If you are not online today, no one is going to know about your business.
It has become increasingly essential to building your website to market your products and create an air of trustworthiness around your brand.
That said, your target audience is only going to trust you if you work on the legitimacy of your website.
However, there are still many people who do online business don’t know just how significant the effect is.
If you look at the statistics, 63 percent of consumers say that they would purchase from a genuine brand. And the Boston Consulting Group found that genuineness is one of the top qualities that would draw customers to a brand. And this isn’t it – there are many more similar statistics and instances!
Considering the massive benefit of having a secure website for your business, it should be every business owner’s top priority.
Here are some tips on how to make online users trust your website.
Secure Your Site by Installing an SSL Certificate
SSL is an encryption technology that will encrypt the connection between your webserver and visitors’ web browsers. Installing an SSL certificate will also protect your site against phishing, making it practically impossible for hackers to impersonate your website correctly.
Starting from July 2018, Chrome has started marking websites as unsecured sites if SSL certificates do not secure them.
SSL certificates give your online business site trust indicators, such as HTTPS and, if you have an EV certificate, a green address bar.
Ditch the Ads
According to a survey, pop-up ads are most resented by consumers, with a 73% disapproval rating. In a study, 83% of people agreed that they want to filter out the loathsome ads.
It is essential to be cautious about the ads that you exhibit on your website. Though you can make extra income with ads, you must pay the price for it. If you make the mistake of overloading your site with ads, users will deem your location as unprofessional or inauthentic.
To avoid this, you must see that your site is only about you and your client.
Make Your Site Accessible for Customers
When you position your website as a resource, a place where consumers can turn for information and not just a sales pitch, your website seems trustworthy. Install an easily accessible search function to show consumers that you want them to be able to use your site.
Studies point out that at least 90% of consumers regularly research local services online before making a purchase or hiring decision. 45% of those consumers will ditch an online resource if they are unable to quickly and easily find the information they’re looking for.
Hire a Professional to Design a Logo
Invest in designing a great logo to increase the trustworthiness of your online business brand. Your logo goes everywhere you go, from your header to your business card. When you have a professional logo, people will view your business in higher esteem.
It said that customers take 10 seconds to form a view of a brand’s logo. Hence, it better be impressive enough to make a mark!
You can also use blue in your logo, as apart from being the universally favored color, it is believed to be linked with trustworthiness and dependability. Statistics suggest that when the top 100 brands assessed, it found that 33% use the color blue in their logo. Moreover, the color blue is said to be successful in building connections.
Hence, it is a great idea to consider such parameters to your website more attractive to your target audience. It will lead to an increase in your lead generation, which will eventually lead to better sales.
Create Custom Content
In a study, 78% of consumers said that companies that created custom content are more trustworthy as compared to companies that produced generic content. When companies provide custom content, readers feel like the company cares about their time.
Hence, it is decidedly important to create custom content for your website.
When you create usefully, original, and valuable content that brings satisfaction to your customers, it naturally makes your website more credible and makes it easy for your visitors to trust it right away.
Highlight Business Relationships
If you want your website to be viewed as legitimate, highlight the relationships you have with other businesses, industry organizations, media, government, and customers. It can be testimonials from customers, social media relationships, accreditation, licenses and awards, and/or embedding widgets from third-party review websites like Yelp, Trustpilot, and TripAdvisor.
In a survey, 72% of customers said that they wouldn’t take action until they read reviews while in another study, 15% said they don’t trust businesses without reviews.
Remove anonymity
Many users are hesitant to trust websites that they are visiting for the first time. Users are uncertain about who is running the site and how they can be contacted.
To ensure your website is more reliable, add photos of you and your staff. Provide the users plenty of ways to contact your business, including contact forms, phone numbers, chat boxes, emails, social accounts, help desks, live chats, and so on. When you can make the user feel as if they are dealing with a real person, your website’s trustworthiness will noticeably increase.
Add Testimonials
Adding testimonials is one of the sure-fire ways to make customers believe what you are claiming.
For instance, if you claim to sell one of the best organic skincare products, then you need to back up your claim.
To do that, it’s suggested to incorporate testimonials on your website.
Here’s a perfect example:
The website is claiming to provide great content, but why would anyone believe the website owner?
Once the target audience scrolls down, they see the testimonials written by other people. This leads them to trust the website owner since now they have seen how other people have benefited from the services the website owner claims to offer.
Final Thoughts
Following only one or two of these tips will not make users perceive your online business as authentic. All small things matter when it comes to gaining customer trust. Start by installing an SSL certificate, which is the highest form of security you can get for your site. It will boost your site’s authenticity and trustworthyness. Also, implement the other tips, like making your website customer-centric, highlighting business relationships, and removing anonymity. Being real and making customers feel at ease will take you a long way in building your business. Go ahead and make your customers feel like you’re honest and worthy of their investment.
