When confidence turns into doubt, that’s when the trust breaks.
Losing trust isn’t about a complaint or refund. It’s when customers stop recommending you, and the emotional distance creeps in, deterring them from coming back
You might notice the warning signs, such as a rise in complaints, refund requests or customer churn. But many signals stay hidden. According to CXM, for every one customer who complains, 26 others stay silent – unhappy, disengaged and unlikely to return.
Today, customers don’t just benchmark you against your competitors. They measure you against every service they use – from their bank app to their favourite streaming platform. The margin for error is shrinking.
Research from Emplifi found that 70% of consumers say they will abandon a brand after just two negative experiences, and nearly a quarter will stop after only one.
When that emotional distance sets in, it’s rarely dramatic but it’s decisive. Trust fades quietly, until it’s gone. Customers will leave, won’t come back, and they’ll also let others know about it.
The hidden commercial weight of trust
Trust isn’t just a moral value, it’s a commercial one. According to PWC’s 2024 Trust Survey, 93% of business executives agree that building and maintaining trust improves the bottom line.
When trust breaks, the cost multiplies – from reputational damage and customer churn to operational strain and falling market confidence. But when trust holds, loyalty compounds – and customers stay longer, spend more and advocate for you freely.
Let’s look at how trust shapes outcomes across four key sectors.
Building trust in the retail sector
In retail, trust can move markets. When Boohoo’s supply chain practices were exposed in 2020, the brand’s stock value fell 23% in just two days, wiping £1.1 billion from its market cap. The scandal didn’t just cost money, it cost belief.
By contrast, Costco has built a decades-long reputation for fairness with ethical pricing, generous return policies and transparent supplier relationships. That foundation of trust drives a 92% membership renewal rate in North America. The lesson? Trust creates predictability. And predictability builds lifetime loyalty.
Building trust in the utilities sector
For utilities, customers may have limited choice but trust still dictates engagement. When customers doubt transparency or integrity, they resist – smart meter rollouts stall, data sharing declines, and efficiency programs underperform.
In contrast, Enel (Italy) with its 73 million global customers, earned public confidence by investing in renewable energy and communicating openly about its goals. The company’s trust-led approach increased customer participation and helped secure its position as one of Europe’s most valued utilities.
Trust protects a utility company's reputation.
Building trust in the healthcare sector
No sector carries a higher cost for losing trust than healthcare. Data breaches, poor communication or inconsistent care can erode patient confidence as well as clinical outcomes.
In the US, the average cost of a healthcare data breach reached $10.93 million in 2024, the highest of any industry, according to Censinet. Beyond the financial impact, the human cost is steep – patients share less information, skip follow-ups and disengage from digital health tools.
By contrast, Cleveland Clinic Abu Dhabi has shown how trust can be systematically built. Adopting Cleveland Clinic’s patient-centric model, it focused on transparency, empathy, and communication, becoming the region’s provider of choice for complex care. The reward is enduring loyalty, not just short-term satisfaction, and lower costs of acquisition.
Building trust in the travel sector
Few industries rely more heavily on trust than travel. A 2021 global survey by Edelman DXI found that 46% of travellers prioritise trust over any other factor when choosing airlines or hotels.
The industry has seen both sides of the trust equation. Australian airline Qantas, long admired for safety and service, saw its reputation plummet in 2023 amid cancellations, luggage mishandling and allegations of misleading practices. The airline posted record profits, but at the expense of record complaints and declining customer trust.
Meanwhile, Emirates Airlines has made trust its competitive advantage. Through consistent, premium service and clear communication, Emirates leads in brand intimacy, particularly in the ‘bonding’ stage, where trust becomes emotional connection.
Discover the 10 design principles to build a strong foundation for trust in our next article.
