Consumer Trust Brings OnLine Sales

In this age of fraud and less than ethical behavior, consumers are becoming more cautious when buying on line. They want to know who they are dealing with and that their personal information is safe. Putting the word “virtual” in front of “store front” does not take away the importance of professionalism or security for your customers. In fact, there should be more. Consumers know this and if your site is without, with one quick click of the mouse, your potential sale is gone. You don’t have time to persuade through charm. In fact, you have approximately 5 seconds to earn the trust of a potential customer. When placed strategically on the site; images, text, guarantees, and SSL Certificates create a feeling of security for your visitors.

Ask yourself this question. If I had a choice between two businesses with identical services or products and one of them shows an image of the owner or storefront, and the other one does not, which one would I choose? Chances are you would go with the one with the image. Content of the site should reflect who you are in addition to providing the consumer with valuable information about your service and/or product. Include a photo of yourself or your business. Make it personal. People want to see who they’re dealing with.

Personal contact is still the only way to do business. Put your phone number and times to call in numerous places on your site. Keep in mind, if you provide a phone number, make sure someone is there to answer the call or return the call within a short amount of time. If not, you will not only lose a potential customer but your business will lose credibility.

Provide guarantees. Anywhere a guarantee is issued, people are more likely to buy. It offers a strong sense of safety. Just be ready to honor the guarantee without too much difficulty for your customer.

Purchase a secure SSL Certificate. A certificate shows proof to your potential customers that your site keeps their personal information and transactions secure. When you order a certificate, your site will go through a thorough approval process. Once it is approved, you will be issued the certificate. Having this certificate on your site tells your customers that they can do business with you safely because their sensitive information is encrypted and remains private. This service starts at $27.95/year and will take between 5 minutes to 2 hours to facilitate depending on the type of certificate you purchase. It is well worth the money.


If you plan to use external links, check out the sites thoroughly before putting them on your site. If the sites you choose to link to do not live up to the high requirements you hold for your business, no matter how professional you look, your potential customer will walk away with a negative image of your site. There are millions of sites to choose from. Take care that you use only those that are equal to yours in professionalism. The old saying that “the coconut never falls too far from the tree” holds some truth in this case.


Have fun doing your business online. Just remember that along with the fun comes the responsibility of making your site secure for your potential customers. By not doing this, you will lose customers as well as credibility for your business and you will have no fun at all. For further information, please contact Cara at cara@doitallonline.biz.