E-commerce is still growing, but growth has made the market more crowded. Shopify, citing an EMARKETER forecast, says global e-commerce sales are expected to reach about $6.4 trillion in 2026. SellersCommerce also estimates that there are more than 28 million e-commerce websites worldwide in 2026, with roughly 2,162 new sites being added each day. [1] [2]
For any brand selling online, having a good product isn’t enough anymore. Customers have plenty of options; they can compare prices in seconds, and may be hesitant to buy from a brand they don’t know yet.
Many e-commerce brands try to solve this with paid advertising. Paid ads can create awareness, but they do not automatically create trust. As acquisition becomes more competitive, brands need credibility that does not depend only on paying for every click.
That is where PR becomes important. PR for e-commerce brands helps build third-party credibility, shape the brand story, manage public reputation, and give customers more reasons to believe in the brand before they buy.
Why E-commerce Brands Need More Than Paid Advertising
1. Competition makes brands look similar
Most online categories are crowded. A shopper looking for skincare, supplements, apparel, home products, baby products, or gadgets can find dozens of similar options in minutes. Many products look the same, make similar claims, and run similar ads.
In that environment, the brand needs more than visibility. It needs a reason to be trusted, and part of achieving this is having a PR partner that can help with brand positioning and channel selection. A press feature, founder interview, expert mention, product review, or customer story can help explain why the brand exists and why it deserves attention.
2. Paid media can buy attention, but not full credibility
Paid ads are useful, but they have a limit. A customer knows the brand paid to appear in front of them. That does not make the ad useless, but it does mean the message is controlled by the brand.
Shopify’s customer acquisition guide reports an average e-commerce customer acquisition cost of $41.83 as of April 2026. The same guide also notes examples of brands dealing with rising ad costs and weaker targeting signals. [3]
When paid reach becomes more expensive, earned trust becomes more valuable. PR helps brands earn visibility through media coverage, expert commentary, founder profiles, product roundups, and other third-party mentions.
The Role of Trust in Winning New Customers
1. Trust has a direct impact on spending
Trust influences how people make purchasing decisions and interact with brands. Forter’s 2024 Trust Premium Report found that consumers are willing to spend 51% more, on average, with a retailer they trust. The report was based on 2,000 respondents in the U.S. and U.K. [4]
For e-commerce brands, this is important because most customers are buying without seeing the product in person. They need to trust the product quality, delivery promise, return policy, payment security, and customer support before placing the order.
2. New brands need third-party proof
A newer e-commerce brand usually does not have years of reviews, strong recall, or a long track record. That makes the first purchase harder.
PR can help bridge that gap. When a trusted publication talks about the product or the founder gets featured in a relevant story, it gives customers a reason to trust the brand beyond its own claims.
PR should create proof around the brand by showing who built it, what problem it solves, and why customers trust it.
3. Reviews and public reputation now shape purchase decisions
Reviews are part of public reputation, especially for e-commerce brands. A 2026 Clutch survey of U.S. consumers found that 96% check online reviews before a first-time purchase. It also found that 47% always check reviews before buying from an unfamiliar brand or product, while only about 2% usually skip reviews. [5]
This means review strategy and PR strategy should work together. Brands need to encourage honest reviews, respond carefully to complaints, and surface strong customer stories in media, social content, and product pages.
PR cannot make a bad product look good for long. What it can do is help a good product earn the public proof it needs to convert more first-time buyers.
The same trust challenge appears in other industries too. For comparison, see AA24 Holdings on PR in banking and PR for higher education.
How PR Protects E-commerce Brands When Things Go Wrong
1. E-commerce brands face public problems quickly
E-commerce issues can become public fast. A product quality concern, delayed shipping season, return policy complaint, influencer backlash, or data security concern can spread through reviews, social media, and customer communities.
Northwestern Medill IMC notes that 69% of brand executives say they have faced a PR crisis in the past five years. [6] For e-commerce brands, the risk is not only that something goes wrong. The risk is that the brand responds slowly, defensively, or inconsistently while customers are already talking.
2. Good crisis PR starts before the crisis
The brands that respond best usually have a plan before they need it. They know who will speak, what channels will be used, how customer support will be aligned, and what information can be shared quickly.
Samsung’s Galaxy Note7 recall is a good example of how a brand can handle a product crisis. In 2016, Samsung stopped sales, worked with safety authorities, and later expanded the recall to include both the original and replacement devices after reports of overheating and fires. [7]
The situation showed how important it is for brands to act quickly, put customer safety first, give clear instructions, and keep communicating when a product problem becomes public.
For e-commerce brands, the lesson is simple. A crisis plan should not be created after a negative story is already spreading. It should exist before the first serious issue appears.
3. Recovery depends on what the brand does next
Crisis communication does not end with the first statement. Customers want to see what the brand actually did to fix the problem. Maybe it improved its quality checks, changed how it communicates delivery updates, made returns easier, or gave customers a better way to get support.
PR helps brands explain what changed, why it changed, and what customers can expect next. It can help rebuild trust through honest updates, founder communication, and visible action.
This is especially important in e-commerce because the public record remains visible. Old reviews, news articles, social posts, and customer comments can keep shaping perception long after the original issue is over.
How AI Is Changing the Trust Problem
AI is also changing how customers judge online brands. Shoppers now see more AI-generated content, product descriptions, reviews, images, and recommendations. That creates efficiency for brands, but it also creates more doubt when customers cannot tell what is real.
This makes PR even more important. Human stories and real customer experiences can help a brand feel more authentic in a market where content is becoming easier to produce.
For more on this shift in other industries, read AA24 Holdings on how AI is changing public relations and communications.
Closing Thoughts
The e-commerce market is large, growing, and crowded. Paid advertising is still useful, but it cannot carry the full weight of trust.
PR helps e-commerce brands earn credibility, build trust, and protect their reputation as they grow.
When competitors can run similar ads and reach the same customers, trust can make all the difference. Brands that start building that trust through PR before they actually need it are in a better position to turn new visitors into customers and customers into people who recommend them to others.
Sources:
[1] Shopify, Global Ecommerce Sales Growth Report 2026
[2] SellersCommerce, Ecommerce Statistics 2026
[3] Shopify, Ecommerce Customer Acquisition: Channels and Formula 2026
[4] Forter, 2024 Trust Premium Report
[5] Clutch, Online Reviews Ecommerce Survey 2026
[6] Northwestern Medill IMC, PR Crisis Management
[7] U.S. Consumer Product Safety Commission, Samsung Galaxy Note7 Recall
