Consumers haven’t stopped trusting recommendations, they’ve just become far more selective about who they trust.
To better understand how Canadians feel about influencers, social recommendations, and online trust, we surveyed 2,024 shoppers across the country. The results revealed a shift in consumer behaviour: people are increasingly looking for authenticity, relatability, and real-world experiences over polished sponsored content.
And perhaps most importantly for brands, the findings show that everyday people still have enormous influence over purchase decisions.
We've summarized our findings in this infographic, but continue on to read our full findings:
When we asked Canadians who they trust most when making a purchase decision, the answer was overwhelmingly clear.
That means 95% of respondents place more trust in either personal connections or real consumer reviews than influencer content.
Consumers are still heavily influenced by social proof, but they increasingly want that proof to feel authentic and unbiased.
The same trend appeared when we asked whose recommendations people are most likely to consider when seeing a post about a new product online.
Familiarity matters. Trust matters. And increasingly, consumers are prioritizing recommendations that feel personal and genuine over content that feels promotional.
We also asked our agents to think about the last product purchase they made because of a recommendation.
The results again pointed strongly toward personal influence:
This doesn’t mean influencer marketing is dead. Influencers still play a role in helping consumers discover products. But when it comes to actual trust and purchase behaviour, everyday people appear to carry significantly more weight.
One of the most interesting parts of the survey came from the open-ended responses explaining why consumers are skeptical of influencers.
Three themes came up repeatedly:
Many respondents said influencer content feels transactional because influencers are often paid, sponsored, or incentivized to promote products.
Consumers frequently described influencer posts as overly polished, exaggerated, or inauthentic, especially when influencers promote too many products or switch brands frequently.
Respondents repeatedly said they trust recommendations more when they come from real people with no obvious incentive attached.
In short, consumers haven’t stopped trusting social recommendations, they’ve stopped trusting recommendations that feel like advertising.
Another standout finding: 71% of respondents said they have posted about a product they genuinely liked without being asked or paid.
That’s a huge opportunity for brands.
Consumers naturally want to share products and experiences they genuinely enjoy, especially with their own personal networks. And because those posts feel authentic, they often carry far more trust than traditional influencer content.
At the same time, 97% of respondents said they read reviews when considering a purchase, reinforcing just how important social proof remains in the buying journey.
The takeaway from this survey isn’t that social influence no longer matters. In fact, it may matter more than ever.
But consumers are sending a strong message: they want recommendations that feel authentic, unscripted, and trustworthy.
For brands, that opens the door to a different kind of social engagement, one built less around polished endorsements, and more around real people sharing real experiences.
And that shift may end up being one of the biggest opportunities in modern marketing.