Several organizations in the U.S. and around the world are bracing for the implementation of the European Union (EU) General Data Protection Regulation (GDPR). Regardless of where your business is based, the regulation affects you if you are providing products or services to EU citizens and organizations. Your lack of compliance inflicts serious damages of up to 4% of your annual global turnover or €20 Million, whichever is greater, and a tainted reputation.

Your Action Plan for GDPR Compliance

The GDPR gives EU citizens the right to know and decide how their personal information is being used, stored, transferred, deleted, and overall protected. Every business, including yours, need customers to thrive, and implementing the GDPR will affect your entire organization. You will need to rethink how personal information is handled from the source to the point of consumption. You should also consider how your data management and data governance frameworks will support GDPR requirements for personal data protection.

If you do not want to risk your business and its reputation, here are the steps you can take to achieve GDPR compliance:

Step 1: Include a cookie consent pop-up to your website.

Internet cookies, browser cookies, or cookies are small pieces of data sent from a website and stored on the user’s computer while they are browsing. The unique data allows your site to store each user’s preferences and retarget them with ads. To comply with the GDPR, you need to prioritize getting your users’ consent before storing cookies on their device.

The most common way to do this is to display a pop-up (a window that suddenly appears), with a message asking consent to the use of cookies.

Step 2: Ensure that your online data collection programs ask for explicit consent.

Alternatively referred to as a checkbox, tick box, or selection box, a checkbox is a form that can be selected to indicate an answer to a question or to enable a setting.

Explicit consent is pretty straight-forward. Users have to select a checkbox, which is a form that indicates an answer to a question or to enable a setting. It tells a user that to complete a specific activity, they must click on or check a button to opt-in or opt-out of allowing your site to gather data. This means that if you ask for an email address to directly market to people, you provide them the information on the form, and you have a tick box, which gives consent and is not automatically checked. This way, there is no way for users to consent to anything accidentally.

Step 3: Update your privacy policy to align with GDPR regulations and follow them.

Your company’s privacy policy is one of the first formal documents a regulator will view. If your privacy policy is out of GDPR compliance, you are basically handing an invitation to further scrutiny by EU regulators.

There are many reasons why you should always have an updated privacy policy, including:

• It is required by law, especially if you collect personal data from users
• It’s required by third-party services you may use, which includes Google Analytics
• Users have the right to be concerned about their privacy (Aren’t you worried about how other businesses process your private information?)

Step 4: Check your third-party tools.

A third-party data processor is an entity that processes personally identifiable information (PII) on behalf of a data controller. Under the new rules, any third-party processor you use is now directly and legally obligated to also be in compliance.

Many organizations have updated their data processing agreements and added GDPR sections to their websites and knowledge bases. Some offer short primers on the legislation, checklists for customers, and updates on how they intend to comply. Specifically, MailChimp, Hubspot, Salesforce, and Constant Contact are among the many providers who indicated that they have certified with Privacy Shield, which shows their intention to abide by GDPR’s rules on the transfer of data between countries.

Step 5: Have a plan in case you experience a data breach.

The GDPR legislation indicates that in most cases, you have 72 hours to report a data breach. Your business should take precautionary measures to secure your data and have a strategic plan in case you get hacked. These actions plans may include assessing the risks to all private data, contacting all relevant financial institutions and affected customers, or by asking users to change their passwords immediately, among several other procedures.

Conclusion

Lack of GDPR compliance imposes great threats to the future of many organizations. However, personal information has tremendous value. If managed improperly, it can create significant disadvantages that will result in grueling legal battles. It is highly advised to consult with your legal team and create a plan for the GDPR launch on May 25th, 2018.

If you have any questions on how to ensure that your marketing efforts are in line with GDPR regulations, call PrimeView today at 480-970-4688. We can provide the best practices to help with your compliance.

The holiday season is upon us, and with it is the flurry of early shoppers — and the aftermath, the last-minute shoppers. While it may be chaotic to get all orders processed and delivered by the time Christmas Eve rolls around, you need to be prepared to ensure that you maximize the holiday rush.

With the different preferences of the shoppers, your approach has to vary to ensure that you don’t alienate any of them. However, how can you balance your approach to target all groups?

While it may be impossible to please everyone, here are some foolproof tips to prepare your website for the holiday rush.

   •   Know your audience.

You should do your research before the holiday rush kicks off. You have to know your target market and get to know your consumers. A popular method is the “A day in the life of” to get to know your consumer. For example, how do your usual customers spend their day? By studying their habits, you will know when is the best time to advertise to them. Likewise, you will also know the kind of deals that would appeal to them the most.

