People say the darndest things when they are trying to sell something! The worst of which mislead, over-represent or simply excessively hype a product or experiences the “FAILS” the advertising promise. While we know that customer’s have soured on brand advertising thanks to a history of dishonesty, a recent Adweek Media/Harris Poll surprised me with how bad the cycnism has become.
According to the study, “only one in five American adults say they trust that advertising is honest in its claims all or most of the time. Rather, a majority say they trust that advertising is sometimes honest in its claims, and just over one in ten say that they never trust that advertising is honest in its claims.” NEVER – WOW!
While all adults see advertising claims as unreliable the study finds, older adults demonstrate more suspicion than younger adults. “While 90% of young adults aged 18-34 say they trust that advertising is honest in its claims at least sometimes, 86% of older adults agree. Of those, 35-44 say this, as do 84% of those 45-54, and 81% of those 55 years and older. Conversely, almost one in five adults 55 and older say that they never trust that advertising is honest, compared to less than one in ten 18-34 year olds who say the same.”
| Trust That Advertising And Its Claims Are Honest (All U.S. adults; % of Category) | |||||||||
| Gender | Age | Children in HH | |||||||
| Frequency | Total | Male | Female | 18-34 | 35-44 | 45-54 | 55+ | Has Child in HH | No Children in HH |
| At least sometimes (NET) | 85% | 83% | 87% | 90% | 86% | 84% | 81% | 87% | 84% |
| All/Most of the time (NET) | 19 | 20 | 19 | 24 | 25 | 15 | 16 | 24 | 18 |
| All of the time | 1 | 1 | 1 | 2 | 1 | 1 | – | 1 | 1 |
| Most of the time | 18 | 18 | 18 | 21 | 23 | 14 | 15 | 23 | 16 |
| Sometimes | 65 | 63 | 67 | 67 | 61 | 69 | 65 | 63 | 66 |
| Never | 13 | 14 | 11 | 8 | 10 | 12 | 18 | 9 | 14 |
| Not at all sure | 3 | 3 | 2 | 1 | 4 | 4 | 2 | 4 | 2 |
| Source: Harris Interactive, November 2010 | |||||||||
While the study goes on to talk about who people feel should police advertising claims (the government or industry groups), I’d rather focus on the opportunity that lives in this environment of distrust. What if your advertising is honest? What if you really do underpromise and overdeliver? What if your company is actually based on transparency and authentic customer experiences?
I say, if all those things are true – people will flock to you as if you are an oasis in a desert of mirages!
