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The annual Axios Harris Poll has become a definitive benchmark for identifying America’s most trusted brands, combining the journalistic rigor of Axios with The Harris Poll’s extensive polling expertise. And with global elections, crisis fatigue, and all kinds of social and technological challenges on the horizon this year, in these uncertain times, trust is paramount.
With invaluable insights into which companies Americans hold in high regard and why, the survey assesses brands based on seven key dimensions:
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Ethics
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Trust
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Social responsibility
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Product and service quality
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Vision and leadership
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Growth
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Culture
This methodology creates an accurate reflection of popular sentiment, making the poll a crucial resource for businesses and consumers alike.
We know that a strong reputation hinges on consistently doing what you say you’re going to do.
– Katie Sprehe, Senior Director, Reputation & Strategy at APCO Worldwide
By spotlighting brands that excel in building and maintaining trust, the Axios Harris Poll shines a light on corporate excellence — and lays out a new set of standards that other companies can strive towards. For a closer look, check out five of this year’s most trusted brands and how they’ve leveraged first-class content marketing to build and sustain trust with their audiences.
#1: Nvidia
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Brand Overview
Known for revolutionizing generative AI and gaming with its powerful GPUs, Nvidia is a trailblazer in artificial intelligence and graphics processing technology. On a mission to shape the future of tech and all it makes possible, the company impacts industries like automotive, healthcare, marketing, and far beyond, working to solve the world’s most challenging computational problems since 1993.
Content Marketing Efforts
As the Axios Harris Poll’s #1 trusted brand with a score of 81.2 — and as a company with far-reaching operations — it should come as no surprise that Nvidia’s marketing is rooted in a range of stand-out educational content. Efforts like the Nvidia Blog, GTC AI conference, and Developer Program offer valuable insights, technical resources, and collaborative opportunities for gamers, developers, and industry professionals. An active social media presence plus influencer marketing partnerships further amplify their output for a more informed and engaged community.
NVIDIA is reshaping the future of computing…We are a learning machine. The mission is boss. Everyone has a voice.
— Jensen Huang, Co-Founder and CEO at Nvidia
Best-in-Class Campaign: I AM AI
Showcasing the latest breakthroughs in AI, healthcare, and industrial digitalization, at this year’s GTC event Nvidia opened up their official keynote with a new addition to their ongoing I AM AI campaign.
An inspiring look at how AI is enabling medical miracles, offering new perspectives into space and weather patterns, and changing the way we live our lives, the effort highlights the tech’s vast range of possible applications as well as the many fields it impacts. Follow-up videos released in the months since provide a deeper dive into specific industries, exploring topics like the reinvention of retail, a new era for healthcare, and how AI is transforming them all.
Why it Stands Out: Transparency
Although much of the public is still highly suspect of AI, with deep expert insights straight from the source, Nvidia’s tech-savvy audience knows exactly what they’re getting: transparent, cutting-edge information that actually matters — even when the content is centered on the company’s own technological advancements.
❓ Related Reading: Is Gen AI Marketing Delivering on Expectations?
#3: Fidelity Investments
Brand Overview
Fidelity Investments is a powerhouse in the financial services industry, trusted for helping individuals and institutions grow their wealth. With a wide range of offerings from investment management to retirement planning, Fidelity aims to simplify the financial journey for all clients. At #3 on the Axios Harris Poll — and, up from #29 just last year, one of the fastest climbing companies on the list — they’re definitely doing something right.
Content Marketing Efforts
With a commitment to inclusive marketing and customer empowerment, Fidelity excels at making finance approachable and engaging. The Viewpoints blog and educational resources across social media help break down complex financial topics into easy-to-understand ideas and actionable advice.
Even more importantly, a dedicated VP of Customer Inclusion ensures that all kinds of needs are considered — resulting in efforts like the Women Talk Money community and the Doors campaign (above): “a prime example of how infusing cultural insights can be relevant for a specific community and a more general audience,” according to Janina Delloca-Pawlowski, now VP of Channel Marketing.
