Your website is likely the first contact that your customers will have with your business.
The web design choices you make can help to establish trust and encourage people to interact with your business or cause them to question your credibility and leave forever.
According to a study by Stanford, 75% of a person’s judgement of a company is based on the company’s website design.
Getting your visitors to trust you is crucial. You can have the most sophisticated sales funnels and Facebook Ad campaigns, but if they lead to a website that doesn’t inspire trust, then your chances of convincing people to purchase your product or service are slim.
Designing and optimising your website to gain the trust of your audience can be hugely beneficial for your business.
Below are 10 techniques to build trust through your website design.
1. Social Proof
Social proof is everywhere these days and is crucial for establishing your credibility.
For example, let’s say you are walking down a street and come across two restaurants, one on either side of the road. The restaurant on the left is filled with people enjoying their food, while the restaurant on the right has only a handful of diners that don’t look like they are thrilled with their meal.
Which restaurant serves better food?
The restaurant on the left of course. Why else would so many people be there and look like they are enjoying their meal?
This is social proof in action. You can increase your credibility by incorporating social proof into your website design through the following:
- Case studies.
- Data – show how many clients you’ve served to date.
- Social media influencer endorsements.
- Allow customers to leave product reviews.
2. Testimonials
One of the best techniques to showcase social proof and increase trust is the use of testimonials.
According to a research from BrightLocal, 86% of consumers read reviews for local businesses and 91% of people trust online reviews as much as they trust a personal recommendation.
Displaying real people that are willing to endorse your business goes a long way to proving the quality of your product or service.
By showcasing your ability to solve the problems of your previous clients, you encourage people to trust your business to solve those same problems for them.
3. Visually Appealing Web Design
An intuitive and appealing web design can make visitors stay for longer and increase the chances of conversion. A poorly designed and hard to navigate website can achieve the opposite, causing visitors to question your credibility and bounce.
Make your website simple and easy to navigate with visually appealing use of colours, attractive graphics, and suitable use of white space.
In addition to user-focused navigation and design, your content should be well written, error-free, and helpful to your users.
Nobody plans to make a bad website. All the additions and changes you make over the years can lead to your website becoming over complicated and congested. Scheduling a regular website review is a great way to keep your content fresh, ensure all links are working, and make your site user-friendly and appealing.
4. Badges
Do you offer a money back guarantee or warranty for your products? If you do, you can include badges in your website design highlighting that you stand by the quality of your product.
A well-placed warranty badge on a sales page can provide the reassurance customers need to trust your business and make a purchase. Consider placing guarantee and warranty badges near to your “Buy Now” CTAs to help convince customers of the quality of your product.
5. Client Logos
Your track record and work history are integral to establishing credibility with your customers. Prove your track record of contributing quality work by displaying the company logos of previous satisfied customers. Establishing your experience and encouraging visitors to trust you to deliver a product they will be happy with.
The more established the client, the better. When a person sees that you’ve helped a recognized business achieve success, they want you and your expertise to help them achieve the same success.
6. Payment Verification
People are rightly wary of being the victim of identity theft or credit card fraud online. Allay their fears by including recognised payment options with the logos they have come to know and trust.
- Pay Pal
- Visa
- Master card
- Skrill
Include payment logos on the checkout page of your site to reassure customers before they commit to a purchase.
7. A Strong “About Us” Page
A substantial “About” page not only helps to build trust with new customers, but also helps to differentiate you from your competitors.
People like to know who they are doing business with, and don’t like communicating and buying from a faceless company. A well crafted “About Us” page helps to establish an identity for your company, making you more approachable to visitors.
If your company is made up of a team of employees, create a page with a picture of each team member and a description of their role and skills. You can showcase the expertise of your team and give future clients an idea of who they will be working with on their project.
8. Show Who You Are
Adding a photo of yourself reassures your customers they are dealing with a real person and a real company. People want to know who they are doing business with and are more willing to trust you if you show your face.
A faceless website might cause visitors to question the credibility of your website and the message you are trying to communicate to them.
Choose a professional, recent, and respectable photo that shows that you stand by your website and your business.
9. Develop A Consistent Brand Voice
Developing a consistent voice for your website and marketing is vital in forging a bond of trust with your audience.
It can be jarring for visitors if they arrive on your site from an Ad or marketing email, only to be confronted by a completely different tone of voice throughout your website copy.
Magicdust, a web design agency in Sydney, emphasises the importance of creating a style guide to ensure that your voice and look matches your brand personality, your business values, and is consistent across your website, social media, and marketing.
10. Content Marketing
Content marketing is known for its lead generating benefits, but it can also help to establish trust with your potential customers. By publishing information that is relevant and useful to your audience, you position yourself as an expert in your industry and encourage users to be open to the offers and services you provide.
Building trust and establishing your knowledge in your field go hand in hand. Providing useful relevant content shows that you’re not looking just to make a quick sale, reassuring customers that you’re in business to build lasting relationships.
Conclusion
Building trust with your customers is a process that starts long before you come into contact with them. People judge a business on their website, and they do it fast.
You need your website to establish your credibility or you risk visitors bouncing back to the search engine results and losing them forever.
Consult with your web designer to implement the above tips when you build and optimise your website. By boosting your company’s credibility, your potential customers will feel safer interacting with you and be more receptive to your products and services. For a related article check out the 11 Essentials of a Successful Website
