How do you build trust with audiences in a post-AI world? We all know trust matters. In fact, 97% of marketers say trust is critical to commercial performance. Yet most organizations are still struggling to build it consistently. Changing audience behaviors, shifting regulations, and the rapid adoption of AI are all making it harder to build long-term relationships with audiences.
To better understand the landscape, we commissioned research with Censuswide, surveying 901 marketing and event professionals across 12 countries. The findings revealed three major challenges to building audience trust today, which all point to the same conclusion: authentic human connection is the foundation for nurturing trust.
And in a world where organizations must increasingly stand out amid a sea of generic content, events remain one of the most effective ways to build that connection.
Key takeaways:
Our research identified the three biggest barriers to building trust with audiences:
- 38% of respondents cite audience skepticism as the main barrier to building trust
- 38% cite limited meaningful or face-to-face engagement with audiences
- 36% cite regulatory, compliance, or data privacy constraints
Barrier 1: Audiences are questioning everything
38% of respondents cite audience skepticism as the main barrier to building trust. And it's no surprise: misinformation is everywhere. But this isn't the only factor causing audiences to question the claims and promises brands publish.
No matter how carefully crafted a website, social post, or blog may be, there's always room for doubt. Concerns around authenticity have only grown in the wake of recent controversies, including brands getting caught using AI-generated spokespeople.
Trust can't be built through messaging alone. It also has to be brought to life and practiced in the real world.
This is where events excel. They don't just tell audiences why your organization is credible; they provide an environment for you to prove it in real time. Instead of faceless authors, real speakers can share their expertise. Meanwhile, attendees have the chance to interact with your brand's representatives, get immediate answers to their questions, and build a stronger connection with your brand.
More importantly, organizations can use events to amplify the voices of their most powerful brand advocates: existing clients. Research shows that 89% of consumers trust recommendations from people they know over traditional advertising.
While event attendees aren't hearing recommendations from friends or family members, giving your customers a platform to share their experiences, including the ROI they've achieved and the relationship they've built with your organization, provides a level of credibility and social proof that brand-led messaging will find hard to replicate.
Barrier 2: Meaningful engagement is getting harder to create
38% of respondents cite limited meaningful or face-to-face engagement with audiences as the main barrier to building trust. The reality is that today's audiences are being served with more content than ever before, and more than they can ever consume.
AI has made it easier for organizations to publish blogs, emails, and reports. Factor in the cluttered social media feeds they wade through daily, the countless channels they flit between, and how easy it has become to generate lifelike images and video, and it's not hard to see why people are struggling to discern between what's real and what's not.
Many organizations have turned to creating content en masse as a solution. But this doesn't come without cost. Generic, repetitive content has become the norm. Although speed remains important, it's important not to sacrifice quality in an attempt to keep pace with competitors.
Trust isn't built solely through quantity. Audiences are searching for quality. And increasingly, they're searching for originality and genuine human perspective.
This is where events play a vital role. Instead of being hit with content they never asked for, attendees have real reasons to show up. They're able to interact in real-time, bring their own opinions to the floor, and engage with respected speakers.
Of course, this doesn't mean not using AI. But you have to use it well and with transparency. For example, improving event accessibility using transcription tools, or rapidly producing panel summaries for sign-ups that weren't able to attend. AI should be an enabler, not a substitute for real-world experiences.
Barrier 3: Data privacy is changing how you reach audiences
36% of respondents cite regulatory, compliance, or data privacy constraints as the main barrier to building trust. As marketers, we rely heavily on audience data. Information such as industry, role, seniority, and engagement behaviors help us develop a deeper understanding of our audiences, which is crucial if we want to deliver more relevant experiences.
But, getting hold of this data is getting harder. You need to stay compliant with regulations such as GDPR and CCPA (California Consumer Privacy Act), or risk facing financial consequences. Getting it wrong could also damage audience relationships.
In contrast, events create a clear and transparent value exchange. During sign-up, attendees willingly share information because they receive something tangible in return, such as access to exclusive research, expert insights, or product demonstrations.
Events are also one of the richest sources of first-party data. Unlike most digital channels, they give you behavioral signals that go well beyond a page view or a click. Session attendance, networking activity, content engagement, and how often someone keeps coming back all paint a much richer picture of where an audience member is in their journey.
And this doesn't just happen at the event. At registration, they will signal their interests. Onsite, you can analyze which sessions they attended, and how deeply they engaged with the panels. Post-event, feedback surveys help you improve at future events, while monitoring content consumption will point you toward the right next step.
Events are where trust gets built
Skepticism, disengagement, and data constraints are three of the biggest challenges facing marketers today. Addressing all three comes down to the same thing: creating genuine, human experiences that audiences can trust.
But trust, like any relationship, takes time. It's built through consistent, authentic human experiences across multiple touchpoints. Events are one of the most powerful ways to create those experiences at scale.
Knowing the barriers is one thing. Knowing how to overcome them is another. Want to explore what the data says about trust, events, and how to measure their impact? Download The Trust Gap report.
