Six Tips To Boost Trust and Your Conversion Rate

If your site doesn’t solve a consumer’s problem, you’ve got a big one of your own. Getting viewers to your website is a win all by itself. But solid traffic won’t necessarily put dollars in your pocket. There’s both an art and a science to converting site visitors into actors, and you’ve only got a few seconds to seal the deal. We’re talking about conversion rate optimization. Innovative design, intriguing content and a clear call to action can all help turn a visitor into a customer. Here are six tried-and-true tools of the trade that some webmasters and marketing gurus still fail to include:

1. Site Design Don’t file this under “News,” but there’s a reason you’ve heard this before. The look, feel and utility of your site is crucial. New visitors form an instant impression and make a critical judgment about your products and services based on your design. In today’s marketplace, most consumers assume you will make budgetary space for a professional web design. A website that looks circa 2001 does not inspire confidence. Unless your niche is nostalgia.

2. Who Do You Know? Many businesses work to nab some good press but then fail to capitalize on its potential long-term benefits. Others receive an industry award or certification and just offer up a cursory note on their blog, if even. Capitalize on the credibility of others — if you’ve been featured in a Boston Globe story or won an award from the National Alliance on Mental Health, plaster those logos on your site. Consider creating an “As Seen In” section. Aaron Wall does a tremendous job of this at SEOBook.com.

3. Who Already Trusts You? A great way to build trust and boost conversions is to showcase your already satisfied customers. Gather up the complimentary emails and nice notes you’ve received and dedicate a page of your site to Customer Testimonials. Pick a few really great ones and put them on your home page or key landing pages. Consider writing a couple more in-depth pieces that are more like news articles illustrating their problem and how you helped solve it. The key to this is credibility — provide their name, photo, location and any other information that helps convince consumers that this is actually a real person who vouches for your service. Sites like VA Mortgage Center.com and Allsup.com. Many universities do this extremely well, too.

4. Site Security Convincing visitors that your site is a secure place to provide their personal information is key to increasing conversions. Pick a pertinent place on your site and explain to visitors in clear language their information is secure. Go a step further and include the logo of the security provider, such as Truste or Verisign. Don’t hide your policies on shipping or how you use customer information once it’s entered.

5. Broadcast the Brick-and-Mortar Make a point to include your physical address, a photo of your business and relevant contact information if you have a brick-and-mortar operation. Get your hours and a helpful map up there for good measure. While e-commerce is soaring, there’s inherent peace of mind when consumers see the traditional trappings of a physical store.

6. Be Interactive Embrace social networking. It’s here to stay, and it’s also a great way to interact with and learn from your consumer base. Put prominent links to your Twitter and Facebook pages on your site. Start a RSS feed for your blog. Use these outlets to answer questions, solve problems and better understand the needs of your audience.