60% of Consumers Doubt Ads: Trust in 2026

An Edelman Trust Barometer study just put a number on our biggest problem: 60% of consumers globally now find it harder to distinguish between real and fake content online, a direct result of how fast synthetic media is advancing. This collapse in trust is a direct threat to any marketer trying to create video ads that actually work. So how do you build a genuine connection when the authenticity of everything people see is constantly being questioned?

60% of Consumers Struggle to Distinguish Real from Fake Content

That 60% figure from the 2026 Edelman Trust Barometer is a five-alarm fire for anyone in video advertising. Because of the flood of deepfakes and other AI media, the default assumption that what you see is real is completely gone. When a viewer sees a video ad today, a new subconscious filter kicks in: “Is this real?” This creates a generalized unease that stops messages from landing with any real impact. Brands can’t just expect visuals alone to signal truth anymore. Our job as marketers is now about actively proving our visuals are real, not just making them compelling. We have to look past slick production values and zero in on what signals a genuine experience. For example, an ad with a flawless-looking spokesperson might actually create more skepticism than a rougher video showing real customers using a product. The very slickness of AI-generated content can work against it. We should actually embrace the little imperfections that scream ‘a real human made this’.

User-Generated Content Sees a 28% Higher Engagement Rate

As deepfakes kill trust in professionally produced content, authenticated user-generated content (UGC) is making a huge comeback. A recent Nielsen report on digital ad trends showed that campaigns with UGC got 28% higher engagement on average than campaigns that only used brand-made videos. It makes perfect sense. When synthetic media makes everything blurry, genuine testimonials and organic videos of people using your product cut through the noise. But the content has to be “authenticated.” You can’t just scrape a video off social media. Brands have to establish the UGC’s provenance, which means getting clear permissions and talking directly to creators, maybe even doing simple verifications like checking their social profiles or asking for the raw source files. Tools like TINT or Stackla give you platforms to manage and verify this stuff, adding a necessary layer of credibility. I’ve seen firsthand how a raw, enthusiastic customer review video (even with bad lighting) can crush a high-budget commercial because it just feels real. It completely bypasses that skepticism filter.

Only 30% of Consumers Trust Influencers Using AI-Generated Content Without Disclosure

Influencer marketing is changing fast, and deepfakes are a major new complication for the relationships between brands, influencers, and their audiences. A 2025 HubSpot survey on how consumers see AI in marketing found that only 30% of people would trust an influencer if they found out AI-generated content was used in a sponsored post without being told. That number drops off a cliff if the AI is used in a way that feels deceptive. People might think AI helps influencers make more content, but this data shows the massive reputation risk. Brands have to set clear rules with their influencer partners about using AI. This covers everything from AI voiceovers and visual touch-ups to fully synthetic avatars. Honesty is everything here. A simple disclosure, like a quick on-screen text overlay saying “AI-assisted content” or even a verbal mention from the influencer, can head off most of that distrust. It shows you respect the audience. If you don’t, you risk torching the influencer’s credibility and the brand’s right along with it. For more on the ethical side of this, you should read up on the latest influencer disclosure rules for video ads.

Blockchain-Based Content Verification Projects Grew by 150% in 2025

The industry is finally building tech to fight the trust crisis. An eMarketer market analysis found that projects using blockchain-based content verification and digital watermarking jumped by 150% in investment and adoption in 2025. It shows a serious push to make content origins auditable. Platforms like Truepic and tools built on the C2PA (Coalition for Content Provenance and Authenticity) standard are really starting to catch on. This tech embeds verifiable metadata right into the video file, creating a secure, unchangeable record of its origin and any edits. For advertisers, this means you could soon present a digital ‘certificate of authenticity’ with your campaigns. Imagine a future where every ad has a small, clickable icon verifying its source. This is quickly becoming a practical tool, not a sci-fi concept. It’s not on every ad platform yet, but the smart brands are already testing these verification methods to build a real foundation of trust. Taking this step now shows you’re a brand that actually invests in being transparent, and that sets you apart.

My Disagreement: The Myth of Perfect Production as a Trust Signal

I completely disagree with an old advertising belief: that high production value builds trust. For years, agencies have been chasing a cinematic look, thinking a perfectly lit, beautifully edited video automatically makes a brand seem professional and reliable. In the deepfake era, that assumption is actually counterproductive. AI can now spit out hyper-realistic, visually perfect content pretty easily. The result is that perfection now looks suspicious. Think about it: when you see something that looks too good to be true, what’s your first instinct? You question it. This is especially true for video ads. The human brain is really good at picking up on tiny inconsistencies or that “uncanny valley” feeling, even if we can’t say exactly what’s wrong. Instead of chasing some impossible standard of visual perfection, marketers need to get obsessed with authenticity, relatability, and real emotion. This could mean using footage that’s a bit less polished, featuring real employees, or even showing ‘behind-the-scenes’ clips that reveal the human work involved. The goal is to show a genuine experience and build a connection, so forget about just showing off visual grandeur. A slightly shaky, but obviously authentic, video of a product getting used in the real world will build more trust than some hyper-stylized studio shot that could’ve been made by an AI in ten minutes. Our focus needs to shift from “flawless” to “trustworthy.” This kind of thinking is key for making video ads that drive more clicks because they connect with real-world problems.

To build trust in video advertising with deepfakes everywhere, we have to change our entire strategy. We have to move on from aesthetic perfection and focus on provable authenticity and clear communication. Brands need to actively prove their content is real using authenticated UGC, clear AI disclosures, and new verification tech. The bottom line for marketers is this: put transparency and verifiable authenticity first in every AI video ad campaign.