You know your business, but however well known you think you are, there’ll be prospects who don’t appreciate things the same way as you do. Your website is a key element in establishing your credibility – it’s one of the reasons I always recommend adding a constant stream of authoritative background articles and FAQs. What else can we put on the website though, simply to boost our credibility?
There’s almost universal agreement amongst experts that keeping your address in view as people navigate around the site works well. The footer is the easiest place, but a phone number in the header if appropriate may be even better. This just says to the prospect “we exist”, the most fundamental message of all.
Testimonials or links from well-known sites shouldn’t be hidden away either. Use any excuse for showing them. Include real photos of people, plant and offices. You may not be as good-looking as that stock photo you’re tempted to include, but people can spot their inauthenticity a mile off.
If you have trust marks or trade body memberships, get those logos in place. Sure, qualification to be a member of a trade body may take little more than paying the subscription fee, but it gives off all the right signals.
Finally, keep adding stuff, and put dates on it. In the back of every visitor’s mind will be questions like: “Is this company still as active as the website looks?” and “Are the products and offers shown still current?”. There’s nothing better than something with this week’s date on the home page.