Boost e-commerce conversions to the next level with these consumer trust-building tactics

The trend of buying and selling products online instead of brick and mortar stores is at an all-time high and continues to grow. A couple of years ago, Visa, an electronic funds transfer company recorded a growth of 6.5 percent in online purchases compared to a decrease of 2.6 percent for physical purchases. However, most of this growth is from Walmart, Amazon and similar e-retail giants. As a result, smaller e-commerce websites need to work harder in order to stay relevant in this new global business trend. Winning consumer trust is the strategy that lies at heart to make it work and result in high conversion, the end goal. 

Best Consumer Trust Building Tactics: 

1. Positive Reviews for the store and products 
2. E-store’s longer establishment 
3. Previous buying experience 
4. Multiple Payment Options 
5. Awards & Recognition 
6. Relevant product info 
7. Flexible return Policies 
8. Other’s recommendations 

Building consumer trust in an online space needs to be done on multiple levels. It is not based on just a simple selling-and buying-algorithm. The layout of the site page and the content of the site involving images, videos, and texts for products plays a very important role in winning consumer trust, thus resulting in a high conversion rate of your e-commerce site. 

For instance, a recent study showed that two different products listed on Amazon’s search result page could see a sharp contrast in conversion and sales solely based on how the product content appears on the product page. Often, items that include more images see higher conversions compared to those that include bullet points. Also, the items that have the greatest number of reviews show high conversion. 

What are other factors that influence consumer trust and conversion rate? Let’s explore! 

The best trust-building tactics for high conversion 

Trust-building tactics: 

• Good Reviews 
• Recommendations 
• Recognition 

Positive reviews for both the store and products  

Online buyers want to be sure others trust the company and like its products before making a purchase. This is a necessary consumer trust-building tactic. 

Recommendations from other customers, friends and family members 

Always be ready to embed the latest recommendation and share tools for different social networking sites. These can be positioned in the site’s footer or header and on category and product pages for the purpose of sharing products. 

Recognition matters a lot 

It is great to know that the website uses security encryptions and focuses on secure methods of payment. However, bestseller badges and awards can do wonders when it comes to consumer trust for buying an item from your e-shop. It results in increased traffic and high conversion rate of your products

Ratings, awards, and certifications are necessary trust-building factors. Many third-party rating and review sites offer prestige badges to embed in website pages. 

Previous experience 

Many e-stores rely mostly on repeat business tactics. So, it becomes crucial to offer the best service to all existing and potential shoppers, from the initial visit on the site until the delivery of the item. If the shopper has a great experience throughout their entire buying process, it results in building consumer trust which eventually results in high conversion. 

Product information that has high relevance 

Relevant information or content comprises product reviews, images, user-generated content, videos, and textual descriptions. It helps in boosting consumer trust. Targeting the interest group of potential buyers is very crucial, as pleasing all shoppers is an impossible task. For example, when a product information research company surveyed a thousand online buyers, more than 50 percent said they needed at least three to four product photos to decide to buy a product. 13 percent said 5 or more product images were necessary. Thus, product information is the most important trust-building factor for high conversion. 

Duration 

When it comes to consumer trust, the longer your e-store has been around, the more reliable and trustworthy it is. If your store is new to the market, then it takes extra effort to boost conversion and build trust. 

Return policies that are flexible 

The ability to return or exchange items is a great trust-building factor that is always valuable to online shoppers. A 30-day return period is the most accepted norm, but 60 to 90 days is the best spot to trigger an online purchase. Research has shown that extended return windows decrease the rate of return. 

1) The longer someone uses a product, the more they feel true ownership.  

2) Secondly, doing away with the need to rush to return something, often results in the item being retained. 

A research firm found that more than 60 percent of online shoppers consider a store’s return policy before choosing to buy a product. Nearly half of the shoppers who participated in the study said they would buy more and recommend an online shop only if it has a lenient policy of return. Other studies also suggested similar results, showing that users are willing to pay a higher price for an item if there is a hassle-free return policy.

More than 60 percent of online shoppers consider a store’s return policy before choosing to buy a product.

Perks of having a lenient return policy: 

• 60 percent of buyers consider the return policy 
• Recommendation of the e-store is seen more. 
• Buyers rate is increased. 
• Users are ready to pay higher prices if there is a comfortable return policy. 

Thus, the power of this consumer trust tactic for high conversion should not be underestimated. It not only increases the potential for high sales but also leads to an increase in the margin of profit-making on a product. 

Multiple payment options.  

Providing multiple payment options is not only about providing choices. Pro buyers know that some methods of payment aren’t as easy as others. For instance, nearly all business sites accept Mastercard and Visa. On the other hand, American Express and Discover have stricter transaction standards. Some mobile payment methods, such as Apple Pay, undergo additional verification processes, and a website that does not stand up to their guidelines is more liable to have its account flagged. 

• Similarly, some payment options are very user-friendly, instant and offer certain discounts on products such as mobile wallets. These are quick, simple and secure payment options which help in a swift checkout and payment process, thus aiding in building consumer trust and high conversion. Payment options are to be: 
  • Quick & Simple 
  • Secure 
  • User-friendly 
  • Flexible with all other payment modes like mobile wallets. 

  Give high priority to consumer trust-building factors to see a hike in conversion rate 

  With online competition for generating more sales getting tougher every day and shoppers getting savvier, growing consumer trust should be a priority for any e-store. So, take some time to revisit the policies of your e-store and work on the product content offered for the items you sell. Similarly, find ways to encourage users to share relevant product pages to others who have trust in their suggestions. 

  Prioritize consumer trust by: 

  • Revisiting e-store policies 
  • Working on product content 
  • Encouraging users to share product pages to their friends