 81%, Malaysia 76%, Hong Kong 76%, Singapore 75%). Trust in Australia is at 64% this year,
two out of five (40%) of the general public in Australia blame corporate culture driven by compensation and bonuses as the biggest cause of banking/financial services scandals over the past year, and
Australia gives banks’ performance in lending to small businesses (31%), offering reasonable credit cards (25%), trading/investing in government debt (21%) and overseeing IPOs (22%) particularly poor ratings.

Branded content desired but has little influence on savvy consumers

by Marketing ON 4 July 2012

A study in the US has found that branded content does not have a major influence on purchase intent among consumers.

When asked if they felt more inclined to buy an item promoted in branded entertainment in a study conducted by Edelman entertainment unit Matter, only 15% responded in the affirmative, while 33% said no and 42% were neutral.

The study, conducted in conjunction with insights group StrategyOne, surveyed 1000 adults, finding that one third of respondents perceived branded entertainment to be ‘valuable’. A similar proportion (31%) ‘expect’ brands to provide free online content, and a further 30% ‘want’ brands to entertain them.

Branded content was more likely to be seen as valuable by younger age groups, with 52% of 18 to 34 year olds appreciating it. This age bracket was also the most likely to seek such material out and seek out brands behind the entertainment.

However, brand fit was perceived as crucial by the respondents, and an area where many often come unstuck. When assessing branded entertainment, 47% of participants agreed it must ‘fit’ the content, while 44% suggested it typically felt ‘forced’ and 30% found it ‘overwhelming’.

Many also find branded content to lack authenticity, with 7% of the sample describing such material as ‘poor’ and 24% believing it held no worth whatsoever.

General manager of Matter, Andy Marks, says brand funded content is becoming more prevalent, with some of it compelling, and some not. “Creating and curating content, or integrating into existing entertainment must be approached strategically in order to ensure integration is organic and unobtrusive,” Marks says.

With only 15% of respondents having never knowingly seen branded entertainment, awareness of brand sponsored material was high in the US. Several notable cases of branded content, such as McDonald’s McDonald’s Gets Grilled which aired on Channel Seven recently, have gained public attention in Australia.

If local consumers hold similar attitudes to consumers in the US, many are keen to see more entertainment sponsored by brands. In the US, 27% wanted to hear more from brands supplying free online content, and 20% felt it gave them access to content they could not otherwise see.

The study also found that 16% of respondents comment on social networks about branded content before and during viewing or listening to it, and 34% do so after watching, offering brands a chance to stay involved with consumers.

In conclusion, Marks adds, “When dealing with audiences who want and expect to be entertained, working with creative and strategic partners who understand how to strike the right balance within the creative process between delivering entertainment value and highlighting brand attributes is critical. If done correctly, branded entertainment can be a powerful vehicle to make deeper connections between brands and their audiences.”

Self-centred Aussies turn blind eye to cause marketing

by Marketing ON 28 June 2012

While consumer participation in societal issues soars globally, Australians remain more self-centred and less likely to take action to support good causes.

Five years of data from Edelman’s global Goodpurpose study reveals purpose has become a driving force behind the reengineering of brand marketing around the world, as consumers globally take a greater interest in the common good.

While the majority of Australians (83%) claim it’s very important for businesses to address social and community issues, less than half are putting their money where their mouth is and actually supporting causes themselves. Only 48% of Australians say they are currently involved in supporting a good cause, well below levels in emerging markets such as China (94%), India (78%) and Brazil (65%), and slightly behind the US and UK, both on 53%.

For most Aussies, personal involvement means donating – 64% say they have donated money over the past year to address societal and community issues, while only 29% have donated time or expertise.

CEO of Edelman Australia, Michelle Hutton, says the challenge of getting Australians involved in causes is best addressed by making it about issues that matter most to everyday life.

“The communications challenge for business, the not-for-profit sector, environmental campaigners and the government departments working in these areas is to bring the conversation about these issues back into a personal context,” Hutton says.

“As Australians’ relationships with social issues evolve, so do expectations for the private sector,” Hutton adds. “A growing interest in societal issues and causes, coupled with new individual-driven channels of communication such as Facebook and Twitter, has prompted the rise of ‘citizen actionism’ – individuals who seek deeper involvement with social issues and expect brands and corporations to provide a means of engagement and participation.”

The top ranking social causes in Australia are improving the quality of healthcare, deemed important by 74% of the population, stopping violence and abuse, salient for 73%, crime reduction and crime prevention, suppored by 70%, and access to water, valued by 65%.

Large, complex and heavily politicised challenges like climate change, pollution and sustainable energy (42%), biodiversity (27)%, or equality for Indigenous Australians (30%), are far less important to Australians than the issues that can directly impact personal life.

Globally more than one in two consumers pegged social purpose as the most important factor in choosing one brand over another when quality and price are the same, placing purpose ahead of design and innovation and brand loyalty as a purchase trigger. Over the past five years, the relevance of purpose as a purchase factor has risen 26%.

