AI made authenticity scarce
The AI boom makes this understandable. As AI starts creating convincing content, imitating human interactions, and personalizing experiences at scale, doubts naturally arise. Questions like 'Is this a robot or a person?', 'Who authored this review?' or 'Is this a fake video?' have become common.
This shift raises the bar for what businesses have to prove. It's no longer enough to make a good product. Brands now have to actively differentiate between what is true and what isn't, and demonstrate, not just claim, that a solution is genuinely trustworthy. In a world where authenticity is constantly up for debate, trust stops being a nice-to-have and becomes the most valuable, and scarcest, asset a business can hold.
But that's just half of the equation. We cannot make AI bear all the blame.
The world turned insular
The 2026 Edelman Trust Barometer report found that two-thirds of consumers are hesitant or unwilling to trust those with different core values, information sources, cultural backgrounds, and solutions to societal problems. That leads us to what Edelman calls an insular world — one in which people care about their own group, country, or local community while rejecting outside ideas. It's a combination of historical, environmental, and social forces.
Brands are being judged on the identity of who uses them, not just what they do. Consumers are also prioritizing domestic brands when making purchasing decisions: over two-thirds say it's important, or even a critical deal-breaker, that the brands they buy are headquartered in their country, up 5 points since 2023. It's a clear signal of how much local relationships matter.
Trust has always been local — and slow
Both forces trace back to the same root: proximity. Historically, trust developed through physical proximity. Think of the village market, where a merchant's reputation was built face-to-face over years, or even not so long ago, before social media, where a woodworker flourished thanks to its word-of-mouth neighbors. This preference for narrow communities, shared core values, and local belonging mirrors that same logic.
Trust is earned gradually, over time. It's accumulated. It's slow-cooked through consistency and transparency. That's why, in a world where we can access tons of information in seconds, trust becomes both the answer and the antidote.
Trust travels through people, not brands
So who does a buyer actually trust? Not the brand. For the insular, unpaid voices are 5x more powerful than paid brand voices at driving trust.
Their conversations about brands start within narrow trust circles, led by friends and family (82%) and “people like them” (76%). Brands earn relevance and trust through others' experiences.
In this context, it’s definitely clear that customer advocacy will play an increasingly important role. Having advocacy as part of the whole marketing strategy is table stakes: real customer quotes, genuine reviews make the difference.
Given that consumers value community connection more than ever, any advocacy leader should make creating spaces where they can connect with each other a priority. It’s not coincidental that there’s a return to in-person events or the growth of forums like Reddit. While not physical, these digital spaces still foster a new sense of belonging and proximity.
And when it comes to the importance of being nearby — that local connection — think of local stories: customer content, videos, and pieces produced in regional markets. These resonate just as much, if not more, than those that showcase the big logos.
Trust plus relevance
The 2026 Edelman Trust Barometer report also found that trust combined with relevance effectively doubles a brand's growth potential, in a way that neither can achieve alone.
And what makes a brand relevant? The top three are:
- Utility (85%) — solves a problem I have.
- Identity reflection (81%) — champions my values and beliefs, reflects my culture and background, addresses societal problems important to me.
- Community connection (77%) — talks about topics important to people who share my interests, offers ways to connect with people who share my interests.
When trust and relevance come together, consumers are more willing to advocate for your brand.
Advocacy's moment to lead
At Wings4U, we insist that trust is earned, and that takes time. It's not a one-shot campaign, and it's not only the responsibility of customer advocacy. But it's an unmissable chance to showcase the potential of customer advocacy. Stop leaving it in the shadows, being questioned, and in a defensible position. Start leading with it.
Whether you're learning about the discipline and want to try it in your company, or you're running a program ready to scale, at Wings4U, we're a global B2B partner for customer voice and trust activation. For nearly two decades, we have helped companies unlock the value in their customer relationships. If you want to turn your customer trust into growth, book a call.
Source: 2026 Edelman Trust Barometer Special Report: Brand Growth in an Insular World, Edelman Trust Institute. 15 markets, 17,688 respondents, fieldwork April–May 2026.