The automotive industry has experienced a rapid digital transformation in the last few years, accelerating the changes that had been gradually occurring in the years before. More and more motoring business is now done online, with sales of new and used cars, bookings for MOTs and servicing and quotes for repairs and parts all being sourced on the internet. This represents a massive shift from the local landscape of competition that once was.
Nowadays, suppliers are competing against businesses tens or even hundreds of miles away – meaning the market for all things motoring is fiercely competitive. Online presences and websites are now pivotal in proceedings and businesses of all kinds in the industry are now having to compete online to survive. An important factor in selling or taking more bookings online is generating trust between your business and a prospective customer. So-called ‘trust signals’ are vital to increasing conversion rates on your website. Below we’ll explore what these are and how you can go about benefitting from them.
What are trust signals?
Trust signals are elements of your website or customer experience that generate feelings of trust and confidence between a customer and your business. These feelings are significant for digital and physical businesses alike – but particularly where human contact is sparse or not experienced until further down the line. Trust signals should give a customer the confidence to make a booking or buy from your online store. We’ll explore some specific examples of these later.
For businesses in the motoring industry, such as mechanics or car dealerships, trust can be difficult to generate with new customers. Car owners or vehicle shoppers are often suspicious of wily professionals and salespeople. As such, it’s even more important to make use of trust signals throughout your customer experience. This often starts with your website and should filter through to any face-to-face experience in the form of professional work clothing and business premises.
What trust signals can be used on a website?
While trust signals can be found in physical spaces, digital trust signals have the biggest impact when it comes to winning new customers online. You may want to consider the following elements on your website if you want to build more trust in your business:
Customer Reviews
Perhaps the simplest and most effective trust signal you can adopt on your website is customer reviews. Get your customers to leave a review of their experience and this will help new customers to feel more confident in using your services – so long as you’re providing a positive experience in the first place.
SSL Certificate
To make your website look more secure and professional, ensure that you have an SSL certificate. This is the little lock symbol seen before the address bar in Google. It is a signal of a secure and encrypted connection between user and website, helping to boost trust if someone is looking to spend money online.
Trusted Payment Methods
eCommerce websites rely heavily on trusted payment methods to conduct business safely and effectively. For customers, it is a strong trust signal that a website is genuine and that they will be making payments securely and without risk to their personal and financial details.
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