TFC: In the Age of AI, People Still Trust People Over Pixels
The Freeman Company — 2026 — Consumer Behavior
The Freeman Company’s Belief Gap™ research, fielded by The Harris Poll, finds that as AI-generated content proliferates, in-person experiences remain the primary driver of consumer belief and trust. The study shows that live events create measurable lifts in trust, shifting perceptions from awareness to conviction in both consumer and B2B audiences, translating into recommendations, renewals, and purchase decisions. With a majority of people expressing skepticism about AI-generated brand content, the report argues that brands should prioritize creating authentic, shareable live moments that build connection, credibility, and conviction—outcomes algorithms cannot reliably produce—positioning experiential programs as a strategic counterweight to the ubiquity of machine-made content.
Key Statistics
- 67% of consumers say AI-generated content makes it harder to trust a brand’s claims
- Consumers who attended a brand event trust that brand at 5 times the rate (56% vs. 11%) compared to those who haven’t
- 77% of event attendees say the event positively shifted their belief in the brand
- 94% of B2B buyers who attended a live experience came away with more conviction in the brand, while only 1% came away with less
- 66% of consumers worry that brand content encountered online may not be real unless they’ve experienced the brand themselves
Key Takeaways
- Invest in live, in-person experiences to build trust and convert awareness into conviction, since these encounters measurably increase brand belief and recommendation
- Position experiential programs as a strategic differentiator against AI-generated content by designing shareable, 'you had to be there' moments that foster connection and credibility
- Prioritize B2B live engagements (demos, meetings, events) as they drive high conviction and renewal likelihood—track post-event conviction to quantify ROI
- Integrate experiential outcomes into broader marketing metrics (trust, recommendation, purchase intent) to demonstrate how live events multiply the impact of digital efforts
Cite as: The Freeman Company. (2026). TFC: In the Age of AI, People Still Trust People Over Pixels. Retrieved from https://research.agilebrandguide.com/reports/the-freeman-company/tfc-in-the-age-of-ai-people-still-trust-people-over-pixels