![Which Site Seals Create The Most Trust? [Original Research]](https://cxl.com/wp-content/uploads/2016/06/trust_seals-320x160.jpg)
When internet users share private information, they want to feel safe doing so.
One of the most popular ways to convey security on a website is by using trust badges (also referred to as “trust logos” or “site seals”).
This study, conducted by CXL Institute, expands on existing research from Baymard Institute’s research in 2013 to better understand the popularity and efficacy of various trust badges online.
If you’ve worked in marketing, sales, conversion optimization – any role that has to do with strategic communications/persuasion – you’re likely familiar with the work of Dr. Robert Cialdini and his principles of persuasion.
Since his last book, Influence, came out 30 some years ago, his work has done nothing but influence new generations of those of us in the strategic/persuasive communications space. Even if you haven’t read the book, you’ve probably heard of his 6 persuasion principles.
However, with Cialdini’s new book, Pre-Suasion, comes one new persuasion principle.
![Which Types of Social Proof Work Best? [Original Research]](https://cxl.com/wp-content/uploads/2016/04/socialproofpic-1-320x160.jpg)
When shopping online, you can’t hold the product, test it out, or talk to a salesperson about how different brands compare to one another. For these scenarios, social proof is frequently used to guide shoppers towards the best product choice.
Which brings us to the real question: Which social proof techniques are most effective? Are some of them totally ineffective?
This study from CXL Institute explores how different forms of social proof are perceived (with eye-tracking), and then how they are recalled (with post-task survey questions).
The grass is always greener on the other side of the fence, right?
That’s the mentality of comparison shoppers. If they look hard and long enough, they will find a better value. If they don’t look around, they’ll miss out on greener grasses.
Today, the term “comparison shopper” describes the majority of consumers, especially those online. If you’re running an eCommerce or SaaS company, you absolutely must be optimizing for comparison shoppers.
You and I may have a hard time believing it, but many people are afraid to shop online.
If I gave you a 750 page book and a 150 page book, which one would you guess to be the better (more valuable) book?
NPS isn’t the end-all be-all of customer data. But it does give you some insight into customer loyalty and satisfaction.
One of its greatest powers is segmenting customers into three parts: detractors, passives, and promoters. This lets you market to them in different ways. You can send targeted campaigns to promoters, try to convert passives into promoters, and try to solve the problems that detractors complain about.
But can you turn a detractor into a promoter?
As optimizers and business owners, you’re striving to better understand your audience. Who visits your site? What are they looking for? What will make them convert to paying customers?
To help answer these questions, buyer modalities were created to help categorize visitors and their purchase behavior. The only problem?
Buyer modalities are meaningless and personality models as a whole are extremely difficult to apply to online marketing and optimization.
Raise your hand if you’ve ever made an impulse purchase.
Who are you more likely to trust to tell you the truth: a preschool teacher or a used car salesman? A firefighter or a magician? A child or a politician?
Some people are simply deemed more or less credible based on surface-level factors. The same is true for websites. [Tweet It!]
You have to know what makes your site the child or the politician.