 •    Kickstart your SEO and CRO.

If you’re just starting your SEO campaign today, you are a little late to the game and you should do better next year. A proper SEO campaign needs time to work; it has to gain traction for you to reap the rewards come the holiday season. With this, you also need to consider your conversion rate optimization program (CRO). Once the new tidbits of your website are in place, you have to ensure that all items work as they are indeed to. Which brings us to…

 •    Optimize your website.

When we say optimize your website, we don’t mean create a new website right now. You should never do that so close to the holiday season. Rather, what you should do is to work with what you have now. For starters, you can do the following:

o     Have a holiday-themed design

This is very simple and attractive, for the reason that holiday designs can get people in the mood to shop more. By showing that your website is designed for the holiday, they will get the idea that you are taking the event seriously and would, therefore, be able to provide good value for their money.

o     Have holiday-themed deals

As we mentioned above, the deals that you’re offering should add value to your customers. For instance, do not offer them deals that they’re likely to get elsewhere. Rather, play on your strengths and show them how valuable their business is to you. So if all your competitors are selling branded t-shirts, take it up a notch and sell personalized shirts.

o    Think mobile

A large percentage of online shoppers complete their transactions on mobile. In fact, Apple just sold their billionth iPhone — just imagine that number browsing on their mobile for the latest deals! That being said, it would be in your best interests to ensure that your website is mobile-friendly. We’re not just talking about changing the screen resolution to fit your device’s screen – rather, this is about optimizing everything so that all the nooks and crannies of your website work on mobile. All buttons are responsive; all the choices are available. Going mobile should not be a hindrance for your customers to find you. Rather, it should be a stepping stone to them purchasing more.

•     Exhaust your server

One of the things you should do to ensure that your customers have a positive experience is to test your website thoroughly and see if your server can handle the sudden spike in traffic. There have been numerous cases of interactive websites only to fail at the last minute because it could not handle the traffic. You will need to increase the bandwidth to make sure your site can accommodate the extra shoppers, so talk to your web host about it as soon as possible.

•     Beef up your online staff

While the majority of e-commerce websites provide the live chat function, not all of them offer it 24/7. During the holiday rush, make sure that you add more people manning the live chat function so that they can help shoppers find what they need as soon as possible. Remember, the sooner a customer completes a purchase, the sooner your staff can attend to other customers. The same rule applies to online stores.

If you don’t have the budget to hire full-time staff for holiday work, then make sure that you outsource the work to a vendor you know and trust. There is nothing more infuriating for a business owner than finding out that customers are leaving the website with no items because they couldn’t find what they are looking for, or that the agents who are working the line were of no help to them at all.

•     Strengthen your security

One of the most pressing issues among online shoppers is the security of their data. You have to reassure them that shopping on your website is a safe and pleasurable experience. To do this, you have to make sure that you are affiliated with all the right merchants, such as PayPal so that they can pay with a method they recognize. Also, harp on the fact that your website has an SSL certificate. The green padlock on the browser bar right next to your URL is a telltale sign of security, too.

•     Remember deadlines – and with that, the pressure

You have to be upfront about your deadlines. Cut off shopping at a certain period if you feel that you cannot deliver the items before Christmas morning. That, or make sure that your customers know that some of the items may arrive late if they shop late. By being transparent about your limitations, you would be protecting your business from irate customers – and not to mention, the stresses of telling people why their package didn’t arrive on Christmas morning if they just ordered it the night before.

Optimizing your website for the holiday rush is not just a good thing to do — it is a necessity. With these tips, you are hopefully on your way to getting a robust holiday-themed website that can withstand the holiday rush.

Need to optimize your website for the holiday season?

Tis the season to re-optimize your website! Help your business reflect its seasonal goals and strategies with PrimeView. If you need help re-kickstarting your SEO strategies and redesigning your website for the holidays, don’t hesitate to contact us at 480-970-4688 to request a free quote.

You may be asking why you, the owner of a small online business, should be worried about online security. As it turns out, there are plenty of reasons you should invest on online security. How so?

Symantec’s 2014 Internet Security Threat Report showed staggering statistic how small businesses are likely to be victimized by online fraud. The report said that 61% of the attacks targeted businesses with employees fewer than 2,500. On the other hand, 41% of the attacks were aimed at those with fewer than 500 employees, and 30% targeted those with fewer than 250 employees.

The effects of a fraud attack

Take a look at the 2013 Target credit card debacle. Target had to pay $10 million to customers for the damages – and that’s notwithstanding the losses Target sustained. While Target is a big business that can at least take the hit, consider how disastrous it would be if the target was a small business.

