Social proof is a psychological term stemming from the 1930s that encompasses the way we feel as consumers - if other people are doing or buying it, then we should be doing so too. It’s that generated feeling of ‘you are safe to do this because others are also’. Canned or recorded laughter on your favourite sitcom is a classic example of social proof. Weight loss companies are also great at using social proof as a marketing technique.

Social proof may appear to be an illusion of “safety” but I believe it’s a good and harmless safety net to foster - particularly if you really believe in your service or product and everything that your business offers. As humans, we inherently seek safety, so why not encourage that safety by openly reinforcing it where possible?

According to the website Visual.ly, a good online product review can hike up a product’s sales by nine percent, whilst a bad one can drag down someone’s intention to buy by eleven percent. Let’s keep the punters happy, eh? 

'84% of people trust online reviews as much as a personal recommendation and 54% of people will visit the website after reading positive reviews.' Check out these statistics and more with this great post by Scout Digital Marketing on How to get online reviews.

Writing a Homepage
This is your website “foyer”. It welcomes people and guides them to their next step in making contact with you, booking your service or making a purchase. Waste no time in stating exactly what you do, services/products you offer, what your website is about and what you can do for readers of your site.

The layout and content of this page is vital as most people will “land” on it. It needs to be easy to read, navigate, understand and have a clear “takeaway” message. For example, George is a massage therapist and school teacher based in Perth.
Keep your homepage very short but still cover the essentials. Ask yourself this question:

If someone only had time to view your homepage, will they know enough about your business?
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Use a personal tone and tell people a story. Inform your readers straight away why you will help solve their problem. Don’t be coy—be explicit. What sounds more effective to you?

Example A
This book will boost your sales and will make you known for doing what you love. It’s an insightful guide on marketing for spiritually based businesses that is an easy and enjoyable read that will help you get your business or service noticed, quickly and inexpensively.

Example B
People have been saying for a while now that I should write an ebook and since I’m a writer I thought I should do that so here is a book on marketing. It started when I wrote about blogging but then I turned it into something more and now you get to read it.

Tip: keep your website consistent with your branding, style and voice. That means you should use similar language to that which you use on your hard copy marketing collateral and your social media platforms.

Want to learn more? Including how to start a website and write your own blog? You can buy my book here. You may also like my blog post on how to write a great About Me page.