What are Trust Badges and Can They Increase Conversion Rates

Most experienced business owners know and use trust badges. Trust badges are the small images that look like small logos or buttons that are placed on websites to show that the sites are PCI Compliant and that the website is safe from intrusive viruses or hackers. Trust badges are what more and more consumers look for to reassure themselves that a previously unknown website is a safe place for them to shop.

Only inexperienced online business owners wonder if trust badges make a difference in the increase of consumer confidence resulting in an increase in sales.

Cyber Source, a network optimization company, recently did a study to see if Trust badges really do help business owners create a more trusted, more profitable website. They found that 85% of online shoppers look for visible signs like a trust badge to prove that the website they are thinking of buying products or services from is secure.

Users look for things such as trust seals, logos, secure check out pages, guarantees, refund policies, valid contact information, and trust badges. The study confirmed that companies who make websites more secure for users – and who make that security readily apparent to visitors – have better conversion rates and make more online sales. Companies who use trust badges, even if they aren’t well known or trusted, automatically have an increase in sales.

However, they also found that having too many trust badges can make your consumers feel uneasy, less secure and less likely to trust the website. To prove that your website is safe and secure to help comfort customers and increase your profits, all you need is 1-2 trust badges on your website. It is suggested to have one on your main front page and one near your check out page.

Trust badges have been proven to radically and consistently help online businesses increase their sales, customer trust and loyalty.

Website Security Proves Invaluable!

Last month“Visual Website Optimizer” ran contests to have their consumers predict which situation would produce a 400% increase in customer conversions online. They received over 50 entries.

In the case study, two different but identical websites were shown to consumers; one with a security trust seal, and one without. They tested the sites over a 2 week span to see which website could increase their traffic generation the most, and what factors, if any, made that website more appealing to customers.

                                                                                                        

They found that the website with the trust seal increased their conversion rate by 400%! With this study they found some of the key factors that are needed to increase your website’s conversion rate:

1.      Have a secure Trust Seal placed at the top of you website for all your customers to clearly see. You will want to make sure that the Trust Seal is placed in its own section on your site so it won’t distract from the main focuses of your website.

2.      Have a secure Trust Seal also posted on your checkout page. More consumers purchased products when they knew that their credit card information was secure. It is something that is mostly subconscious to customers, but has proven to work for online business owners time and time again.

Business owners, social media experts and visual optimization professionals have found that time and time again you will increase your traffic generation, conversion rates, and profits by having a secure trust seal on your website. In this case it was a 400% increase!

Trust Seal Credibility

Did you know that it is required by the Payment Card Industry (PCI) that all online ecommerce businesses must be consistently conduct a security scan on their site and provide a secure check out for their customers. Some business owners think it is a pain and a waste of time and money to be PCI compliant. But companies like Trust Guard have turned a perceived negative into two proven and valuable positives.

Trust Guard provides business owners with trust seals that they proudly display on their websites. These seals are small images that, when hovered over or clicked on open up a certificate that explains all of the company’s efforts to keep the information provided by online consumers safe and secure.  Here are the two benefits of displaying trust seals on your website:

1.      When customers see all the effort you have made to keep your site safe, they will trust you.

2.      Because they trust you, they are more likely to purchase your products and services.

In fact, several third-party tests have repeatedly shown that sales and profits increase by at least 15.28% in just the first month of displaying trust seals. For example, say you own a small part time business that brings in just over $2,000 per month. By adding a trust seal to your website, stats have proven that you are expected to make at least $300 more each month without any additional cost in advertising.

The reason why business profits automatically increase, just by adding a secure trust seal to your site is because people trust them. When customers visit your business online, they are interested in what products and services you offer. But that doesn’t ensure the sale.

Often, it is only when consumers visit a website that displays a secure trust seal, that visitors unfamiliar with your brand will take a chance on you and purchase your products.

Trust seals give your website more credibility. They tell your consumers that you have the ability to offer them quality products and services and that you are a business that they can depend on.

Trust seals are simple to add to your website – all you do is copy and paste some HTML code. They are affordable. They build your business’ credibility and can substantially increase your profits. All around they offer a “win, win” for you and your online visitors.

How Trust Seals Increase Your Business

 

As you know, much of what we do today we do online. Businesses now have Facebook pages that customers can “like” and be made aware of promotions and new products through status updates. Companies also “Tweet” on Twitter stating things like: “ClearanceSale/Hot NewItems/50%Off.” This is how many businesses today choose to market their brands.

Because of this, nearly all businesses have a website, whether or not they actually sell products online. To start, they purchase a URL and domain name and find some company to host it. Then they find a design company and create a beautiful, functional, easy-to-navigate website which, by itself immediately increases their chance for success.

By creating a business website, Facebook page, Twitter account, etc., businesses are able to let people all over the world know about whom they are, what they sell, and why we should buy their products. Having an online presence has proven to increase customer bases by providing a free report or digital product simply by asking for a person’s email address to access the free gift.. This is one way that today’s business world continues to evolve.

Multiple surveys and case studies have shown that the #1 way to entice online consumers into purchasing products is to have a secure website. Having a secure websiteis more than just having an SSL certificate. It also means daily vulnerability scanning which checks for loop-holes hackers could use to gain access to the website.

These scans should be accompanied by a trust seal which demonstrates to individuals visiting the website that the site is clean and free of security vulnerabilities. The trust seal shows a consumer that you are compliant with the Payment Card Industry (PCI) and that you care about the safety and security of the shopper’s personal information and any private data they might need to enter.

A recent Trust Seal survey showed that for businesses that displayed a security-related trust seal on their website garnered the following results during the first full month of visibly demonstrating their concern for safety:

1.     At least a 7.5% Increase in conversion rate,

2.     An average increase of 4.0% in average order size, and

3.     A Minimum of 11.9% increase in net revenue.

And because most trustworthy trust verification seals offer a substantial guarantee – including Doubling Your Money Back, there really is no risk on the part of the business owner to display the security seal and scan the site against vulnerabilities – especially when you consider that being PCI compliant is no longer mandatory.

The Most Trusted Trust Seal

Baymard Institutes Security Department conducted some recent research to see which website security seal people trust the most. As a result of this research, they found that most people have very little understanding of the technical security of web pages. They mostly just go with their gut feeling.

In response to this phenomenon, successful business owners always ensure that their websites appear professional and feel secure. Online marketing specialists recommend the use of clean, bright background colors, crisp borders and the use of trust seals to increase the perceived website security. The rationale is that when you make your customers feel comfortable, welcome and secure, they will be more willing to purchase your products.

In the last 2013 case study performed by security experts at Baymard Institute, they raised the question: “Which site seals are actually the most trusted by users?” They sent a list of different reliable and trustworthy Trust Seal providers to consumers and had them vote as to which trust seal gave them the best sense of trust when paying online. Out of 2,510 responses, 1,286 (more than half) responded by saying they had “no preference.” However the rest of the group tended to vote for the ones that included the word “Trust” in the name.

They deduced that the actual trust logo you purchase for your site is not as important as the way your site looks. If your customers feel like your website is professional, friendly and inviting, they will trust you more. However, it does help to include a professional Trust Seal that includes the word “trust” in the name.

This sends a subconscious message to your consumers that they can trust your site. This has proven to make them feel more secure on shopping websites, which in turn makes consumers more likely to purchase the products that are offered.

I searched online for trust seals include the name “trust” in them. I found TRUSTe that provides Privacy Seals and Trust Guard that provides Privacy, Business Identity, and Security Trust Seals. According to the report, these two companies have an edge on other website security verification companies solely because of their names.