Imagine this…
You recently adopted a dog (congratulations)! This new best friend is desperately in need of a haircut.
You know it’s about to become a problem, so you pull your phone out to search for dog groomers near you. Multiple results appear.
Who do you contact? A business with no reviews and an outdated website? Or a business with multiple five star reviews and accessible contact information?
Customers are more likely to recommend and purchase services and products from companies they trust. In fact, trust plays a vital role in gaining and retaining customers, as well as establishing brand loyalty.
Don’t let your business lose out on potential customers. Start building online trust by considering the following strategies to boost customer confidence in your products, services, and brand.
Transparency
Transparency is a key factor that influences customer trust.
Customers value honesty and authenticity. Companies that are transparent about their business practices, pricing, and policies establish credibility. Make sure you provide all necessary details, including features, benefits, and pricing, in a simple and easy-to-understand format.
For example, providing information about ingredients and processes used in a food product’s creation has become increasingly important, especially in the health and wellness industry.
It’s also important to be upfront about what your products or services offer and what they do not offer. Avoid making claims that you cannot keep. Be open and honest about what customers can expect when they use your products or services. This will help you build credibility and long-term relationships with your customers.
Exceptional Customer Service
Providing excellent customer support is essential in creating a positive image for your brand. Whenever a customer has a question or problem, they want to be able to contact someone knowledgeable and helpful.
Respond quickly to customers’ queries and complaints, actively listen to their concerns, and provide timely solutions to their problems. Show customers that feedback is taken seriously, and you appreciate their positivity or are working toward resolving their issue. Offering exceptional customer support results in satisfied customers who spread positive reviews about your brand.
P.S. Make sure your customers can easily contact you through various channels of communication, including social media, email, chat, text messaging, or phone.
High-Quality Products and Services
It may seem like a no-brainer, but one of the best ways to establish trust with customers is to provide high-quality products and services.
Consistently delivering a product or service that exceeds customer expectations creates a positive reputation for your brand. Use quality control standards to monitor the condition of your products before they’re delivered to customers. Professionalism, attention to detail, and customer satisfaction will go a long way in promoting the effectiveness of your services.
Quality brands are more likely to gain word-of-mouth referrals and recommendations. When customers have a good experience with your business, they often tell their friends, families, or others in similar situations about that experience. Establish value in what your business provides so your customers can receive that value any time they use your product or service.
Authentic Customer Reviews
We touched briefly on considering reviews in the introduction of this blog, but reviews have become so important for customer conversions that we need to include them on this list.
The article The Ultimate List of Online Review Statistics for 2023 from Findstack highlights the importance of online reviews. Here are just some of the statistics presented within the post:
- Nine out of ten customers read reviews before buying a product.
- 30% of shoppers under the age of 44 look at reviews for every purchase.
- 80% of shoppers use mobile phones to look up reviews outside of a store.
- 83% of customers say reviews must be relevant and recent to be trustworthy.
- Customers spend up to 31% more on companies with excellent reviews.
- 94% of customers say they’ve avoided a business due to negative reviews.
Both positive and negative reviews greatly affect the buying process. Some customers even search for reviews on a product while standing in the store right in front of said product. With such a large influence, encouraging authentic, positive reviews should be a priority.
The way your company publicly responds to reviews also affects how your business is perceived. Thank customers when they leave a positive review, and politely respond to the negative ones (especially on Google). Others will see these direct interactions from your brand and begin to form an opinion based on your response. If you need additional tips for responding to negative reviews, check out How Important Are Online Reviews?
Social Proof
Now that we’ve explained the importance of online reviews, let’s delve deeper into the effects of social proof.
Social proof refers to the idea that people are more likely to trust and follow the actions of others. Provide social proof to your customers by featuring reviews, testimonials, and customer success stories on your website and social media pages. Give evidence to support the value of your products and services by showcasing actual customer experiences. This can help build confidence in your brand and show that others have had positive experiences with your products or services.
Updated Website Design
An effective web design should be visually appealing and easy-to-use, allowing users to easily navigate the site and access information quickly. Don’t let them waste time by having to search for what they need.
It should also be mobile friendly, so that it can be accessed from a variety of devices. Additionally, up-to-date content helps establish credibility with customers by providing them with accurate information about your products or services. Don’t overcrowd your pages with a lot of content or graphics. Keep the design simple, but informative and to the point. Contact information should be readily available, preferably above the fold (information that appears in the upper part of the screen before scrolling down).
With a great website design, businesses can create an engaging online experience that promotes repeat customers and conversions.
SEARCH ENGINE OPTIMIZATION
Search engine optimization (SEO) goes hand-in-hand with a great website design. Visitors won’t be able to see how awesome your site is if they can’t find it. Think back to the dog grooming results you searched earlier. Without search engine optimization, even the best looking website could appear at the bottom of results and hinder your chances at a trustworthy first impression. Use SEO to improve the online visibility of your website and build relationships with a larger target audience.
Data Security
The safety and security of your customers’ personal and financial information should be a priority for your business – it is for them.
Companies that invest in data security not only protect their customers now, but also help to prevent future spam and cyber attacks. An unsecure website or purchasing process puts both customer and business info at risk. Factors, such as an SSL certificate and transaction encryptions, work to protect data transmitted through your website.
Customers are more likely to complete a purchase when they can see that their transaction is secure. An SSL certificate will often show a closed lock before the URL in the address bar. Secure URLs also begin with ‘https’ over ‘http.’ Many websites will integrate robot protection within the site, such as reCAPTCHA or tests for humanity. If you notice your website is lacking security measures, contact your website host or builder. (Vervocity security plans can also help with this!)
Conclusion
Trust comes from genuine interactions and quality offerings. Remember, building trust takes time. It is not a one-time activity. Remain patient and committed to maintaining a positive working relationship with your customers. Continuously monitor or update your products, services, website, reviews, security programs, and more.
By following these tips, you should be able to increase your customers’ trust and create lasting, positive relationships with them.
From brand development to reputation management, Vervocity has the resources to help establish credibility in your brand. Together, we can work toward making your business wildly successful. Reach out to us to get started today.
