IPA and Financial Times Study Reveals Trust Is Second Most Powerful Business Driver

A new study from the IPA and Financial Times (FT) has found that trust is a core strategic asset that directly drives profit, customer acquisition, brand strength and long-term success for businesses.

Trust is a critical currency in business, particularly in the face of rising uncertainty, reduced human contact, and increased concerns around data and AI. But despite its growing commercial importance, most industries are failing to meet the trust expectations of their customers, clients and stakeholders.

The ‘Bridging the Trust Gap’ report draws on insights from over 750 global B2B decision-makers who are part of the FT reader panel, a group of senior leaders from around the world who regularly share feedback, opinions, and perspectives on a range of topics.

Key findings:

• More than two-thirds of B2B decision-makers feel trust in business has become more important, and over half believe it has become much more important.
• Companies which measure trust as a board-level KPI are believed to be over three times more likely to report stronger profits than those that don’t.
• Despite its clear commercial impact, only 22% of companies state that trust is a board KPI. Those that do, believe it delivers greater competitive advantage and financial performance.
• Trust is now the second most powerful metric (after product or service quality) for driving key business outcomes such as profit, market share, and acquisition – up from sixth place 20 years ago.
• Most business sectors are underperforming on trust. The biggest “trust gaps” are found in finance, tech, cybersecurity, insurance, and property.
• Brands that advertise in trusted media environments see a measurable halo effect, with decision-makers more likely to believe those brands will “deliver on their promises.”
• Media context matters: 60% of respondents, rising to 70% of those under 45, are more likely to trust a brand if its ads appear in “gatekeeper” media, such as business news brands, rather than brands and platforms with user-generated content (UGC).
• 69% of business decision-makers disagreed with the statement that “Trusting a piece of technology is the same as trusting a human”, and only 9% trust generative AI.

The report highlights a growing “trust gap” between what customers, clients, and partners expect from brands and what businesses are actually delivering. The consequences of ignoring this gap, it outlines, are commercially negative mistrust that leads to lost revenue, stagnant growth and reduced market influence. To address this, the report also offers a framework to build and operationalise trust, for which businesses should focus on five key pillars: competence, reliability, integrity, intent, and communication.

Commenting on the findings, FT CEO Jon Slade said, “Trust has too often been viewed as intangible and unmeasurable by business, overlooked in favour of profit and margins, which are readily conveyable to the board. Our latest report explores trust not as an abstract ideal, but as a measurable driver of business performance – in marketing, in brand strength, and importantly, to the bottom line. Our firsthand research demonstrates that companies which measure trust as a board-level KPI are believed to be over three times more likely to report stronger profits than those that don’t. We are proud to partner with the IPA, and of course Nikkei, with whom we celebrate 10 years of partnership this year, to bring this important and applicable research to our commercial partners.”

Laurence Green, director of effectiveness at IPA, said, “We are pleased to be working alongside the Financial Times to understand more about how trust is currently perceived and built. And while attention has previously been paid largely to the notion of trusted communication, or trusted brand – both of which spring from emotional connection rather than some rational calculation – there is now more scrutiny than ever of the role of trusted media as carriers for messaging. This study adds to the body of evidence that trust matters, and that advertisers can and should factor the trustworthiness of the media they fund into their calculations. But it is also a wider, bi-partisan reminder that the advertising business is built on trust.”

You can find the full report here.