As of 2023, nearly 81% of Americans shop online, and that number is expected to rise to 83.5% by 2027. Of those, 63% have bought something directly from a brand’s website rather than going through a marketplace. Great news for ecommerce businesses, right?
Unfortunately, ecommerce isn’t a perfect system yet. Scam sites (like the ones that advertised fake vaccines during Covid-19) lure in customers, take their money, and disappear without a trace after just a few days.
Savvy online shoppers don’t want to get burned, and they do their due diligence to vet sites before making a purchase. By clearly communicating your trustworthiness, you can ease their anxieties and give them the confidence to buy.
That’s where a shopping guarantee comes in.
What Is a Shopping Guarantee?
A shopping guarantee is an assurance made by a trustworthy third party that customers will have a safe, satisfying shopping experience. In essence, the shopping guarantee underwrites a merchant’s terms of service, holding them accountable to consumers. When a customer runs into an issue, the issuer of the shopping guarantee steps in to resolve it.
Shopping guarantees address three main areas of consumer anxiety:
- Merchant reliability: Is this ecommerce site valid? Will the merchant scam me?
- Price point: Am I getting the best deal on this product? Will the merchant lower the price after I buy?
- Identity protection: Will my personal information be safe?
Some shopping guarantees also address package security, offering an option to add shipping insurance at checkout for a small portion of the product’s price.
Benefits of a Shopping Guarantee
Shopping guarantees have some significant benefits, including higher conversion rates, increased consumer satisfaction, and fewer angry customers.
- Boost your conversion rate. Shopping guarantees help build consumer trust and confidence, encouraging them to make a purchase from your store. Our data shows that adding a shopping guarantee usually boosts conversion rates between 3% and 12%.
- Improve customer satisfaction. When customers receive a product that doesn’t meet their expectations, they’re often frustrated. A shopping guarantee helps de-escalate tense situations to keep customers happy.
- Decrease chargebacks. With a shopping guarantee underwriting your terms of service, you’ll see fewer chargebacks from disgruntled buyers.
- Avoid negative reviews. Bad reviews are forever, so the wisest course is to prevent them. By smoothing out sticky situations, shopping guarantees decrease the likelihood of consumers leaving negative online reviews.
How a Shopping Guarantee Works
Shopping guarantees work by using visual trust signals to show consumers the site they’re shopping on is safe. Once someone makes a purchase, they can rely on the shopping guarantee to have their back if something goes wrong.
Visual Trust Signals
Trust signals are graphical elements on the site that show consumers the website is verified by a trusted third party. Often taking the form of a floating seal, trust signals address shoppers’ potential anxieties the moment they reach the site.
Shopping Cart, Pricing, and Product Pages.
Businesses can also choose to add shopping guarantee graphics to their shopping cart, pricing, and product pages. These additional graphics, known as “conversion kickers,” help make call to action (CTA) buttons more appealing.
Shopping Guarantee Examples
Developing a shopping guarantee has helped fuel Amazon’s ecommerce success. Their A to Z Guarantee protects consumers who buy from third-party sellers through the platform. Rather than dealing with the seller when things go awry, customers contact Amazon directly. It’s easy, quick, and hassle-free.
Of course, Amazon is an enormous company. Not every ecommerce business will have the tools, resources, and credibility to get away with building their own shopping guarantee. In cases like this, we recommend going with a third-party shopping guarantee that’s already established credibility.
The Norton Shopping Guarantee with Package Protection by EasyPost, available for free to Shopify merchants, helps build trust with a four-pronged approach:
- $1,000 purchase guarantee
- $100 lowest price guarantee
- $10,000 identity theft protection
- Optional package insurance at checkout (the customer pays for this)
Learn More About Shopping Guarantees
Want to learn more about the power of consumer trust and confidence? Watch this episode of the Unboxing Logistics podcast to hear Eric Thorson, general manager at Norton Shopping Guarantee, share his insights.
