# People trust people, not ads: the case for creator marketing

> Recommendations from people we know beat every form of advertising on trust. Creators sit close to that, and clear #ad disclosure keeps the trust intact. Here's why it works and how not to break it.

**Influencer marketing works because a recommendation from a person you chose to follow carries trust that an ad can't buy.** Survey after survey puts recommendations from people we know at the top of the trust rankings, and clear disclosure (#ad) keeps that trust intact rather than eroding it.

## How much do people trust recommendations versus ads?

Nielsen's global trust-in-advertising research has asked the same question for years: which sources of advertising do you trust? Recommendations from people you know have come first in every wave. In its study of 30,000 consumers across 60 countries, 83% said they completely or somewhat trust recommendations from people they know. No paid format came close.

A creator isn't a friend. But for someone who reads a creator's posts every day, the creator sits much closer to "a person I know" than to "an ad." The audience knows their taste, their track record and whether they've been right before.

## Why do ads lose trust?

- **Everyone knows an ad is paid to say good things.** The message comes from the seller.
- **Ads interrupt.** They show up in the middle of something the viewer actually wanted to see.
- **Many people block them.** About one in five internet users regularly uses an ad blocker, according to GWI data from 2024, and another one in ten does so occasionally.

A creator's post is the thing the follower came to see. The recommendation arrives inside content they chose.

## Doesn't paying a creator destroy the trust?

Not if it's done honestly. The trust comes from the creator's judgment, so what matters is:

1. **The creator actually uses or tried the product.** The US Federal Trade Commission's guidance for influencers says this directly: don't talk about products you haven't used, and don't say you love something you don't.
2. **The creator writes in their own voice.** Scripted posts read like ads, and audiences notice. Give a brief with the facts and let the creator decide how to say it.
3. **The relationship is disclosed clearly.** The FTC recommends simple, hard-to-miss words like "ad," "sponsored" or "partner," placed where people will see them. Vague tags like "sp" or "collab" aren't enough.

Creators protect their audience's trust because it's their livelihood. A creator who promotes bad products loses followers. That self-interest is exactly why their recommendations are worth paying for.

## How should brands work with creators to keep trust?

- **Pick creators whose audience fits the product.** A good fit doesn't need a hard sell.
- **Send briefs, not scripts.** Say what the product does, what's new, the link and any facts that must be accurate.
- **Require disclosure.** Make the platform's label (on X, the Paid partnership label) part of the deal, and check it.
- **Pay for real posts.** Hold the payment until the post is live from the right account, with the link and the disclosure.

On Transformer, every offer is a short ask rather than a script. Verification checks that the post is live on X, from the creator's account, with the tracked link and X's Paid partnership label, before the payment is released.

## Key takeaways

- Recommendations from people are the most trusted form of advertising, by a wide margin.
- Creators borrow that trust because their audiences chose to follow them.
- Honest use, the creator's own voice and clear disclosure keep the trust intact.

## FAQ

### Why do people trust influencers more than ads?
Because they chose to follow the influencer and know their taste and track record. An ad comes from the seller and interrupts; a creator's post is content the follower wanted.

### Does #ad reduce the effectiveness of an influencer post?
Disclosure is required by the FTC in the US, and it protects the creator's credibility. Audiences generally accept paid posts from creators they trust as long as the relationship is honest and the creator genuinely uses the product.

### What does the FTC require from influencers?
The FTC asks influencers to disclose any financial, employment, personal or family relationship with a brand, using clear words like "ad" or "sponsored" placed where people will see them, and to only make honest claims about products they've actually used.

## Sources

- Nielsen, Global Trust in Advertising, via [Marketing Dive](https://www.marketingdive.com/news/nielsen-study-consumers-trust-tv-over-online-video-ads/406643/)
- GWI via [Press Gazette](https://pressgazette.co.uk/marketing/ad-blockers-mean-publishers-missing-out-on-ad-revenue-from-one-in-five-readers/)
- [FTC: Disclosures 101 for Social Media Influencers](https://www.ftc.gov/business-guidance/resources/disclosures-101-social-media-influencers)