Gaining new customers online is quite difficult at the best of
times, especially if you don't have a physical presence to help promote
your online branch. Fraud across the Internet is now widespread,
and people are becoming more and more suspicious of sites offering
products online.
For this reason, if you want to make your site a success then
it MUST shout trustworthiness to your visitors.
Here's how to do it:
Use testimonials
If your business isn't well established or known to the masses,
testimonials are an absolutely invaluable way of gaining trust.
If people can see what others think of your product or service
then it gives them a pretty good reason to buy - "other people
were happy, and so I will be too!" They're gaining an opinion
from an unbiased source, and the absolute best way to sell a product
to someone is through a recommendation.
Offer a guarantee
Customers will be more comfortable buying from you if they know
they can return their purchase if they're not completely satisfied.
Why do you think companies such as Argos offer a "14 day
Money Back Guarantee"? And make sure you TELL your customers.
Let them know you want them to be happy. .
Gain approval
Gain a seal of approval from a company such as VeriSign. This
way people know that you've been approved by an independent third-party
as having good business practices.
Be upfront
Clearly display your contact details so that people know they're
dealing with a company they can easily contact should something
go wrong. You'd put your contact details inside a company brochure
wouldn't you? So make sure they're on your website as well.
Answer all questions quickly
If you take 5 days to reply to a simple query then it simply
says that's how long it'll take for an order to be processed.
It makes you seem disorganised, and generally un-trustworthy.
Display a privacy policy on your site
People will be much more comfortable in dealing with someone
who they know won't spam them, or generally pass on their details
to anyone without their permission. You're giving them a guarantee
of integrity.
Summary
Basically, implement anything that points to your site being
reputable and somewhere that people can trust. As you've just
seen, this can be done from web design, but good old fashioned
customer service is also imperative... even today!
Remember:
Trustworthiness = good reputation = success
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