A website exists for one and ONLY one reason. To bring you more business. Think of your website as a hardworking salesman who works 24 by 7 and never asks for a raise!
We live in a world where first impressions count. This is especially true in the digital world where you need to gain the trust of your website visitor straightaway.
In this post I will share 4 simple, easy and actionable steps which you can take to instantly build trust with your website visitors.
Lets start.
Invest in Professional Website Design
Just imagine a hypothetical scenario. You walk into a store and are approached by two salesman. One is well dressed and well groomed, he is friendly and talks politely. One is shabby and looks like he just got out of bed. Whom would you trust more ? Which salesman is likely to get your business?
You must have heard the phrase “A Book is judged by a cover”. Similarly a lot of potential customers judge the business based on the appearance of its website.
Your B2B website is typically the first interaction a potential client has with your firm. A good and Professional looking website is the first step in building trust online.
What are the elements of a good web design?
Good design is a somewhat subjective term, however there are common elements which if taken care of, will automatically result in good design.
1. Responsive Design
A responsive website allows you to have one website with one URL that will display properly on any device a website visitor is using. Whether your prospective client is searching for your business on a smartphone, tablet, laptop, or computer, a responsive website design will provide them with a terrific user experience.
2. Clear and Easy navigation
When it comes to websites, the navigation system acts like a road map to all the different areas and information contained within the website. If the navigation is clear, visitors will stay and have a good experience, which ultimately leads to more business for you.
3. Readability
Good website design makes reading effortless for visitors. If your copy is hard to read and the visitors are unable or unwilling to read a piece of text, your message won’t be conveyed and will certainly not convert visitors. Good readability ensures that your message is effectively communicated to the visitor.
4. Copy Writing
Writing Good Copy is essential part of good website design. A good copy communicates the benefits of the solution your offer. You can write junk in the most beautiful fonts available to mankind but they will have zero impact on your website credibility. So good content is what makes a good website
Display Client Testimonials
Testimonials are a powerful tool which can help in establishing trust and credibility. For websites and online businesses testimonials can be even more useful than traditional businesses because visitors are often skeptical or hesitant to trust someone online. Testimonials Humanize your brand.
How to create effective testimonials?
1. Highlight Benefits
An effective testimonial highlights the success stories of your customers. It communicates how your products or services helped them achieve their personal or business goals. An effective testimonials highlights the benefits of your services.
2. Use Customer Photos
Testimonials work well if they’re by real people. Real people means that there are photos, full names, what they do, their employer. Adding photos add credibility to your testimonials. Prominently display their name and contact information.
3. Be Specific:
A testimonial should focus on the problem or issue you helped address, the results achieved, and why you were the best choice for the work. If readers can’t relate to the situation described in a testimonial, it won’t help them evaluate your capabilities. An effective testimonial highlights the success stories of your customers.
4. Keep It Short & Sweet:
To get the most from testimonials, think brevity. Readers have a pretty short attention spans and if it takes someone more than one minute to read and comprehend a testimonial, it loses power.
5. Dont Fake it.
Never use fake testimonials. If people detect that the testimonials are fake, they will stop trusting you. It takes years to build a reputation and only few minutes to lose it. While testimonials are crucial, it’s not worth the risk to fake them.
Create an effective About Us page
After your site gets potential customers interested in your products or services, they naturally head to your About Us page–often within three to four clicks–to make sure your company is the right choice to provide those products and services. That’s why your About Us page is often your website’s make or break page.
How to create an effective About Us Page
1. Tell your Story
We all love a personal touch. Your customers want to know what your company is all “about,” so your About Us page should tell them what you do and why. Let your customers know where you’ve been, where you are and how you got there. What problems did you face? How did you overcome them?
This is one of the few ways to really make an About Us page engaging, so don’t miss it
2. Showcase your Team
People want to do business with People , not with websites. Prominently display the team behind the business. Include their photos, talk about their backgrounds, talk about their experience. Tell visitors why your team is qualified to solve their problems. These things let visitors know that they can trust the people behind your business.
3. Include your address and contact details
Always include a way – or two or three – for your customers to get in touch with the right people in your company. Include names; email addresses; department information; as well as office and mobile phone numbers so potential customers can call rather than send emails if they need fast answers.
Create a Contact Us Page
In this point I will talk how a well crafted Contact Page can help in building trust
While many sites throw up a contact us page as a quick after-thought, you should be dedicating a lot more time and care to your contact page because, for some smaller companies it can mean the difference between making a profit and losing money.
How to create an effective Contact Page
Today I’ll be sharing some contact page best practices which will help in building trust in eyes on the visitors.
1. Display Physical Address
People want to know that there is a physical company behind the website and, typically, where it’s located. It adds an extra level of trust and legitimacy to your business.
2. Include a Location map
Displaying a location map Google Map is an effective way to show the exact location to the customers. Using Google maps visitors can quickly get the directions to your office in case they decide to visit you in person.
3. Include a Contact Form
Having a contact form on your contact page might seem obvious but many times it is ignored and single email links are given to the visitors as the sole option to contact the website owners. Remember to keep the forms short as they are easier to fill.
4. Display Phone Number
Displaying a telephone number conveys a sense of trust. It is often seen as a sign that this is a real company
5. Add Social Media Links
Adding links to your social media profiles gives the option to your visitors to message you on a platform of their choice. A customer can just click on the Facebook button for example and leave you a message via that channel.
6. Make your Contact Page accessible
Even the best designed contact page is of no use if visitors cannot find it. Make sure that the contact page is easy to find. We recommend putting your contact us page at the end of your website menu so it’s easy for visitors to find.
Conclusion and Summary
Well you are done. You now have 4 highly actionable strategies to add credibility to your website
Here is the list again if you want to re-cap:
- Invest in Good Design
- Focus on Social Proof. Display Client Testimonials
- Invest in creating an effective About Us Page
- Make it dead simple to contact you
Have other ideas and suggestions? Let us know in the comments.
Thanks for mentioning that a good website design needs to be readable for visitors. My mom wants to start her own gardening blog but she isn’t very tech-savvy. I’m going to advise her to get a website designer in the future if she wants to take blogging seriously.