What is important about online brands

The Internet runs on trust. Though it’s a collection of computers communicating throughout the world, at its heart the Internet is really people. And the cold, hard truth is that if you don’t have those people’s trust, you don’t have a business.

Why? Because you could be literally anywhere in the world, under any government or none, for one thing. There is no guarantee online that the person whose site you’re accessing is really who and where he says he is. And if you and your customer are not in the same country, he or she has no recourse if fraud occurs.

And fraud occurs all over the Internet. Though consumers are growing increasingly educated, they are still vulnerable to online thieves.

Their only assurance that you’re not some guy in Nigeria who’s out to take their money is your good name.

Brand Names and Trust
Even though they’ve been treated more as status symbols and fashion lately, brand names are really all about trust. Just like you know your friends reasonably well, you have some assurance that if you know the brand name of a product, you have some idea whether you should trust it or not. And if you can trust it, then you’re more likely to shop with that company than one you’ve never heard of before.

But online, your brand name can be your personal name, too. For instance, at eBay and Amazon, vendors selling products are rated on several scales, including quality of their products and overall customer satisfaction. These items accumulate into a sort of trust score – the more highly rated you are at either of these companies, the more likely the consumer can trust you.

If you don’t have some sort of brand name established, you’re at a disadvantage. How does anyone know they can trust you to deliver?

You only have one chance to do it right. There are so many companies out there offering the same things you offer that if you don’t please the customer the first time around, you’re likely to lose that customer to a competitor.