An insightful new study has revealed 72% of online shoppers would refuse to buy from a brand who they felt had not been responsible with their data – a figure up 86% for over 65s, compared to 56% of 18-24-year olds.
The Rise of the Responsible Marketer, a fascinating new report from DotDigital, gives an insight into the imperatives for businesses to take a customer-centric approach to marketing.
The study, which investigated the buying habits of American consumers, also revealed 56% of respondents said they had become more mistrustful of how companies are using their data during the course of the pandemic.
It also found 51% of participants said they had felt far more aware of how their data was being used by online businesses and brands.
The findings highlight the stark difference between expectations and reality when it comes to customer trust.
The report adds: “Brands must therefore put data stewardship at the heart of their marketing efforts not only to reassure consumers but to build the long-term meaningful relationships that drive loyalty.
“The explosion of ecommerce, brought about by the Covid pandemic, which has seen record growth in new cohorts of shoppers coming online, is good news for brands, but comes with a number of new challenges around consumer expectations, the capabilities of current technologies, and the limitations of processes built for a more permissive marketing environment.
“The imperative is for more responsible marketing that will enable brands to meet their regulatory responsibilities as well as reach and sell to consumers more effectively.”
Other key findings include:
- 70% of the respondents in its survey said that trusting a brand was more important than ever, and that was broadly common to all age groups, genders, and income bands
- 81% said personal vulnerability (around health, financial stability, and privacy) was a reason why brand trust had become more important
- 74% said the extent to which they trusted a brand also depended on that brand’s impact on society
It comes as Salesforce, in its report State of the Connected Consumer, spoke to 12,000 consumers and 3,600 business buyers to discover that over half don’t trust companies.
This was concerning in the context of how important trust has become – 82% of consumers up from 73% in 2019.
However, the report did show a way ahead, advising retailers to “embrace transparency and cultivate more authentic connections”.
The report can be found here.
