Sports, reports, and what broken trust reveals

Following the launch of our annual Trust Report, our Chief Trust Officer, Anoop Joshi, has been thinking about what trust means for us and how businesses can build it.

At a recent conference, someone asked me, “So, what is trust?” A profound question, but I kept my answer simple: “It’s the connection you build with customers in every moment you meet.”

You can’t tick it off your to-do list because you launch a product, service or ad campaign. Trust is delivering on promises, being open and considerate — not just on the good days, but when it's tricky, too.

Take something as small as a missed delivery. I had a skip booked for my move. It didn’t arrive, and I heard nothing from the company. I get that things go wrong. But silence kills trust. Would I use them again? Probably not. 

And that’s how it works — whether you’re a skip company or a multinational, one action can undo years of goodwill. 

Go beyond expectations, genuinely

So, how do brands build resilient relationships? I see three interconnected forces at play. 

1. They’re genuine. Then, when something goes wrong, trust has a chance to be rebuilt. 

2. They go beyond. I trust Amazon because they refunded the difference when the price reduced on an item I’d bought, and you can get a real person to call if you need — both steps I wouldn’t expect of a huge tech company. 

3. They understand consumers. It might sound overwhelming, but we’re all consumers. How could your company go beyond your expectations? 

A business imperative 

People sometimes tell me they don’t have time to focus on trust. But it’s the golden thread of successful organizations. Seeking and acting on customer feedback builds relationships and provides clarity on how to grow and innovate in the right way. 

That’s invaluable as businesses expand and as the world changes. In periods that can be challenging for businesses, such as cost-of-living crises or geopolitical uncertainty, people buy from brands they trust. 

Building trust since 2007

Trustpilot has been around since 2007 — the year the first iPhone came out (if you can think back that far). We’ve been working to build trust every day since. Even then, there’s still more we can do. 

Our annual Trust Report lifts the lid on challenges we face as a business and how we’re overcoming them, like improving the integrity of our platform and addressing fake reviews. 

This year, we added a new element to our trust principles of Neutral, Open, Fair and Transparent — Relevance. Why Relevance? When there’s so much information everywhere, we want to surface what’s most useful in making buying decisions for consumers. We want the skip to turn up!

There’s a saying I often think of: ‘Amateurs practice until they get it right. Professionals practice until they can’t get it wrong.’ That’s how we manage high-risk decisions — we build the systems and structures so we can get them right. It's a subtle but significant difference. We’re always working to improve — listening, engaging and looking to exceed expectations. Because building trust is as invaluable today as ever. 

Check out the Trust Report 2025 to see how we’re developing our platform and tackling fake reviews with people and AI.

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3 key takeaways

• Even if you're having a difficult conversation, it’s a moment to connect.

• Trust is built by genuinely going beyond expectations. 

• Think like a consumer: think like you.