In this blog, we talk about establishing trust with online customers.
1) The customer doesn’t feel safe.
ECommerce websites typically require you to provide personal details when making a purchase – not limited to their payment details, as well as their email and sometimes their contact details or address. Your customer won’t buy from you if they don’t feel they can trust the website or your company. So how do you build trust and ensure your website is safe?
Firstly, ensure your website uses the TLS/SSL protocol. If it doesn’t, web browsers will display your website as ‘not secure’ – or will display an unlocked padlock or another warning symbol by your website URL. If your website URL starts with ‘HTTPS’, the website’s session is encrypted and secure. If a customer sees your website is ‘not secure’ that will set the alarm bells ringing and they’ll be unlikely to stay on your website for long.
Your website also needs to look professional. If it looks hastily put together, then customers may be distrustful. Build a website that looks and feels good will build trust and help visitors feel safe on your website.
2) You’re not offering any satisfaction guarantees.
There is a risk for customers that are shopping online – that their expectations are not met when they receive something they bought online. What if the soap smells terrible? What if the shirt doesn’t actually fit? What if the laptop is broken or doesn’t work?
The customer cannot try and interact with the product before they buy it, which means they have to trust your description of it and trust their own instincts. It’s all about trust. And you need to build trust and demonstrate that you are reliable.
One of the most effective ways of building trust with an online customer is to offer them a satisfaction guarantee. You might guarantee a warranty just in case their purchase is broken or faulty. You might also guarantee their money back if they’re not satisfied. This actually demonstrates your confidence in your product or service, and a desire to deliver. This will help ease the worried mind of the online customer, and give them confidence to buy from you without regret.
3) The customer can’t contact you.
Customer support is an important communication channel for customers. Whether they want to deliver feedback, ask a question, get a refund, get a replacement, or cancel an order – having a clear way for customers to contact you, let them know you’re there to help them, even if they’ve already bought from you. Plus, customer support allows you to rescue a bad situation. If you can communicate with, reassure, and appease an unhappy customer, then you might be able to turn the situation around and make them happy.
Having poor customer support can be detrimental for your reputation and branding. If people feel frustrated and let down by your company, they’ll be sure to share their opinion by leaving you a negative review or by sharing their opinion on social media. This will of course affect people’s trust and willingness to buy from you in the future.
Just consider that it only takes a couple of bad reviews to scare off a customer. Be supportive and understanding of your customers concerns and needs.
All three of these tips have a common theme. Trust. Ensuring your website is safe and secure builds trust with the customer. Providing a satisfaction guarantee builds trust with the customer. Being contactable builds trust with the customer (and can save you from getting a bad reputation!).Vertical Plus has been working with clients for years, helping them build their online businesses.
For an impartial discussion, please contact Justin Smith at justin@verticalplus.co.uk