Trust Badges are a common sight in today’s ecommerce business and market scene. From free shipping to safe check out, there’s always going to be a trust badge displayed to strengthen its claim and fortify the trust that your customers have towards your brand. But what is a trust badge really? And why do they seem everywhere, even in businesses and websites that seem to be new? Let’s find out!
Defining Trust Badge
As the name suggests, a Trust Badge is a badge displayed commonly in ecommerce sites like Amazon and eBay so that your visitors will know that your page and business is authentic and legitimate. It also gives them the knowledge that any data that they share (using cookies or third-party means) will be collected and stored using safe and secure means. Even though the trust badge appears everywhere, it is fully understandable as with ecommerce, there isn’t really any other way to verify whether a seller or business is legitimate or not. Your other options other than a trust badge and a safe checkout sticker would be to check reviews or wait for a family member or close friend to vouch for the seller.
Trust Badges may also denote that the security features of the website are intact and safe. With that, guaranteed safe checkout and sensitive information like credit card details and addresses are kept safe.
To keep it short: a trust badge is a symbol you see often placed on your website that denotes security and legitimacy to your customers.
Now that you know what a trust badge is, it’s time to know which ones you should put on your website
With hundreds of trust badges on the internet, it can be overwhelming and confusing as to which and how many you should put on your website to ensure your customer’s security and trust. We recommend putting at least 5 trust badges on your website which are:
- Guaranteed safe checkout trust badges
Image taken from TrustLock.co
This first one is probably the most important trust badge to have on your website. The safe checkout or guaranteed checkout badge is the symbol and seal given when you register in a website or marketplace that provides users an SSL certificate. An SSL or Secure Socket Layer protects and ensures that the internet connection and the info shared along that connection is 100% secure.
A guaranteed safe check out trust badge indicates that the checkout steps and process that your customers will go through are processed securely. It also tells the customer that their sensitive information is encrypted through secure third-party methods. This trust badge is the most important and necessary trust badge you need in your website and business so that your customers will feel safe and sound while purchasing their favorite products on your website.
There are a variety of guaranteed safe checkout trust badges, but any will do as long as the badge itself denotes safety and security. It should be able to let your customers know in an instant that your site and business can be trusted. You may create your own trust badge design or get inspiration from trust badges of services like PayPal or Amazon.
These guaranteed safe check out trust badges are best put beside the “Add to Cart” button and on the check out page.
- Accepted payment methods trust badges
Image taken from TrustLock.co
Another important trust badge that you will need to integrate well into your website is the accepted payment methods trust badgers. Having this trust badge will not only keep your customers at ease with knowing that their desired payment method is present but also ensure the safety of your site. When you have services like Visa, Mastercard, American Express, Paypal, and many more as your payment methods, you boost the trust levels of your customers as they see that your website accepts multiple and trusted payment methods.
It also makes them feel familiar as these payment methods are the ones accepted and recognized globally. We advise that you place these buttons in the footer of your website or in listed on the payment process page.
- Free returns and shipping trust badges
Image taken from TrustLock.co
Nothing builds trust like free returns and shipping trust badges. With these badges, you are letting your customers know that they can freely return and products they have purchased and received as long as it falls under your terms and conditions of returns and shipping. This will also remove the fear of buying online as customers will have the feeling of freedom as they will be able to return products that were damaged in shipping.
The placement of this trust badge can be flexible and it’s really up to you where you want to display it. You may even put it on your website’s homepage so that customers will be going in with the knowledge that they are in safe and trusted hands. It can be effective as a badge in your header.
Building and gaining the trust of your customers is the most important thing when starting an ecommerce business . There is no way to show evidence or proof that you are a trusted brand due to the lack of a physical store and only the presence of an online store. With this badge, you don’t only value their money and trust, but also their happiness and satisfaction.
- Endorsements from third-party
Image taken from TrustLock.co
Like all trust badges, the purpose of third-party endorsements is to build a profile of legitimacy and credibility within your business. This step requires a process though which can be tedious as it will go through an application and review process. With that said, once you successfully acquire third-party endorsements your business’ credibility will skyrocket.
It does take time and work to process, but we really think it's worth the hassle because of its review and application process that makes it legitimate. It can have a drastic impact on customer trust if done rightfully. Typical third-party badges include Google Verified Customer Reviews and Amazon Best Seller.
- Money-back guarantee trust badge
Image taken from TrustLock.co
Last but not the least, we have the money-back guarantee trust badge. This badge is possible the most effective badge of all along with the guaranteed safe checkout trust badges. The money-back-guarantee trust completely removes the fear and risk of buying online products. As we all know, scams and fake sellers are abundant now with how easy it is to get away from scamming people online. But, with a money-back guarantee trust badge, you are not only giving your customers an assurance that they have nothing to fear, but also that they are free to get their money back if anything wrong arises.
While this badge does not address any vulnerability that you may have in your website or system, it does let your customers know that they can have peace of mind.
As opposed to the previous endorsement badge, this badge is completely free to use and no other process or application process is required to put it on your website. Just find a template and make it yours! Once you finally have your free copy of a Money-Back Guaranteed Badge, you should be proud and display it in places like alongside your safe checkout badge, or near the add to cart and checkout button.
Be mindful of places where you put respective trust badges
As we have mentioned in the earlier sections, don’t just keep scattering these trust badges around as making them appear all over your website will only degrade its trust values. Know where to place them perfectly and keep them in the right places!
Another tip we would like to give you is that keep the same aesthetic around your trust badges. Having different looks will make it seem suspicious, or even awkward on your website. Keep it uniform and if possible, minimal to keep your website clean and subtle. There are tons of free templates on the net that you are free to use. If you are an artist yourself, then feel free to make your own trust badge design to optimize it perfectly according to your website’s look.
For our last tip, it does not really matter in which niche of the ecommerce market you are serving. Having these trust badges will not only boost trust but ultimately boost sales as more customers will trust you and turn into loyal customers. Keeping trust levels high along with security and consistency tight is never a bad thing.
Get started with putting trust badges on your website using Strikingly Website Builder!
If you are looking to build your very own website for your ecommerce business, then you are in the perfect place. Strikingly’s advanced website builder is the perfect tool for you to level up your website game. We have hundreds of templates prepared for your website, and we are sure that one will fit your theme! It’s important to have a website builder that is packed with features and will allow you to put trust badges in just minutes. With Strikingly, you are in safe hands. We work hard every day to deliver you the security and features you need to build your next website.
