Trust in LATAM influencers dropped 20 percentage points in just two years.
From 58% in 2022 to 38% in 2024. A brutal drop that reveals something deeper: Latin American consumers are tired of empty content.
Meanwhile, 82% of consumers trust companies more when their leadership is active on social media. And personal profiles get 5 times more engagement than company pages.
The opportunity is clear: founders who create authentic content fill the trust gap that algorithms and paid advertising cannot.
In this deep analysis, we break down the data that shows why creating content as a founder in LATAM is not optional—it’s a competitive advantage.
The Trust Crisis in LATAM
The digital landscape in Latin America is changing radically. Data from Bain & Company and Reuters reveal a concerning trend:
Trust Crisis in Influencers (LATAM)
20 percentage point drop in just 2 years
The numbers that matter
- 58% → 38%: Trust in influencers collapsed in 2 years
- 64% of users in LATAM have difficulty distinguishing real news from fake
- ~33% of consumers plan to reduce digital activities by 2026
- 25% associate digital activity with negative emotions
Digital fatigue is real
Users aren’t disconnecting—they’re becoming more selective. They want authentic voices, not promotional content disguised as value.
This crisis creates a unique opportunity for founders: while traditional influencers lose credibility, business leaders who share real experiences gain ground.
Why Personal Profiles Win
According to Refine Labs’ Organic LinkedIn Playbook, there’s a brutal asymmetry between personal profiles and company pages:
Personal Profile vs Company Page
Why people prefer connecting with people, not brands
The math is simple
Personal profiles generate:
- 2.75x more impressions than company pages
- 5x more engagement per post
- All this with 46% fewer followers
“People want to connect with people, not logos.”
— Fundamental principle of founder-led marketing
Why does it work?
- Algorithms favor human connections: LinkedIn prioritizes content from your personal network
- Authenticity is a differentiator: A founder talking about failures has more impact than a corporate press release
- Startups need faces: Without brand recognition, the founder’s face creates familiarity
Edelman Trust Barometer data
51% of people trust CEOs—more than government leaders (42%). Visible leadership builds credibility.
Organic Content Has the Best CAC
For startups with limited runway, every dollar counts. And the data shows organic content is the most efficient channel:
Customer Acquisition Cost by Channel (B2B)
Organic content has the best ROI
Acquisition cost breakdown (B2B)
| Channel | Average CAC |
|---|---|
| Email Marketing | $510 |
| SEO / Organic | $647 |
| LinkedIn Organic | $658 |
| LinkedIn Ads | $983 |
| Meta Ads | $1,132 |
The compound ROI of content
Organic channels are not only cheaper—they generate higher-value customers:
- Customers acquired through organic content have higher LTV
- 73% of businesses use organic content as their main distribution strategy
- 49% report that organic search generates the best marketing ROI
The multiplier effect
A well-executed LinkedIn post lives forever on your profile. A paid ad disappears when you stop paying. Organic content builds assets; advertising is a recurring expense.
The Opportunity in LATAM
There’s a brutal disconnect in the Latin American startup ecosystem: everything is ready for founders to build massive audiences, but almost no one is doing it.
The Content Gap in LATAM
Mature ecosystem + massive audience = untapped opportunity
The equation no one is leveraging
The ecosystem has all the ingredients:
- $4.5 billion deployed in ~750 deals during 2024
- ~500 startups raised their first VC round in the last 18 months
- 413 million mobile users with >60% social penetration
- Investors who reward founders with public track records (42% of dollars go to founders with prior experience)
But while all this exists, less than 15% of founders in LATAM create content consistently.
The contrast with the U.S.
In the United States, LinkedIn is saturated. Every niche has dozens of “thought leaders” competing for attention. The CAC for building an audience rises every year.
In LATAM, the same niches are empty. Being the founder who talks about fintech in Colombia, SaaS in Chile, or e-commerce in Mexico means having little competition and lots of impact.
Limited window of opportunity
This gap won’t last forever. Founders who build audiences now establish positions that will be much harder to reach in 2-3 years.
