How Do Trust Badges Work?

Trust badges are icons you place strategically on your e-commerce site that serve as cues for your customers.

There are many different types of trust badges, but they generally fall into two categories:

Those that protect personal information during the shopping and checkout phases
Those that ensure customer satisfaction after shopping

Trust seals inform your visitors that you’ll take responsibility if they’re unsatisfied with their order and that you’ve taken proactive steps to protect their personal information from being stolen.

Most Popular Trust Badge Types for Shopify Store Owners

You’ll see all different seals across Shopify, but the most common ones are:

• SSL certificate
• Secure payment seals
• Accepted payment badges
• Free shipping badges
• Money-back guarantee badges
• GSC badges

All denote special meaning and help your customers feel confident about shopping with you.

What Are Guaranteed Safe Checkout Badges?

GSC badges are those that let your visitor know their personal information will be protected at checkout.

They aren’t just a PNG image you download like some of the others are — GSC badges are connected to a security service and carry the seal of a trusted online security firm.

In fact, you get specific badges after signing up with an SSL certificate company.

Guaranteed Safe Checkout badges let your customer know a secure connection has been established and tested, allowing them to enjoy a worry-free checkout process.

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Which Badges Customers Trust Most (and Why)

Since trust seals are meant to encourage shoppers, it only makes sense to add the ones to your store that customers react to most.

As the Baymard Institute points out, the general public trusts certain seals more than others, even though most people don’t understand the technology behind them.

It all has to do with brand recognition. If a shopper recognizes the trust badges on a website, they’ll have more faith in that site’s security.

So which badges do your customers trust most?

Here are the ones Baymard Institute says make customers feel the most comfortable:

Norton

When asked which badge made them feel most secure when paying online, responders overwhelmingly chose the Norton Secured badge.

It’s not only Baymard Institute that notes the deep trust e-commerce shoppers have for Norton — DigiCert, one of the most trusted security certificate providers, found the same.

In a survey about Norton GSC badges, DigiCert reports that 91% of consumers said they completed a purchase when the merchant used a Norton badge.

How Do I Get a Norton Badge?

Learn more about what a Norton GSC badge can do for your store and install the badge on the DigiCert website.

Before installing a Norton GSC badge on your e-commerce site, you must purchase TLS/SSL certificates and then install the Norton seal.

McAfee GSC Badge

McAfee serves more than 600 million consumer endpoints, 86% of the world’s largest banks, and 52% of the top 50 retailers. So yeah, they have the trust of many, many of the globe’s top companies and their consumers.

It also comes in second to Norton on the Baymard Institute survey in terms of perceived trust. They also note, however, that while Norton is an SSL certificate seal, meaning it has to be attached to an actual technical security system, McAfee is a classic trust seal provider.

Don’t get us wrong, McAfee will test the security of your website before it allows you to use its secure checkout badge. But that doesn’t mean you need SSL certificates to use them.

How Do I Get a McAfee Badge?

To add a McAfee GSC, download it from your e-commerce platform’s app or plugin store. You’ll have to input your business information and submit that to McAfee, which will run security checks and let you know if you pass or not. If so, you can install their trust seal immediately.

Norton vs. McAfee

If your e-commerce store already has or is working toward having professional security systems, you should definitely add a Norton or McAfee trust seal.

But which?

To answer that, let’s look at their key features:

Norton programs offer a secure VPN (McAfee Total Protection does not) and a 60-day money-back guarantee, which is double McAfee’s 30-day policy.

Norton Small Business provides you with 24/7 support and protection for up to 20 employee devices with a simple cloud-based setup.

When compared by Difference Between, they point out that Norton is more affordable, imposes less strain on your technical resources, and excels in privacy protection, while McAfee can be pricier and resource heavy, but offers more features in terms of endpoint security.

McAfee Endpoint Antivirus is best for larger enterprises that handle high-volume sales, while Norton is ideal for small businesses.

PayPal

PayPal is one of the top payment gateway providers and payment badge generators.

In fact, in a study by CXL, it earned 97% of consumer trust with aided awareness and 17% unaided. Not only that, PayPal provides a variety of trust badges, including free return shipping, PayPal Credit banners, and Backed by PayPal banners.

How Do I Get a PayPal Badge?

All PayPal seals have source code, so you can add what amounts to PayPal clipart to your website. All you really need is a PayPal account so you can accept customer payments through the platform.

Your store does not have to use any form of security technology to earn a PayPal trust seal, although it’s always a good idea anyway.

Related: 7 Shopify Apps to Improve Your Business

Visa and Mastercard

In the same study, Visa/Mastercard logos earned 99% of consumer trust in aided awareness and 2% in unaided awareness questions, beating out even Norton.

