What Are Trust Badges On Shopify Stores?
Trust badges add credibility and trustworthiness to your Shopify store - increasing conversions. But what are they?
Trust badges, also known as trust seals or site seals, are digital icons displayed on websites to reassure visitors that the site is secure, credible, and trustworthy, often indicating security measures or certifications. They can help you overcome customer concerns by giving reassurances around online retail issues like site security or payment processing.
Types of Trust Badges
There are several categories of trust badge, but one commonality is that they all help signal to website visitors that the site is secure and trustworthy. But what are the best trust badges? Here are some of the different types:
Security Badges: Often displayed as padlock icons, these include SSL encryption, anti-virus security icons. As a Shopify merchant, you’ll already have an SSL certificate so a padlock icon will appear next to the URL, however it doesn’t hurt to emphasise to your potential customers that you take security seriously. You can add an official ‘Shopify secure’ badge in your footer or near the add to cart button.
Payment Badges: These indicate that the website makes use of secure payment systems like PayPal, Visa and Mastercard, and normally includes their recognisable and well-known logos. They help your customers to understand the payment methods you accept, while also aligning your brand with trusted payment brands.
Social Proof Badges: These include customer ratings, testimonials, or review platforms and help reassure people that other customers have bought and enjoyed the products from the site.
Policy-specific badges: They help reassure customers that if anything were to go wrong with their order that the business has a responsible approach to remedying the situation. They don’t refer to any external body or accreditation; rather they visually highlight something about your own business, like the fact you offer free shipping or a money back guarantee. There are apps in the Shopify app store that provide badges like these.
Industry Certifications: These include specific certifications that validate the store’s authenticity.
Endorsement badges: these are accreditations from third parties that you can use as a stamp of approval, such as the ‘leaping bunny’ logo to show that skincare products are not tested on animals, or the B-Corp logo which proves that a business cares about its social and environmental impact. Companies with these kinds of endorsements tend to display them in the site-wide footer.
How Do Trust Badges Improve Conversion Rates?
There is evidence to suggest that trust badges can have a positive impact on conversion rates (Baymard Institute found that trust badges increased conversion by as much as 42%). One of the main ways that they can influence this is by building trust with visitors. When visitors feel confident in the security and privacy of a website, they are more likely to make a purchase, leading to increased conversion rates and revenue for the website.
Some other factors at play:
Building Consumer Confidence: trust badges reassure customers that their data and transactions are secure.
Reducing Cart Abandonment: visible trust badges can decrease fears of fraud and encourage customers to complete their purchases.
Enhancing Perceived Credibility and Professionalism: a professional appearance, aided by trust badges, contributes to brand credibility.
Appealing to First-Time Visitors: Seeing a familiar set of trust badges help new visitors feel more comfortable and confident buying from an unknown website.
Trust Badge Examples in Action
Here are some well-known ecommerce websites that effectively use trust badges.
Gymshark
This site has the Visa, MasterCard, American Express, Klarna and ApplePay badges all displayed in the footer. When you proceed to the product page, Klarna is offered again, and also a notice that you’re able to pay in instalments using PayPal. When you go to the cart, the trust badges are all displayed again underneath the ‘checkout securely’ button which also includes a padlock.
Essentially throughout the whole purchase journey, the visitor is constantly reminded ‘this site is safe and secure - you can trust us, and use the method of payment you’re comfortable with.’
Smol
This cleaning product brand makes great use of trust badges: there is a testimonial section on the site which shows customer reviews and their star ratings. Alongside this there is the feefo logo (which itself has a ‘platinum trusted’ badge alongside it).
Further down the homepage there is a certifications section, which has a carousel of 9 logos and a description of what each certification means. This includes B Corp certification (companies of exceptional social and environmental performance), FSC (card and paper is sourced from sustainably managed plantations), and the Cruelty Free leaping bunny logo (no testing on animals).
Finally, there’s a ‘smol in the news’ area which references media logos including Which?, The Guardian, Good Housekeeping and the Financial Times.
The end impression is that smol’s cleaning products are excellent, the brand cares for the environment, and has been given the seal of approval by lots of reputable media outlets. It’s a pretty compelling case and should erase any doubts in the consumer’s mind about whether the brand’s products are for them.
