A new extension available from Magento Connect enables Magento users to display a Google Trusted Stores badge on their site.
Google Trusted Stores is a recent initiative from Google to give ecommerce stores a way to display their reliability and trustworthiness to potential customers. Google Trusted Stores places a badge onto verified websites, which will enable visitors to view a report card that includes various statistics, including shipping speed, reliability, and customer service responsiveness. The program also offers customers the chance to opt into $1000 lifetime purchase protection program backed by Google. According to Google, displaying the badge on a site can result in both increased conversions and larger order sizes. Having a guarantee of reliability displayed on an ecommerce store can be positive differentiator between competing stores in the same niche, and it lets consumers know that retailers are dedicated to openness and transparency in their transactions, a key factor in developing positive relationships.

The criteria for eligibility for the Trusted Stores program are fairly strict. The first stage is to sign up to the program and provide various pieces of information about your business. Following this is a 28-day assessment period where stores must provide anonymized data feeds with shipping and cancelation data for at least 500 orders and order confirmation data through on-site Javascript. Stores must also have order tracking available on more than 50% of their orders, along with various other restrictions.
Being part of Google Trusted Stores does mean giving up some control over your customer relations to Google. If stores and their customers are unable to come to a resolution regarding an issue, after four days Google will step in and, after an investigation, instruct the store to resolve in a way that conforms to its policies. In principle, Google’s vouching for a store, displaying relevant information, and acting as a neutral third party to help resolve issues between an ecommerce store and its customers will increase consumer confidence and lead to increased sales.
Using the new extension from Magento Connect somewhat simplifies the process of providing Google with the necessary data feeds and validation codes. There are comprehensive instructions provided with the extension on how to create the feeds and validate your store.
What do you think about Google Trusted Stores. Have you integrated it and noticed an increase in conversion rates? Let us know about your experiences in the comments.