Businesses have to fight hard to earn trust online. According to Statista , 41% of adults say they don’t trust information posted on social media platforms very often, and 16% say they don’t trust it at all. This is a problem for businesses trying to build their brand and attract customers.

What’s more, AI slop may be making it worse. Consumers are wary of AI; KPMG found that only 46% of people worldwide trust AI. Another study found that if consumers know AI created a piece of content, the brand then faces a “trust penalty.”

In an environment where consumers are already skeptical of marketing messaging, overreliance on AI-generated content may further erode trust in your business. Here are three practical ways you can strategically (yet authentically) earn more trust from your marketing, without relying on AI as the primary content generator.

1. Focus On Human-Led Content

I recently noticed a local business started posting 100% AI-generated videos on Instagram. The videos featured an AI-generated person and voice-over, and all videos looked exactly the same. It was obvious that the content was entirely AI-produced, and it looked incredibly fake. Within a month, their follower numbers had dropped more than 20%.

Human-led marketing may have the opposite effect. Customers are more likely to trust and respond positively to content that feels personable and clearly connected to a real person. Plus, 88% of consumers consider trust to be just as important as price and quality, according to Edelman’s Trust Barometer . Examples of human-led content are:

  • Verified customer testimonials and case studies
  • A founder’s personal brand
  • Employee-generated content
  • Talking-to-camera videos
  • Expert commentary and digital PR stories

It is any content that features the business owner, a staff member, a creator, or a customer, and they’re clearly visible or attributable to the piece of content. Now, not all of your marketing needs to fit this criteria. But weaving human-led content into your marketing strategy is a crucial way to increase trust in your business.

Another way to increase trust (and drive business growth) is to build a community around your brand . This means you’re no longer solely relying on one-way marketing messages. With a loyal community, your brand becomes peer-validated through customer stories and shared experiences.

A community doesn’t need to be a global movement, such as Red Bull’s extreme sport community or Nike’s Run Club. It can be grown from something as simple as regular online or in-person events, where your customers or industry peers come together to share insights and engage directly with your brand. Over time, these events can strengthen familiarity and long-term loyalty to your business.

3. Produce Thought Leadership Content

Customers want to do business with people they trust to be experts. Producing thought leadership content and building your personal brand as a business owner has a multitude of benefits , such as differentiating your business from others (only you can be you!), and creating a trusted reputation as the go-to expert in your niche.

Here are five practical yet easy ways busy business owners can do this:

  • Posts from your LinkedIn personal profile
  • Long-form written content, such as blogs or LinkedIn articles
  • A monthly email newsletter
  • Be a guest speaker on relevant industry podcasts
  • Contribute to relevant industry publications as a guest writer

If you have the bandwidth, use a variety of these. They’ll help position you as a thought leader and increase trust in your personal brand, and, as a default, your business’ brand.

Remember that trust is paramount for business success. AI can be a great enabler of efficiencies, but solely relying on it for your marketing content may be risky. So ensure that there’s human oversight. Employ these trust-building strategies to grow your business’ reputation and attract customers - not turn them off.