Managing Director, Rachel Bevans, provides our perspective on the findings from Edelman’s Trust Barometer 2026 and key takeaways for aligning people, brands and business for healthier results.
Living in your bubble is a protection mechanism. It allows individuals to create a controlled, predictable, and comfortable environment to manage stress, anxiety, fear and distrust.
These bubbles provide a sense of safety against external threats, uncomfortable emotions and the overwhelming nature of the modern world – geopolitical tensions, societal instability and discrimination, income inequality and cost of living, climate change, AI and misinformation.
Importantly, they also provide a sense of belonging, being with like-minded people with shared values, understanding of the world, sources of information and the mutual trust that comes with belonging.
It’s not surprising that Edelman’s Trust Barometer 2026 has identified the key theme as Insularity, framed as the “reluctance to trust anyone that’s different to you”.
A significant 73% of Australians are hesitant or unwilling to trust someone who:
- Holds different values
- Believes in different facts and trusts different sources
- Has different views on how societal problems should be addressed
- Comes from a different culture, background or lifestyle.
And 74% think that “people in my country distrust those with differences so much that they actively make things worse for one another”. 1
This is a far cry from the social cohesion for which our progressive politicians and their constituents are striving.
THE IMPACT ON BUSINESS
Insularity has clear implications for organisations.
The research indicates that more than a third of people say they would:
- Not want to work for a manager with different values
- Make less effort at work if their manager holds different political views
- Distrust institutions led by people who are different from them
- Prefer to pay more for local brands than support foreign companies
- Feel a sense of grievance that the system is against them
This shift in trust has real consequences for organisations.
KEY TAKEAWAYS
1. ORGANISATION VALUES AND BEHAVIOURS
Whether politicians striving for social cohesion or businesses needing all employees working towards a common goal to deliver the business strategy, the research highlights key behaviours that build trust across difference:
- Having an open mind and not trying to change me
- Being transparent about how we differ
- Helping me in the past
- Defending me when I’ve been criticised
These are practical behaviours that can and should be embedded into organisational values and expected behaviours, for leaders and employees alike.
2. EMPLOYER BRAND
“My employer” was identified as the only institution broadly trusted to do what’s right.
“82% indicate that an effective strategy for my employer to facilitate trust between distrusting groups would be to Promote a shared identity and culture so that employees are reminded of what unites them rather than divides them.”
Employer brand is not a recruitment campaign. It’s a shared identity.
Building an employer brand grounded in purpose, values, shared identity and lived culture creates common ground, and brings that sense of belonging, particularly in divided environments.
3. BRAND
Nationalism
If you’re a local brand, this matters. Build it into the brand positioning and let people know about it.
If you are a global brand, local relevance becomes even more important. Global positioning needs to be translated meaningfully into local market insight and context.
Influencers
Trust now sits closest to home.
As a result of major societal events in last 5 years, people said they’d gained trust in neighbours, family and friends, co-workers and their CEO.
Your brand and marketing strategy should prioritise the audiences already trusted by your current and prospective customers.
4. BUILDING TRUST THROUGH ALIGNMENT
Over the last 30 years, we’ve worked across the business for many organisations – understanding and identifying gaps between brand promise and brand-customer experience, employer brand and employee experience, business and sustainability strategies.
All in service of delivering on the Masterbrand and business objectives.
Lack of alignment is one of the biggest barriers in building trust and achieving sustainable growth.
Misalignment shows up between:
- What the brand stands for, societal/cultural context and changing stakeholder needs and expectations
- The organisation’s purpose and values and those of its stakeholders
- The organisation’s approach to growth, its business and sustainability, corporate, customer and employer brand strategies;
- Operational siloes;
- The promise the organisation is making to its employees, customers and stakeholders through its communications and their actual experiences.
Trust is build when promises are relevant, credible and consistently met.
By engaging and understanding all relevant stakeholders, building and aligning strategies, communications and experiences, your business and brand will consistently deliver against promises that matter to your stakeholders.
Our approach is designed to build trust through alignment.
The Healthy Brand Company is a research and strategy consultancy working at the intersection of brand and employer brand, sustainability and regenerative business. Managing Director, Rachel Bevans, brings over 30 years’ experience across Australia, Asia and Global markets. Aligning people, brands and business for healthier results. Please contact rachel@thehealthybrandcompany.com for further information.
Image source: ID 18900856 © Saje | Dreamstime.co
