Consumers Demand Integrity and Authenticity.

• Position: BRANDS

Despite influencer marketing continuing to dominate across both online and increasingly offline channels, only six percent of consumers globally are swayed by influencers or celebrity endorsements when choosing which retail channel to use when making a purchase. This is according to research conducted on behalf of OpSec Security, Lancaster, Pa.--provider of fully integrated on-product and online authentication--which found that even among 18- to 24-year-olds, the so-called "digital generation," influencers only make their mark on 12% of consumers.

Shoppers are more likely to trust their peers, family, and friends for advice when making a purchasing decision. Some 71 % of consumers rate customer reviews as an effective trust signal, while 72% trust endorsements from family and friends.

This fall from grace for influencers could be linked to the fact that 24% of the counterfeit products unintentionally purchased by consumers were bought from social media ads, which was second only to counterfeit purchase from online marketplaces (26%).

This growing skepticism is reflected in the finding that links in social media posts are the least trusted method of purchasing goods. Fortynine percent of consumers consider these channels untrustworthy, and only 38% believe social media ads are trustworthy.

An overwhelming 91% of social media users have concerns about buying goods from social channels. The biggest worry is the quality of goods (53%), followed by payment security (51%), and buying a fake (51%). Conversely, department stores have the highest levels of trust among consumers, with 90% globally saying they are "trustworthy," followed closely by brand stores (87%), and a brand owner's website (83%).

"While influencers have a place in today's marketing mix, it appears they aren't as effective in winning shoppers over as some may have been led to believe and dont necessarily inspire trust in a brand," says Bill Taylor, chief...