Yes, I also believe that trust is the most important aspect. So if you want to make a name for yourself, I`d recommend:
1 - be active, or at least semi active in the community (post on the forum, stack exchange, etc)
2 - when you want to start your escrow service, first run it on testnet. Let everyone play with it without endangering their true bitcoins
3 - when you are running your escrow, keep the testnet one up in case someone wants to fiddle with it and test if it is working good (trying to find bugs, this can be very beneficial at times)
As for the actual escrow, hmm:
-keep it simple, running fast and have high uptime. Check my calculator out for example -
http://tpbitcalc.appspot.com/ . It does exactly what it promises to do and doesn't clutter the page with things you don't really need. It is running on Google Apps Engine, so it is lightning fast, up all the time, and has Google's infrastructure backing it.
-make sure your website is secure and show some proof of it if you really want some cudos
-deliver what you promise, don't hide costs of transactions and how they work. Don't trick people, explain them exactly how the transaction will look (again, keep it simple)
