Insights The trust factor: How to build credibility & loyalty through customer-centric marketing

From constant noise to endless trends, your audience has more choice than ever, and they’re becoming more selective about who they buy from, follow, and recommend.

A clever ad or a great product might win attention, but trust is what keeps people coming back. It turns casual customers into loyal advocates. And, without it,  simple marketing just won’t cut in the long run.

So, how do you build it? By focusing on your customers—on their needs, their expectations, and their experience with your brand.

Why trust is the foundation of loyalty

Trust shapes the entire customer journey. It’s what makes someone feel confident about buying. It brings them back, even when they have other options, and it’s also what drives recommendations that just can’t be bought.

Build or break trust

Every business will get something wrong at some point. What matters is how you respond.

If there’s an issue, whether it’s a delay, a faulty product, or a PR challenge, the key is to be open and straightforward. Let your customers know what’s happened and what you’re doing to fix it. Then, follow up with what’s changed.

Handled the right way, mistakes become moments where confidence grows.

Domino’s: From criticism to loyalty

Even way back in 2009, Domino’s faced widespread complaints about its pizza. 

They responded with a public campaign admitting the problem, sharing how they were improving, and inviting feedback.

The result was a major shift in how people viewed the brand. Domino’s rebuilt its credibility by being honest and showing clear action.

Integrity in action

It might sound obvious, but trust grows when people feel they’re being told the truth. If something isn’t working or isn’t right for everyone, say so. If a decision affects customers, explain it.

Share what goes into the way you work, how you price, source, or make decisions. When people can see the reality behind your brand, they connect on a deeper level.

It’s also about showing where your values live. If sustainability is important to you, let your audience see it in your packaging or your partnerships. If you’re committed to your community, share the impact you’re making.

The details matter.

Consistency builds confidence

Trust isn’t built in a moment. It takes time, through experiences that stay true across every part of your brand.

When people know what to expect, and you keep delivering, their confidence grows. Through your tone of voice, service, or product quality, consistency is what makes people feel they can rely on you.

They know what to expect, and that expectation becomes a reason to come back. Any disconnect, like friendly messaging with cold emails, promises of simplicity with complicated processes, creates doubt. 

Listening creates loyalty

People want to be heard. When you take their feedback seriously and let them see the difference it makes, you show that you value their input.

This means staying in touch regularly, not through surveys alone, but through open conversations. When you act on what customers tell you and share the outcomes, you turn feedback into a relationship, not a one-time transaction.

Feedback isn’t a formality. When customers see that their suggestions influence decisions, it changes the relationship. Launch a feature because of their input? Tell that story. Improve a process? Let them know. Listening builds loyalty, especially when the results are visible.

Content that serves

Not everything needs to be about the sale. The strongest brands know how to create content that helps, teaches, or simply connects. 

This could be guides, videos, or behind-the-scenes stories. It could be sharing what your team is working on or what your customers are achieving with your product.

Good content offers something of value, regardless of whether you’re going to get something out of it. Sometimes, the engagement or acknowledgement is enough!

Look at how HubSpot offers free blogs, templates, and research to marketing teams, long before they need a CRM. By helping their audience grow, they become a go-to resource. When the need for a platform arises, they’ve already built the relationship.

Trust is built in tough moments

Trust often builds when things don’t go to plan. But, how can a business rise above backlash? The ones that run and hide when things get tough aren’t going to make a good impression on their consumers. 

Skims: 2024 product recall

In early 2024, Skims discovered an issue with a product line.

They didn’t sweep it under the rug. Instead, they addressed it publicly, explained the problem, and offered refunds immediately.

Rather than losing support, they gained more, because they owned the situation with clarity, rather than pretending everything’s “fine”. 

What builds trust, and keeps it

You can’t do one thing well and run with it, you have to think about all of the things you can do consistently, across every customer experience. It starts with how people find you, grows with how you treat them, and deepens when you deliver value over time.


• Be consistent in how your brand shows up, from emails to service, from social posts to product packaging. 
• Speak clearly, especially when things get hard
• Let customer voices shape your direction and share the changes you make
• Focus on content and experiences that help, not just sell
• Show your values in action, not just in words

Creating tailored experiences 

Customers expect experiences that feel like they’re designed just for them, and personalisation is how brands deliver that.

When done well, personalisation shows that you understand your customer’s needs, interests, and behaviours. It could be something as simple as addressing someone by name in an email, or as sophisticated as recommending products based on previous browsing or purchase history.

UK brands leading with personalisation

Take Not On The High Street. Their homepage and emails often feature curated “Gifts for…” sections—Gifts for Mum, Gifts for garden lovers, Gifts for foodies.

It’s more than clever categorisation, it helps customers navigate a large product range quickly and feel that the brand gets what they’re looking for.

Similarly, ASOS uses personalisation throughout the customer journey.

From personalised style recommendations on the homepage to reminders about items left in a basket, ASOS makes sure each touchpoint feels relevant. Their app even tailors notifications based on user preferences and past purchases, creating a sense of connection between the customer and the brand.

How automation enhances trust

Automation takes personalisation a step further by delivering timely, relevant experiences without making them feel robotic.

For example, Bloom & Wild, the letterbox flower delivery brand, uses automation to enhance customer experience at just the right moments. After placing an order, customers receive updates on their delivery, care tips for their flowers, and reminders about upcoming key dates (like Mother’s Day), based on their past orders. 

Another great example is Ocado. Their automated shopping suggestions help regular customers save time, while their emails remind users of deals on their favourite items. This thoughtful use of data creates a feeling that Ocado is there to make life easier, not just to drive sales.

Why it works

Personalisation and automation work because they respect the customer’s time and attention. They remove friction, offer solutions, and anticipate needs, all without the customer having to ask.

These experiences feel helpful rather than intrusive when grounded in relevance and value. You’re not pushing products for the sake of it, you’re making every interaction smoother, smarter, and more meaningful.

And when customers feel like a brand knows them, understands them, and makes life easier for them? It’s only right that trust will follow. 

What’s next for your brand?

Focus on what matters most to your customers. When you listen, stay true to your word, and show up consistently, trust becomes the core of how your brand connects.

Ready to take your customer relationships further? Let’s talk about building a strategy that’s grounded in trust.