Why customers don't trust links anymore
From Brighton to Chichester, customers are pausing before they click. With fraud losses rising and most searches ending without a website visit, Sussex businesses are having to earn digital trust all over again.
We, as customers, do not trust links as we used to. You can feel it across Sussex and the wider UK. There's always hesitation or even a second thought. More thinking, is it real or another scam? More people are choosing to ring instead of clicking.
Some of that is habit, shaped by search and social feeds. A clickstream study found 59.7% of Google searches in the EU ended with no click in 2024. People get what they need on the results page, then move on.
But a bigger part is risk. UK Finance says £629.3m was stolen in the first half of 2025, across 2.09 million confirmed fraud cases. When that's the background noise, a link stops being neutral.
Clicks Are Down, Even When Intent Is High
The link that feels optional now used to be the natural next step for many of us.
That matters for Sussex businesses because so much demand is time-sensitive: appointments, quotes, reservations, tickets, property viewings, and local services.
If the customer pauses, the conversion slips. Not because they are "less engaged." Because the click feels like a risk.
Search encourages this too. If more people stay on the results page, fewer people click through to confirm a source or double-check details.
Local impact is real but extremely boring. There are slower responses, more manual follow-ups, and more friction for small teams.
Scams Set the Tone for Everyone
With fraud now so common, people distrust links first and ask questions later.
UK Finance's figures for H1 2025 are blunt: £629.3m stolen and 2.09 million confirmed cases.
Cifas adds another layer. It reported almost 250,000 identity fraud filings in 2024, up 5% on 2023, making up 59% of all cases filed to the National Fraud Database. It also warns about continued impersonation tactics used to scam victims.
In Sussex, this lands in familiar ways. Fake courier messages. Fake invoices. "New bank details" emails. Cloned social profiles. The specific scam varies, but the behaviour it creates is consistent: don't click unless you're sure.
So even legitimate links get punished.
Email Got Stricter, and Customers Noticed
Email is still central for many SMEs. It's how you confirm bookings, send invoices, chase payments, share documents, and handle customer service.
But deliverability is less forgiving than it used to be. Now, Google has set limits and clearer requirements for bulk senders. If you send 5,000 or more messages per day to Gmail accounts, you're expected to meet stricter standards. This includes authentication and easy unsubscribe buttons.
Even if a Sussex firm never hits bulk-sender volume, the ripple effect still matters. Customers are quicker to treat unexpected emails as suspicious. Providers are quicker to filter mail that fails the basics. The result is predictable:
- "I didn't see it; it went to spam."
- "I wasn't sure it was you."
- "Can you resend that, but without the link?"
That is time you do not get back.
Domains Decide Trust Now
With all these fraud cases and everything, what can a normal customer do? Well, for many customers, trust comes down to one detail: the domain.
Lookalike domains are hard to spot on a phone. It might be a swapped character, a different extension, or even a plausible subdomain. It's enough to trigger suspicion or, worse, a scam.
WIPO's caseload shows how contested this layer has become. It says it managed over 6,200 domain name cases in 2025, the highest on record.
You don't need to be a household name for this to hurt. Local brands get copied because they're believable. They invoice people. They take deposits. They run events. They have customers who are used to paying quickly.
How People Judge a Link in Five Seconds
Most people are not doing technical checks. They are doing fast, human ones.
1. Context
Was I expecting this? Does it match the conversation I was having?
2. Address
Does the domain match the brand? Is it a shortened URL? Does it redirect?
3. Proof
If I land on the site, can I verify it's real quickly? Clear contact details, policies, and signs of a genuine trading footprint.
If any of that feels wrong, the click dies. The user may still buy. They just switch channels, usually to a phone call. Great for reassurance. Bad for efficiency.
Fix the Trust Stack
The fix is not glamorous. That's why it works.
- Lock down the domain: Registrar access is the key to the building. Use MFA. Limit admin accounts. Know who can change DNS.
- Prove your email: SPF, DKIM, DMARC. Alignment. Don't leave this to "the website person from years ago." Deliverability is now part of credibility.
- Make the site look and behave trustworthy: SSL, patching, backups, and the ability to restore quickly. Also: clean URLs, no odd redirects, and no broken pages.
This matters more in places with lots of small operators, where reputation travels quickly, and trust is a commercial asset. West Sussex had 39,600 active businesses in 2022. Brighton & Hove cites 16,150 registered businesses plus a large base of freelancers and sole traders. East Sussex County Council notes around 23,000 enterprises in 2023, with 90% employing nine people or fewer.
Small teams have less slack. When trust breaks, it becomes the owner's problem.
Keep the Basics Joined Up
A common weak point for SMEs is fragmentation: one provider for the domain, another for hosting, another for email, plus old logins, and unclear ownership.
One.com offers domains, hosting, and email in one place. It states that its hosting plans include a free SSL certificate and that it makes daily back-ups of files, email, and databases. It also sells a Backup & Restore product that covers backups for websites, databases, and email.
That won't stop criminals from trying. It does reduce the basic gaps that trigger hesitation, like inconsistent domain use across email and web, and setups nobody fully owns.
SME Checklist to Follow This Week
You don't need a rebrand to rebuild trust. You need control and a few blunt questions.
1) Can a customer verify it's you in five seconds?
If not, you're relying on blind trust.
2) Who controls the domain registrar login?
If it's an old agency or a former contractor, fix it.
3) Do your emails authenticate and land reliably?
Test it. Don't assume. Gmail rules have moved on.
4) Are you still using shortened links in customer comms?
They hide the domain, which is the first thing cautious customers want to see.
5) If someone cloned your brand tomorrow, how would you spot it fast?
If you have no answer, you're behind already.
Customers will still click. But the click now has to be earned.
What This Means for Businesses
Link distrust isn't a trend you wait out. It's a new baseline shaped by zero-click search, industrial-scale fraud, stricter email rules, and a domain layer that's openly contested.
For SMEs, the advantage comes from removing doubt fast: one recognisable domain, an email that lands, pages that look legitimate, and simple proof that the business is real. The goal is not more clicks. It's fewer moments where a customer hesitates and chooses someone else.