Trust.
That’s it. That’s the single most important thing to getting visitors on your site to become customers. It is, by far, the most significant factor in your sales funnel.
If your site fails at communicating trust, visitors will find someone they do trust to do business with. It’s that simple. When looking at two otherwise equal websites, the site that’s able to provide more trust signals wins.
“When looking at two otherwise equal websites, the site that’s able to provide more trust signals wins.” — Stoney deGeyter Trust comes in many forms, and the more that you are able to address on your website the greater chance you have at creating customers.
Despite it’s many forms, however, trust all comes down to having the right content messaging in the right place. Sites with little or no content or have problems establishing that needed trust.
Checklist for Building Trust With Content
- About Us Page: Make sure your about us page tells a compelling story about your business. Be personal and engaging. This is where they make friends with your company.
- Privacy/Security Pages: Many visitors fail to complete forms on a site because they don’t know what will happen once they do. Link to comprehensive privacy and security policy pages that outline how you protect your visitor’s information.
- Contact Info: Provide visible phone and/or other contact information. Yes, this increases unwanted calls, but it also increases trust, knowing that someone is readily available if the need arises.
- Security/Trust Symbols: Symbols that indicate your site is secure, and other trust symbols, such as Better Business Bureau membership, provide assurances that you’re on the up and up.
- Social Media: If visitors see you are active on social media they can get a good sense about how you do business. They can see if you’re helpful in problem solving and providing valuable information. The more of this you do, the more visitors will want to be a customer.
- Testimonials and Reviews: Nothing builds trust than from reviews and testimonials from existing customers. Display these throughout the site and on your product pages. Don’t worry if some of the reviews aren’t glowing. If all the reviews are perfect, visitors may wonder if they’re authentic. If you’re providing quality products and services, the reviews will naturally skew positive.