Study advises how brands should address growing consumer scepticism

Dr Kate Sansome from the University of Adelaide in Australia has led a study which suggests that consumers want brands to be transparent about topics that impact them. 

The study has been published in the European Journal of Marketing and was conducted through qualitative interviews with experts such as brand managers, government officials and third-party accreditors, as well as in-depth consumer interviews. 

“As socio-political issues become topical in the news and social media, brands are expected to be transparent about them. For example, as consumers face cost-of-living pressures, they will expect brands to be transparent about this issue,” says Sansome. 

She conducted the study with Professor Jodie Conduit and Dr Dean Wilkie from the university’s Adelaide Business School. 

“Our research shows that it’s not just about brands sharing extensive information, but about being open, clear, timely, and providing well-explained, evidence-based information. Open dialogue and answering consumers’ questions are important for transparency, even on sensitive or negative issues, particularly for brands in industries with a negative reputation,” Sansome adds. 

Communicate in an easy-to-understand manner 

She notes that being transparent means communicating in a simple and easy-to-understand manner, being upfront before external pressure, and backing up claims with statistics, facts, and visual evidence. The study suggests that brands that use tools like infographics or storytelling to explain their decisions and give consumers a better understanding of their intentions and reasons behind their actions. 

“Consumers are becoming more uncertain of brand communication due to misinformation, deep fakes, misleading claims, and perceived hypocrisy,” Sansome says. “Scepticism is growing, where a majority of young people believe a brand is hiding something if it avoids certain topics. 

“Consumers’ perceptions of certain brands or product categories can influence how they interpret brand transparency. Our research shows that in stigmatised industries like mining or fast fashion, consumer scepticism can make it difficult for people to recognise a brand’s efforts to be transparent, regardless of its intentions.” 

Sansome believes her study highlights a need for brands to improve how they communicate transparency to consumers. 

“For brands and businesses, these findings provide insight into consumers’ need for brands to be transparent on topics beyond pricing and supply chain information, and presented in a way that meets their expectations,” she explains. 

“Providing exhaustive information in PDF form on a website is insufficient. Transparency is a continuous, evolving dialogue with consumers, with clear, timely, evidence-based and explanatory communication.” 

You can find out more about the study here.