Consumers in Hong Kong say data privacy is a top concern, reflecting a trust gap between consumers and brands, with a majority of consumers (60%) indicating they don’t trust brands use their data in their best interest.
The sentiments echo that of Twilio's wider State of Customer Engagement 2025 report on consumer trends and brand engagement worldwide, released earlier in June.
Not only do the findings show a lack of confidence that brands are using their data in ways that benefit them, but there is a further disconnect in the global data between consumers and brands on this issue.
No fewer than 88% of brands globally believe they’re being transparent with how they use customer data, despite only 46% of consumers reporting that they’re informed when their data is used in AI systems.
Consumers named regulatory and privacy compliance issues (44%), security risks (41%), and data quality and accuracy problems (38%) as their primary concerns when it trusting brands with their data.
How brands integrate AI into enhancing experiences with their customers also matter, with 69% indicating that interactions with AI need to feel human-like. More than half (54%) report the need for brands to have the option to speak to a human, suggesting consumers want AI to feel intuitive in how they interact with brands.
Transparency is key for marketers to build credibility and trust with consumers, especially as interactions with AI — from advertising to data privacy with chat bots — becomes more deeply integrated in how brands are perceived.
Hong Kong brands are betting big on AI, but some consumers see no payoff
The majority of Hong Kong brands indicate that they’re investing in AI, with 93% using the tool to predict customer behaviour and trends, and 90% to respond to customer queries and resolve issues with features like chatbots.
Brands also report significant gains from personalising their interactions with customers using AI, reaping higher satisfaction scores (53%), faster response times (67%), and higher customer spending (87%).
Meanwhile, consumers are experiencing a gap in the quality of personalised engagement, with less than half (42%) rating their brand experience as ‘good’ or ‘excellent’ — a 2% drop from 2024.
Over two-thirds (67%) also report wanting human-like interactions with AI tools.
Other Hong Kong based findings:
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Hong Kong consumers indicate they don’t experience much personalised brand engagement, with only 17% indicating that brands personalise customer interactions, compared to a 41% average in APAC.
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Brands also need to make brand experiences highly personalised to convert, as 74% say they will abandon purchases if engagement feel impersonal.
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A majority (83%) report wanting control over personalisation settings when it comes to AI tools when interacting with brands.
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Tailoring experiences (87%) and creating customer experience transcripts (83%) are also among the ways brands are investing in AI.
Other key global findings:
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A majority (90%) of brands say they face compliance challenges, with 53% struggling with data and privacy issues, and 51% dealing with cyber risks.
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Key factors in building trust with consumers include making returns easy (55%), data protection (54%), offering quality service (54%), and transparency (51%).
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Brands named balancing security with experience (49%), data protection (44%), and disconnected journeys (41%) as their top engagement challenges with consumers.
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Nearly two-thirds (64%) of brands believe their tech stack is ‘just right,’ relying on customer relationship management systems (63%), analytics platforms (58%), surveys (53%), and customer data platforms (52%).
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With AI more widely used in personalising consumer experiences, 57% say they use AI to boost efficiency and leverage hyper-personalised marketing (51%).
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More than half (57%) indicate measuring AI success by time saved in engagement and assessing data accuracy and reliability (52%).
