I’ve been reading about soft power a lot lately.
Soft power…. It’s a term we typically associate with nations—with their ability to influence, attract and persuade without coercion. There’s no doubt that soft power hinges on culture, values and diplomacy—forces that shape trust not through control, but through resonance.
What if brands thought of growth in these terms, too?
Trust is the foundation of strong brands.
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It’s not a byproduct of size, longevity, or reputation. These may contribute to credibility, but trust is built through consistency—through delivering on promises, aligning words and actions, and demonstrating integrity in relationships. Trust isn’t granted by authority; it’s earned through coherence.
Yet today, as traditional sources of authority are questioned, how trust is cultivated—and how influence is sustained—is shifting.
Brands can no longer rely solely on the quality of what they sell. Loyalty without meaningful connection is fragile. Consumers today have endless choices and little reason to stay.
In the past, hard power—market dominance, technological edge, and financial leverage—was all many brands needed to maintain a leadership position. Now, with attention increasingly fragmented and skepticism exponentially growing, dominance alone is not enough.
Because trust has never been about dominance, and today, power without trust ultimately becomes powerless.
Even with vast resources, brands lose credibility when they fail to engage in ways that resonate —ways that are emotionally and strategically coherent across all touchpoints.
Brands that attract feel relevant—they reflect something deeper about the people they serve and the moment they inhabit. But relevance alone is fleeting.
Brands that endure move beyond transactional relationships and cultivate influence similar to soft power through culture, shared values, understanding, and participation in the broader social fabric. And through coherence—aligning their stated beliefs and values with the role they play in people’s lives, and simultaneously delivering on commitments with consistency.
When brands retreat into short-term thinking or prioritize scale over credibility, they may still wield hard power. Yet trust, like soft power, is not a static asset. It does not persist by force or size alone. And once it erodes, authority cannot restore it overnight.
Trust is an ongoing exchange—a dynamic relationship that must be nurtured, never assumed. In the end, the brands that grow are those that recognize trust—like soft power—is not only earned; it must be continually renewed.
Contributed to Branding Strategy Insider by: Anne Bahr Thompson, Author Do Good, Embracing Brand Citizenship to Fuel Both Purpose and Profit.
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