How do you make a website trustworthy to a new visitor?
Show a new visitor that a real, reachable business is behind the site. Put your phone number, email and service area where they are easy to find. Use photos of your own work and people, share real reviews you have permission to use, explain your prices or process plainly, and keep everything up to date. Small errors such as typos and broken links undo a lot of that work quickly.
What research says visitors look for
Nielsen Norman Group, a user-experience research firm, groups trust signals into four factors in "Trustworthiness in Web Design: 4 Credibility Factors" by Aurora Harley (May 8, 2016): design quality, upfront disclosure, content that is comprehensive, correct and current, and being connected to the rest of the web.
On design quality, the article notes that "Typos, broken links, and other mistakes quickly degrade credibility…" On disclosure, it points to prominently displaying contact information. For service businesses, it suggests showing photos from every stage of a job, not only the finished result.
A trust checklist for a service business
- Real contact details: a phone number that is answered, an email address and the area you serve.
- Who you are: the owner's name, a photo and a few lines on how long you have done this work.
- Real photos of your team, vehicles and jobs, including work in progress. Skip stock photos of smiling strangers.
- Real reviews, quoted with the customer's permission, ideally with a first name and town.
- Clear prices, or a clear explanation of how you quote and what happens after someone gets in touch.
- Current content: the right hours, services you still offer, and no old offers or dates.
Being findable elsewhere helps
A site that stands alone can look suspicious. The same article says a site that does not link to, and cannot be found on, third-party review sites may seem to have something to hide. Link your website to your business profile, reviews and social pages.
What to avoid
- Claims you cannot back up, such as calling yourself the top choice in town with nothing behind it.
- Reviews without permission, or reviews that cannot be traced to real people.
- A contact form as the only way to reach you.
- Pages that have not been touched in years.
Sources
Related answers
- Do online reviews matter for a small business?
- Why does my website get no inquiries?
- What should a service business homepage say?
Websites, upgraded or built
Most businesses do not need a new website. They need the one they have to load fast, say clearly what they do and ask the visitor to take one step.