Data and insights are abundant; the opportunity is to understand the emotional drivers of those insights better and develop relevant messaging that is culturally authentic and resonates.
Best-in-Class Campaign: Invest in My Education (ME)
To match their message with real action, last year Fidelity unveiled Invest in My Education (ME), “a $250 million social impact initiative designed to help Black, Latino and other historically underserved students pay for college, improve economic mobility and build generational wealth.”
With access to scholarships, mentorship, ongoing assistance, and pathways to postgraduate employment, the program is going strong with year two of the Fidelity Scholars Program commencing this fall alongside new funding opportunities for retention, completion, and ecosystem-building grants.
Why it Stands Out: Community Impact
“Fidelity believes that having an inclusive culture enables us to be better stewards for the communities we impact and the customers we serve,” Delloca-Pawlowski says. With that guiding light, the company has worked to successfully create “unique landing zones for our Black and Latino communities with the intent to provide tips, tools, and resources to help create financial legacies.”
🌎 Related Reading: 3 Brands Getting Purpose-Driven Marketing Right
#4: Sony
Brand Overview
A giant in electronics and entertainment, Sony’s diverse product range aims to inspire and entertain people worldwide. With beloved gaming consoles, TVs, smartphones, cameras, and many other devices as well as entire studios dedicated to film, music, and media, the global leader has earned its #4 position on the Axios Harris Poll by consistently delivering innovative, top-quality products and content.
Content Marketing Efforts
With many different stories to tell, Sony’s content marketing strategy is about creating buzz and maintaining an engaged community. Across various brand-specific sites, blogs, and social media channels, they share everything from product launches to behind-the-scenes looks into what’s coming up next.
There’s also a slew of special programming and events like the State of Play and Sony World Photography Awards, which extend their reach even further and help make deeper connections with fans. Altogether, these narratives keep Sony’s audience loyal and excited for more, reinforcing its reputation as one of America’s most trusted companies.
Best-in-Class Campaign: Live From PS5
Sony’s Live from PS5 campaign is a standout example of immersive and inclusive marketing designed to reignite hype around the console. Mimicking a real-life news network — complete with journalists, anchors, and breaking news broadcasts — the faux media org focused on a single fantastical beat: a phenomenon of PS5’s most popular game universes breaking through to our planet as players around the world sought to get their hands on the rerelease.
But to really get the audience into the game, the campaign went further.
“We invited gamers to join the news team,” explains Amplify, a creative agency behind the push, “allowing them to report their own breaking news stories, straight from the create button onto our digital out-of-home sites in real-time.” Add to that a series of live events, gameplay sessions, and developer interviews, and that sense of community grew even stronger.
The campaign effectively reinvigorated the demand for the PS5 console, achieving significant sales growth and solidifying its place as a game-changing product in the gaming industry.
Why it Stands Out: Engaged Gamers
By featuring real-time scenarios, Live from PS5 allowed gamers to experience the genuine thrill of the PlayStation universe first-hand and as a group, live. Spanning 51 markets and 32 languages, the vibrant participatory experience culminated in “over 600 assets across multiple channels, including television, social media, out-of-home advertising, digital displays, and high-impact special-builds, all within a 4-week period.”
And the results speak for themselves. “Sony sold 19.1 million PlayStation 5 consoles in the financial year, beating their own forecast of 18 million,” Amplify reports. “That was up 66% from 11.5 million PS5 units sold in the previous fiscal year.”
📽️ Related Reading: The 4 Best Branded Videos We’ve Seen So Far in 2024
#5: Adidas
Brand Overview
Blending performance and style, Adidas offers a wide range of products from running shoes and athletic apparel to lifestyle accessories. Beating out Patagonia (which came in at #8), and the only footwear company in the Axios Harris Poll’s top ten, the powerful brand maintains its amazing rep thanks to the values it shares with its audience: a dedication to sports, sustainability, and finding and embracing the athlete in anyone.
