Beautiful sites are more trustworthy - but you knew that didn't you

In my research for the Webreep project I found a direct relationship between the attractiveness of websites and how much people trust those sites.

Source: Trust me, web users … I’m beautiful by Brent Coker - The Conversation site - 2011
A great article has been written by Coker who did some interesting research into the effect of beauty in websites.

Good coverage of how websites can have Anthropomorphic (human) characteristics that are important for beauty like balance.

Also talks about base design concepts being used by contemporary websites like:

• the rule of thirds
• the golden triangle (the design one the not the drug one situated across the borders of Laos, Thai, Burma/Myanmar)
• grid systems

Why trustworthiness is important to your site

Consumers have always been very cautious about providing their contact and financial details online. Consequently, trust has been one of the most challenging obstacles facing website vendors since the birth of the web.

Source: Trust me, web users … I’m beautiful - The Conversation site - 2011

So there you have it. There is a return on investment for making your website beautiful