Presumed Credibility
Presumed credibility often applies to not for profit organisation as we, as consumers, assume they are credible because they aren’t earning a ‘profit’ from funds given. A good example of an Australian not for profit, and legitimate one, is the Movemeber Foundation who focus on donating funds to help prevent men’s suicide and also men’s health in general.
Reputable Credibility
Reputable credibility is the idea that a source is more reliable if it shows it has won awards for the services it offers. Another thing that gives reputible credibility is if the website is linked to by a credible one, so for example if i go to the partners of Movemeber Foundation I will be linked to something I’ve never heard of before called Stomping Ground Brewing Co., but i believe it is credible because i got linked there by the Movember Foundation.
Surface Credibility
Surface credibility is all about how a site looks. If a site looks more professionally designed then consumers are automatically more inclined to trust it over those with major spelling errors and shady looking links. This is all surface credibility. A good example of a site with fantastic surface credibility is the City of Wanneroo homepage, it gets updated regularly and has impeccable design.
Earned Credibility
To sum it up, earned credibility is the ease of use, aesthetic design and intelligence of the site. So site’s that look great, are easy to use, recognised you’ve been on them before, respond to any questions in a timely matter and they just simply make sense. It is the hardest level of credibility to achieve as all the things that contribute take time, by both the site and the consumer. An example of earned credibility is social media sites, because they are so commonly used. So Facebook is a great example of widespread earned credibility.
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