TRUST: AN IMPORTANT FACTOR FOR A GOOD WEBSITE

SAAD R 

Every online business wants to increase sales, revenue and customer loyalty. In an effort to do so, companies will offer promotions, create social media contests, and advertise their brand. All of these campaigns are good, but there’s one less common way that not many people think about that can help reach this goal: building a trustworthy website.

Reputation

Different people are affected by different things. For example, baby boomers may be influenced by a brand’s years of experience and the number of customers they’ve served. Generation Y may get a strong impression of a brand if they have a big Twitter or Facebook following. Everyone may be awed by the awards you’ve received. This is one of the reasons it’s important to have a strong understanding of your customers. Know what impresses your demographic, check to see if you have any of these assets, and let prospective customers know about it. You should not be afraid to show off what people cannot take away from you.

Use authentic images.

Horribly generic and formulaic stock photos are everywhere. While there’s nothing wrong with using carefully curated stock imagery in the right places, it’s much better to favor website visuals that look like they were actually taken of you and your team in real situations.

Stock photos can get expensive, too. To truly maximize your site’s visual authenticity, you may want to consider hiring a professional photographer to take photos of your staff, products, and office. This way, you still get quality that will display well on your website and work well for other content assets, but authenticity will shine through to your audience.

Social Media

Social media can be one of the best trust building tools for companies. Not only can you talk directly to existing customers, but you also show prospective customers that you have a responsive company that will promptly address any user needs or concerns. Also, having social media indicator buttons next to any sharable articles, shows that people are interacting with the content you publish. When they share your articles, current and potential consumers know that they can trust and engage with you on a regular basis.

These new social media assets help communicate why potential clients should trust you and sign up for the service. It also helps make the people who had once fallen out of the conversion funnel feel more secure in the legitimacy of your business.

Testimonials

Consumers ultimately begin trusting businesses through recommendations from peers, experts, and friends. Testimonials are most credible when attributed to a real person. Adding a name, face, or voice creates a legitimate source that customers can identify. Authentic testimonials that are featured on your website can also be properly leveraged across multiple marketing channels, such as social media or email marketing, which can also be powerful trust builders for any business.

Additional tools like rating scales and comment sections allow customers to leave honest reviews. Reponses from real people give prospective clients a glimpse into the customer experience and can help encourage undecided potential customers to convert.

Applying testimonials can result in increased conversion rates and customer satisfaction. When watch retailer Express Watches found out that their users were concerned about not getting the best price, quality, or security, the company immediately took steps to minimize these fears. Initially, they tried to simply address these concerns, but they didn’t see much of an increase in sales. As a result, they decided to integrate a customer testimonial for each product.

Utilize Trust Factors

While most websites know they need to have trust factors, they are often overlooked because sometimes it doesn’t seem to provide measurable value. These examples make it clear that strategically implementing the right assets on your website can increase your brand’s trustworthiness, resulting in greater conversions.

If you would like to consider an app for your business, contact STZ Soft and we will be happy to connect you with the right solution for your budget and business needs.