The National Cyber Security Alliance once said that one in five small businesses are victimized by cybercrime annually. Among those who were victimized, over half would go out of the business within six months.

To make it even more realistic, imagine if you are the owner of a specialty shop that had an online component. One day, you noticed that someone placed an order for $5,000 worth of items. It’s not a big deal, as this is something you could sell on the storefront to a very eager customer. Your staff didn’t notice anything odd with the order, and they packed it up and sent it to the courier.

That night, you couldn’t sleep. You check the order, and noticed that the $5,000 was comprised of odds and bits. The order didn’t make sense. The next morning, you had your staff do the routine follow-up call (asking the customers how they liked the items) – but no one can get ahold of the customer. You dug deeper and realized that the address is a vacant property. Frantically, you realized what happened – you’ve been duped. A fraudster used somebody else’s credit card details to make a purchase on your store. The original credit card owner probably didn’t notice that their card is gone or hasn’t reported it yet. Whatever the case, the order is out the door, and you’re going to sustain $5,000 worth of losses.

The fact of the matter is that the biggest victims of credit card frauds are small businesses. They are the ones who would reel from the effects of such an attack. While $5000 may not be enough to sink a business, it can make a dent that you would be hard-pressed to fix if you do not have the money to start over.

How to avoid credit card fraud

Thankfully, there are a number of ways through which you can protect your online business from credit card fraud. Firstly, look out for the red flags. These red flags usually involve:

• Unusually large orders from a customer who has not even inquired about anything
• Expensive orders that are under rush processing or overnight shipping
• Missing information on the order, such as a phone number
• Orders from foreign countries that are being shipped within the USA
• Orders from the US that are being shipped to foreign countries
• Drastic change in the usual amount being purchased (for example, if your customer regularly purchases items worth $50 and the next transaction was $500)
• Suspicious email addresses – this means email address that are in long, alphanumeric format. Most email addresses are very easy to understand (for example, firstname.lastname@wherever.com), as this email address is something that they would use on their day-to-day life. If you come across an email address such as 12345678ashedjhajh@wherever.com, then it’s probably a scammer and you should pay closer attention.

While these things are not usually a sign of fraudulent online activity on its own, it is worth checking out if several of the signs are present in any transaction.

Now that you are familiar with the red flags, here are a number of ways through which you can further protect your business from credit card fraud:

• Verify – Compare the billing and the shipping address. If they do not match, call the credit card holder and see verify the shipping address. This way you would be able to determine if the credit card holder actually placed the order. If you are unsure of an order, call the customer using the number they gave you and make an excuse to talk to the cardholder. If you cannot talk to the cardholder, do not ship the items. Likewise, you should also verify that the IP address matches the billing address. Lastly, use address verification and card code verification (CCV) to ensure that you are dealing with a person who is authorized to use the credit card.
• Set a declined transaction limit – Individuals with access to several credit card numbers would usually use a software script to send instructions to your site until one is accepted. By setting a declined limit (for example, three declines), you would be forcing the user to actually contact your customer service department. If they are fraudsters, they would be unlikely to contact your customer service department.
• Flag high value orders for manual confirmation – Instead of having everything automated (i.e., from placing items to cart and verifying the payment), have a limit where high value orders have to be verified by a live person. This could be as simple as having someone on the phone call the customer. Again, if they are scammers, they would be unlikely to speak with a real person.
• Coordinate a package recall service with your shipping company – This service enables you to track packages in real time and to freeze the delivery at any given time. This way, when you discover something fishy going on with a transaction, you can immediately ask the item to be held at a distribution center or to delay delivery while you are verifying the transaction.
• Use software that can detect potential fraud – There are numerous software that can see up to the minute information and determine if they are fraudulent or not. This would minimize the risk of scammers targeting your website.

These are just some of the things that you can do to ensure that you are protected against credit card fraud. Remember, when in doubt, verify.

Need help securing your website?

An outdated website can compromise its overall security. If you need help improving your site, PrimeView offers an annually renewable SSL Certificate that includes a one-time setup fee and configuration. Leave it to us to secure your site and help it rank higher in the Google SERPs. Request a free proposal by calling 480-970-4688 today.

Losing your credit card or having someone use your personal details for fraudulent means can be considered as a nightmare for most people. After all, there is nothing as perplexing and confounding as going to sleep
at night, only to wake up to see that you have racked up humongous debts overnight. Here’s how you can prevent it from happening to you.

What is credit card fraud?

