As buying and selling moves into the ether though websites, blogs, emails, videos and all other digital sales and marketing devices that bombard us constantly with a myriad of messages, it seems that website owners really need to go back to basics to put their house in order and build on the prime deal-clincher – TRUST.

Building Trust with clients is something we all used to do, in fact if we didn’t build trust, we didn’t get the deal, they didn’t sign the order – they went somewhere else. Now going somewhere else in a physical location can be a real pain, but if you didn’t get the right vibes in your face-to-face negotiation (or should I say confrontation) with the company sales person, you took your money and your buying decisions elsewhere to start the whole process all over again. It could take a long time before you found the perfect buying scenario, but you would persevere if you were serious about buying.

Nowadays, you can go ‘elsewhere’ in a split second; see something that doesn’t gel, something that offends or something that raises your suspicions just a little and you are gone, just by clicking your mouse. Easy.

The internet is so full of horror stories that trust really has to be earned – and nowadays displayed. And to earn that trust with a new visitor can be really difficult. Reassure them. Give them the Social Proof that others have dealt with you and you didn’t steal their first born, that your clients were happy with the service. Get testimonials and use them on your site. Display your client’s logos on your site (if they will permit this).

If you are taking money from them online, let them know that you have taken as many security precautions as possible to stop their details falling into the hands of criminals. Join the Better Business Bureau, use Trustmarks – anything that indicates you are a member of a regulated organisation helps. These organisations will boot you out if you don’t treat your clients well and displaying their logos on your site indicates that you do have some integrity, a half-decent track record and that you won’t be inclined to rip your clients off.

The rise of social media ensures that your tiniest dispute could become the hot topic on a plethora of sites around the globe; monitor your status and reputation constantly- there are many monitoring tools available – and correct any misconceptions as fast as you can.

Get the look that exudes trust. Look at your site objectively. Tastes and styles change and so should your site. What may have been cool four years ago could be so jarringly bad nowadays that your visitors might just get the wrong impression of your business. First impressions from a website can be implanted in fractions of a second and may never be removed from the site visitor’s mind. Give your site a makeover if necessary, but always, always ensure you are making changes for the better, changes that make it easier for your visitors to find what they want, changes that lead your site visitors to a call to action, a call to action that ultimately you have determined they will take – either call you, subscribe to your newsletter, even buy something.

Your website must work for you and not the other way round!

Finally, stand 100% behind your products and services. Give guarantees and honour them. Refunding a few unhappy customers will cost you a little; being obdurate when you handle them and refusing to listen to their complaints will cost you your reputation and ultimately your business.

Have a great week.

About James McRoy

Web marketer, entrepreneur, traveller

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