PRAXIS launches new positioning, brand refresh “Where Creativity Drives Credibility” to bring carefully considered, bold campaigns to Canadian consumers
TORONTO, May 13, 2026 — PRAXIS, the independent Canadian marketing communications agency, today launched a new brand positioning — Where Creativity Drives Credibility — alongside national consumer research and new client offering— The PRAXIS Credibility Lab— making the case for a category PRAXIS believes is missing: bold, yet credible marketing.
The launch is anchored by a nationally representative Angus Reidsurvey of 1,502 Canadians that exposes a credibility tension that brands must now navigate. Three in four Canadians (72%) say most brand advertising looks and sounds the same, and over a third (35%) say a brand that plays it safe is easier to ignore. But Canadians punish recklessness too: 73% lose trust in brands that jump on trends disconnected from their purpose, and 65% say bold campaigns can backfire and damage a company’s reputation.
The takeaway: in 2026, both boring and reckless are credibility risks. The brands Canadians actually trust sit in the narrow space between.
Together, the positioning, research, and new offerings reflect PRAXIS’s long-held beliefs: that brand perception is a discipline, not a department—and that credibility, built through creativity and consistency, is what separates brands that are merely visible from those that are genuinely trusted.
THE INSIGHT: BORING DOESN’T JUST GET IGNORED — IT LOSES TRUST
PRAXIS has built its 25-year practice on the belief that creativity and credibility are not in tension — they’re inseparable. The new research validates the thesis from both sides.
On the cost of playing it safe:
- 72% of Canadians agree most brand advertising today looks and sounds the same, rising to 79% among Millennials.
- 72% say they’re more likely to trust a brand they remember, making memorability a credibility lever, not a vanity metric.
- 35% say a brand that plays it safe is easier to ignore, climbing to 51% among Gen Z.
- 55% say that when a brand avoids saying anything meaningful, it lowers their trust.
On the cost of going bold without judgment:
- 73% say their trust drops when brands chase trends disconnected from their purpose.
- 65% say bold campaigns can backfire and damage a brand’s reputation.
- 66% say bold creative ideas can either build trust or destroy it — depending on how they’re executed.
“Most agencies pick a side. They’re traditional and credible but invisible, or they chase stunts and trends and end up in screenshots for the wrong reasons. The data tells us Canadians have stopped rewarding both. They want bold with purpose. That sweet spot is exactly where we’ve always worked — we’re just naming it now.”
— Matt Juniper, CEO, PRAXIS
THE SWEET SPOT: BOLD WITH PURPOSE
The survey identifies the conditions under which creative risk-taking actually earns trust, not undermines it:
- 56% say culturally aware creativity earns more of their trust than creativity that feels out of touch.
- 55% say when a brand avoids saying anything meaningful, it lowers their trust.
- 37% — with only 18% disagreeing — say the most credible brands are the ones that take creative chances with purpose.
Credibility is also still earned over time. 57% of Canadians say a long track record or established reputation matters most when deciding whether to trust a brand — the single biggest credibility driver, ahead of consumer reviews (52%) and recommendations from friends and family (51%). By contrast, only 3% cite “creative or original advertising” on its own as a top trust signal, underscoring that creativity earns credibility through track record — not instead of it.
WHY IT MATTERS NOW: AI IS RAISING THE STAKES ON TRUST
As AI floods the marketing supply chain, Canadian consumers are pushing back — hard. The research finds credibility is becoming scarcer, more valuable, and harder to fake:
- 77% feel more sceptical of a brand when they suspect its content was made by AI.
- 77% find AI-generated brand content less credible than content made by people.
- 83% say brands should disclose when their marketing content is AI-generated.
- Only 5% of Canadians say AI tools are a credible source when researching a brand or product, the lowest-rated source in the study.
- Even with the human caveat, 45% disagree that it’s fine for brands to use AI as long as the creative idea still feels human, outweighing the 34% who agree.
“We’re fully tech-enabled — our team uses AI every day to move faster and dig deeper. But the data is clear: in an environment where 77% of Canadians find AI content less credible than human work, the agencies that lean entirely on automation are quietly destroying their clients’ most valuable asset. Human cultural judgment is the new premium.”
— Matt Juniper, CEO, PRAXIS
Alongside the new positioning, PRAXIS is introducing two proprietary client offerings and a refreshed brand identity built to embody the same idea.
The PRAXIS Credibility Lab:
A modular learning program for marketing, communications, and brand teams who want to understand how credibility is built today, and how to grow it strategically. Six standalone modules are anchored in PRAXIS’s five sources of modern credibility: Authority, Proximity, Proof, Consistency, and Validation. Teams can engage a single session, a curated three- to four-module program, or the full Credibility Lab. Sessions are delivered in half-day or full-day formats.
The six modules:
- 01 — The New Credibility Playbook: Media relations, earned strategy, and the evolving role of authority
- 02 — Credibility Through Influence: Creators, communities, and social trust
- 03 — Credibility in the AI Era: Search, LLMs, digital trust, and protecting brand perception against misinformation
- 04 — Experiential Credibility: Events, activation, and the role of in-person experience in building deeper trust
- 05 — Creative Credibility: Bold ideas, brand risk, and what makes creativity actually earn trust
- 06 — Measuring & Managing Credibility: Metrics, trust signals, and how credibility is lost — and rebuilt
The PRAXIS Credibility Index™
A proprietary diagnostic tool that scores brands across the same five dimensions on a 1–5 scale — from Weak/At Risk to Leading — and visualizes the result on the PRAXIS Credibility Map™, a five-axis radar chart that reveals whether a brand’s credibility is balanced, spiky and fragile, or in need of foundational work. An optional competitive overlay benchmarks category competitors on the same map. The Index moves credibility out of gut feel and into measurable, comparable, actionable territory.
A New Visual Identity to Match
PRAXIS has also relaunched praxispr.ca with a refreshed visual identity built to be the design expression of the positioning itself — bold, attention-earning, and unmistakably substantive. The new look introduces a refreshed secondary palette, sharper typography, and a deeper integration of case studies, earned-media coverage, and credibility-led thinking.
“We’ve always believed that creativity and credibility aren’t a trade-off — they’re the same job. The Credibility Lab and the Credibility Index are the practical expression of that belief: tools that help brands see exactly where their trust is being built, where it’s at risk, and where creativity can close the gap. The new positioning, the new website, the new offerings — they’re all the same argument: in 2026, the safe move and the reckless move both cost you trust. The brands worth working for are the ones brave enough to be both bold and credible. That’s the work we do every day for our clients, and we’re now making the framework available more broadly.”
Erin Morra, President, PRAXIS
ABOUT PRAXIS
PRAXIS is an independent Canadian marketing communications agency with more than 25 years of experience helping brands build credibility and protect their reputation. The agency delivers strategic PR, creative campaigns, influencer and creator engagement, social and digital storytelling, reputation and issues management, and in-person brand experiences. Everything PRAXIS does is grounded in third-party credibility and cultural insight — combining bold ideas with sharp judgment, the latest technology, and a deep understanding of where trust is built today. Learn more at praxispr.ca.
ABOUT THE RESEARCH
The research was conducted by Angus Reid Group on behalf of PRAXIS in April 2026. The nationally-representative online survey polled 1,502 Canadian adults aged 18 and older. Data is weighted to reflect the Canadian population by region, age, and gender. Full data tables are available on request.
CONTACT US:
PRAXIS Communications