How to Use Social Proof to Build Customer Trust

Are you looking for a way to build trust with your target audience? If so, you’re not alone. Business owners know that if they want to get more sales, on-site engagement, and subscriptions, they need to show visitors that their company is reputable. 

The best way to show your trustworthiness is with social proof. In marketing, social proof describes the phenomena where people are more likely to make a purchase or engage with a company based on how other people see the product or brand in question. 

If you can show consumers social proof that convinces them that other people and companies enjoy your product, there’s a much greater chance that they will stick with your business.

Today, we will show you several ways you can use social proof on your website and social media to build trust with existing customers and first-time visitors. 

Let’s begin! 

Highlight Reviews and Testimonials 

One of the best ways to showcase social proof on your website is with reviews and testimonials. Online shoppers tend to read reviews on products or services they want before ever entering their credit card number. As a result, including reviews from past customers can dramatically improve sales and engagement. 

There are several areas across your website where you can include customer reviews. We suggest allowing users to leave reviews on individual products so consumers can learn about what kind of experiences customers had with that specific item. On average, including reviews on product pages increase conversions by a jaw-dropping 270%! 

You should also encourage users to leave their feedback on social media by sharing posts from existing customers. Imagine a new user finds your social media profile for the first time and sees a ton of positive reviews from current users. There’s a good chance that showing this type of social proof could result in more users clicking through and becoming customers. 

Show Trust Seals 

Trust seals are an excellent way to show visitors that you run a reputable site with high-quality products and services. You’ve likely seen trust seals on payment forms in the past. Typically, these seals are given by security companies like Norton or McAfee to emphasize safety and security. 

Customers land on sites with these seals and think, “I use Norton’s antivirus to keep my computer safe, so this site is also trustworthy!” Social proof can come from consumers, but in some cases, businesses can help you establish a reputation in the community. 

In most cases, all you need is an SSL certificate to get the free code for your trust badge. We recommend using the code on the footer of each page and on your payment form. You’ll find that consumers will trust your site with their information more when they see social proof from another reputable company. 

Encourage UGC on Social Media 

Your audience can also generate more social proof for your business on social media. Beyond reviews, there are other forms of user-generated content (UGC) worth mentioning. Picture contests are quick and easy ways to skyrocket engagement on the social channel of your choice. 

For example, if you have an online pet store, you could ask customers to share pictures of their pets enjoying products purchased from your store. You could then encourage other users to rate the photo and pick a winner based on who has the most likes. 

Now, imagine someone is interested in buying toys for their dog. They perform a general search on social media for pet companies and find some of your images. The fact that real customers are sharing pictures and other users are engaging shows the new visitor that your site is trustworthy. 

These folks figure that if the customers engaging with your page had a good experience with your site, they probably will too. This experience is more common than you might think. A whopping 43% of consumers research products using social media. It pays to encourage your audience to share and engage with UGC.

We recommend asking your audience to share something roughly every two weeks. This will give you the opportunity to get to know people as they participate in your events. When you consider that 43% of people also want more visual content, it’s clear that UGC can help brands across all industries build engagement and social proof. 

Work with Influencers

The final piece of advice we have for you today is to connect with social media influencers. If you’re not familiar, social media influencers are internet personalities that engage with their audience in many ways. You can find influencers who comment on other videos, play video games, create art, and much more. 

These influencers all have different target audiences. The key is to find people that have a fanbase that’s similar to your own. For example, the online pet store we mentioned earlier may partner with a YouTube personality who owns a channel on pet routines.

The connection between the influencer and the pet products is clear. There’s a good chance that their audience could benefit from the products available on your website. Reach out to influencers on YouTube, Instagram, and Facebook and ask if they are interested in promoting your brand. 

An impressive 130 million Instagram users tap shopping ads made by influencers every month. The social proof aspect comes in when you consider that the partner channel’s fans trust the creator. So, if they are promoting your business, the people watching the promotion will automatically trust your business more than if they spotted a random advertisement.  

Final Thoughts

Trust is something that all businesses need if they want to succeed. Customers will continue to shop from companies that go out of their way to prove their trustworthiness. Use the tips mentioned here today to show visitors why your site is worth their time, and you could see a dramatic boost in sales, engagement, and customer loyalty.