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Your company’s website is an online reflection of your business. The information it features and the way it’s presented can ultimately influence customers’ decisions to buy your products or use your services. Making the right impression is essential.
Engaging content certainly plays an important part in achieving that outcome, but it’s not the only factor. Usability, speed, and security also impact how customers perceive your business via their interactions with your company website. Here’s a rundown of actions you can take now to let website visitors know they can count on your company.
Tips to build a trustworthy website
- Secure your website. A trustworthy business ensures its website has the capability to protect consumers’ sensitive information, especially if the site is used to make purchases. Consumers look for the security lock and the “s” in HTTPS to signal the website is safe. Check the security features of your website host and look into adding an SSL certificate, which “ensures that all data passed between the web server and browser remain private,” according to HubSpot.
- Mind your pop-ups. Pop-ups are a great way for businesses to promote a sale or ask for contact information in exchange for a discount, but be strategic about when they appear. Pop-ups that arrive as soon as a customer lands on your website can be a nuisance and jeopardize your website's credibility. Pro tip: Google recommends pop-ups that use a reasonable amount of space, don’t cover main content areas, and are easily dismissible.
- Appear accessible. Consumers want to know they can reach you if an issue arises. Be sure to provide an official business address, phone number, email, and your hours of operation. A trustworthy business is responsive and addresses marketplace issues quickly, professionally, and in good faith.
- Don’t bury the fine print. Savvy shoppers don’t like surprises. So, show off your return and service policies, and make sure they’re easily understandable. Consumers deserve to know their options ahead of time should they need to return an item or if they encounter an issue using your services.
- Watch your load times. Consumers can get impatient (and feel suspicious) if a website takes too long to load. In fact, SEMRush notes that load times are now a variable impacting search rankings. If your website is slow, you may be hosting files – images, videos or slideshows – on your main page that are too large to load quickly. You can test your website’s performance using Google’s user-friendly tool, PageSpeed Insights.
- Use your own original images. Don’t just copy and paste images you find online. A simple reverse image search can tell consumers whether an image is used on multiple websites. If you aren’t able to use images of your own, purchasing stock images is a viable option. Additionally, images of you and your team can help shoppers get a feel for who they’re doing business with.
- Eliminate errors. Typos aren’t a good look. A lack of detail reflects poorly on your team, and wording mistakes are often the mark of an illegitimate operation. Ensure all the content living on your page is concise, informative, and grammatically correct. A clean, professional website builds credibility for your business.
- Show off your BBB Accreditation Seal. Better Business Bureau’s Seal of Accreditation demonstrates to customers your business’s commitment to upholding ethical business practices. If you’re an Accredited Business, it’s important to let consumers know they can trust your team.
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BBB Great West + Pacific contributed this article.