In Australia, the figure is even higher, with 58% stating they would switch brands if a different brand of similar quality supported a good cause. However, this appears to be lip service, according to the research. The nation sits below the global average for actual support of purpose marketing, with 57% purchasing products that support a good cause at least once a year, compared to 84% globally.

Not only does the purpose trigger appear more top of mind for consumers making purchase decisions, but it is also becoming a point consumers will use to recommend brands. 59% are more likely to advocate a brand that supports a good cause over one that doesn’t, while 52% would help a brand promote their products or services if that brand supports a good cause.

The study also claims that Aussie brands are not currently doing a great job in communicating their commitment to purpose, an assertion supported by most Australians with only 29% of of the belief businesses are performing well in addressing social issues.

Beat it into them, and they’ll believe?

by Chris Byrne ON 8 February 2012

In an interesting little factoid to come out of Edelman’s ‘2012 Trust Barometer’, Australians believe their scepticism towards marketing messages can be overcome with just a hint of repetition.

The study [Read more about it here - Ed], which surveyed 1,000 Australians, asked respondents to ‘Think about everything you see or hear every day about companies, whether positive or negative. How many times in general do you need to be exposed to something specific about a company to believe that the information is likely to be true’ in a test of just how easy the general public is to win over.

The findings appear to reinforce the power of repetition, with 56% of respondents claiming they only need to be exposed to information three to five times to believe it’s true. The average number of exposures required to overcome the sceptics was 4.6.

Given that what people say they’re like and what they’re actually like can often be two very different things, these self-stated findings should be taken with a big grain of salt. But it’s interesting to note how much of a push over respondents thought themselves to be.

One wonders though how many times the respondents were asked the question in order to get them to admit their own defeat.

Media and business gain trust, governments lose it

by Marketing ON 8 February 2012

While faith in government continues to nosedive, public trust in the media and business worlds is on a high in Australia, bucking a trend of growing distrust around the globe.

According to Edelman’s ’2012 Trust Barometer’, trust in the media has improved 11% and trust in business is up 3% over the past year among what the PR agency calls ‘informed publics’ – high income, university-educated Australians who consume media and follow public issues.

These informed citizens – represented by a sample of 200 respondents – were found to place greater trust in all institutions than the general Australian public which was also surveyed as part of the study.

According to general manager of Edelman, Grant Smith, trust is important as it demonstrates the level of comfort stakeholders have in their dealings with institutions or businesses.

“Trust is an important determinant of people’s willingness to pay for premium products; you’re more likely to pay the money for products or services that you’re more confident in,” Smith says.

Growing distrust towards government is not unique to Australia, with trust levels experiencing a drop for 13 of the 25 countries surveyed, and the media ranking above the government in nine countries around the globe.

Across different industries trust was fragmented with technology, food and beverage, and brewing and spirits ranking at the top of the trust scale and banks, financial services and energy companies at the bottom among the informed publics group.

Government leaders are less trusted than business leaders – in Australia 60% believe business leaders tell the truth, compared to only 40% who place stock in the word of government leaders.

While CEOs experienced a decline in perceived credibility over the year (down 8% to 41%), Edelman believes the elevated standing of business leaders relative to government leaders gives business a ‘licence to lead’ in society rather than just a licence to operate.

In its annual trends report, JWT Intelligence anticipates a rise in corporate social responsibility programs that emphasise shared value between businesses and communities.

According to the report, “Rather than simply doling out cheques to good causes, some corporations are starting to shift their business models, integrating social issues into their core strategies.

“The aim is to create shared value, a concept that reflects the growing belief that generating a profit and achieving social progress are not mutually exclusive goals.”

The report gives the example of a partnership brokered by Phillips with the Dutch government to provide sustainable energy solutions to the 10 million people in 10 sub-saharan African nations by 2015.

While Edelman’s report may play down perceptions of corporate greed and cynicism towards government and media by focussing on a wealthier, more educated group in society (one which makes up less than 25% of the population), it makes interesting points on the future importance of trust as a requisite building block for successful institutions.

Book review: Unmarketing by Scott Stratten

by Trevor Young ON 16 January 2012

The team at Marketing magazine had been cleaning up their desks in preparation for a big 2012. Thus, I was handed this book (UnMarketing by Scott Stratten) which I read via Kindle when it was first released about a year or so ago but I suspect the hardcover has only belatedly been released here in Australia.

A year is a long time in today’s social media-driven marketing industry so upon re-reading UnMarketing I found there was a fair bit of stuff that, while not strictly outdated, is well-worn. If you’re someone who keeps up to date with the social web and the role it plays in today’s marketing, you might find it’s a case of ‘been there, done that’.

Pretty cruisy read

That aside, UnMarketing is a pretty cruisy and enjoyable read for two key reasons. Firstly, Stratten writes in easy-flowing conversational style which is always a plus, and secondly, the book contains a lot of bite-sized chapters that allow the reader to dip in and out at will. I don’t know about you but I sometimes like to read chunks of a book, spark some thinking, and then put it back on the shelf again.

