Do You Trust Me?

Something crazy happened.

The CEO of Unilever, one of the biggest and most respected brand builders on the planet, admitted something out loud that most execs would never admit.

Brands are, by default, suspicious.

That’s not my phrasing. That’s straight from Fernando Fernandez. 

This is the guy sitting atop Dove, Marmite, Hellman's, Ben & Jerry's, Lipton, Persil and a catalog of household names with ad budgets that dwarf the GDP of most small nations. 

And he's saying: Consumers don’t trust us anymore.

And you know what? He’s right.

Everything is optimized. 

Everything is targeted. 

Everything is engineered. 

Consumers feel that. They've developed gold-plated ad bullshit filters.

You feel it too. I know you do.

Every creative professional I talk to says the same thing:

People don't buy what brands say. They buy what trusted humans say.

And Unilever, of all companies, just proved it.

Their solution isn’t to double down on brand messaging. 

It isn’t to hire another global agency or firehose even more millions into traditional ads.

He said the answer is creators.

Real humans.

People with their own voices, their own audiences, their own credibility.

Unilever is shifting serious ad dollars toward influencers because they’re no longer just another channel. 

They’re the only voices consumers believe.

That’s a signal you should not ignore.

If the biggest FMCG brands in the world are outsourcing trust to creators, what does that tell you about where the power sits today?

Spoiler Alert: It’s not with corporations.

It’s with people.

And I'm not talking about Mr. Beast-level creator-people.

I'm talking about you and me.

You might think of yourself as a designer, strategist, illustrator, developer, consultant, creative entrepreneur, whatever. 

But in 2025, that’s not enough.

You need to be a creator, too.

Not for vanity metics like subscribers, or 'likes'.

You need to do it for your own economic resilience.

When brands need trusted voices, they go looking for humans with audiences.

And creative professionals are uniquely positioned to win here.

You already understand storytelling.

You already understand what makes a message authentic.

You already understand what makes a brand feel real.

That’s creator DNA.

If you show your face, share your point of view, and build a relationship with your audience, you become the thing Unilever is desperately trying to buy.

A trusted human.

And guess what?

Creators get paid.

I never usually share my numbers, but in just the last few years I've made multiple 6 figures in revenue from being a creator.

Sponsorships.

Affiliates.

Product partnerships.

Campaign integrations.

Brands are pouring billions into creator marketing and begging for authentic partners who can vouch for them with integrity.

This is a revenue stream sitting right beside your creative practice, waiting to be turned on.

I not asking you to "sell out" - or become part of the problem.

Here's the plan:

You promote only products you believe in.

You get paid for bringing value to your community.

Your community gets trusted, curated recommendations.

Brands get the credibility they want.

It's win/win.

Here’s the truth I want you to take with you:

The most valuable asset you can build is trust.

And trust only comes from being present, visible, and human.

So, if you want new opportunities flowing to you - rather than you chasing them...

If you want leverage, optionality, and a business that grows without grinding harder…

Start creating.

Start showing up.

Start building an audience and becoming a voice they can trust.

Because the world doesn’t need more brands shouting at us.

It needs more humans.

And that’s you.