Trust Badges and Customer Behaviour
So why are they so effective? Well, they tap into human psychology and exploit a fear of fraud, enabling people to have their safety concerns allayed using social proof.
They also have a direct influence on purchase decisions, and can encourage impulse buys while fostering trust in a product or service.
How To Add Trust Badges to Shopify
It’s possible to manually add badges to your Shopify theme using code, or through theme settings if available. Here’s how you can follow those two routes:
1. Manually Add Trust Badge To Shopify
Upload your trust badge images to your Shopify store under ‘Settings’ > ‘Files’.
Go to ‘Online Store’ > ‘Themes’ and click ‘Customize’.
Click ‘Actions’ > ‘Edit Code’.
Locate the appropriate Liquid file (e.g., product.liquid, cart.liquid, checkout.liquid).
Insert the HTML code for your trust badge image, referencing the uploaded image URL.
Save your changes and preview your store to see the badges.
2. Adding Trust Badges Using Theme Settings (If Supported)
Check settings - some Shopify themes have built-in settings for adding trust badges.
Navigate to the relevant section in your theme settings (e.g., ‘Trust badges’ or ‘Checkout’).
Upload and Configure: Upload your trust badge images and configure their placement.
It’s also possible to follow a third method - using a Shopify app to insert trust badges on your site.
3. Using a Shopify App
Search the Shopify App Store for apps like ‘Conversion Bear Trust Badges’ or ‘ShopClimb - Trust Badges’.
Install the app, then configure it to display the desired trust badges on your desired pages (product pages, cart, checkout, etc.).
Many apps allow you to customise the badges, including text, font, and placement.
Placement of Trust Badges
Where should badges be placed on your site for maximum effect?
For maximum impact, place trust badges prominently on checkout pages, footers, headers, and product pages near ‘Add to Cart’ or ‘Buy Now’ buttons - as discussed, Gymshark is a great example of doing this well.
Checkout Page
This is a critical area where users may have the most concerns about security and data protection, so prominently display badges related to payment security, shipping, and money-back guarantees.
Footer
Footers are consistent across all pages and are a good place to display badges that validate overall business reputation, like industry certifications, payment options or social media logos.
Header
Similar to footers, headers are consistent elements across all pages, and users often scan for reassurances here.
Product Pages (PDPs)
If you have specific product-related trust badges such as awards or customer reviews, place them on the individual product pages, ideally near the ‘Add to Cart’ or ‘Buy Now’ button.
Homepage
Your homepage is a great place to instill overall confidence and trust in your brand, so showcase reviews, awards, or other badges here (similar to how smol showcase theirs).
Other Channels
Consider displaying trust badges on social media updates, company newsletters, or other channels to reinforce your message beyond your website. Consistency is always important.
How to Get Google Trusted Store Badge
A Google Trusted Store Badge is a game-changer for credibility. While achieving this certification requires effort, it’s worth it for the returns.
Sign Up for Google Customer Reviews: Log in to your Google Merchant Center account and enroll in the Customer Reviews program.
Meet Google’s Requirements: Fulfill specific criteria such as excellent delivery accuracy, transparent policies, and reliable customer service.
Display Badge on Your Store: Once approved, Google provides an HTML code snippet to embed on your Shopify site.
Additional Ways to Enhance Trust
While trust badges are valuable, combining them with other strategies creates a more trustworthy overall shopping experience:
Reviews & Testimonials: Add genuine customer reviews and testimonials to showcase your excellent track record.
Policies: Clearly display your shipping, refund, and privacy policies to set expectations upfront.
Professional Design: A polished, user-friendly website helps build trust in your brand.
Live Chat & Customer Support: Add a live chat feature or clearly show your customer support contact details. Easy communication helps customers feel confident in your brand.
Design Considerations For Trust Badges
We’d recommend making sure your badges are visible but not intrusive. It’s also important not to overwhelm customers with too many badges that might reduce their effectiveness. It’s also a good idea to link the badges back to their verification sources - it allows customers to click through to the badge’s website, and also the link itself will help Google when it comes to crawling and understanding your site’s content and can improve your SEO.
In summary, make sure you’re shouting about your policies, accreditations, awards and partnerships - it all adds credibility to your brand and helps give your visitors the confidence they need to hit that ‘buy now’ button. If you need ongoing support with your Shopify store, this is exactly the kind of thing we can help you implement, so get in touch!
