92% trust this over ads

Hey, Paige here!

Before we get into today’s best marketing research… 

In today’s release: 

• 92% of customers trust this type of content

• Creating content for consumption vs sharing

• How to drive 22x engagement with branded content

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DEEP DIVE

Marketers love to talk about ‘virality,’ but truth is…

Most content isn’t even designed to be shared — it’s designed to be consumed and forgotten. Given discoverability is today’s #1 challenge for marketers, this approach puts many in a pickle.

Today, we’re breaking down the #1 trusted channel for discoverability… Word-of-mouth (which hinges on sharability).

Personal recommendations still reign when it comes to discoverability.

• 92% of consumers trust recommendations from friends and family over traditional ads

• Recommendations are behind 20-50% of purchasing decisions

• In podcasting, 78% of monthly listeners say they’re likely to check out a show recommended by someone they know​.

But here’s where most content marketing falls short:

It focuses on consumption, not conversion into advocacy. If your audience isn’t sharing your content, your distribution engine is broken.

Let’s fix that.

Leaning in… 3 growth drivers to boost your sharability

We know that people don’t share content randomly — they share it because it hits specific emotional or intellectual triggers. But most brands stop short at “engagement” metrics like likes and views, ignoring the deeper drivers behind shares.

To turn passive viewers into active advocates, your content needs to hit these 3 strategic levers:

1. Relevance & Personal Connection

Marketers love to talk about relevance, but here’s the misstep:

Most brands target the mass, not the micro.

The real opportunity? Designing content for micro-tribes — niche groups united by shared challenges, values, or aspirations. These are the communities that actively share and advocate when content resonates.

• 65% of viewers are likelier to recommend content if it feels personally relevant​

• 61% of people feel more favorable toward a brand after consuming content — but only when it holds their attention throughout​

Real-World Example:
A B2C personal finance podcast didn’t just talk about money — it focused on first-time financial planning for young professionals. 85% of listeners agreed it was “relevant to me”, leading to a surge in organic shares​. It worked because it spoke directly to a specific pain point, in a specific life stage — micro-tribe targeting in action.

2. Emotional & Entertaining Storytelling

49% of podcast listeners say they tune in “to be entertained” — and emotionally charged or highly entertaining content is 3x more likely to be shared​.

But here’s what high-performing content gets right:

It blends information with emotion — and uses storytelling as the delivery mechanism.

• Branded content drives 22x more engagement than display ads — but only when it evokes a reaction.

• Emotional peaks (surprise, awe, humor) are the inflection points that make content 3x more likely for sharing

Real-world example: TED Talks thrive on this model. The most-shared talks aren’t necessarily the most informative — they’re the ones that inspire (e.g., Brené Brown’s talk on vulnerability) or surprise (like Hans Rosling’s data storytelling).

OR, take a look at Duolingo’s recent Duo’s Death campaign. Talk about emotion-evoking. 

3. Practical Value & Expertise

In B2B spaces, utility is currency.

People share content that makes them look informed or gives their network value.

• Educational content remains the top driver of shares in B2B.

• Thought leadership that challenges the status quo outperforms generic “how-to” pieces.

Thinking distribution-first

Here’s the shift:

Distribution isn’t a post-production task — it’s a pre-production strategy.

If you can’t visualize how your content will spread organically before creating it, you’re already behind.

This is where many teams fall short. They treat content creation and distribution as two separate workflows. High-performing brands see them as one ecosystem.