Content Marketing Efforts
That’s why, when it comes to content marketing, Adidas is all about inspiration and connection. Athlete and employee stories, training tips, product updates, and sustainability efforts take center stage across multiple blogs and social platforms as well as a range of dedicated apps. And collaborations with top teams, sports stars, and other influencers just add to the brand’s authenticity. At the end of the day, Adidas maintains its top-tier status with a steady flow of high-energy campaigns and content that truly reflects its audiences’ needs, interests, and goals.
Best-in-Class Campaign: You Got This
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This year’s You Got This initiative is a perfect example. Tapping into real user sentiment, the push responds to Gen Z’s shift away from sport — due to overwhelming feelings of pressure in the face of competition. “Through conversations and strategic development, we sought to define our brand’s role in helping consumers return to the enjoyment in sport,” says Carly Rushford, Senior Manager of Global Brand Communications.
As the brand of possibilities, we wanted to land in a space that helps people believe they can disarm negative pressure and play sport on their terms.
Building on the campaign’s initial rallying cry (at the start of this section), follow-up content went on to feature some of the biggest names in sports, showcasing their moments of brilliance and resilience under pressure in a series of YouTube videos and stirring social media clips.
Why it Stands Out: Scientific Research
To add real value to their audience, Adidas partnered with leading neuroscientists at neuro11 to provide proven techniques and expert insights on managing performance pressure. Based on brain data studies from both amateur and elite athletes, they found that proper pressure management can enhance performance by up to 40% — and this campaign shares practical guidance on how to do so.
🏅 Related Reading: Powerade Empowers Athletes Who ‘Take a Pause’ for Global Campaign Timed to Olympics
#7: Honda
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Brand Overview
Revered for its reliability and innovation in the automotive sector, Honda has earned a loyal customer base around its cars, motorcycles, and power equipment (think lawnmowers, generators, and snow blowers). At #7 on the Axios Harris Poll, the brand is committed to enhancing mobility and improving people’s everyday lives — and the public feels that dedication.
Content Marketing Efforts
Honda relies on a range of content marketing efforts to convey their brand’s message. Through their Newsroom, dedicated sites, and activity across social media, they share a mix of product launches, tech advancements, and customer stories as well as interactive experiences like virtual test drives and educational campaigns about transitioning to EVs. Finally, events like the Honda Civic Tour and major auto shows allow them to connect face-to-face with their audience for a stronger bond and greater retention.
Best-in-Class Campaign: Keep Dreaming
Aimed at highlighting the company’s legacy of innovation and its commitment to a sustainable future, Keep Dreaming is a full-throttle brand campaign that introduced the 2024 Prologue, Honda’s first all-electric SUV. Guided by their goal of achieving carbon neutrality by 2050, the initiative creatively showcases Honda’s historical technological advancements as well as those to come, from the first hybrid vehicle sold in the U.S. to futuristic concepts like an electric vertical take-off and landing (eVTOL) aircraft and algae technology for carbon capture.
The icing on the cake, and the campaign’s latest addition? The Dream Generator, a generative AI experience where users can create custom, shareable videos made from a collection of story themes, imagery, and sounds that spotlight the Prologue SUV.
Why it Stands Out: AI Experimentation
A multifaceted approach is needed for such a major product rollout, and this one succeeds in informing return and potential customers about Honda’s achievements while putting the company’s sustainability efforts front and center.
The power of brands will be more important than ever in the electrified future,
— Jessika Laudermilk, Assistant VP, American Honda Marketing
“As we prepare to bring Prologue to market, it’s important that not only our current customers, but new, younger buyers understand what the Honda brand is all about – and Honda’s commitment to creating innovative mobility products that help better people’s lives.”
Looking for more marketing inspo? In the ultra-competitive world of content marketing, see who earned a spot on springboard’s Top 50 list:
