Trust signals are the elements that give your customers and potential customers confidence to purchase the products and services that you’re selling. When a consumer is considering converting, they don’t only want to know that they received good value for their money, but also that they aren’t passing up a better deal somewhere else. Trust signals help to remove those doubts.
By developing trust signals, customers have the confidence to pull the trigger on their purchases. In this age of e-commerce, where retailers and service providers are asking customers to make purchases without in-person validation, trust signals are more vital than ever.
Why Authenticity Is the Path to Digital Trust
Authenticity may be the most critical factor in gaining trust in digital marketing. It’s essential that what you’re offering is exactly as stated. With this in mind, your campaigns should be honest and transparent. If your product or service is seen as gimmicky or untrustworthy by your customers, your company will suffer a slow demise as the bad online reviews begin to roll in. To achieve authenticity, it’s not only necessary to clearly identify the merits of your product; you need to anticipate why certain clients might not be satisfied and mitigate the damage before it occurs.
Different Types of Trust Signals
The following is an overview of the various trust signals that can help your business earn a reputation for authenticity.
Guarantee Trust Signals
Guarantee trust signals build confidence with your customers by ensuring their purchase in some capacity of another. “Satisfaction guaranteed or your money back” is a trust signal that lets the buyer know that they can be made whole if they don’t like their purchase. Best-price guarantees let the customer know that you will offer a partial refund if they find the same item for a better price. Guarantee trust signals not only let the customer know you’re confident in your product or service but that they’re not risking making a bad situation.
The following website created an entire page dedicated to their product & service guarantees:
Social Proof Trust Signals
Online companies often live and die by social proof trust signals. These trust signals include reviews, ratings, testimonials, and combinations of all three. When a potential client sees that your customers are extremely satisfied, they’re much more likely to convert.
Here is one featured story from a site that uses customer stories and testimonials to promote social proofing:
Trust by Association Trust Signals
Oftentimes, a company will use the products or services of a trusted company. For instance, a number of computer companies advertised that they used Intel processors as a way to encourage trust in their computers. This type of trust signal is trust by association. For it to work, it’s important that the associated organizations are also seen as trustworthy.
The following website utilizes recent awards with a well-known third-party, product rating nonprofit to further signal trust factors:
Membership Trust Signals
Belonging to organizations, such as the Better Business Bureau, means that your company has met whatever criteria that the group has established for member businesses. As customers become aware of your participation in the organization, their confidence grows. This can also work for individuals and staff within the company.
The following website displays their pharmacy-verified website badge to garner trust from users purchasing prescriptions online:
Transparency with User Reviews and Customer Feedback
One of the most effective ways to bolster your company’s authenticity doesn’t require a large financial investment. This may be the closest thing to a free lunch that you can find in marketing. By providing your customers a forum to rate their experience and talk about your company, you are also establishing social proof trust for any third parties that may be interested in what you’re offering.
The following website incorporates product reviews and questions from users to show transparency about their products:
