Consumers have always asked whether a product is right for them. Today, many ask something first: is this even real?
AI has made that question hard to avoid. Among US consumers, 93% now question whether the content they see online was made by a person or by AI. And as AI agents take on more of the work of searching, comparing and choosing, more of what people see on screens will reach them through software they don’t control.
For brands, that changes where trust is built. Kantar’s new study, The IRL Advantage, produced in partnership with OUTFRONT Media, finds that the physical world—the billboards, transit, storefronts and experiences people encounter every day—now carries a credibility that screens struggle to match. We surveyed 2,000 US consumers aged 18 to 64 across 11 metro markets in April and May 2026, and spoke with consumers and senior brand and agency leaders to understand why.
Trust is moving away from the feed
Skepticism isn’t spread evenly across media. Asked which ad environment is most likely to carry fake, misleading or AI-generated content, 32% of consumers named social media and apps.
Just 9% named billboards and outdoor.
Younger consumers feel this most. One in three Gen Z and Millennials say they question whether online content is real all the time. They are also the generations most actively seeking life offline: 79% of Gen Z and 78% of Millennials say they’ve sought out more real-world experiences in the past year, compared with 66% of Gen X and 61% of Boomers.
The generations that grew up online are the ones now looking beyond it.
Why do people trust billboards more than social media ads?
The clearest evidence comes from a simple test. We showed consumers the same creative in two settings, once in a social feed and once on a billboard. The billboard version was rated at least twice as authentic, credible, believable and trustworthy.
Consumers explain the difference in terms of commitment. A billboard takes investment and time, and it stands in public where anyone can judge it. Asked what public advertising signals about a brand, their top answers were that the brand has the confidence to be judged by everyone, that it’s legitimate and here to stay, and that it’s committed to the real world. In our focus groups, participants described fully AI-generated ads as a shortcut that looks cheap.
The effect holds across generations. Most consumers find ads they can see in person more believable than ads they only see on a screen, including 80% of Millennials, 77% of Gen Z, 72% of Gen X and 66% of Boomers.
Introducing the Physical Layer
The Physical Layer is the part of a media plan people can see, experience and verify for themselves. It spans billboards, transit, street-level, in-store and mall signage, and interactive brand experiences such as pop-ups. Our research points to three roles it plays.
It makes brands feel real. Of the people we surveyed, 64% say a brand in public spaces feels more like part of real life, and 37% see it as proof of a legitimate business.
It creates shared moments. Digital speaks to people one at a time; a billboard speaks to everyone on the street at once. Most Gen Z (64%) and Millennials (67%) say public advertising feels like something they share in common.
It strengthens the rest of the plan. When out-of-home (OOH) runs alongside online or TV, 74% of consumers rate the brand as trustworthy and credible. Among those exposed to OOH, 53% say seeing a brand in several places increases their trust, and 59% say it makes the brand more credible. Consumers also tell us that real-world exposure makes them more open to the screen ads they see afterward, and more likely to research the brand.
Interactive experiences performed strongest of all, leading every channel we tested on preference (88%), trust (85%) and credibility (89%). Online scored 62%, 54% and 58%.
How should marketers plan for 2027?
Digital remains essential for reach, targeting and speed. On its own, though, it is no longer enough to build belief, and belief shapes how hard the rest of a plan can work. Kantar Media Reactions finds that campaigns are seven times more impactful among a receptive audience. The IRL Advantage suggests that real-world presence is one of the most direct ways to create that receptivity.
As you finalize 2027 budgets, four priorities stand out:
- Treat OOH as a trust builder. Evaluate it on its contribution to brand trust and to the performance of your digital activity, alongside the impressions it delivers.
- Prioritize it for audiences under 45. Three in four Gen Z and Millennials say they’re paying more attention to ads in public spaces, compared with 56% of Gen X.
- Invest in experiences. Interactive formats outperformed every other channel on trust and credibility.
- Review your plan for trust gaps. If most of your impressions sit in feeds, you’re building reach in the environments consumers trust least.
“Consumers haven’t stopped looking at their screens, but they’ve become far more selective about what they believe there. Our research shows the physical world has become one of the most powerful places to rebuild that confidence. The brands that show up where people can see and judge them for themselves will be the brands people believe.” Jeff Greenspoon, CEO, Kantar, Americas
Want to go deeper?
Download The IRL Advantage for the full findings, including generational splits, channel-by-channel trust scores and the research behind the Physical Layer.
Download The IRL Advantage
Planning your 2027 media? Explore Kantar Media Reactions 2026 to see which channels and media brands consumers are most receptive to, or talk to our Media Effectiveness team.
Source: Kantar, The IRL Advantage: The Role Physical Media Plays in an Agentic World (2026), produced in partnership with OUTFRONT Media. Quantitative survey of 2,000 US consumers aged 18 to 64 in 11 metro markets, April to May 2026; 12 consumer focus group participants and six interviews with brand and agency leaders, March 2026.
