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Hi Reader,

Let's talk about establishing trust on your website. Especially because we're entering the season when most online shops get more traffic than ever!

Even if your customers don’t know why your site doesn’t feel as trustworthy to them as the other sites they shop on – even if they aren’t design or internet savvy – they are going to have an instant “first impression” of your business based on what they see. If it’s not totally polished and well-designed, they will click away.

Society as a whole is much more design-aware than we used to be, and expectations are high. There are quite a few ways to establish credibility and trust for your site, and it’s good to use as many as make sense for your business.

There are many features a strategic website needs, such as product reviews, publicity, customer service information, and more, that help with trust.

If it’s a customer’s first time buying something from you, they might have fears or hesitations that hold them back from making the purchase. Reviews, testimonials, and customer photos are great ways to use social proof to improve your chances of converting website visitors into customers.

Generous shipping and returns policies, as well as guarantees, can give customers the confidence to buy from you for the first time. Make it easy to find info about returns, exchanges, and shipping (and don't hide these in a FAQ - potentially, a “Customer Service” or “Store Policies” header would work to group these together in your footer). I need to see your terms and conditions and privacy policy (required by law).

The privacy policy and terms of service pages are auto-generated by Shopify when you fill out the legal fields in settings (and creating these pages this way, instead of making a page manually, means the information will carry through to checkout). The URLs will look like this when it's done correctly:

DOMAIN.com/policies/privacy-policy
DOMAIN.com/policies/terms-of-service

The homepage of your site is a great place to showcase product reviews, testimonials, awards, certifications, or any notable press/publicity you've received (including logos of magazines, etc.). What makes you an expert, an established business, or a trusted voice in your community? These things are good to pursue if you want to improve the trustworthiness of your website.

Don't forget your brand identity. With a meaningful brand, your website can look custom, purposeful, and professional, which instills a sense of trust in your customers, even if they don’t realize why they feel that way.

Establishing trust is one of our priorities for every Shopify site we work on. If you feel that customers may be hesitant to buy from you, please check in with me so we can help out with this!

Q&A

Here's a reader question about post-design support:

Q: What post-design support do you provide (e.g., style guides, training)?

A: Our goal is for every brand we work with to feel completely confident managing their website independently once it launches. Once a project is complete, we don’t just hand over a finished design; we provide clear documentation, tutorials, and training sessions so you and your team can handle everyday updates such as adding products, editing content, or running special promotions without relying on outside help.

If your team prefers more structure, we can create a style guide or set of reference documents to ensure your brand’s design stays consistent as your site evolves. We’re also available to answer questions in the weeks following launch.

For brands with in-house developers, we’ll collaborate on the handoff process and provide the technical details they’ll need to continue building confidently on top of our design.

Question: Answered

Our team includes experts in branding, design, development, email & SMS/text marketing, search engine optimization, copywriting, conversion optimization, ecommerce strategy, business growth, and more. Have a question for us? Email back, and I'll consult one of our experts and share one weekly response over email.

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A Simple Shopify Design and Klaviyo Template for High Tail Hikes.

High Tail Hikes is a mission-driven brand crafting durable, handcrafted BioThane gear with love and integrity. Founded by wildlife biologist Liz Williams and supported by a passionate team, they’re dedicated to helping dogs and their people enjoy life together. Aeolidia partnered with the team to produce a clean, simple Shopify design and Klaviyo email strategy, making it easier for customers to connect, shop, and stay in touch.

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