It used to be that if you had established a strong brand name, you could count on consumers’ trust. But years of inflated marketing claims and bad experiences have eroded trust in brands, leading to a trust deficit — and it’s growing.
“We are living through a very interesting transformation — brand names alone no longer carry the trust,” said Kimberly Shenk, Co-founder and CEO of values-based shopping solution Novi Connect, on this week’s episode of the Retail Remix podcast. “Today trust is earned, it’s not inherited. The democratization of data and information has really empowered consumers to ask deeper questions. They want to know, What’s in this product? Where did it come from? Do these claims actually mean anything?
“And this shift has opened the door for these direct-to-consumer challenger brands to build transparency into their DNA and use trust as a true differentiator,” she added. “That’s actually forcing legacy brands to either evolve or risk irrelevance, so today we’re seeing in the retail environment that trust is actually a really valuable currency that brands use with the consumer.”
Novi Connect has stepped into this void. The company uses data science to help brands verify their health, safety and sustainability claims so that retailers can confidently present their products to shoppers.
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In the episode, Shenk explores the shifting dynamics of trust at retail, including:
- Why traditional brand trust is no longer enough — and what’s replacing it;
- What consumers today actually care about when it comes to ESG — and how to communicate it;
- The measurable impact of verified product claims on discovery, conversion and loyalty; and
- How AI and large-language models are reshaping online merchandising in the digital age.
Tune in now to explore the future and importance of conscious commerce and how you can leverage it at your own company.
