The foundation of your business is about credibility and trust to keep customers coming in the door, and more importantly, returning for more. There are several ways to boost credibility, but your messaging will fall flat without a way to showcase it to the world. Boost your business credibility with a website to refine your messaging and approach. Here are eight ways to get started.

1) Establish You’re a Legitimate Business

Despite the rise of the digital age, small businesses still don’t operate with a website. Going dark online or using an outdated and awkward website could cost you business. Research shows that 76% of consumers search for a company’s online presence before visiting a physical location. And 65% of shoppers research products online before stepping foot inside a store.

With a professional-looking website in place, you’re in a position to compete in your marketplace. Otherwise, it isn’t easy to know if you’re a real business or a fly-by-night operation.

2) Communicate Your Brand

Launching a credible website helps position and communicate your brand to customers. Showing off your products and services scratches the surface of brand recognition. Your website is also a place to show off your brand voice through website copy, a company blog, and product or service descriptions. Your branding also takes a front and center approach on your website, from the colors you choose to the layout of your site.

Not sure how to get started with your branding? Download our free branding guide here.

3) Showcase Your Professionalism

Why not show your customers your professionalism instead of telling them about it? Research shows that 65% of the general population are visual learners. Give your audience what they want with rock-solid graphics, a portfolio, and a professional website.

A pro website goes beyond an incredible logo and well-functioning site. Online business credibility also aligns with best practices and trends. Your online presence should be intuitive, user-friendly, and designed to attract and convert leads.

4) Enhance Your Unique Selling Proposition

Your Unique Selling Proposition (USP) helps your target audience quickly understand what makes one product or brand better than another. Your USP makes you unique and separates you from the competitor. For example, your USP could embrace the idea that you’re the freshest dog treat company around and only use local, seasonal, organic ingredients.

Whatever your USP, you need to communicate it through the proper branding, content marketing strategy, and website assets so there’s no doubt about what you stand for and why customers love you.

5) Show Social Proof

Show, don’t tell, your success by sharing social proof. More than a humblebrag, social proof allows potential customers to collect insights from what your business offers. Social proof includes case studies, testimonials, and online reviews. Case studies are a powerful way to blend what your company does, how they do it, the problems they solve, and the results earned for real clients.

Need an example of how case studies strengthen your business credibility? Get business case study examples here.

6) Rank High in Google

Earning high ranks in Google isn’t just about gaining more visibility; it also raises your business credibility. Some 75% of people will never scroll past the first page on a Google search and assume that whoever is on that first page is the most legitimate business, and they’re unlikely to keep scrolling and doing their research to decide which company is best for their needs. 

Improving your SEO takes some finessing and time to see the results you want. But it’s not an opaque, mysterious process and involves strategy and consistency. Ranking on the first page on Google is within reach, even with no visibility and a seasonal product. 

Get an overview of how SEO works and how much of an impact it can make: Xtreme Heaters SEO Case Study: Taking a Seasonal Product with Little Traffic to #1 In Google.

7) Stay Transparent

You can do everything right and have an incredible website and still fall short with customers. Staying transparent and honest is what amplifies your business credibility. Start with the basics of building a foundation that builds trust. Keep in touch with customers, share setbacks and successes, and take responsibility for what goes wrong in your business. Creating a culture of trust and reliability is what keeps your customers coming back for more.

Final Thoughts

Want to talk to the team at Digital Nomad Designs about how to establish your online presence, grow your SEO, and earn more conversions? With the right approach, case studies help reach more conversions and give prospective customers everything they need to know about why they should work with your company. Book a complimentary call here for questions and to discuss your project further.