I cite the Edelman Trust Barometer research in just about every workshop or speech where I am talking about marketing or social media marketing. In my opinion this is recommended reading for every communications, marketing or PR professional.
I noted today that Piaras Kelly of the Edelman office in Ireland had just posted the Irish of the 2009 Edelman Trust Barometer to Slideshare, and while this data was released some 8 months ago it is still relevant reading today, despite the shifting economy and the fast moving world of online marketing and social media.
Of note in the Irish results is that of the 20 countries surveyed, in Ireland at the time of the research, companies were trusted less than when the survey was completed a year ago.The most trusted source of corporate information was employees - one good reason that we should invest in internal communications and employer branding and engagement as our people are ambassadors for our brand.
You can also see on slide 22 that overall trust for all communication sources in Ireland decreased in relation to the previous years research with stock or industry analysis reports being the most trusted and articles in newspapers being the least trusted.
The 2009 Edelman Trust Barometer survey sampled 4,475 opinion leaders in two age groups (25-34 and 35-64) in 20 countries. All opinion leaders met the following criteria:
* College educated
* Household income in the top quartile for their age in their country
* Read or watch business/news media at least several times a week
* Follow public policy issues in the news at least several times a week.
The study was a 30-minute telephone survey conducted using the fielding services of World One from November 5 - December 14 2008.
Access the full results of the Edelman Trust Barometer research for 2009 and many additional resources online at http://www.edelman.com/trust/2009
While this research may be disheartening to some, it offers great opportunity to companies and executives who see the value in building trust with their stakeholders both online and offline.
I do business with people I trust not 'brands' or 'organisations' who I feel 'spin' the media and their message. What do you think?
I am looking forward to reading the 2010 results which will be published in early in the New Year. In the meantime if you have not read, reviewed and considered the implications for your business and the opportunities it presents, why not spend 30 minutes today taking a look at the results of the Edelman Trust Barometer in your country and then considering what you can do in your business to increase how people feel about doing business with your organisation.
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