FindLaw.com, a part of Thomson Reuters, defines credit card fraud as “a form of identity theft that involves an unauthorized taking of another’s credit card information for the purpose of charging purchases to the account or removing funds from it.” Surprisingly, a lot of people fall for credit card frauds. In fact, the Federal Trade Commission (FTC) warns Americans to safeguard their credit or debit card information vigilantly.

Now, there are a number of ways through which people can be victimized by this kind of fraud. It can happen in such a casual manner, such as when you throw out your bills and fraudulent people would get your information from the bills to make purchases in your account. Likewise, it can be a result of a massive hack, such as if a credible website is cracked open by hackers
and your credit card information is available to anyone who has access to the data.

The following are more common ways through how people are victimized by credit card frauds:

Being inattentive when paying with your card

How many times have you gone out to eat and you just handed the server your credit card at the end of the meal? A server or a store clerk can easily take photos of your credit card and use it to make purchases using your details. You can ask your server if you can follow them to the terminal where you can swipe the card. While it may come off as being paranoid to some, it is better to be cautious than to be victimized. Also, avoid using your credit card in unfamiliar places, such as when you are abroad in a small store.

In this instance, it would be better to use cash than to pay with your card. Another common way through how this is executed is when you are harried while paying. The chances that you would leave your credit card in the store are very high if you are not paying attention. As such, make sure that you leave every store with your credit card, particularly if you used it to pay for your purchases.

Lastly, there are cases wherein skimmers are placed over terminals so that your information would be copied even when you swiped the card yourself. To ensure that the terminal doesn’t have a skimmer, try to see if it looks as normal as possible. Terminals with skimmers tend to be bulkier and bigger. If you’re purchasing in an unfamiliar store, just use cash if you have it on you.

Dubious offerings

We’ve seen multiple cases wherein people are swindled into giving their credit card information to other people they haven’t met before, such as telemarketers and agents. What usually happens is that they are given an insane offer they cannot resist, such as a Caribbean cruise. Then, the victims would be asked to give their credit card information for verification purposes and to supposedly reserve their slots.

Unsurprisingly, these people would then eventually find out that their information was used to make fraudulent transactions. Older adults are prone to this kind of fraud, particularly those who live alone. Since many of them are unfamiliar with how these frauds progress, they are then susceptible to being tricked that they won something only when it turns out that they didn’t. If you have parents or older relatives who are living alone, warn them against giving out their information to strangers.

Losing your cards

When people lose their wallets, this loss is often punctuated by the loss of multiple credit cards. To avoid this, try to bring only one credit card when you go out. You can also opt to separate your credit cards to minimize the loss when it happens. Likewise, many credit card companies offer to give you a second card with a smaller credit limit. If you use this card when you are making purchases, then the amount of money that the fraudsters could get would be limited. There are also other ways through which people are swindled by credit card frauds.

Thankfully, there are a number of ways through which you can prevent it from happening in the first place. We mentioned leaving your other cards at home or using a card with a small credit limit when making purchases to unverified stores. You can also do the following to minimize your chances of being victimized:

Be Vigilant about your bills

Check and double check your credit card bills and ensure that you made every single transaction. If there is a single discrepancy with your bill, report it to your credit card issuer immediately. Likewise, try to save your receipts so that you have proof of your purchases. If you’re keeping a close eye on your bills, then you would immediately see if there is a transaction that you did not make.

Report loss and fraud 

Once you notice that there is a discrepancy in your account or if you have lost your card, contact your credit card issuer immediately and report it. The FTC says that once you report a lost credit card, “the law says you have no additional responsibility for charges you didn’t make; in any case, your liability for each card lost or stolen is $50.” While there is a different process for accounts that were hacked or used to make fraudulent transactions, the sooner that you catch it, the better it would be for you. When your credit card information is compromised, immediately ask for an investigation and for that account to be closed down.

Trust only secure websites

As much as possible, transact online with reputable websites – most of these sites have trust seals such as Norton, McAfee secure, etc. With Google’s preference for secure websites, the majority of websites employ SSL or HTTPS. This ensures your transaction is encrypted and secure. If you’re using a Chrome browser, it should show a secure sign (and a padlock icon) to let you know it’s safe to proceed with the purchase, signup, etc.

Being victimized by credit card fraud can be quite traumatic. At least with these tips, you would be able to protect yourself against being another statistic.

Need help securing your website?

Having an outdated website can jeopardize its overall security. PrimeView offers an annually renewable SSL Certificate for your site, including a one-time setup fee and configuration. Leave it to us to secure your site and users, as well as help your website rank higher in the Google SERPs.

What is HTTPS?

