A study out today says that many novice online buyers are concerned with credit card security, with only 23% believing that their purchase is secure. As an online retailer, you should be very careful about security—that goes without saying. You should also be sure to let your users know your site is secure. I’ve done this in a variety of ways. I’ve posted a security policy on the online retail site I operate, and this policy is linked together with the privacy policy. Another way to instill some trust is to get approved by Verisign or Trust-e, and display these logos on your site.
You’ll notice that many established online retailers have moved these logos or security badges from their homepage to another page on their site (maybe a security page or customer service area). While I feel this is an acceptable practice, this latest study suggests that if you’re selling something low-tech to new internet users, you should probably keep that security badge on the homepage.
