How To Overcome Clients' Trust Issues With The Marketing Industry

The advertising and marketing industry has a trust issue. Don't believe me? A new Ipsos Global Trustworthiness Index found that, of 18 professions studied, advertising executives ranked the least trustworthy of non-political workers (which included government ministers and politicians in general). And while I have no beef with lawyers, bankers and corporate business leaders — all of whom ranked higher than us — perhaps you found these results surprising. I know I did.

This issue has been ongoing. A few years ago, ANA found that the practice of accepting kickbacks (when agencies accept undisclosed rebates from media companies) was rampant. While the report was the first to unearth the dirty secret, a recent report from ANA found this unsavory practice is still a major issue. In fact, a survey of agency-client trust issues corroborated these claims and found that rebates are the primary concern in the industry. Among other concerns:

• Lack of transparency into cost components of programmatic media
• Data integrity (e.g., inaccuracy and relevance)


• Walled garden limitations on measurement
• Brand safety
• Influencer fraud (e.g., fake followers, fake engagement stats)

Media companies are paid by advertisers to secure advertising slots for their clients. They're expected to get the best value, independent of their own interests. Furthermore, clients hire us to market and advertise products to the general public, which means assuaging hesitations and boosting the reputation of brands and businesses.

Ultimately, we are trusted to spend our clients' money with good intentions. But if our clients can't trust us in the first place, what does that mean for our future?

Ad Agency Spend Should Strive To Be Honest And Transparent

As is the case with kickbacks, agencies make shady agreements with media owners to spend a specified amount of ad dollars to receive a rebate. For example, let's say an agency accepts a credit from the place it buys ads from and does not disclose they acted in their own interests.

Any time an agency acts in its own interests without disclosing the truth to their clients, as in the case of the rebates, then it can be argued that agencies are in collusion against their clients. This is inherently immoral. And it's a conscious act to subvert a business agreement.

Any time profit is pocketed by a media company and not communicated to a client, the honor of our craft is called into question. Credits, rebates or free ad slots must be returned to clients, not sold to benefit an agency. Not only are agency kickbacks ethically ambiguous, but they also make the entire industry look bad.

So, How Do We Overcome This Trust Issue?

As the world becomes increasingly connected and our communications become progressively digitized, cutting through the noise created by pervasive advertising is tantamount to building trust. Consumers are already skeptical of digital marketing.

Digital advertising has automated many processes. It's simplified and streamlined much of the tedious nature of our jobs. But let's face it; it's also made it a lot easier for nefarious players to enter the game. And I personally think a lot of the distrust surrounding the industry is generated by the smoke-and-mirrors methods used by these bad actors.

It's time to get back to our roots. Perhaps not as advertisers or business owners, but as human beings. In an era that's seemingly dominated by corruption, fraud and dishonesty, it's time to embrace common values. Advertising and marketing should embody three Ts: trust, truth and transparency. If you can't check these boxes, you might as well run for the hills.

Build A Culture Of Trust, Truth And Transparency

In the marketing and advertising world, trust is gained by listening to your prospects. As they say, trust is earned, not given, so it's important to focus on developing and maintaining relationships.
Establishing trust means operating with transparency. This means being upfront with the terms and conditions of your business agreements. It means outlining the expectations of a business partnership from the onset. And it means proactively addressing clear lines of communication so all stakeholders remain informed of all changes, no matter how small.

Connecting with your partners and clients is the first step in establishing long-lasting business relationships. Once you create a model of honesty and trust, you can drive better results for your partners. Hopefully, by emphasizing shared values, we can make kickbacks a thing of the past.

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