Everyone should be familiar with HTTP – Hyper Text Transfer Protocol, the basis of data communication for the entire internet. Every web address begins with HTTP. The addition of the “S” for “Secure” indicates that three extra layers of protection have been added that protects the integrity and confidentiality of your users’ data.

If a URL begins with “HTTPS, you know that the website is more secure. When visitors to your site, provide information via forms or conversations – they want to know that the personal info is confidential.

Data sent using Hypertext Transfer Protocol Secure is protected via TLS (Transport Layer Security) protocol that provides three key layers of protection:

1. Encryption – this layer keeps intruders and eavesdroppers from intercepting your visitor’s data exchanges or tracking their activities because only you have the decryption key.

2. Data integrity – data coming from the user or your site cannot be modified or corrupted during transfer, intentionally or otherwise, without being detected.

3. Authentication – prevents/deters MITM (Man-In-The-Middle) attacks. Keeps scammers from tricking your users into giving them their data.

Who needs HTTPS?

If you accept payments via credit cards, services such as PayPal or gather important personal information for any reason, you need HTTPS on those pages at a minimum. However, it is a good idea for everyone to use these extra layers of protection.

HTTPS not only keeps intruders from tricking your users into giving up sensitive information but also prevents them from installing malware or keeps advertisements from other companies showing up on your pages. There are also minor SEO benefits.

SSL Certificate
So how do you migrate your site to Hypertext Transfer Protocol Secure? These are the steps you need to follow:

1. Purchase an SSL (Secure Sockets Layer) Certificate

SSL Certificates are small data files that are installed on your web server that digitally attach a cryptographic key to your business details. When the https protocol is activated, it allows secure connections from your web server to the browser.

A green padlock icon will appear in front of https when it is activated.

There are 3 types from which to choose. The amount of data security is the same for all three levels, the additional validation offers increased customer trust.

1. Domain Validation – the most inexpensive and basic. It only provides encryption and validates the domain is registered.

2. Organization Validation – the middle-priced option, also includes authentication. Also, validates the domain ownership, and organization information included in the certificate such as name, city, state, and country.

3. Extended Validation – the top of the line option. It guarantees that the owner of the website passed a thorough, globally standardized, identity verification process. Needed for large e-commerce sites and sites that collect really important private information.

Where do I purchase an SSL certificate?

The certificate is issued by a certificate authority (CA) which verifies that your web address actually belongs to your organization. This protects your site visitors from man-in-the-middle attacks.

When choosing a certificate, Google recommends that you use 2048-bit encryption certificates, so keep that in mind if you go with a certificate that offers different levels of encryption.

You can purchase a certificate from your web host or from many SSL certificate vendor websites that offer different types at different prices. But the best way is to just get it from your own hosting company. The advantage of this is you can have them install it for you on your dedicated IP / hosting server.

However, not all hosting providers will install the certificate for you. If not, you will have to do it yourself or have someone you can trust who knows what they’re doing, perform the installation.

Moving your site from HTTP to HTTPS requires dealing with more technical knowledge than some small business owners may have. But you don’t have to be a total computer geek to do it.

 2. Install the SSL certificate

The process for installing a certificate varies from host to host, these are not detailed steps, but just the basic process.

1. Purchase your certificate, download it from the provider to your local computer, make a backup copy of the certificate and save in a secure place. Then use FTP (file transfer protocol) to install the data files to your host server.

FTP clients such as FileZilla are readily available for free. You should be able to find step-by-step instructions in your hosting provider’s support section.

2. Next, change your URLs from HTTP to https. If you don’t, the security certificate won’t function. The addition of the “s” to HTTP makes an entirely different URL.

To make it easier, you can create a URL map of your site on a spreadsheet with a list of HTTP URLs and a list of the corresponding new https URLs besides it. Then, make copies of all your site’s pages and redirect the old “HTTP” pages to your new “https” pages.

3. Then you need to create “301 (permanent) redirects” from HTTP to HTTPS to notify search engines that your website’s addresses have changed. If someone has bookmarked any of your pages, they will now be automatically redirected to the new https address.

If you are using a content management system such as WordPress, you can find free plugins that will add all the 301 redirects to your htaccess file and make this task much easier. Some templates may already include this functionality.

4. Finally, you need to update your internal links, the links that go to pages within your website, which probably you have many. Also, update image links and other links to any resources you have.

These are the basic things that need to be done to get your SSL certificate working for you. There are additional actions you will want to do like making sure that your SSL certificate is installed correctly using a free SSL server test, submitting your site again to indexing and watching your rankings.

There are many resources online that will go into much more detail that you can take advantage of. If this all seems to be beyond your skills, by all means, hire an SEO expert to do it for you.

