Trust Guard - Blog

The Future is Now

M E — Sun, 05 Feb 2012 12:50:57 +0000

The interesting thing about the Internet is that while it’s something we all rely on these days for everything from our social lives to our banking and finances, it’s something that is still highly misunderstood. It’s safe enough, but it’s not entirely safe just as nothing in the real world is entirely safe. However, the faceless, almost detached feeling that we get from the cyber world creates a false sense of security. Also, the fact that most people don’t know how the Internet works, how data travels, or how things are stored. And so most of us have a hard time understanding the real threats and dangers. It doesn’t help that there have been far too many movies that make hacking seem like science fiction, which unfortunately it isn’t.

Despite the fact that hacking seems like something from a movie or from the future it isn’t. It’s a very serious threat. Because of our fast, technological advances, and our technology drenched society, even teenagers are quickly learning how to operate, control, and manipulate the Internet. While in high school most of my friends didn’t even know what the Internet was, now even my youngest brother knows some html code. Cyber criminals are not the same as real life criminals in the sense that these people are technologically advanced, and almost impossible to catch once they’ve committed a crime. Let’s take Anonymous for example. They are a network of hackers who try to, in their eyes, do good. They break into high security systems and pull out top secret information to make public. If they can get into the Pentagon, which they allegedly have accomplished, it’s assumed they can get into everywhere. And, most of them haven’t been traced. Governments can’t find them. And it’s the same with lower level hackers who maybe pulled some credit card numbers from a site here or there. They are rarely, if ever, caught.

It’s not so difficult to hack into a website and access its data or damage files. This data is typically unprotected unless the has website recently had a PCI compliant security scan. Website security scanning basically uses hacker techniques against them. The PCI scan looks for any security holes and notifies the owners so they can block them before a hacker can get through. There are almost always security holes, in fact we find them over eighty percent of the time. It’s that easy to get into a site, sit, wait, take. At the same time it’s easy to prevent hacking. If businesses used an SSL Certificate to protect moving data, and website security scanning to protect data, it would be very difficult for hackers to thrive as they do. But because the Internet is misunderstood, hackers are not taken as seriously as they should be and people are suffering massive losses from data theft, identity theft, and bankruptcy every year.

Cyber space is no longer something of science fiction, or the movies. Hackers are not futuristic geniuses we’ve seen in movies like, “Hackers”. They are real, trained, and difficult to catch. Each year millions of dollars are lost, websites compromised, identities are stolen, and lives are ruined. The “future” is now.

Once again Trust Guard SMASHES McAfee Secure

admin — Mon, 16 Jan 2012 19:53:45 +0000

Google declares Trust Guard High-confidence Winner

In a second massive test with over 710,560 visitors, Trust Guards’ Security Scanned seal beat no seals by 3.85% with a 99.9% confidence rate and beat the McAfee Secure seal by over 2 times.

This comprehensive A/B/C split test utilized Google’s Website Optimizer as the testing platform, and PayDotCom’s checkout page (where the customers from thousands of websites end up just before they make the final decision to buy) and thank you page as the source of the data, comparing three variables:

     – No seals
     – McAfee Secure seal
     – Trust Guard ‘Security Scanned seal

Trust Guard the clear winner with a 99.9% confidence!

Trust Guard beats McAfee Secure again!

Based on the results of the test it is easy to project the number of additional orders each seal would have generated.

– Trust Guard 4,212 extra sales (Worth $84,240 at $20 per sale.)
– McAfee Secure 1,961 extra sales (Worth only $39,220 at $20 per sale.)

Note: Visitors saw a seal only once just before making their final decision to buy, imagine how much better the results would have been if visitors were able to see the Trust Guard seal above the fold on other pages throughout the website.

Rhino Support Sneak Peek

Scott Brandley — Mon, 27 Jun 2011 14:16:44 +0000

It’s official!

Tomorrow at 12 pm ET, Rhino Support officially goes LIVE, and to celebrate, we’re offering some HUGE discounts to our members and loyal subscribers.

Bottom line, If you sell products or services online, then you need Rhino Support!

Rhino Support was built from the ground up to help you simplify, organize, and effectively manage your online support.

No more being the middle man, no more email hunting, no more lost correspondence. It’s all taken care of from now on.

Here are some of the ways that Rhino Support is can help you.

Rhino Support is:

Fast

Everything is web based, so it’s always on and instantly available wherever you go!

Easy

It works just like email, so there’s no learning curve. After just one support ticket you’ll be a pro!

User-Friendly

The interface is professional yet simple, with just the right amount of options.

Organized

Tired of being the ‘middle man’ between your customers and your suppliers?
With Rhino support you can discuss issues directly with your suppliers, right from your customer’s support ticket! This feature is a lifesaver for anyone that sells products online, because it keeps all your discussions neatly organized and managed.

Customer-Focused

Every customer gets their very own user-interface, which displays their ticket in the form of a friendly conversation with your support staff. This adds an additional level of customer service that traditional email just can’t provide.

Efficient

Unlike other support systems, that require you to install software onto your computer, Rhino Support runs right in your browser. It can even send you an email with a special link in it that instantly opens your account for you.

