Is Your Design Making or Breaking Customer Trust?
We all know first impressions matter but in branding, they can make or break your business. At a glance, your design tells a customer whether your brand is trustworthy, high-quality, and worth their time…or not.
The world is full of fast decisions and constant distractions so your visual identity needs to do more than look good, it needs to build trust instantly. In other words, it needs to speak emotionally to your customer in order to resonate!
Here are five ways your design might be undermining your customer experience (and how to fix it):
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1. Clashing Design Styles
If your social posts look minimal and editorial, but your email banners are loud and colourful, you create visual confusion. When design elements feel disjointed, your audience assumes the brand experience is too. You probably already feel a bit lost with producing designs if this is the case, but cant quite put your finger on what the problem is or how to fix it (check out our retainers for ongoing help!).
The fix:
Establish clear design guidelines for tone, style, and visual identity, then stick to them across platforms.
2. Inconsistent Logos, Fonts or Colour Usage
These might seem like “nice to haves,” but consistency tells your customer: “We’ve got this.” On the flip side, stretched logos or clashing fonts can feel unprofessional and rushed.
The fix:
Create a scalable brand system. We help our clients design logo kits, font hierarchies, and colour palettes that hold up across email, social, web, and print.
3. Poor Mobile Experience
With over 70% of users browsing on mobile, a poor user experience is a fast track to drop-off. If your emails are hard to scroll, your buttons too small, or your website hard to use, trust is gone.
The fix:
Prioritise UXUI in your website and email design. We design mobile templates that look polished and convert.
4. Unclear Messaging or Layout
Your customer shouldn’t need to work hard to understand your offer. If the design is cluttered, the copy unclear, or the layout confusing, they’ll exit fast.
The fix:
Simplify, structure and guide the eye. Great design leads people where you want them to go, with intention.
5. Cheap-Looking Visuals on Premium Products
When the branding feels DIY, even beautiful products can lose their perceived value. If you're positioning your brand in the luxury or lifestyle space, everything, from Instagram stories to your thank-you email needs to reflect that.
The fix:
Invest in commercially informed design. We understand the retail space and how design influences perception, loyalty, and ultimately, revenue.
Why It Matters Now (Especially in November)
This is the season of serious buying intent. Black Friday, gifting season, pre-Christmas sales, all high-stakes moments where your audience is evaluating who they trust with their money. Don’t let poor design sabotage your success.
At Soley Creative, we design for long-term credibility, not just short-term likes. Whether you need a brand refresh, a new website layout or consistent email templates, we’ve got the tools and retail insight to help you build a brand people believe in.
📞 Ready to build a brand that earns trust, and keeps it? Explore our services here:
