Trust is the bedrock upon which reputation is built. This is relevant in politics, but even more so in the corporate world. The Edelman Trust Barometer, which has been studying public and private organisations’ reputations for the past 14 years, was released this week. Trust matters to business as 63% of respondents will patronise a trusted company and 51% will recommend that company.

found that there is a measurable link between CSR and financial performance. So it may be a company can do good and reap the rewards. An increase in positive CSR correlates to a 20% reduction in financial risk. Faculty of ManagementIt found that 84% of people think business can both do good and make money, simultaneously. McGill University’s

Edelman avers that integrity and engagement are two of the key areas through which a company can build trust. Honesty on the leadership level is also extremely important to building trust. In the UK, and to some extent globally, the government and media have seen depleted trust this year while business has remained level and NGOs have increased trust levels. 

The media, interestingly, is not trusted largely due to lack of regulation and perceived corruption. Respondents also pointed to regulation as the most important area for which government should be involved in business. Yet, business is charged by 52% of respondents, with the responsibility for economic growth.

to the crisis which could have the mitigated long-term impact on trust and reputation.communications response, 47% of people worry about the contents of their food. However, the industry did launch a proactive HanoverSurprisingly, FMCG goods are up 12% year-on-year in trust rankings and the food and beverage sector is up 4%. For food and drink, 2013 was the year of horsemeat, which, according to research