We all have seen the articles on Buzzfeed that showcase #Onlineshopping fails…From buying an adult size tent and getting a small child one instead…Planning to get a beautifully constructed prom dress and getting a potato sack…To getting a rug the size of a bookmark, it is all fun and games until it happens to you. As we have all probably fallen victim to #onlineshoppingfails, as a business owner, how can you avoid these trust pitfalls and gain potential customers?In this article, learn how you can meaningfully overcome the gap in trust to instill confidence in online shoppers and how it can improve your bottom line as a business.5 Ways Build Trust With Your CustomersSo, think back to a time when you first came onto a webpage of a new brand. Like most shoppers, you’ve probably had questions like:Can the product do what it claims?Will I get the product I paid for online? Is this business legitimate? Can I trust the people behind the business?As to offset some of the risks involved, you probably tried to build credibility by looking at reviews, multiple photos, and ratings. Because you and 85% of shoppers do research before hitting “purchase,” you have to ask yourself as a business: What content and user experiences are you creating for customers to complete their purchase in confidence?As we all know that trust is earned and not given, look to these impactful ways you can build trust with new and returning customers:
1. Personify Your BusinessIn 2021, businesses are being held to a higher accountability by their potential customers. Personalization and putting the human back into your business will be key as people crave and demand authentic connection and transparency with businesses. To do this effectively, businesses should look to:
- Create a robust and engaging ABOUT US page on your website telling your brand story and “whys”
- Show faces behind your business that promote feelings of connection
- Use more behind the scenes and transparent content
- Create ads that seem less like ads through storytelling and creative ad copy
- Use influencer marketing responsibly and honestly
- Share milestones and progress
- Be transparent and apologize for mishaps or problems
- Share social commitments to causes and equality (if it applies to your brand)
By being honest and open with your audience, people will automatically develop trust in your business. That virtue alone will be a huge differentiator for businesses in 2021. 2. Showcase Customer ReviewsIn short, reviews are important. Period. With the emergence of platforms like Amazon, customers have been trained to gauge product reliability through word of mouth.In fact, when purchasing items online, 61% of customers read online reviews before making a purchase decision, and 72% of consumers say positive user reviews make them trust businesses more. With statistics like that, leveraging customer reviews to build trust in your business will act as a big social proof boost for conversion rates. To do this well, cultivate social media reviews for feedback and feature them on your website! Has a customer mentioned multiple purchases in a review? Great! Use that as a strong storytelling piece to share reliability and a repeat customer base!Taking customer feedback, reviews, and photos and shaping them into helpful content is a great way to not only engage customers and inspire more conversation, but it also helps drum up positive brand image!3. Limit Risk by Offering Free Returns/Exchanges Unlike shopping in person, when you browse online, you can’t pick up the product. You can’t touch it or hold it in your hands so all you have is the website content a business provides.As a business looking to minimize purchasing friction and risk, providing a great return and exchange policy will be extremely helpful.Good return policies show that you prioritize the customer experience and that you're confident about your product. Return policies immediately lower the potential risk. To make the most of this effort, businesses will need to provide user experiences like:
- Create FAQ pages with full return policies
- Provide return information on product pages
- Display visual badges like Trust Seals and Moneyback Guarantees
- Link return policies to the footer of your website
4. Create Compelling Visual ContentDid you know that people remember 80% of what they see, but only 20% of what they read? An image's impact is undeniable, and if you are not providing quality and informative visuals for your ecommerce business, you could be hurting sales! Why? The simple trust is this: the better your stuff looks, the more you will sell. As an ecommerce business, the perceived value of your products (and the trustworthiness of your brand) are often judged on the quality of your visual content. So, product photography that illustrates all facets of your product helps shoppers make confident, well-informed purchases. Here are a few of the things a great product photo can accomplish:
- It makes potential customers want to buy or click on your product
- It is clear and communicates important information about the product
- It has purpose, emotional connection, and stylization that represents your brand
- It helps them visualize what it would be like to have your product in their daily life
By giving shoppers a well-rounded understanding of your product through compelling visuals you help alleviate purchasing stress…which means more sales! The best way to do this is through three main photography types on product pages:Studio PhotographyLights, camera action because these are your stylized glamor shots for your business! Studio shots are photos of your product on a plain background with plenty of light to highlight and give your customers a glimpse of your product. Studio shots are a clean and simple way to show potential customers what your products are about. The clearness, lighting, and simplicity are really what will draw in your customers, especially when they’re looking at thumbnails.Lifestyle PhotographyWe call these the Steve Irwin on ecommerce photos as they show products in their “natural habitat.”Lifestyle shots are the photos that help inspire your customers to purchase and make them feel like they “need” to have the product in their own personal lives. These are the “Pinterest-worthy” photos showcasing your products the way they are intended to be used/look like in customer life.Scale PhotographyRemember those rugs the size of bookmarks we talked about earlier?By including photography that helps customers visually understand size, you are decreasing the chances of returns. Since customers cannot pick up and physically see your items like they would in a brick and mortar shop, photos like this reassure your shoppers that the product will be what they expected. This again helps with returns and exchanges, which can help save you money!5. Share Consistent Touchpoints and EducationBelieve it or not, people want to see content from brands. But there is a fine line and a few things to consider… As a business, you must consistently create quality content for people to want to engage with, learn and interact with you. It’s a trust thing but it’s also a habit thing. Getting your audience in the habit of looking for and engaging with your content is the key to success.To do this well, you need to meet your customers in the places they want to find business communication. These days the most effective places are SMS text messaging and building email lists. To put it simply, your customers, leads, and potential clients want to hear from you via email. In fact, 72% of US adults prefer to hear from businesses via email and text messaging.By communicating consistently you effectively build relationships, educate on product, drive leads, and maximize profitability. If you are new to communication like that, businesses like Ampry create high-performing sign-up units that convert site visitors into SMS and email subscribers and ultimately drive revenue. (In fact, doing things like that well can convert 3X better!)Trust Gained: Effective Ecommerce Experiences in 2021So, to ensure you are not going to be featured as a shopping fail disaster, we hope this article gave you practical ways to create trust with customers which will increase conversions and hopefully increase returning customers.With these strategies in place, you’ll hopefully better position yourself to inspire trust from a growing customer base. As your customers believe you to be credible, you are sure to improve in your conversion goals. If you want more tips and strategies to improve customer trust and conversions, reach out to us at Ampry where we can help you test new creative and messaging to find what resonates with your users.