What Type of Content Works
Not all content is equal. LinkedIn benchmarks for 2026 show significant differences in engagement:
Performance by Content Type (LinkedIn)
Average engagement rate 2025-2026
The format ranking
- Multi-image (6.60%): Posts with 2-4 images generate more interaction
- Carousels/PDFs (5.85%): Educational content in swipeable format
- Native video (5.60%): Uploaded directly, not YouTube links
- Polls (4.40%): Engagement doubled since 2023
- Text only (3.80%): Still effective with good storytelling
Platform trends
- LinkedIn engagement rate grew from 6.00% to 8.01% between January 2024 and January 2026
- 44% year-over-year increase in engagement
- Pages that post weekly have 5.6x more follower growth
The Platzi Case: Regional Proof of Concept
If anyone has demonstrated the power of founder content in LATAM, it’s Freddy Vega with Platzi:
Platzi by the numbers
5+ million students
70% completion rate (vs 5-10% industry average)
$62M Series B (2021)
First LATAM company in Y Combinator (2015)
How he did it
Freddy Vega built his personal brand through:
- Consistent educational content: He doesn’t sell courses—he shares knowledge
- Transparency about the journey: He talks about failures, difficult decisions, learnings
- Community first: He built an audience before scaling the product
- Multi-format presence: YouTube, Twitter, LinkedIn, podcasts
The impact on students
- 40% of students start earning minimum wage or less
- 2-10x income increase after graduating
Freddy’s content didn’t just build a company—it transformed lives. That level of impact generates loyalty that no paid ad can buy.
The 65/25/10 Framework
How should you structure your content as a founder? Sam Browne, who built 100k followers on LinkedIn with 500+ posts, recommends this distribution:
Content Framework for Founders
The 65/25/10 formula that works on LinkedIn
Breaking down the formula
65% Authority Content
- Industry knowledge
- Frameworks and methodologies
- Tutorials and how-tos
- Analysis and trends
25% Personal Content
- Stories from your journey
- Lessons learned
- Behind the scenes
- Failures and pivots
10% Sales Content
- Product/service offers
- Direct calls to action
- Customer success cases
- Company announcements
The most common mistake
Founders who only post sales content burn their audience. First build trust with value, then ask for the sale.
Why Now Is the Time
The trust arbitrage
Trust in influencers is collapsing, but demand for authentic content is growing. Founders who build presence now capture the audience that’s abandoning traditional influencers.
The cost of doing nothing
Every day you don’t create content, your competition builds audience. In 12 months, they will have established authority while you remain invisible.
Personal brands are portable
If your startup pivots or fails, your personal brand remains. It’s an asset that transcends any individual company.
McKinsey on CEO Marketing
CEOs who place marketing at the center of their growth strategy are 2x more likely to achieve annual growth above 5%.
How to Get Started
Step 1: Define your content niche
What are you an expert in? What problems do you solve? Your content should position you as an authority on a specific topic.
Step 2: Choose a primary channel
For B2B in LATAM, LinkedIn is the most effective channel. Master one before expanding to others.
Step 3: Commit to frequency
3 posts per week is the minimum to build momentum. Consistency beats quality at the beginning.
Step 4: Document, don’t create
You don’t need to be a creative genius. Document your daily work, decisions, learnings. The content is already there.
Step 5: Invest in support
Successful founders work with ghostwriters or content teams. Your time is worth more being strategic than executing.
Conclusion
The trust crisis in LATAM created a unique opportunity for founders. The data is clear:
- Consumers want authenticity, not influencers
- Personal profiles outperform company pages 5x
- Organic content has the best ROI of any channel
- LATAM has high digital penetration but few founders creating content
- Platzi proved that founder content can build empires
The question is not whether you should create content.
The question is how much longer you can afford not to.
Ready to build your personal brand?
At Mazkara Studio we help founders and leaders create content that connects and converts. Learn about our services or schedule a call to explore how we can help you.
References
[1] Edelman Trust Barometer 2024. “Trust in Leadership and Institutions”. Data on trust in CEOs and business leadership. View report
[2] Bain & Company, Reuters. “Latin Americans Digital Behavior & Fatigue”. Analysis of digital behavior and declining trust in influencers. View analysis
[3] Refine Labs. “Organic LinkedIn Playbook”. Comparison of engagement between personal profiles and company pages. View article
[4] First Page Sage. “CAC by Channel Benchmarks 2026”. Customer acquisition costs by marketing channel. View benchmarks
[5] SocialInsider. “LinkedIn Benchmarks 2026”. Engagement rates by content type on LinkedIn. View report
[6] LAVCA. “2024 Startup Directory: Ecosystem Insights”. Data on the LATAM startup ecosystem. View research
[7] DataReportal, We Are Social, Meltwater. “Digital 2024 Reports”. Digital penetration statistics in LATAM. View statistics
[8] CXL. “Founder-Led Marketing: Complete Strategy”. 65/25/10 content framework and founder strategies. View guide
[9] Y Combinator. “Platzi Company Profile”. Platzi’s history and metrics. View profile