This blog post was updated on 4 April 2025.
When you are targeting a website at an international market, it is vital that you localise it to serve the needs of the local audience. By fully localising your website, you are creating a stellar user experience for the target user, making the path to conversion so much smoother.
When doing website localisation, it is vital to localise your trust signals. Trust signals are things that tell the user that your website is trustworthy, and they can be different in different markets.
In this blog post, I will go through three important trust signals you need to remember when doing website localisation.
1. Payment methods
It is essential to offer your customers convenient and familiar payment options. Even if they are only contemplating the possibility of placing an order with your company, this is likely to be a big trust signal – on top of the obvious advantage of enabling the transaction itself to happen.
Remember that credit cards are not the preferred payment method in every country. For example, Germans are used to receiving an invoice with a 30-day payment window after delivery. The more region-specific payment options you are able to offer, the higher the chances of the transaction being completed successfully.
2. Contact us
The “Contact us” page of a website is one of the strongest indicators that a business is well-established in a region and safe to deal with.
Ideally, a local phone number would feature on the website, even if calls are re-directed to an international call centre. Be clear about which language is supported by your customer service team; people will naturally assume they can communicate in their local language. If necessary, consider employing native speakers to work in the customer support team.
A local postal address is another significant trust signal. People feel more confident to deal with a business when it has an office or a branch located in their country.
With regards to contact forms, ensure that the form can accept addresses in the local format. For example, “state” should not be a compulsory field outside the US.
3. Delivery and returns policies
Make sure to localise your delivery and returns policies for every market you are targeting. It is very reassuring for customers to know they can easily resolve any after-sale issues easily.
Bear in mind that the acceptable delivery time can also differ considerably across different countries. For example, in the UK, you often see one- or two-day delivery being offered, yet in Italy, the state postal service Poste Italiane typically offers a one- or two-week delivery time. This needs to be taken into account when drafting policies like “please return within 14 days for a full refund”, for example.
Want to learn more?
I hope this blog post has given you a useful introduction to the topic of trust signals on your website. For more in-depth information, and additional trust signals, read my full-length guide here. From reading this guide, you will learn about:
- your contact page
- units of measurement
- payment methods
- currencies
- delivery and returns policies
- social media accounts
- local associations and institutions
- the language
