Step 1 Sales Process- Building Credibility/Rapport/Trust

Step 1 may begin before your customer even Google's a topic related to your customer. It may begin with the way you have dealt with clients in the past, outside brand management you do, promotional activities you have, and the Google Juice you have (how high you are on the natural search results in Google.

1. Name / Brand Recognition -  You need to create activities on small and large scale to reach your customers. If you are a Large Brand with 100 years established credibility it is a little less important to spend time and money on Brand Recognition. If you are a startup company, this needs to be a big portion of your budget, a part of your "shock and awe" campaign to get customers to your great product. This can be done via low cost means in Social Media or email campaigns, through cost means by doing PPC campaigns on Google, MSN, Bing, or Yahoo, or through more conventional advertising and direct mail campaigns. 
2. Positive Customer Feedback - Once you have customers, make sure you take care of them. With the ease of access to the internet and social media, one bad review can hurt your company. Be fast to respond to questions and resolve concerns to create repeat customers and raving fans of your company. 
3. Nice Updated Design - Don't bog down your website with too much text, most people don't care they just want to see there WIIFM (Whats In It For Me) of why they should use you or buy your product over your competitor. Keep your website up to date with the latest and greatest technology and social media access. 
4. Clear Product Descriptions - Keep It Simple Stupid -  the KISS principle is one of the oldest in marketing and still holds true. Be descriptive but to the point about your product or service. 
5. Clean Pictures or even videos of Product - It is good to use relevant pictures, videos, and audio to reach all customers. Some will prefer audio, some will prefer visual, and some will prefer text, it is important to appeal to all 3. 
6. Awards received - If you were voted by JD Power as the best of something, be proud of it. Post it where customers can see it. This will provide instant credibility to your brand. 
7. Business Success - This goes along with awards, show that you are a big dog and an expert in the area that you are selling. 
8. Community Outreach - Be involved in the community, this may be the deciding factor for some customers. 
9. Co-Branding with recognized brands - Create relationships with affiliates that customers may purchase or use along with what you sell. This will help link you to perhaps a larger more established brand or an up and coming recognized brand. 
10. Refund Policy - always offer a refund policy. Take care of your customer
11. Verisign -  if you offer credit card purchases on your site make sure to be Verified as a secure site. Customers may be leery of purchasing on a new site and that image will give them more peace of mind
12. Pod Casts - This is a great tool to provide additional information on products, knowledge, your company, or anything else that is relevant to your brand. It can be accessed by clients on your site and can prove to have Viral effects and spread to new customers if done correctly.