A trust problem most brands don’t face
Trust & Will, a digital estate planning company, operates in a category consumers would rather avoid. CMO Dale Sperling says people don’t want to think about the product, and when they do, many assume the safest route is a local attorney rather than an online platform.
That makes trust not just a brand virtue but a purchase trigger. Speaking at Brandweek 2026 in a fireside chat co-hosted with Marketing Architects, CEO Angela Voss said trust is one of the biggest drivers of whether people actually buy from you.
National TV as a legitimacy signal
Trust & Will has leaned into TV to close that credibility gap. Sperling explained that national television creates legitimacy and puts the brand in the same room as established players. Voss connected this to signaling theory: when consumers see a brand spending on visible, traditionally expensive media, they treat that investment as a shortcut for trust.
The brand runs linear TV and connected TV together. According to Sperling, the combination maximizes total reach, and TV is now the No. 1 way people discover the brand—top-of-the-funnel demand generation.
Creative that balances warmth and authority
The “Make it Count” campaign uses humor and humanity to address a serious subject. In one spot, parents tell an aunt they have chosen her as their children’s guardian. Spokesperson Eddie Blackwell Williams interrupts to emphasize that an intention alone “doesn’t count”—it needs to be stated in a legal document.
Sperling said the brand avoided being overly serious just because the category is serious. The goal was warmth, humor and humanity, paired with enough authority to make someone complete an estate plan.
Why consistency matters
Sperling cautioned against changing creative messaging too often, noting the bigger payoff comes from consistency. Voss agreed that the urge to change things quickly can work against building on an existing foundation.
What marketers can borrow
This case is a useful reminder for challenger brands in low-interest or high-anxiety categories:
- Use visible media investment as a trust signal, not just a reach play.
- Pair linear TV with CTV to capture both broad legitimacy and incremental reach.
- Balance category seriousness with warmth, humor and humanity.
- Resist message churn; let creative consistency compound.
The bigger lesson: trust can be deliberately engineered through media choice, creative tone and consistency—not left to brand reputation alone.
Source: Adweek
