Building Credibility–Nailing Down Ecommerce Reputation

No matter how you cut it, your site’s credibility is essential to your financial success. No matter whether your sales are good or out the bottom, increasing credibility will

increase buyer response. This is particularly important for you if you are a new ecommerce site owner and are starting from almost total anonymity. Although it is great to begin a new venture with a great bang of promotion or buzz, it is not necessary as long as you increase credibility in a systematic manner. So, how do you do this and what are the elements of credibility? The answer to those questions is the subject of this article.

If you examine professional ecommerce websites, you will find that they all incorporate some sort of third party trust verification. Research shows that the majority of site visitors take these “seals” of verification very seriously, and if for no other reason, so should you. You may have noticed on other sites images that resemble a stamp of approval verifying the security and reliability of the site. You often see such verification on sites from Companies such as Hacker Safe, Trust Guard, and GeoTrust. PayPal offers vendor verification. The point, though, is that site visitors take this third party verification very seriously and look for it before making purchases.

Third party trust verification services generally guarantee three, main areas of credibility. These are site security, privacy safeguards, and business identity. Security verification is intended to certify that site security and server security. The first is a

promise that visitors are safe on the site. The second guarantees the server on which the site is located is safe. Privacy verification ensures visitors that the site’s privacy terms guarantee that their personal information is safe from abuse. Business I.D. verification certifies that your business is legitimate. The BBB, for example, offers such a service. This means that the BBB takes steps to certify your legitimacy, and that is what it promises to visitors.

Another key to credibility is personal trust. In traditional, brick and mortar business, this is developed through personal contacts and relationships. In spite of what you may hear about the Internet and the incredible hype about social media and networking, personal relationships go a long way to building credibility. Joining the chamber of commerce, small business association, and your local, regional and state professional associations will help at the local level. And do not pooh pooh the power of local recognition. However, many people prefer the curtain of anonymity the Internet provides. To some degree, you can replace face-to-face networking with thoughtful social networking and establishing a business presence via sites like Facebook and forums devoted to your professional area. Use the power of local and regional newspaper press releases as well as online press release blasts.

As important as the elements above are, all the third-party verification and all the press releases in the world won’t make much of a difference in the long run if you do not have good customer service. Consistent and excellent customer service will mean everything to your credibility. As an online business merchant, customers will know you by how well you live up to the promises made on your site. That means prompt acknowledgment of purchase and speedy delivery. This also means that you must respond to all communication quickly and address all concerns in a professional manner. I advise having your contact information out front where all visitors can see it, and make your terms of service easy to find, read and understand. Include a thorough list of frequently asked questions (FAQs), and I also suggest the use of a help desk or some other customer support utility when the time is right.

One, last, important credibility tactic is publishing. There are numerous ways to implement this strategy, such as publishing as a guest author on blogs and other online magazines in your niche area, publishing short, helpful articles in articles directories, and even writing for trade magazines in your specific area of ecommerce. However, if you take the time to develop a business presence on Facebook and other high profile social platforms, you can publish content there as well. I would suggest you pin-point one or two significant forums in your niche area and publish helpful, professional comments. This is a long-term strategy as it is difficult to show up on a forum and instantly establish yourself as an expert. The first step is to establish yourself as an honest and reliable contributor and build from there.

 

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