Building trust marks for your website is a sure way to boost its credibility. Yes! Establishing the credibility of your website is as important as your product or service. Customers need to feel confident and trust your online interface enough to consider buying from you. Most companies offering development services would recommend this so you can reap optimum results from your website. So, what are these trust marks? Many would say that security is the utmost sign of trust. Agreed! Any website offering products or services must be equipped with security so customers do not hesitate to transact. However, security is not the only thing. Let’s look at the website from a holistic point of view. A survey carried out by a consultancy concluded that factors such as security trust marks, professional-looking websites, fast-loading pages, easy navigation, well-displayed contact details, referrals from family or friends, etc. are all crucial to establishing the credibility of a website. Various trust marks can help boost your website's credibility. Here are a few to consider –
1) Security Seals
Security seals are the foremost thing you can think of when you talk of trust marks. Customers who share their information, whether credit card or personal, are wary of doing so unless they feel they can trust the website. Putting up security seals like Verisign or PayPal badges would establish credibility for your website. No matter how you plan to make your website secure, your customers would want to know the facts. And security seals can build their confidence. You can take the help of your web developer to plan and put it there.
2) SSL Certificate
SSL certificate is another important trust seal any business website would need. It has a corresponding web address that can be seen as HTTPS, signifying a secured website. You may check out Jenni McKinnon’s post on SSL certificate authorities to understand this better.
3) Third-Party Logos
Whether or not to use third-party logos on your website has always been debatable. Do not think of them as distracters but rather attractors. Yes! The third-party logo provides proof that you are associated with that brand. It offers transparency and builds confidence. Use logos of your clients so your prospective customers see which credible brands you have worked with. This will make it easy for them to trust your services.
4) Awards & Certifications
Displaying your awards and certifications on your website is a sure-shot way to ensure your ccustomer'strust in your services. If your services or products or your website has earned a certification or an award for its professionalism or accomplishment, go ahead and put it on the website for your customers to see it.
5) Customer Reviews
Online users want to validate every aspect of your service and that’s exactly the reason why you should provide them all the important trust marks. Exhibiting social proof of your service on your website would make it easy for them to decide. Yes! We are talking about customer reviews. Positive reviews from your customers act as trust boosters. About 74% of the customers are more likely to trust your brand based on that. So, include customer reviews and rating widgets from Yelp-like sites and make it a straightforward way for your customers.
6) Customer Testimonials
A better word about your services or products from your customers and you have topped your cake with delicious icing. Yes! It works as a delight. The customer wants to know how your other customers have been serviced. Quoting their testimonials on your website would be a powerful trust mark for your website. Even case studies act as a powerful tool, although putting together the details of the same can be time-consuming.
7) Social Media Widget
Social media integration with your website is known to be one of the best practices today. Besides providing users engagement, it offers to serve as a trust mark, allowing your users to connect with your brand on various social media platforms. Include all the social media links and widgets to show that your brand is actively involved in the online media.
8) About Page
About Page information is crucial too. Customers want to know all about the company – how it was founded, founders, directors, presence, etc. This helps them to determine the credibility of the company and hence acts as one of the greatest trust marks for your WordPress website.
9) Multi-Channel Contact
Websites must be customer friendly and allow your customers, to reach you in the easiest possible way. Establish multiple channels of contact on your website whether it's email, contact number, contact and inquiry form, or live chat. Enable your customers to reach you faster. They serve the purpose of building trust.
10) Terms of Use Statements
The final one, terms of use statements stands as a crucial trust mark for a couple of reasons. It offers complete transparency to the visitors of your website. They get to understand how their personal information will be managed or used by your company. The terms of use statements must include –
- If you are collecting email addresses or using remarketing pixels, the privacy policy is important and must be published
- Guarantee of service statements
- Rules and regulations about payment, penalties, or refund
You can also publish your internal policies on your website under these terms of use statements. This allows you to protect your intellectual properties and hold your customer responsibility if need be. To conclude – enhance your website credibility with these great trust marks and you will see the difference already. If possible, take the help of a professional WordPress development service provider for suggestions.
Written by: Jitendra Raulo
Jitendra Raulo is the Founding Director at Aarav Infotech India Pvt. Ltd., a leading Web Design and Digital Marketing Company with 11+ years of experience and having headquarter in Mumbai, India, and Support Centre at Bhubaneswar, India, he is actively working with Start-ups, SMEs and Corporations utilizing technology to provide business transformation solution.