You already know intuitively how much value a trust seal can add to an ecommerce page. But here’s a simple statistic to support that notion. According to research reported in Forbes, 61% of online shoppers say they have cancelled a transaction before buying because the site did not have any trust seals.
What is a trust seal (or trust logo)?
A trust seal — sometimes referred to as a trust icon or trust logo — is an icon placed on a web page or in an ad to reassure visitors that the business meets an industry standard or has earned independent certification for security, quality or some other important metric.
Examples include the logos or seals of web security firms like VeriSign or Norton, and the logos of agencies such as the Better Business Bureau to demonstrate the company’s business practices have proven above board and trustworthy.
In fact, the Forbes article also cites a finding that when small businesses’ websites display a “Best of the Web” seal — a catch-all icon demonstrating the business has proven it is legitimate, its site is secure, and it will not violate your privacy by selling your info to third parties — those businesses enjoy a 20% or greater increase in conversion rates.
The trust seal that offers brand registry protection against unauthorized resellers
Given the enormous value inherent in trust icons, you can imagine the value of an “Authorized Retailer” seal that your brand makes available for members of your resale channel to display on their sites.
The key to a trust seal’s ability to instill confidence in buyers is that the icon offer “Click to Verify” functionality. When a consumer clicks on the icon, it will automatically verify that the store using it is a true Authorized Retailer, legitimately using the trust badge, and it immediately will present a popup indicating to the consumer that the store has been verified. You can base this verification on data such as your store database and/or compliance with your Minimum Advertised Price policy.
Such a trust seal would have many benefits, both for your resellers and for your brand, including:
More sales
Given the research described above, it is clear that when a shopper finds an authorized retailer badge beside one of your products — such as the badge depicted here, powered by TrackStreet’s brand registry solution — that shopper is more likely to be comfortable completing the transaction through your reseller’s ecommerce site.
With a badge indicating that the company selling the item is supported by the item’s manufacturer or brand, the shopper will have greater confidence that this seller meets the quality and reliability standards of the product’s maker, the product itself is authentic, the reseller will offer the customer support, warranties and other terms required by the manufacturer, and that the manufacturer has vetted the retailer and finds it trustworthy.
This enhanced trust can translate directly into more sales.
Brand protection
By deploying a solution that allows your authorized resellers — and only your authorized resellers — to display a unique badge clearly indicating that they are a legitimate part of your brand’s retail network, you are beginning the process of helping consumers to distinguish between true representatives of your products and unauthorized resellers who have not earned your brand’s trust.
Over time, this will help protect both your brand registry and your authorized resellers from the poor experiences caused by businesses you have not authorized to sell your products.
Strengthened reseller relationships
An authorized retailer badge can be a tremendously valuable business asset to your legitimate resellers: It is a way for them to distinguish themselves from the rogue retailers who would take your product listings, violate your Minimum Advertised Price (MAP) Policy, Unilateral Pricing Policy or Authorized Dealer Program, and likely offer an inferior customer experience.
Because your badge serves as a visual nod from your brand, acknowledging that you stand behind the seller displaying it, that badge helps the reseller enhance its own credibility and its own reputation for quality and trustworthiness.
Including your authorized retailers in a program that drives more revenue to their bottom line and builds their reputation with their customers will set you apart from the competition and build stronger and deeper partnerships.
The “authorized retailer” trust seal must be part of a larger brand protection strategy
As valuable as an authorized retailer badge can be for protecting your brand’s reputation, it cannot serve alone as your brand protection strategy.
For that you will want a comprehensive solution — one that also includes an intelligent MAP policy, automated MAP monitoring and enforcement, Internet analytics, and a host of other processes working in conjunction 24/7/365 to look out for your brand.
We can help with that, too. Schedule your free demo.