PrimeView offers an annually renewable SSL Certificate for your site including a one-time setup fee and configuration. Leave it to us to get your site safe and secure for your site visitors at the same time, help your website rank higher in the Google SERPs

A landing page is an essential element for capturing leads and increasing conversions. It is typically the avenue where you will usher in users to convert or perform an action that you want for them to take such as signing up for a free trial, downloading an ebook, scheduling an appointment, or requesting for a free quote.

Conversion is the ultimate goal for any internet marketing effort—and landing pages are crucial in making that happen. But how can you make it stand out and be irresistible? Here are six elements that should be present in your landing pages if you want to boost conversions.

1. Persuasive Call to Action

The effectiveness of your landing page has a lot to do with how compelling your call to action is. Your ad can be enticing, but you can’t usher people to accept your offer if you have a poor call to action.

Standout buttons plus powerful wording is the recipe for a perfect call to action. Instead of going for generic call to action wordings such as “submit” or “donate now”, you can get creative and specific with your CTA copy. Here are some examples:

• Get your Free (offer)
• Start your Free Trial
• Try It
• Discover More
• Support our Cause

In addition, it’s also essential to keep your call to action with your ad copy. This further strengthens your point and avoid confusion on the user’s end.

2. Provide Value

People will want to know what’s in it for them if they accept your offer. Instead of highlighting specs, you need to let people know the benefits of giving your product or service a try. Here are some examples:

• Experience a 50% more electricity efficiency with this services.
• Boost productivity within two weeks of use.
• Never miss a grammar mistake again.

3. The Ideal Form Length

Should you go for a long or short form on your landing page? It depends. There’s no clear-cut answer about which is more effective. The key is to only ask information that’s necessary or those that you only need.

Shorter forms require less work, which may result in higher conversion rates. But that doesn’t discredit long forms as they can also generate quality leads. The best way to know what works for you is to test it out. Again, the trick is to only ask information you need. Otherwise, you can try including optional fields, and leave the prerogative to users to fill them out or not.

4. Uncluttered Design

Keep your landing page focused on your offer and what you want people to do with it. Put the most important elements—offer, CTA, and logo—on the front and center of the page. Remove menu navigation so that people will not be swayed to go to another part of the website.

The key to effective landing page layout is to provide only information that the user want to know. With landing pages, white spaces, bullet points, and supporting image or graphics are your best friends. Nothing over the top, just the points that will convince people to convert.

5. Security Signals and Social Proof

Before users fill out that form, they need to trust you first. That’s why you need to display security signals and social proof that you’re reliable and legitimate. You need to assure users that the information they provide will not be compromised or used in an inappropriate way. That’s why it pays to display security seals or badges, testimonials, press mentions, usage statistics, or a list or logos of your clients.

6. Unique Offers

Top performing landing pages have unique offers, which make them stand out and stay ahead in their field. So how can you upstage the rest of your competitors? First off, you need to know what your customers want and give it to them. You can add an additional field in your form to get such insight and use it to tweak your offers. Another way would be to check out your top competitors and see how they do it, and try to provide something better than what they put out there.

Online shopping has never been so convenient as it is nowadays. As a shopper, you can buy almost anything without having to physically drive to a store to purchase the item you want. As an e-commerce business owner, the idea of not having to work in an office environment as well as not being stuck to an 8-hour shift five days a week because your business can be run through the internet is such a rewarding thought.

The ease of online shopping has paved the way for multiple e-commerce sites to open and make themselves available to the millions of consumers ready to spend their budgets on products that satisfy both their wants and their needs.

Build on Trust, Turn Visitors into Customers

One of the best ways of boosting a site’s credibility is by investing in site seals, which works by placing a seal on a particular e-commerce site to inform visitors that a third-party web verification company has found the site to be reliable and trustworthy for web browsing, has ample security measures for secure online transactions, and is a legitimate business with no history of complaints.

One particular web research agency, called Baymard Institute, conducted a survey this year that tried to take on a very critical task, which is to determine which among the top site seals are the most trusted by consumers.This action was prompted by their previous research, which found out that majority of the web users have limited knowledge regarding the technical details of website security, which means that they rely mostly on their observations and gut feelings.

Visual clues such as security seals inform shoppers that whatever personal information they provide a website will remain confidential at all times. According to the survey, which obtained answers from 2,510 individuals from January 9-11, 2013, tested eight most popular website seals, namely:

• McAfee Secure
• Norton
• TrustE
• BBB
• thawte
• Trustwave
• GeoTrust
• COMODO

The survey respondents, who were adults currently residing in the U.S., were asked to choose which among those mentioned above gives them “the best sense of trust when paying online?” The question highlighted online payment because their focus is on checkout usability, so Baymard provided respondents with an online payment scenario.

