General Public Becoming More Trusting of Digital Content Across Channels

According to data from the “2015 Edelman Trust Barometer,” the general public’s trust in digital content across channels is increasing, making it important for today’s businesses to start peer-to-peer conversations and create content that’s easier to find.

For the first time among the general public, online search engines are now a more trusted source for general news and information (64 percent) than traditional media (62 percent). The trust gap between search engines and traditional media is even greater when examining the millennial generation, as 72 percent report trusting search engines for news and information (64 percent trust traditional media).

The Edelman study, which covered several different areas of business and commerce, also found that owned media is most trusted by online users. According to Edelman’s section on “Intellectual Property and Trust in The Age of Digital Media:”

There is good news in this year’s Trust Barometer for companies who want to build trust: owned media, defined as “media sources that are owned and controlled by a company or brand, such as a company/brand website or … software application,” is now trusted by 47 percent of the global informed public — a number that rises to 57 percent for Millennials.

In addition to increased trust in search engines and owned media, the general public is also becoming more trusting of social media platforms. Fifty-nine percent of the 27,000 participants polled now trust these digital platforms, an increase of 11% when compared to last year’s study.

This increase in trust for search, social and owned media over the last year further solidifies the need for an active, progressive strategy for digital marketing for all industries, including B2B.

Image via Edelman’s report.