The Internet is a rather anonymous environment.
For some purposes this may be a benefit (think about online dating), but it can also be a major obstacle. Anonymity can make people extra cautious.
Have you ever wondered whether your website has any trust issues? Here are some tips to make your website more trustworthy:
1. Make sure that your website looks professional; pay attention to detail. People project their feelings about a website on the company behind it; for instance, they may think an unorganized website equals a sloppy business.
2. Use quality content and update it when necessary, preferably often. Don’t write your content just for the search engines; it is the human visitors that you want to contact you, buy from you. So your content needs to be relevant and convincing, without being too “sales-y.” And make sure you revisit your website from time to time to weed out old information. And try to add fresh content from time to time; it is a great way to foster repeat visits to your website.
3. Add complete contact information. The more information you omit from your website, the less trustworthy it looks. If you work from home and don’t want people to know your address, you might ask a friend if you can use their business address or use another virtual office solution.
4. Add your (team’s) picture to the “About Us” section. Like the previous recommendation, more information equals more trust. Most people like to see who they do business with.
5. Show off your memberships. Are you a Centre Wellington Chamber of Commerce member? A Better Business Bureau member? A member of an association linked to your industry? By showing their logos on your website and link to their websites.
6. Show of your achievements. Awards you have won, press coverage, case studies and testimonials are all powerful trust builders.
The less questions that enter the website visitor’s mind, the better.
For more information: contact your web developer – or website optimizer Nardo Kuitert at nardo@ucwebs.com or 519-787-7612.