The results were not surprising, as Norton got the highest vote, getting 35.56% of the respondents’ votes. Next in line is McAfee (22.87%), followed by TRUSTe (13.24%). In fourth place is BBB Accredited with 13.16% of votes, while Thawte got the 5th position at 6.03%. At the end are TrustWave (3.21%), GeoTrust (3.09%), COMODO (2.84%) with 6th, 7th, and 8th places.

Decoding the Results

So what does this mean for business owners and customers alike? Well it seems that majority of the survey respondents chose known internet security companies such as McAfee and Norton as their first choice, primarily because they are wary of fraudulent sites. By investing around as low as $30 to as much as $300 monthly for McAfee Secure and around $80 to $400 for Norton.

Next in line is TRUSTe, which deals with privacy management, which explains why a significant number of individuals chose this over the others, because they want personal details to remain private and secure even after they make a purchase. The good news about getting a TRUSTe seal is that it only costs almost $6 monthly to $70 a year.

BBB, on the other hand, came in at second place as well. This is because more and more businesses are finding this independent, non-profit organization very dependable in terms of informing consumers about scams and bad businesses. In 2011, a Louisville, Kentucky business with three employees is required to pay around $34 a month under the monthly pay plan plus a one-time membership fee of $50 dollars.

Despite having to pay annual dues for a BBB certification, businesses can get them back through the added revenue brought about by the influx of new customers influenced by the BBB seal of approval.

Companies that came in at fifth to eighth, as per the respondents’ perceived security, are Thawte, Trustwave, GeoTrust, and COMODO. Both Thawte and Trustwave cost around $4 to $50 a month while GeoTrust and COMODO’s prices start at more or less $8 a month or around $90 to $100 a year.

Ultimately, what businesses need to know is that majority of customers or would-be buyers choose site seals based on their perceived security. So in this case, the survey tried to discover which particular seal made consumers more confident about a site, and not to actually gauge which among the seals provided the most accurate representation of a website’s credibility.

If you consider yourself as one of those perpetual online shoppers, then you know how much impact a website trust seal has on convincing you to buy from a certain online shopping store. When all is said and done, no amount of design or layout can match the amount of credibility a site seal can give a website.

On the other hand, if you’re the business owner who is planning to set up a shopping site to sell your products or feature other brands, then it is crucial for you to ensure that your site is not only providing visitors with outstanding user experience, but also getting the right amount of conversions within a specific timeframe.

One of the biggest considerations of online businesses is building and maintaining credibility, not only of their brand, but also of their website. This is particularly the case when it comes to e-commerce sites with hundreds, if not thousands, of products to sell. Why, you ask? This is because online shoppers will hesitate to purchase a product when they see that the website does not have any form credibility, even if they like the item being offered.

What Exactly is a Trust Seal?

A trust seal is a type of recognition granted by a web verification company to a particular website or business, in the form of a seal, that is meant to be displayed or “stamped” on a website for visitors to see. It acknowledges three main aspects of a brand or company’s credibility, which are the following:

• Privacy – A privacy seal basically informs site visitors that a particular website responsibly employs exceptional privacy practices.
• Business Identity – A business verification seal or a verified existence seal among other names, serves as a reliable, third-party verification of a business’ existence and legitimacy. It gauges a company’s credibility through various parameters, which includes primary business information, number of complaints, management details, and more.
• Security – A security seal, on the other hand, make up the most of trust seals. There are two types:
  • One that verifies the server on which the site operates , usually performing regular scans of the host server so make sure that the site is well-protected and can withstand security attacks.
  • And the other verifying the site, ensuring the domain is owned by the business and that customers are protected from common website security vulnerabilities.

The requirements vary depending on the company providing the trust seal, but mostly concerns strict privacy policies, safe and secure methods, and legitimate use of business and/or product name/s. Trust seals are sold to online businesses for a certain fee, which will be discussed later on. These are then validated after creation and will be effective for a limited period of time, which has to be re-validated once expired.

Businesses Need Trust Seals More Than They Realize

Many of the seasoned internet buyers and bargain hunters are likely to bail out from their orders if they find out that a website is either suspicious, or has incomplete contact details. Sites without trust seals or those that make use of their own checkout process are more likely to lose potential customers than those with verified website trust seals.

This is particularly why the demand for trust seals among web companies is steadily increasing.

