What will persuade and enhance trust in one site visitor versus the next varies tremendously, which goes back to the importance of personas. Many of these issues reflect on business operations beyond your website, but sites can demonstrate seven areas that enhance trust:
Your value proposition says why a prospect should buy your product or service. What distinguishes your company from the rest of the competition? Customers always want to know the benefit of the product or service, but furthermore, they want to understand why they should do business with you and not with your competition.
Although a well-known company does not need to keep telling visitors who it is once they reach the site, it’s important to maintain relevance by alluding to the value proposition throughout the page. Value propositions are especially critical for newer sites competing against bigger names. They provide a way to conquer the initial online anonymity. Once users identify who you are, what you provide, and what you can do for them, they will overcome their first set of confidence issues.
Many companies define themselves as having “the best customer service” or “the lowest prices.” That’s not an issue as long as you do indeed uniquely offer that value. You must truly stand out in that area among the rest of your competition. We tend to encourage clients to shy away from such overused terms since these are repeated values that many competitors offer. The value proposition must put you at a level that is above the rest. Online, visitors can easily compare sites to figure out whether you really are unique.
Every element on your website, from the home page to the product pages to site navigation, should support that value proposition. It’s the message that you want your visitors not only to read, but also to experience throughout the site. Again, you are defining your company (not your products—there is a different value proposition for that) in a way that you’d like to be remembered by your site visitors.
Amazon.com offers a wide range of items. The site also offers community feedback and reviews on just about anything, positive or negative, throughout the site. Before many online shoppers make a purchase decision, they are likely to visit Amazon.com to comparison shop. The value proposition at Amazon.com could be that it is a community site, allowing you to purchase from a range of vendors, and get the feedback you need to make a more educated decision.
When Ebay.com was first launched, it was one of the first online marketplaces where items could be bought, sold, or traded. Users could successfully auction off items as large as a home (sold for $1) or as bizarre as the Virgin Mary Sandwich (sold for $28,000). There was little other value like that on the Web, and people came flocking as a result. The value that was being offered superseded any concerns users may have had about the site. Therein lies the power of a value proposition.