Concerns are rising this Season about both media quality and product integrity. Consumers are moving through the 2025 holiday season with a new level of caution that brands can no longer afford to ignore. The issue is double-pronged, and is based in trust and safety in both the products they are seeking and the environments in which they are presented. People aren’t just buying, they’re evaluating. Evaluating what? Evaluating whether brands understand their responsibility to consumers and respect their intelligence.
From a product perspective, a recent report from Forrester notes that customer guidance must be clear, straightforward, and speak to safety issues/concerns. This caution is fueled in part by real-world failures, particularly in online marketplaces where speed and low cost often outrank due diligence. The Toy Association’s recent investigation into toys ordered from Temu and Shein found that 89% failed at least one federally required safety test. Even more troubling, 65% of toys carried misleading or incorrect safety information, leaving parents to make decisions based on incomplete or wrong data. This concern applies as much to cybersecurity and data handling, as it does to the toy in a child’s hands. These aren’t edge cases, they’re a signal that the burden of risk has shifted onto the buyer, forcing families to scrutinize whether a brand deserves their money, time, and attention. In a climate where consumer trust is fragile, brands that can confidently demonstrate their commitment to trust and safety, become the ones people return to.
This same dynamic is unfolding in media environments. Consumers want entertaining or useful content, but the proliferation of low-quality, AI-generated, or unverified material means that audiences are increasingly skeptical of what they view on their screens and where it comes from. Just as physical products should adhere to rigorous testing - platforms and advertisers are being judged on the safety, suitability, and integrity of the experiences they deliver. When customers sense that standards and protocols are lax, they pull back. Whether that’s abandoning a purchase in a digital cart, or scrolling past a brand whose ads appear in questionable context, the cost to the brands are the same - lost opportunity.
Ultimately, people buy for two reasons: needs and wants. Needs require trust, wants require confidence. If a parent doubts the safety/reliability of a toy, even the lowest price won’t matter. If a viewer feels uneasy about a platform environment, even the most engaging ad will fall flat. In an era where caution rules the day, trust & safety - thus brand safety, must all be a core value proposition. Brands that meet consumers where they are, educate with confidence, and demonstrate an evergreen commitment to reliability will be the ones that win.