[null, {"document_url": "https://www.lizschwartz.com/blog/2013/5/16/why-your-brand-must-be-transparent-to-survive.html", "unformatted_src": "https://static1.squarespace.com/static/51a0f111e4b0d5a537dafe3c/51a0f134e4b05ac799604739/51a0f134e4b05ac7996047bb/1369502008524/Buycott.jpg", "src": "https://static1.squarespace.com/static/51a0f111e4b0d5a537dafe3c/51a0f134e4b05ac799604739/51a0f134e4b05ac7996047bb/1369502008524/Buycott.jpg", "formatted_filename": "Buycott", "alt_text": "Buycott.jpg"}, null, null]
Consumers no longer believe marketing messages on face value

If you want to build a future-thinking brand, it must be honest and transparent. Honest corporate policies are not always black and white, so brands that tell the whole truth win. The zeitgeist is changing faster than most brands can evolve. There's a movement among consumers to domore research into the brands and products they use everyday. If your brand isn't providing consumers with an honest story, they will "out" you. Earlier this week a new app launched called Buycott that helps consumers spend money on products that reflect their values. Simply scan a barcode and a products' brand, brand ownership, and corporate principles are on display within seconds (both good AND bad). With writeups in Forbes, CNET, Jezebel, Fast Company, The Independent, NY Daily News, International Business Times, and more the Buycott servers were overloaded within 24 hours with consumers looking for the truth behind the brands they buy. Through social media proliferation and increasing media scrutiny, weary consumers no longer feel that they can trust marketing messages, and therefore can't create real brand trust. How can you create consumer loyalty without brand trust?

The Steps to Brand Transparency

The key to trust is honesty

If you are going to highlight your products nutritional value, be prepared that not everyone will take that information at face value. Consumer calls to label Genetically Modified foods hasn't slowed down in recent years, even if they haven't yet become law. As awareness of the issue continues, numerous polls over the past 10 years show that somewhere between 82% and 95% of the American public would like companies to be transparent about using GMOs in their products (ABC News, NPR, Huffington Post, Consumer Reports). Consumers aren't even asking that products be completely free of GMOs, they just want to understand when they are so they can make informed decisions.

Information is king. As large economic forces crumble around the world and scandals within corporate boardrooms and brands continue, consumers are searching for the information to make informed decisions. At the World Economic Forum in Davos, Switzerland this past January transparency was on the lips of many top speakers including UK Prime Minister David Cameron, who stated "We need more transparency on how governments and, yes, companies operate. Let me tell you why. It’s the oldest observation of the modern age that we are all interconnected. Communication is faster than ever, finance is more mobile than ever and yet the paradox of this open world is that in many ways it’s still so closed and so secretive."

At the end of the day brand transparency is about trust. If you want consumers to trust your brand, put your faith in them by providing them with real data, honest conversation and a clear understanding of your brand's accountability.

Dig deeper into brand transparency

Forbes - Let's Get Naked: A Guide to Brand Transparency

The Naked Brand

Originally published at http://pkgbranding.com/why-your-brand-must-be-transparent-to-survive/