Watch for our official launch email tomorrow, or go to www.rhinosupport.com at 12pm ET to see everything that Rhino Support has to offer you and your business.

Trust Guard CRUSHES McAfee Secure In Groundbreaking Split Test!!!

M E — Tue, 05 Oct 2010 22:43:07 +0000

It’s official. In a massive 200,000 customer split test using Google’s Website Optimizer, Trust Guard beat McAfee Secure by over 2.5%!

Thanks to a partnership with PayDotCom, a leading 3rd party payment processing service, we were able to run a comprehensive split test across thousands of different website’s checkout pages, comparing the conversion rates of 4 variables:

- No seals
- McAfee Secure seal
- Trust Guard ‘Security Scanned’ Contemporary seal
- Trust Guard ‘Security Scanned’ Chrome seal

After nearly 200,000 unique customers visiting PayDotCom’s checkout, Google awarded a clear winner – the Trust Guard Chrome seal.

In second place was the Trust Guard Contemporary seal, followed by McAfee Secure in third, and No seals in fourth.

Based on the results of the test, the Trust Guard Chrome seal increased sales over No seals by 3.98% with a 98% confidence interval, whereas McAfee Secure had the lowest increase of only 1.47%.

That means that the Trust Guard Chome increased overall sales 2.7x more than McAfee!

In fact, here’s a chart projecting how many additional orders each seal would have generated based on each conversion rate.

As you can see, the McAfee Secure seal would have generated 404 additional sales, the Trust Guard Contemporary seal would have generated 622 additional sales, and the Trust Guard Chrome would have generated 1,095 additional sales!

And here’s the best part. This test was performed on the very first page of the checkout at the very bottom of the page!!! Just think of the significance of that.

If adding just a single Trust Guard Chrome seal at the bottom of one page can increase conversions by 4%, just imagine what our full suite of seals placed strategically on your website can do!!!

Which leads me to my second announcement.

We have officially launched the New Trust Guard Chrome Seal to ALL of our Members!

In fact, the new chrome style is already in your member control panel. All you have to do is go and select it and it will instantly update on your website.

You don’t even have to replace the code!

Based on the increased conversions we’ve seen from this test and several other split tests we’ve done internally (which have all won and have all beaten McAfee Secure), we highly recommend that you update your seals to the Chrome style as soon as possible.

Once again, thank you for your business. We appreciate your patronage and look forward to continuing to help you with your Security, Privacy, and Business Verification needs now and into the future!

Sincerely,

Dave Brandley, President
Trust Guard

P.S. To access your Chrome seals, log into your member control panel and click on ‘Get Code’ and then ‘Advanced Options’. Then just click on the Chrome seal and press the update button at the bottom of the page.

Measuring Customer Satisfaction

M E — Wed, 26 May 2010 17:28:43 +0000

Here at Trust Guard we are all about improving customer trust and especially increasing conversion. There is no better way to do this then by leveraging your existing happy customers.

It is no secret that companies want to hold on to their customers. After all, repeat customers are a key part of success in the business world. The general belief is that it costs companies much more money to get new clients than it does to simple keep existing customers. This is why measuring customer satisfaction is so vitally important.

If customers shop at your online store or retail store and end up unhappy, then the odds are good that they won’t be returning. You have not only lost their business, but you have to suffer the potential fallout from others that they complain to about their experience at your store. These are some of the problems that result from the lack of measuring customer satisfaction.

The bottom line is that you want your customers to be happy, and the importance of measuring customer satisfaction cannot be discounted. There are a wide variety of ways in which you can assess how pleased or displeased your clients may be.

If you run a business in which your employees interact with customers one on one, of course you can simply ask them in person. For example, restaurants frequently ask customers, “How was everything tonight?”

However, with many other types of business, including online stores, it can be trickier to find a way of measuring customer satisfaction. The good news is that there are new methods available that perfectly suit ecommerce. For example, there are now customer feedback questionnaires and satisfaction survey software that is easily integrated onto your website.

If you are running a business and not measuring customer satisfaction, you may be losing valuable profits each year. It is time to reassess and start finding a way to gauge the happiness of your clients. As a result, you can often make much needed changes to your company that result in a better functioning business.

Online Customer Surveys Work!

M E — Wed, 05 May 2010 21:06:06 +0000

Everyday more online retailers are adding customer surveys to their checkout process. Without consumer ratings, often merchants find that assessing whether or not customers are pleased is a somewhat of a guessing game. Consumer ratings have many benefits including the fact that merchants can gain valuable feedback about the shopping experience from the customer’s point of view.

Adding customer surveys to your online store can be one of the most effective ways of increasing the loyalty of your shoppers. As a result, this method can be extremely beneficial for growing sales. Not only will your customers be more likely to turn into repeat clients, they may be so pleased with their experience that they recommend your products or services to others.

On the other hand, often when your customers are unhappy with their experience, they won’t say anything. They will just disappear for good. Needless to say, you have lost their repeat business. Often you will find through customer surveys that the issues that your clients have are quite small and can be easily addressed. However, just these issues could have very easily equated to customers choosing another shopping destination for future purchases.

