Tips for Building Credibility & Trust Through Your Website Design
One of the most important underlying things to a website is how credible we perceive it as users. With things like this, the devil is in the details and even some of the smallest things can erode the trust and credibility of new visitors to your site. First impressions are everything when it comes to the short attention span of web users today. In this post, I’m going to share some tips on how you can build a website that is trustworthy and compelling. Let’s dive in!
Ensure you have a HTTPS site
The “s” in the “https” you see before your web domain stands for secure! HTTPS stands for Hyper Text Transfer Protocol Secure and essentially means that your site is secure for visitors to view. This is also by the locked padlock in your browser search bar. If your site isn’t secure, users can get a warning page before viewing the page that tells them the site is not secure and could be a risk for their data being stolen. The steps to make your site an HTTPS will vary by your domain provider or website, so if you don’t see that lock icon when viewing your site definitely look for the documentation on how to get it corrected.
Make sure your website looks as it should on mobile
Not only is mobile design important for the usability of your site, but frankly, if your site isn’t responsive it just isn’t going to look professional. If you’re using Squarespace I’ve found the mobile experience to be very good with little effort. You’ll want to pull up your website and tap around a bit on your phone to make sure everything looks okay.
If things aren’t tappable, the viewport of the screen is obstructed by ads or pop-ups, or if the content hasn’t loaded appropriately, visitors are going to pick up those cues and likely head to a site that’s easy to browse. The majority of web traffic is now via mobile devices so this is an absolutely critical thing to get right.
Make it clear that there is a human being behind the site
There are so many spammy websites on the Internet these days that it’s really important to make it clear that your site is authored by a real person or team of people. The way that you can do this is through two primary things: an about page and a contact page. Essentially making it so people can get to know you and reach you. Sprinkling in links to your social platforms also helps.
Cut down on pop-ups
Pop-up content is very visually intrusive to a user who is trying to complete a task so use them sparingly and intentionally. An opt-in pop-up might also work as a sticky header. A video ad overlay might work better as an inline video ad. The user experience should always be prioritized over any advertising. While site authored pop-ups are fine in moderation, I would stray away from pop-up advertising entirely.
Use high-quality images
High-quality imagery goes hand in hand with a nice layout to create a great impression on a first-time visitor. If you’re taking your photos yourself, look at professional sites in your domain for inspiration. If you’re a product seller look at retailers with good photography (Target, Anthropologie, Crate & Barrel) and take notes on what works. If you’re using stock photos as a hero image, I recommend checking out Unsplash for high-quality lifestyle images.
Include testimonials on the landing page if you have them
If you have customer testimonials that showcase your product or service, be sure to include them on your landing page. There’s nothing better than a review or recommendation to help improve the credibility of your business.
Proofread your copy
This one seems obvious but is often overlooked. I recommend using a tool like Grammarly to check your copy as you write it. Sometimes we get into our own heads when writing copy and don’t notice our mistakes. I would also urge you to make a copy editing pass to make anything you write as simple and concise as possible. Users tend to skim content so it’s super important to make sure the words you’re using are getting you as much mileage as possible.
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