Brands must recognize that consumers are now living inside out, with a world that starts at home, with top concerns now personal health and family instead of image or status.

As part of an Edelman Trust Barometer Special Report: Workplace Trust and the Coronavirus, we spoke with 3,400 respondents in seven countries, France, Germany, India, Singapore, South Korea, UK and U.S. during the week of August 22.

Our newest research tells us what many knew all along. To be Black and to trust that business, government, and society will do right by you is to will away centuries of evidence to the contrary.

The Edelman Trust Barometer Special Report: Brand Trust in 2020 reveals that brands face a fundamental reordering of priorities amid a global pandemic and societal outcry over systemic racism prompted by the murder of George Floyd.

Americans want brands to step up and play a central role in addressing systemic racism. This is a mandate for brands to act, because consumers will exercise brand democracy with their wallets.

The 2020 Edelman Trust Barometer Spring Update: Trust and the Covid-19 Pandemic reveals a remarkable shift in the landscape of trust since January. The Spring Update shows that amid the Covid-19 pandemic, government trust surged 11 points to an all-time high of 65 percent, making it the most trusted institution for the first time in our 20 years of study.

Brands should find solutions instead of selling passion or image. They need to be tangible and fast, not impressionistic and conceptual.

The Edelman Trust Barometer Special Report: Trust and the Coronavirus reveals how much people in 10 countries trust various information sources, the credibility of various spokespeople and what business is expected to do to address the pandemic. The full report is available as a download in the column at right.