Trust in marketing as a profession and as an industry is declining. To respond to this, the chair of the Direct Marketing Association suggests that marketers should be accredited like lawyers.

Mark Runacus is the new chair of the Direct Marketing Association board and he believes that trust in marketers would increase if they were accredited with, for example, a DMA code, reports Marketing Week. This would be part of their ethos and rubric, he says.

Both he and Caroline Worboys, who is the deputy chair, are fighting for "authentic marketing." How would it be carried out or accomplished?

It is suggested that the accreditation will be offered by the Institute of Direct and Digital Marketing, which had merged with the Direct Marketing Association last year. In addition to accrediting marketers, it will also make training content available online.

Credos data from the previous year revealed that 73 percent of the public do not trust advertising, finding it manipulative. Moreover, another study by Nielsen that was conducted last 2015, showed that trust towards marketing channels had declined compared to the year 2013.

Consumer distrust is at a high, says Runacus, especially since dishonesty has plagued the elections and Brexit. This makes authentic marketing necessary.

At present, however, the Direct Marketing Association will continue to focus on providing advice in regards to legislation and regulation. This is due to the fact that many are either unaware of it or are ignoring it.

In other news, artificial intelligence is making its position known in digital marketing. As reported by Jobs & Hire, artificial intelligence will be used to predict consumer needs, interests, as well as suggest products that suit them.

Other marketing trends include niche expertise and taking advantage of the smartphone generation to produce mobile partners. To read more about these digital marketing trends, click here.