How to Set Up Your Online Store to Ease Customers’ Fear of Fraud

Having an online shop can be an important tool to grow your business. Unfortunately, though, e-commerce fraud rates are growing and many customers are aware of this. If the customer does not feel that the website is reliable, they will likely not feel comfortable entering sensitive card data. In order to maximize sales and grow your customer base, it’s increasingly important that you set up your storefront in a way that people will trust. Here are some tips to help shoppers feel at ease:

• Have a modern and well-designed website

Whether you like it or not, people do judge a book by its cover. Work with a developer to create a storefront that has a current and eye-catching layout, so customers will trust your expertise and know that you’re committed to providing a positive shopping experience. It’s an investment that will pay off.

• Be personal

Give your business a face by featuring an ‘Our Story’ page and even putting in pictures of your office and employees. Customers will find it easier to trust a company that has real people and a story behind it.

• Use a reliable e-commerce system

Pick an e-commerce platform that will be easy for your customers to use and maintains the highest security standards. Fidelity has integrations with all popular e-commerce platforms and we can make recommendations based on your product line.

• Get an SSL certificate for your payment page

Secure Socket Layers (SSL) is a security system that encrypts the connection between your server and the customer’s browser. This also means that customer card data is encrypted. Customers are easily able to tell if a store is SSL certified, because the website will begin with HTTPS rather than HTTP, and there will be a padlock symbol. E-commerce systems offer shared SSL certificates, but it’s more reliable to to get a dedicated one. Regardless of how you set it up, make sure that you place a banner linking to the issuer’s verification page for your site.

• Display security badges

Purchasing and displaying a badge from well-known security systems like Norton and McAfee will reassure customers that your website’s security is credible.

• Post a shipping and returns policy and a privacy protection policy

Even if customers don’t read the policies word for word, your transparency will establish a greater level of trust. Make sure it is easy for them to find these policies, perhaps by putting a link on the bottom of every page.

• Make it easy for your customers to reach you

Your contact page and contact information should be clear and easy to find. Customers will appreciate having open communication, and you’ll appreciate preventing any lost sales.

With technology driving shopping online, more merchants are finding success in offering an e-commerce option. However, online shops do not provide the same peace of mind found with in-person experiences, so it is even more important for your online shop to radiate strong customer service and trust. We hope these tips will help you to do just that.

For more information on e-commerce systems, feel free to contact Fidelity.