This speaks to the incredible power of brand awareness. And like PayPal, you don’t necessarily have to offer a secure connection to use Visa/Mastercard trust seals (although, again, we’d highly recommend you do).

How Do I Get a Visa/Mastercard Badge?

You’ll have to go to your platform’s app/plugin store (more about those ahead!) and download a trust badge app. Undoubtedly, the store will have an option to add a Visa/Mastercard logo badge to your site

Google Trusted Store

In the CXL study, a Google Trusted Store badge was favored by millennials. This badge denotes that your store has received plenty of favorable reviews from shoppers and that Google has deemed these reviews honest.

A Google seal is an advertisement for the great reviews your brand has earned. It can increase your conversions with the power of positive social reinforcement, so it’s a smart one to add to just about any product page.

How Do I Get a Google Trusted Store Badge?

To start the process, register your business with the Google Merchant Center and follow the simple step-by-step process. You can join the Customer Reviews platform, and Google will provide you with a survey to add to your website.

Your visitor’s feedback will be collected and tallied. Google will award you a badge if you receive primarily positive reviews
[su_note]

Main Takeaways

Several factors contribute to which GSC seals consumers trust mostly; namely brand recognition, age range, and gender.

For example, female shoppers are more likely to trust a Better Business Bureau badge than male shoppers. And shoppers under the age of 30 were far more likely to trust a Google seal than those over the age of 50.

To know which GSC badges make the most sense to add to your store, consider your target customer and the studies discussed above.[/su_note]

Main Takeaways

Several factors contribute to which GSC seals consumers trust mostly; namely brand recognition, age range, and gender.

For example, female shoppers are more likely to trust a Better Business Bureau badge than male shoppers. And shoppers under the age of 30 were far more likely to trust a Google seal than those over the age of 50.

To know which GSC badges make the most sense to add to your store, consider your target customer and the studies discussed above.

So, Do Guaranteed Safe Checkout Badges Work?

Yes! There is a lot of evidence that Guaranteed Safe Checkout badges compel shoppers to complete transactions and increase conversion rates.

Need additional research? No problem!

A study by Blue Fountain Media revealed that adding a VeriSign trust badge increased their conversions by 42%.

And a survey by Actualinsights found that 60% of consumers did not buy something from an online store because a trust badge was missing, while 75% abandoned their carts because they did not recognize the trust seal brand’s logo.

GSC trust badges work especially well for small businesses. A store like Amazon already has enough public trust to not have to use site seals, but smaller businesses don’t have that benefit. New customers may search your site for a GSC badge to make sure that you run a trustworthy store.

How to Add a Secure Badge to Shopify or Other E-Commerce Stores

If you’re a Shopify, Magento, or BigCommerce store owner, your site already has a free SSL certificate by default. These platforms provide their store owners with built-in SSL certificates.

You can buy DigiCert’s TLS products to add a Norton and DigiCert site seal to your website, no matter your platform.

Shopify Guaranteed Safe Checkout Trust Badges

If you’re a Shopify store owner and use their platform for hosting, follow their simple steps to add a GSC badge.

You can shop for trust badges in the Shopify App Store, too. With a paid membership, TrustedSite will scan your store’s security credentials to help you earn trust badges, even a McAfee Secure badge.

Magento Guaranteed Safe Checkout Trust Badges

Peruse the Magento Marketplace to shop for GSC badge extensions. With a paid TrustedSite membership, you can prove the security of your store and earn a McAfee badge. Magento is also a PayPal partner, so you can add PayPal seals to your store pages.

BigCommerce Guaranteed Safe Checkout Trust Badges

Browse the BigCommerce Apps Marketplace for trust marks. Like Shopify and Magento, you can apply for TrustedSite certification that can check your store’s security and earn you a McAfee Secure badge. BigCommerce is also a PayPal partner.

Tip: Location Is Everything

A GSC badge is pretty useless if your customer doesn’t see it. Place your trust seals on your website’s home page, shopping cart page, and product pages. This will ensure it’s noticed and reinforces your safe-and-secure message.

Conclusion

We know that trust badges have a positive impact on e-commerce shoppers. They are the sign, quite literally, that your store provides a secure connection from a trusted security company.

They also speak to the authenticity of your store. And though there are tons of trust badges out there, a Guaranteed Safe Checkout badge is one of the most effective.

Most importantly, purchasing third-party security services through McAfee and Norton and displaying their GSC badges can increase conversion rates while keeping you, your employees, and your customers safe.

The one you decide to go with is up to you, but keep in mind our comparison notes, mainly that Norton better serves small businesses and McAfee, larger.

And if you’re curious about all the ways a dedicated e-commerce agency can make your store a safe, secure, and amazing experience for your shoppers, contact us today.