Forum Moderators: buckworks
So far, no uptick in sales. There's enough data to suggest that there probably won't be, but not enough to prove it.
If final results of the current test show poor results, we'll modify placement of the ScanAlert logo once to try and improve it.
I am of the opinion (and it is part of the discusions) that it is not wise to even bring up the topic of hackers on an ecommerce site. Just scares people off. Out of site, out of mind.
I am of the opinion (and it is part of the discusions) that it is not wise to even bring up the topic of hackers on an ecommerce site. Just scares people off. Out of site, out of mind.
Why rely on opinion when facts are easy to determine?
Why rely on opinion when facts are easy to determine?
Perhaps in the future if/when Scan Alert becomes a household name (the way Veri$ign is with SSL certification), there will be some value in it.
CernyM, I'd be interested to know your final results. Thanks for your input.
I'll post once we have more results in.
Depending on your volume and gross margins, doing the A/B test is pretty much a no brainer, even if you believe its 90% likely to show no improvement in conversions.
The Expected Value is just way too high to ignore for all but the smallest stores.
i won't be renewing
The second round has been active for 1 week and I plan on running for at least 2 weeks.
I'll be more than happy to share results once we are done testing.
The HS graphic did not improve sales for us. It appears to have had the opposite effect.
However, it should be noted that an 80% confidence interval is far from definitive. It has changed the risk profile for us though, and we're suspending the first A/B test. We're undecided at this point about whether to proceed with the second A/B test (which would actually make the HS graphic more prolific on our site.)
Other than the positive aspect of "now we know" we also got good feedback that our hosting provider is doing a good job of keeping up with the latest security patches on our server.
The only other good advice I heard is to have your SSL certificate seal and VISA/MC/Amex logs above the fold on the Credit card entry web page.
Interesting. The exact opposite of their high pressure sales pitch.
I heard that the only one that may be worth it is BBBonline since the seal has good branding.
Here's a useful tip, imo. I post the logo from the (very well-known) company that issues my secure certificate. It's free. And it links to pages on their site all about site security, and info on how one can know whether or not to trust a website's safety. We put the logo on the bottom of every page, then right next to the LogIn fields and credit card data-entry fields too. Works like a charm - highly reassuring. And here's an excerpt from our FAQ:
"
WHY DOESN'T YOUR SITE HAVE ANY OF THOSE REASSURING 'HACKER SAFE' OR BETTER BUSINESS BUREAU (BBB) SEALS?
The dirty secret about these seals us that they are strictly for sale. They are not truly impartial nor merit-based, and approval standards are low. Seal display program subscriptions are actively hawked to website owners by aggressive cold-calling salespeople. Sites which do not pay these companies annual fees ranging between several hundred and thousands of dollars are not allowed to display the seals. Although such seals may seem to carry some kind of significant meaning or weight, for the most part they are virtually meaningless.
In webmaster circles, no website is ever truly 'hacker safe', and no security specialist other than an amateur would be so ignorant or presumptuous as to declare it. {WidgetWorld} site security is state of the art and always evolving. Our longstanding reputation in the {widget} trade is spotless, backed by a long history of extraordinarily clean statistics for well over a decade. In our opinion it is unnecessary to pay anyone for a useless seal, which provides a false sense of assurance only to those who are easily assured. We believe our money is far better spent on perfecting customer service, and constantly refining actual site security.
"
It's quite possible that putting up a logo like this in a site might distract the potential buyer from completing the mission- buying the product.
I would note that if you don't have the ability to run the basic A/B tests required to validate whether HS helps, hinders, or does nothing then you should make fixing that a priority.
You'll get lots of opinions on this board and those like it which don't always match reality. Make decisions based on data whenever possible - you'll still have to make plenty guided by little more than opinion and gut feel.
When was the last time you saw I.R. wax all enthusiastic about an open-source solution?
Also, don't overlook all the other ways you can reassure your customers, which are in fact better, more effective and cost zero. Lots of ways to convey the message that you're on the ball as regards site security, honesty and reputation in the trade.
I remember one WebmasterWorld wag quipped that you could just mock up your own seals in PhotoShop or whatever. They'll work at least as well as those site-visitor-counters (ever stop to think that anyone can make up any number he wishes to display?) or take your choice from an abundance of straw-man website excellence awards out there, if you wish. Better yet, create a truly great site and don't feed your visitors any silly BBB.-S. or absurd Hacker-Proof seals...what a novel idea.
As for distracting your customers, I'd recommend your offsite clicks are set up to open in new windows, at the very least.
There is still no double-blind or "placebo" test comparing those results against other available techniques: posting a logo-link to your SSL certificate provider, text describing your site security, reputation and anti-fraud measures, other seals or programs which do not require payment, or combos of the above.
The bottom line for me is: let's say you sell juice. And you know that you can add weasel-words to your product description, let's say: ALL NATURAL JUICE*, and the asterisk leads to: " *juice by-products; may or may not contain actual juice. " And let's assume that happens to be a legal way to describe your products, ie: you can get away with it just fine.
People who really know what's up, know that no website is "Hacker Safe". It's a half-truth, a spurious promise. Ma and Pa Kettle, scared Luddite Internet users that they are, they don't know better, and you're in no mood to bother enlightening them with the real 411. So you post an offical-looking seal and they're reassured when they see it. Thus you can make more money if you feed them a simple line of B.S.
If you're comfy with that, pay the money for the seal, and go for it. If you'd rather aim for a higher quality of offering, however, you have a wide range of available choices, among many better options and best of all, you don't have to feed those turkeys your money or contribute to their extortionate game. You don't need to cave in like a daft sheep, and believe the myth that if you don't display their seals you'll lose sales. If everybody caught on (I can dream, can't I?) these parasites would be out of business someday.
We've requested a refund under their posted policy.
I'm actually surprised, though not shocked.
