For Marketers, Content Creation Is Easy. Knowing What Audiences Trust Is Another Story.
Content is easier to create than ever, and audiences are skeptical of its authenticity. If brands don’t adjust, their content will continue to be ignored. This post shares insights from The Marketing Algonquin, a private roundtable of New Jersey-based marketers, on the move from creation to curation so your content earns what’s hardest to win: audience trust.
Trust Content is Everywhere, Trust is What's MissingWhat Smart Marketers Notice FirstFrom Creation to JudgementHow to Market When the World Doesn’t Trust Your ContentFrom More Content to More Trust to More Results Content Is Everywhere. Trust Is What’s Missing
Content isn’t the problem.
There’s more of it than ever.
Your team can produce it.
AI can generate it in seconds.
And still, most of it gets ignored.
That was at the crux of a recent Marketing Algonquin. The Marketing Algonquin is an exclusive event for New Jersey-based marketers who meet monthly to talk about the industry. This time, we met at Winberie’s in Summit, NJ.
As Sergio Uzeta, a content creator building his own agency, put it during a recent conversation:
“We don’t even know what’s real anymore.”
That’s the environment your content is competing in.
It’s not so much a shortage of ideas as it is a shortage of belief.
NJ Marketers Talk Shop at the Marketing AlgonquinInside the Marketing Algoqnuin
A candid moment from the Marketing Algonquin, where New Jersey marketers gather to challenge ideas, share insights, and shape what modern marketing actually looks like. Photo: Sergio Uzeta
This came up at The Marketing Algonquin, a dinner I host for marketers across New Jersey.
We don’t have panels or presentations. We’re not trying to impress anyone.
It’s just marketers talking about what they’re actually seeing.
The group at our recent event included:
A fractional executive advising real estate and startup teams
Agency owners across different verticals.
At one point, Dave Bernadino, a fractional executive with a background in brands like P&G and Samsung, said it plainly:
“We’re in the trust business.”
And many parts of our conversation pointed to that same conclusion.
(I mean, some parts of the conversation also included our kids, how much we’ve had to shovel with the insane snowfall, and how to survive trade shows in Orlando.)
Signs the Messaging is Unclear in Your BusinessWhat Smart Marketers Notice First
Meredith McCracken and Marc C. Angelos share insights during a Marketing Algonquin discussion on trust, content, and the future of marketing. Photo: Sergio Uzeta.
Meredith McCracken, who leads integrated marketing at Getty Images, shared how their positioning is evolving. Not away from AI entirely. But toward content that audiences can actually trust. Because there’s a widening gap between what can be created and what people believe.
Lee Seidenberg, a photographer and creative director, shared some new pickles marketers and creatives are finding themselves in now. One of his clients from years ago used AI to alter the demographics of models in branded photos he had already delivered. It was one of those, “Oh, we’re in a whole new world now” moments when he saw the altered image pop up on his LinkedIn feed.
It seems also like many of us marketers are looking to create our own lines and boundaries.
Rich Silivanch, a fractional CMO, said, “Authenticity is the key. My rule is that I don’t want to do anything that looks human. I don’t want to deceive someone.” So many of us are trying to find what our own rules are in terms of where authenticity begins and ends when AI is involved — which is exactly why it’s important to have nights like this one where we can talk through it.
Interview with Lee Seidenberg: Create a Visual Identity That Tells the Right StoryFrom Creation to Judgment
For years, marketers were rewarded for producing more content quickly.
That worked when content was harder to create and there were less platforms.
Now, it’s expected.
As Marc C. Angelos, a messaging and sales expert, said during the dinner: “It’s a really tough environment.”
Engagement rates and conversion rates are going down. Meanwhile, output is up. Which, of course, only makes the engagement rates and conversion rates go down. Which means that brands think they need to make more content in more places. And the cycle continues.
The bar for standing out is higher than ever. So that means the focus has to move from “Can you create content?” to “Can you tell us what’s worth publishing?”
That’s where taste, curation, and expertise comes in to form good judgement.
And it’s what builds not only trust between you and your clients, but the faith that they have in you.
How to Market in a World That Doesn’t Trust Content
In our conversation, here are some of the ways we discussed to combat that.
1. Evaluate Before You Create
Don’t start with:
What content should we make?
Start with:
What great content should we make?
If the idea is weak, the platform won’t save it.
You can make thousands of podcast episode and it never reaches anyone or builds revenue.
2. Build a POV
During the Algonquin, we talked about how being clearer and having a stronger point of view on a few topics helped other people understand who we are and what makes us different.
It’s important to understand:
What you believe
What you reject
What you say repeatedly
That clarity helps people understand who you are and what you kneow.
3. Create Less, Curate More
Most teams are built to produce.
Very few are built to decide.
Change the workflow:
• Capture ideas
• Filter aggressively
• Only produce what earns its place
4. Let the Human Come Out
As polished as you can. But not necessarily perfect.
Just real.
Whether that’s:
A founder speaking directly to camera
A team member sharing insight in a meeting
A conversation that happens in real life
Trust builds faster when people can see who they’re trusting.
Why Your Network Matters When Budgets Are Tight
Dave Bernadino and Lisa Barfield in conversation at the Marketing Algonquin, discussing how marketers build trust in a crowded content landscape. Photo: Sergio Uzeta
From More Content to More Trust to Better Results
You stop guessing what to say.
You stop overproducing content that goes nowhere.
Your message gets clearer.
Your audience starts to recognize it.
Your sales conversations get easier.
Because people see your content. And they trust it.
Or, if they don’t see it because there’s too much content out there, they trust you when they actually see you.
Join the Next Marketing Algonquin
If you’re a marketer based in New Jersey and want to be part of conversations like this, The Marketing Algonquin meets quarterly with a small group of owners across industries.
Spots are limited by design.
Annie Figenshu
Annie Figenshu is keenly aware that many companies are pressed for time, and every minute counts. She helps brands make the most of their content marketing so that their hard work is shared with the world. Annie is certified in both StoryBrand and Mailchimp, has two kids with Beatles-themed names, and is afraid to think what a day without coffee would look like.