The Amazon option

[The_Cynic]

I am experimenting with my own website. I sell collectibles and luckily I have pretty good margins. The problem is that so far I am having trouble with sales conversions on my site. People seem reluctant to buy from a standalone site even though I offer Google Checkout and paypal as payment options

So I was thinking of loading my listings on Amazon and giving my customers an option of completing the sale through my site via google checkout or paypal with fufillment by me ----or giving a link to my listing of the item on Amazon and have them completing the sale at Amazon with Amazon guarantees.

If it increases my conversion rates it will be worth it to pay the extra Amazon fees, my margins are good.

My question, would you feel safer buying from a standalone website via Google checkout or from Amazon?

I think hands down Amazon would win because of they established and have built some trust with their brand.

[aspkin]

You just have to make your site look much more professional. The more professional it looks, the more people will trust you. I started with my own site and branched out to eBay for extra sales. The more professional a site looks, the more questions you answer before someone buys the more sales you'll have. Look at your competition, and see what elements you can take from their sites to make yours better. It's all about trust.

[The_Cynic]

That's a good comment about trust and increasing the perception of it onsite. i have read a bunch about placing buttons security certificates etc....

The thing is, when I buy stuff online from someone I have never dealt with before, in my head there is always a thought that it may be a scam, no matter How much "Social Proof" a site may have. That's where the Amazon link should come in handy, if they see that it is available from me on Amazon that should lend some help to the trust perception of my site. If it increases conversions it is worth the extra fees.

Good advice though, You should always be trying to add a more professional look and add other factors of trust and social proof.