Digital Trust Benchmark 2022

Social Platforms Lose Ground as User Trust Falls

Report by Debra Aho Williamson  | Sep 16, 2022
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Table of Contents
Executive Summary
Key Findings
Action Points
Trust in Social Media Is Falling
2022 Rankings: A New Leader Emerges
Security: Privacy Perceptions Fall Across All Platforms
Community: Safety Is Still a Big Issue for Users
Legitimacy: Many Platforms Struggle to Contain Deceptive Content
Ad Experience: The Annoyance Factor Has Somewhat Diminished
Ad Relevance: Apple Is a Likely Culprit in Worsening Sentiment
What Do These Findings Mean for Advertisers?
Additional Demographic Data
Methodology
Survey Demographics
Read Next
Sources
Media Gallery
About This Report
User trust in the major social platforms is down this year, according to our sixth annual benchmark survey, especially in the areas of privacy, safety, and ad relevance. Trust affects ad engagement, and in a year when ad revenue growth is slowing for many platforms, it’s imperative that they stem the declines.
Topics
Social Media Users
Consumer Behavior
Social Media Marketing
US
Table of Contents
Executive Summary
Key Findings
Action Points
Trust in Social Media Is Falling
2022 Rankings: A New Leader Emerges
Security: Privacy Perceptions Fall Across All Platforms
Community: Safety Is Still a Big Issue for Users
Legitimacy: Many Platforms Struggle to Contain Deceptive Content
Ad Experience: The Annoyance Factor Has Somewhat Diminished
Ad Relevance: Apple Is a Likely Culprit in Worsening Sentiment
What Do These Findings Mean for Advertisers?
Additional Demographic Data
Methodology
Survey Demographics
Read Next
Sources
Media Gallery

Executive Summary

Digital trust is the confidence people have that a platform will protect their information and provide a safe environment for them to create and engage with content. Our sixth annual benchmark survey of US social media users reveals that trust is falling across several key areas, including privacy, safety, and ad relevance.

3 KEY QUESTIONS THIS REPORT WILL ANSWER

  1. What’s behind the decline in trust, and how does it affect social media users’ willingness to engage with advertising on the major social platforms?
  2. Which social platforms rank highest in digital trust, and which ones are losing trust among users?
  3. What can social platforms and their advertisers do to restore trust?

WHAT’S IN THIS REPORT? Our benchmark ranking of nine major social media platforms, an analysis of the factors causing declines in user trust, and what it means for advertisers and social platforms.

Trust in Social Platforms Is Declining, 2022 (change in total benchmark score vs. 2021)
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KEY STAT: Every social platform in our benchmark experienced a decline in overall user trust since last year.

Here’s what’s in the full report

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Table of Contents

  1. Executive Summary
  2. Key Findings
  3. Action Points
  4. Trust in Social Media Is Falling
  5. 2022 Rankings: A New Leader Emerges
  6. Security: Privacy Perceptions Fall Across All Platforms
  1. Community: Safety Is Still a Big Issue for Users
  2. Legitimacy: Many Platforms Struggle to Contain Deceptive Content
  3. Ad Experience: The Annoyance Factor Has Somewhat Diminished
  4. Ad Relevance: Apple Is a Likely Culprit in Worsening Sentiment
  5. What Do These Findings Mean for Advertisers?
  6. Additional Demographic Data
  1. Methodology
  2. Survey Demographics
  3. Read Next
  4. Sources
  5. Media Gallery

Charts in This Report

Trust in Social Platforms Is Declining, 2022 (change in total benchmark score vs. 2021)What Most Affects US Social Media Users' Trust in Social Media Platforms? (% of respondents, June 2022)
What Most Affects US Social Media Users' Decision to Engage* With Ads/Sponsored Content on Social Media Platforms? (% of respondents, June 2022)US Social Network Use Penetration, by Platform, 2021 & 2022 (% of social network users in each group)
Do US Social Media Users Feel the Amount of Hostile Content on Social Platforms Has Changed? (% of respondents, by platform, June 2022)Do US Social Media Users Feel the Number of Ads on Social Platforms Has Changed? (% of respondents, June 2022)
Do US Social Media Users Feel the Relevancy of Ads on Social Platforms Has Changed? (% of respondents, June 2022)US Social Network Use Penetration, by Platform and Gender, June 2022 (% of social network users in each group)
US Social Network Use Penetration, by Platform and Generation, June 2022 (% of social network users)US Social Network Use Penetration, by Platform and Race, June 2022 (% of social network users in each group)
Demographic Summary of Respondents, US Digital Trust Benchmark 2022, June 2022

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authors

Debra Aho Williamson

Contributors

Paul Briggs
Principal Analyst
Jasmine Enberg
Principal Analyst
Ona Koehler
Senior Director, Benchmarking
Na Li
Director, Primary Research
Natalie McGranahan
Senior Researcher and Taxonomy Manager