The fact Stratten has called his book UnMarketing probably gives you a pretty good indication of his philosophy in terms of marketing. He’s anti-‘push-and-pray’ marketing (“The same tired methods”) preferring to build relationships with customers, especially via social media engagement. “If you believe business is built on relationships, make building them your business,” he writes.

And this:

“Marketing happens every time you engage (or not) with your past, present and potential customers. UnMarketing also takes it one step further – it is any time anyone talks about your company.”

Great for the small business

Hence, if you’re at the smaller end of the business spectrum (or a trusted advisor/solopreneur-type), you’ll probably dig many of Stratten’s tips, stories and practical advice. He’s a passionately scrappy, street (and web) savvy entrepreneur with lots of yarns to tell.

However, if you operate at the bigger end of town, you may struggle to find relevance with your business. It’s not that what Stratten says is wrong – far from it – it’s just that a lot of the tactics and strategies he writes about are easy for the smaller business to implement but bigger enterprises aren’t necessarily geared for ‘micro’ engagement-focused marketing activities (they should be, but the reality is one-way broadcast of messaging is going to dominate the ‘big brand’ landscape for some time to come).

If you are a marketer at the big end of town, books like UnMarketing are important as they paint an accurate canvas regarding what’s happening at a grassroots level.

One criticism is that Stratten tends to bounce around a lot. Across four consecutive chapters for example, he variously covers best-selling books (a rant at best), the perils of revealing too much if you work from home (‘Why Being a Work-at-Home Mom is Bad for Business’), Walmart’s corporate policy (and lack of customer experience), and ‘Idea Creation’ (how and why to create great content). Pretty diverse, eh? Doesn’t worry me overly because, as I say, I don’t mind dipping in and out of books like this. But more structured-thinking people might get a tad annoyed .

Names dropped throughout UnMarketing include Zappos, Cirque de Soleil, Rockport, Dominos Pizza, Naked Pizza (a great yarn!) and let’s not forget Dark Horse Cafe (!!!). Plus the wonderful Peter Shankman, founder of HARO (Help A Reporter Out – a ripper entrepreneurial story).

Scott Stratten will appear in Australia at the Get Schmart conference, held 21 February in Melbourne and 23 February in Sydney.

Twitter great buzz for tech brands

by Marketing ON 20 January 2010

An online branding report has found that not only is Twitter increasing in popularity, but that tech brands are benefiting most when it comes to being mentioned on the platform.

The report also found that mid-week is the most popular time for Australians to mention tech brands through social media, with Twitter peaking mid-week with on average 500 to 1,000 more posts per day than the average.

The ‘Digital Brand Index (DBI 2.0)’ is conducted by PR firm Edelman in partnership with Brandtology.

Twitter continues to grow in popularity with 57% of online mentions occurring on the tool (123,696 mentions); nearly double the total number of brand mentions of all the other top 10 channels added together.

Despite significant product releases from Microsoft (18,897) with Windows 7 and Windows Mobile 6.5, Google (29,941) continues to dominate in terms of online mentions, with 20,528 of those mentions being made by ‘netizens’ through Twitter.

“With more and more Australians ‘tweeting’ every day, there is a real opportunity for technology brands in Australia to raise awareness and understanding, and to engage with potential and existing customers,” said Amanda Little, managing director, Edelman Australia.

7-Eleven slurps up new marketing partners

by Marketing ON 20 August 2008

7-Eleven, one of Australia’s
largest convenience store chains, has begun a revamp of their marketing partners
following a review of their business requirements.

Starcom, 7-Eleven’s media
business partner since April 2005 has been replaced by Naked Communications and
OMD. This combined team will be responsible for 7-Eleven’s communication
planning and media buying respectively.

The revamp continues with Haystac
being appointed to specifically deal with furthering brand communications and
creating a ‘more positive 7-Eleven experience’.
Their main focus will be on working with 7-Eleven’s flagship brands ‘munch’
and ‘Slurpee’.

Edelman and Leo Burnett will
continue as the corporate PR agency and creative agency respectively.

Tracy Hammon, 7-Eleven’s
brand and communications manager says the company is “looking forward to
working closely with Leo Burnett and our new partners to continue delivering
quality and engaging creative campaigns and to bring to market some new
products and categories that make shopping at 7-Eleven even more convenient.”

Hammon continues, “The
appointment of the new agency partners reflects our need for 7-Eleven to keep
talking to customers in a meaningful way regarding how we’re meeting their
needs now and in the future.”

The appointment of these
new marketing partners shows that 7-Eleven is serious about continuing to build
up the Slurpee brand, which has proved to be highly successful in youth
culture and their munch food-on-the-go brand, which, after two years on the
market, has recently begun showing positive results in terms of sales and brand
health surveys.

Talking about the decision
to change their marketing partners, Tracy Hammon says, “We’ve chosen agencies that understand our target
customers (who predominantly skew under-35) and who demonstrate innovative,
engaging and cost effective ways of reaching this audience through retail-based
brand-building programs. We’re excited to have the new agencies come on
board to strengthen the talent alongside agency partners we’ve been working
with to date.”