There are a variety of ways to easily add customer surveys into your transaction process. For example, one company called Shopper Approved adds customer surveys that come up right after a customer orders his or her product. This way a client’s initial thoughts can be expressed through the means of this customer survey form.

Through the Shopper Approved software, customers can also opt-in to participate in a longer survey after receiving their purchase. This sort of automation through the means of software allows customer surveys to be a smooth and easy process for your customers. Luckily, computers allow online customer surveys to be a thoroughly automated process. As a result, confusing paperwork and/or mailers are now a thing of the past.

Shopper Approved Case Study Video

M E — Wed, 24 Mar 2010 17:53:50 +0000

Shopper Approved is officially 1 month old and we are very pleased with the results. We decided to interview one of the Shopper Approved clients that has already received over 2000 ratings and reviews. To watch the interview click the play button in the video below:

Scott Brandley interviews Dominic Bartone of Hocks.com!

To learn more about Shopper Approved visit ShopperApproved.com

In the video learn Dominic’s feelings with using Shopper Approved and how he has used the Shopper Approved service in his business to improve customer service.

Shopper Approved Case Study

Scott Brandley — Tue, 23 Feb 2010 15:15:20 +0000

With only 1 day left before the official Shopper Approved Launch, I would like to share with you some of the ‘live results’ that our beta testers have been getting.

I’ve put together a quick video to show you the actual results!

Watch the video below:

Shopper Approved Has Now Launched!!!

Click here to visit Shopper Approved

See Shopper Approved in Action!

Click on the seals below to view real-time ratings and reviews.

Fireplacescreensetc.com

Fashionscarvesandshawls.com

Shopper Approved Announcement Email

M E — Mon, 22 Feb 2010 18:09:47 +0000

Below is the first email sent out to Trust Guard members!!!

——————————————————–

As a preferred Trust Guard member, I wanted to personally

let you know that Shopper Approved is officially launching
in 2 days!

Big deal right? We’ll, actually it’s a huge deal,
especially for you as a business owner and here’s why…

During the past few months, our beta testers have received
thousands of incredible ratings and reviews from their
existing customers. These reviews are now being used to
educate, inform, and entice every single one of their new
potential customers to buy!

It’s hard to imagine that these websites used to let their
customers leave without gathering any feedback or
testimonials from them. Now, with Shopper Approved, they’re
automatically gathering amazing ratings and reviews from
nearly 50% of their paying customers!

That’s right. 50 Percent!

So, why is this important to your business?

We’ll, it has to do with a simple but very powerful concept
called ‘social proof’, which states that:

When a potential customer goes online to buy a product or
service, they actually want and actively look for
reassurance that they’re making the right decision.

And the way they get that assurance is from other customers’
ratings, feedback, and reviews.

This is why statistically, 77% of online shoppers turn to
consumer reviews before they decide to buy!

There’s a reason why Amazon, eBay, Sears, and pretty much
every other major ecommerce site have customer ratings and
reviews integrated into their website. It’s because online
reviews have been proven to increase conversion, increase
average transaction amounts, improve customer satisfaction,
and even lower product returns!

Are you letting your customers leave without gathering
valuable ratings and reviews?

As a Trust Guard member you already know the importance of
building customer trust. Shopper Approved builds on that
trust by helping you to positively leverage and
strategically optimize your single greatest asset – existing
customers.

Tomorrow, I’m going to share with you some of the live
results that our beta testers have received so far. You are
going to be shocked at what you see!

You don’t want to miss it, so watch for my email as the
countdown continues!

All the best,

Scott Brandley, CEO
Trust Guard
Shopper Approved

Watch the Shopper Approved Case Study Video – Click Here

New Trust Guard ‘Shopper Approved’ sneak peek!

Scott Brandley — Wed, 06 Jan 2010 21:37:34 +0000

If you’ve been following our posts, then you know that we’ve been working behind the scenes for several months on a really big project that we believe will change the way people do business online.

It’s called Shopper Approved.

Shopper Approved is a state-of-the-art customer rating and review service, specifically designed to help e-commerce websites effectively gather, and then prominently display customer feedback, in order to help entice, educate and motivate new potential customers to buy.

We’ve been running several live-beta tests over the last couple months, and the results have been nothing short of amazing, with nearly 1 out of every 2 customers providing initial ratings and/or reviews, and almost 1 out of every 3 customers opting-in to fill out a full survey once they receive their order!

People in our beta test are getting tons of great ratings, reviews and testimonials – all automatically! This is the kind of social proof every website needs.

We’re just about to officially open the doors, but before we do, we need your help in choosing the final seal design from 3 possible contenders.

Please select the overall seal design below that:

1 – you like the best, and
2 – that you think your customers will be most likely to respond to

Please Choose Your Favorite Shopper Approved Seal Below(online surveys)

Once again, thank you for your participation and ongoing support. On behalf of myself and everyone here at Trust Guard, I want you to know that we appreciate the opportunity to serve you, and we look forward to working with you in 2010!

Sincerely,

Scott Brandley, CEO
Trust Guard