Consumers Converge on Reliable Brands as Economies Strain.

Reliability Turns Economic Strain into Enduring Consumer Loyalty.

Why Reliability Rules in Crisis

Trust is a fundamental survival instinct, not just a marketing slogan. When economic uncertainty rises through inflation, supply chain disruptions, or political volatility, consumers shift from seeking novelty to demanding certainty. Morning Consult’s Most Trusted Brands 2025 report, based on surveys of 1,000 to 73,595 U.S. adults between January and May 2025, reveals that the brands with the highest trust scores aren’t luxury or trend-focused brands but everyday essentials: Dawn Dish Soap (59.8), BAND-AID (58.7), UPS (57.0), and Tylenol (55.6). These brands excel by minimizing variance in critical functions like cleanliness, health, and delivery.

For CEOs, the message is clear: competence becomes the most valuable currency when consumer confidence fades. Brands failing to demonstrate unwavering reliability face faster and harsher punishment in downturns compared to growth periods. Loyalty gravitates toward brands least likely to fail, and any lapse in expected performance feels like a betrayal to consumers.

Dawn: A Moat Built on Shelf and Sink Reliability

Dawn is more than a dish soap, it guarantees that grime disappears with one wash. Its leading trust ranking is driven by a unique combination of product efficacy and consistent availability. Even during pandemic-related supply shocks, when many products vanished from shelves, Dawn maintained strong distribution and shelf presence, reinforcing consumer trust in both its function and availability. Dawn tops the report not only in net trust score (59.8) but also in category-specific Reputation Score™ (83.5).

This highlights a crucial leadership insight: availability is as critical to brand reputation as product quality. CEOs must recognize that supply chain efficacy is inseparable from brand equity. A product absent from shelves loses trust alongside sales, making operational resilience a valuable marketing asset, especially in fragile economies.

UPS: Logistics Performance as Reputation Capital

UPS turns operational infrastructure into a trusted consumer brand. Delivery services tend to be invisible when flawless but are painfully memorable when they fail. UPS’s trust score (57.0) reflects the cumulative effect of millions of on-time deliveries, translating internal KPIs like delivery timeliness and scan accuracy into measurable consumer confidence. UPS leads the delivery category with an outstanding Reputation Score™ of 81.5.

The strategic takeaway for leaders: transparency in operations builds loyalty. UPS did not rely on promises but earned trust by transparently publishing performance metrics and consistently meeting them. In economic downturns where marketing budgets may dwindle, transparent data on competence functions effectively as a powerful form of advertising.

Tylenol: Transforming Crisis into Endurance

Tylenol exemplifies resilience built on accountability. Its 1982 cyanide crisis remains a hallmark case of reputational collapse, but Johnson & Johnson’s swift, transparent response, including immediate recalls, public accountability, and tamper-proof packaging, reset industry standards for crisis management. Today, Tylenol remains among the most trusted U.S. brands (55.6 net trust) and leads the "Medicines" category with a Reputation Score™ of 80.1.

For modern leaders, the message is not nostalgia but a lesson in recovery: decisive correction and transparency can compound into durable future loyalty. Consumers will forgive shocks only if recovery outpaces expectations. Tylenol’s trajectory proves that loyalty is rebuilt through authentic product integrity and transparent practices, not spin or superficial messaging.

BAND-AID: Trust Forged in Vulnerability

BAND-AID’s trust is anchored not in flashy marketing but in consistent relief during vulnerable moments such as scraped knees or kitchen accidents. With a net trust score of 58.7, BAND-AID earns loyalty by reliably performing in small but deeply significant moments over decades.

CEOs should consider where their category’s vulnerability moments lie and ensure presence there without deviation. BAND-AID’s moat isn’t innovation, it is a trusted constant in moments of human vulnerability, which creates non-negotiable brand loyalty.

Trust Concentrates With Age: Cohort Dynamics

Generational trust patterns amplify reliability’s power. Baby Boomers champion Kleenex (69.1), Dawn (68.5), and UPS (68.5), while Gen X favors Campbell’s Soup and Tylenol with scores above 60. Millennials and Gen Z balance trust between essentials like Dawn and digital-first brands such as YouTube and PayPal.

The implication for executives: younger consumers experiment with new entrants, while older cohorts reinforce loyalty to established incumbents. A successful trust strategy must innovate in formats for younger demographics while consistently reassuring stability to older consumers. Yet across cohorts, uncompromising competence remains the universal currency.

Competitive Contrast: Tesla’s Trust Decline

While Dawn and UPS epitomize reliability amid strain, Tesla’s trust eroded notably between 2022 and 2024, largely due to CEO Elon Musk’s polarizing political statements. Metrics across Trust, Favorability, Community Impact, and Employer Admiration declined, also reflected internationally in France and Germany. Emotional connection tests placed Tesla below traditional automakers like Toyota, Ford, and GM.

The lesson: leadership noise can negate product competence. Consumers no longer separate product performance from brand narrative; erratic or politically charged behavior undermines trust. Once trust erodes, it doesn't transfer sideways, it evaporates.

Trust Compounds into Resilient Reputation Moats

Morning Consult’s proprietary Reputation Score™ clarifies how trust feeds value and favorability, which cascade into Employer Admiration and Community Impact. Dawn, UPS, Tylenol, and BAND-AID lead not only in trust but across these reputation extensions. This trust in performance builds resilient brand moats that enable pricing power, category leadership, and talent attraction.

Recommendations for CEOs

• Defend Reliability As Law: Zero tolerance for any product or service variance. View operational reliability as a strategic asset, not a mere operational outcome.

• Publish Proof: Communicate KPIs, delivery times, safety data, quality metrics, as consumer-facing achievements through transparent, frequent updates.

• Prioritize Stability Over Innovation: Focus new product variants tightly on core competencies; avoid innovations that introduce variability during downturns.

• Segment Trust Messaging: Emphasize established brand equity and reassurance for Boomers and Gen X; offer proof-driven, utility-focused communication to Millennials and Gen Z.

• Institutionalize Transparency: Reveal sourcing, cost structures, and safety protocols openly. Opacity is no longer an option, it damages brand trust irreparably.

• Quarantine Leadership Volatility: Shield brand reputation from executive persona risk by separating corporate communications from individual political or social noise.

Bottom Line:Reliability is the Only Currency of Loyalty Now

In strained economies, consumers converge their loyalty on brands that deliver without fail. Essentials like Dawn, UPS, BAND-AID, and Tylenol illustrate how competence under pressure builds powerful reputation moats. Those who execute rigorously endure; those who drift collapse.

Trust, once earned through unwavering reliability, is the foundation of resilient growth and market leadership in 2025.