More and more have fallen prey to internet fraud, with over tens of thousands of websites being created by hackers every week. It is easy to get fooled by sites that claim to be legitimate banks when they are indeed clones. Some also pretend to be e-commerce sites that are affiliated with Western Union and eBay.

Despite the continuous efforts of search engines to remove these fraudulent sites, these hackers remain steadfast in deceiving innocent consumers. The only solution that business owners can take advantage of is by utilizing website trust seals to further establish site credibility.

Consumers are getting wiser, learning from past mistakes and beginning to recognize fake websites and seeing beyond overindulgent marketing campaigns that tend to fool many. With a trust seal, web shoppers can now determine whether a website is worth investing their time and money on. Not only will business owners see an increase in sales and conversions, but they can also protect their customers’ assets.

A third party stamp of approval is much more reliable and trustworthy than a company’s own assertions of quality and dependability. Even client testimonials won’t work as effectively to influence a buyer from actually purchasing a product as much as a website trust seal.

Entrepreneurs who have spent so much time growing and cultivating their e-commerce business would greatly benefit from a site seal, as it has become the modern-day and web version of a first impression. If you want to send a firm, honorable handshake to your would-be clients the moment they land on your homepage, a trust seal is your best option.

They say it takes years to build a reputation and only seconds to destroy it, so it would make a lot of sense for business owners to invest in the best marketing strategies and credibility boosters that are available for them. Once you have convinced visitors that you are indeed trustworthy, then they are more likely to become new customers. There is, after all, no such thing as too much trust.

When you see that letter M up ahead after a seemingly endless highway of corn and wheat fields, you know you’re sure to be having a juicy Quarter Pounder with Cheese with a coke that you can supersize. Or be certain that when you buy a pair of running shoes with a check on the side, that’s quality you’re getting. But how do you apply brand trust with your website when you’re just a small shoemaker in Dolan Springs, Arizona? Sure, everybody in town knows how tough but soft your leathers are, but what about those who wouldn’t know your website from Adam?

1. Phone numbers, addresses both email and physical, postal codes, anything that can verify that you are an existing store. In this era where it’s much easier to concoct a con game than to actually come up with a respectable career, more people are wary to let loose their trust. So make sure to display clearly verifiable contact and location information of your business because this shows authenticity.

2. Brag. You can always just pretend you’re exhibiting your accomplishments but if you’ve been featured in respected sites, like say, The Arizona Republic, or since dreams are free, CNN, wouldn’t you brag about that? So show off on your website where you’ve been included.

3. Be your own ad model. Seriously. Not everybody can afford a Supermodel so economize by using your staff. But, really, putting up photographs of you and your staff humanizes your business and makes it more real for consumers.

4. As we keep saying on our blog, “If you’re not in social media yet, why not?” Social media is a game changer as much as internet changed the course of history. This is the way you communicate with consumers in the simplest way possible. If you don’t have one yet, sign up. Now.

5. And speaking of social media, adding social media icons on the side of your article is a consumer magnet. When people like a content you posted, when they’re logged in on Facebook, they can just easily like it. And when people see a lot of people liking it, people become curious and check it out.  That’s how things go viral.

6. Sharing authoritative content on your site, whether social media or website, may seem like an employee sucking up to the boss, but truth to tell, the boss likes it. And this is your way to be noticed. Imagine if you’re a hundred employees in your office, it wouldn’t hurt to compliment your boss from time to time until he or she already know your first name. The same way with sharing respected online authors. It’s your way to get noticed. This way you get a chance to be shared too. But first make sure you have something good to offer. Flattery can only go so far.

7. If you think testimonials mean zilch but just a bunch of other people’s employees coming up with good things to say about your product, think again. Most of these testimonials are actually true and a lot of people get swayed by it. Because most of the time happy customers really do leave nice words and people listen to those nice words.

8. Spending a little on software to make sure your site is protected is also a way to build brand trust. It’s telling your customers they’re safe with you. Some software not only scan your website for potential hackers but your customers also get a confirmation that their information is secure.

9. And not only that, putting a privacy policy is also a big assurance for your customers. This is you boldly swearing like an oath that you will protect their privacy. Because if you don’t, well, all hell will break loose.

10. Last but not the least, transparency. This is one of the ethics of the modern day business. Think restaurants, all of them these days are made of glass or simply just open. Office spaces, usually they’re just these tiny divisions to separate one from the others. It’s not an architectural design so much as a philosophy that people want to know what’s going on, want to be included in the process and hate, hate, hate secrets.

Building brand trust is all about being open. Keep a few secret ingredients to yourself but other than that show what your business is made of. People will like you if you’re a little candid about yourself.