Both consumers and businesses are adopting AI tools at a rapid pace, but the companies behind these tools have a problem: reputation.
Despite three in five people in the UK using AI, only 28% trust it to make recommendations, and just 14% trust tools to take actions on their behalf amid growing concerns about misinformation, ethics and the sustainability of data centers.
At the same, new companies are flooding an already competitive market, but the intangible nature of AI makes it challenging for consumers to differentiate between brands and platforms. But there is a fix…
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Senior Vice President, Global Partnerships at AEG Presents.
To overcome these issues, drive brand preference and encourage uptake, AI brands must think beyond promoting the products themselves.
People prefer brands that align with their interests and values, so brands need to create opportunities that drive understanding of their ethos and personalities.
They need to be present at times when their target audience is at their most energized, excited and open to discovery. Spoiler alert… it is not when they’re scrolling their phones.
The limitations of advertising
Some brands are pushing ahead with advertising via traditional channels, but given the fleeting nature of interactions, it is unlikely to result in a significant mindset shift. One of the main challenges with digital advertising is that it keeps an intangible brand in the ether. This might improve awareness, but digital interactions ultimately maintain distance and disconnection.
Attention and emotion are critical currency in marketing, and both play a vital role in how we engage and remember both experiences and brand messages. Our latest research showed that consumers’ attention is most focused when attending a live music concert with friends than it is when watching a movie at the cinema, streaming content or browsing social media. That is not to say that marketing and advertising are a waste of time but getting up close and personal with your target audience is crucial for establishing meaningful relationships.
The reputation dilemma that AI brands are currently facing is nothing new. When mobile phones first exploded, they were seen as commodity purchases – much like AI tools are today. But products alone do not buy loyalty, and the telecoms brands soon realized that they needed to offer more than price and a promise of even more free texts to retain customers and reduce acquisition costs, which is when we started to see them change their approach.
Virgin Media O2’s shift from product to brand marketing, with the launch of Priority by O2 and sponsorship of The O2, supported by complementary value-based marketing campaigns, highlighted its personality and helped consumers to understand that the brand was ‘for them.’ It helped them to cut-through in a crowded market – and they now have some of the most loyal customers in the world.
Finding a platform for face-to-face interaction
Brands wanting to build meaningful relationships do not have to generate opportunities for face-to-face engagement from scratch. By partnering with the much-loved events – which provide people with their best day out all year - they can access ready-made, attentive, engaged audiences that align with their target markets.
AEG puts on over 1000 music shows a year in the UK alone. Audiences vary by venue, event and artist, and finding the right opportunity can make a huge difference. We work closely with our partners to find synergy between their objectives with our assets.
For example, All Points East festival attracts open-minded early-adopters – the tastemakers – so it is typically a better fit for newer brands who are looking to increase awareness or edgy brands at the forefront of their industries.
The impact of authentic activations
We find that brands benefit simply from being associated with the event, but when their activations feel organic and enhance the experiences of fans that is when the magic happens.
When brands get it right, they see phenomenal engagement. The average dwell time at some activations is over 20 minutes, giving brands invaluable time to interact face-to-face. So, creating engaging, well-curated environments would give AI brands an opportunity to humanize the intangible and bring their personalities and values to life.
Interacting and enhancing the experience of fans can make a big difference. Exit data from last year’s American Express presents BST Hyde Park and All Points East shows that recalling a partner increases brand consideration by 63%, and interacting with them, for example by visiting an activation, results in a further 45% uplift.
The quality of the customer experiences we have provided over the years – along with the heightened emotions, anticipation and sense of belonging that fans feel when they attend – has earned us a strong reputation and credibility, which transfers to our partners.
Fans who engaged with a brand activation at one of our festivals in 2025 were more likely to agree that the brand always puts customers first (+193%), is innovative (+141%) and is for people like them (+122%) – highlighting the opportunities to change perceptions by establishing common ground.
Tech and AI brands are currently overlooking partnerships as a marketing channel, but they offer some of the best opportunities to build strong relationships and shift perceptions.
With significant concerns and low trust of the industry, along with growing competition, live events present an opportunity for tech brands to create real identity and become ‘that brand I trust,’ developing ‘brand love’ – something a campaign built around awareness alone simply cannot do.
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