Using Customer Testimonials - Part 1/2
Testimonials can create believability, credibility and a sense of security for your customers. Here are ways to get and use powerful testimonials.
Let’s face it, today’s consumers are skeptical. Can you blame them? With all the marketing hype and sales pitches people receive each day, we are all a bit jaded. However, to make the sale we must overcome our prospect’s natural skepticism and create a relationship of trust. One of the most powerful tools in your marketing arsenal is customer testimonials.
It’s one thing to toot your own horn. People expect you to sing praises about your own products or services. Because of this, there is an inherent disbelief in any marketing message that comes from you. But when other people, who have nothing to gain from your success, say good things about your products or services, your believability shoots skyward. Providing third-party testimonials do just that and should be a part of your marketing message.
Testimonials and the Magic Power of Persuasion
Testimonials are powerful. They create believability, credibility, and a sense of security for your customer. They help to break down the natural barriers and distrust that most buyers feel towards you or your business. Watch any infomercial and you will see that they are loaded with customer testimonials. Why? Because they work!
Testimonials have the magic power of persuasion.
People have an inbred automatic response to mimic what other people do.
Customers Who Give Testimonials Are More Loyal
An extra bonus is that testimonials will also create more loyalty in your customers. Once people have put their name and reputation on the line by publicly endorsing a product or service (or person), they will stand behind that decision even if they find out it’s a bad one.
In addition, when you ask your customer for a testimonial, they will feel as though they are helping you and your business grow. Because they feel as though they have a direct hand in the success of your business, they will stay loyal.
Ten Strategies for Successful Customer Testimonials
There’s more to obtaining testimonials than just asking your customers for their comments and feedback. If you want to have powerful testimonials that catch your prospects attention and build a relationship of trust, you should consider the following testimonial strategies.
Strategy # 1: Try to get a testimonial from your customer as soon as possible. This could be the day you make the sale or within the first week after you make the sale. Your customer will be at their “giddiest” and most motivated to write you a great testimonial during this time period. Don’t wait until the honeymoon period is over. Consider having them write the testimonial before they leave your office or store.
Strategy # 2: Always ask your customers to include your unique selling proposition (USP) in the testimonial. For instance, if your USP includes exceptional customer service, same day installation, and a money-back guarantee, then ask your customer to attest to those qualities.
Strategy # 3: Don’t ask for customer testimonials in survey requests. Many businesses make the mistake of sending out customer surveys to get feedback from their customers, in addition to testimonials. Your customer needs to have the freedom to stay anonymous and say negative things in your survey, which is the opposite of what you’re looking for in testimonials.
Strategy # 4: Have your customers be specific in their testimonials. For instance, if you delivered your product the same day your customer purchased it, tell your customer to include the time that it arrived. If you delivered some kind of outrageous act of customer service have them write specifically about what you did and how it helped your customer.
Strategy # 5: Ask your customer to talk about the struggles they were having previous to receiving the benefits of your product or service. Most likely, the reader will have had the same or similar struggles and will empathize. This will only make your prospect more interested in receiving the benefits of your product or service.
Strategy # 6: Have your customer state their credentials. This will make their testimonial even more persuasive because their comments will be perceived to come from a credible source. People tend to believe people in positions of perceived authority.
Strategy # 7: Always try to get a picture with them using your product or service. As a matter of fact, try to take the picture yourself so that you know you’ll get a good one. Take several and make sure they are showing the benefits of the product or service. Pictures double the effectiveness of your testimonial and bring the testimonials to life.
Strategy # 8: Make sure you get permission from your customers to use their testimonials in your advertising. Thank them profusely and let them know that it is testimonials like theirs that help your business grow.
Strategy # 9: Ask them if you cannot only use their name but the town (suburb) they live in. Addresses, even if it’s just a city name, increase the believability of the testimonial. It demonstrates that they are real people who live in the same community as your prospects.
Strategy # 10: Now here is a controversial tactic but it has worked every time for me. Let’s suppose your customer procrastinates to send in their testimonial. Call them up and mention that you know they are very busy but that you value them as a customer and their testimonial is important to you.
Suggest that to save them time and hassle, you will draft a testimonial to them and they can make any editing changes they want. You get the perfect testimonial and they don’t have to do any work. Again, this tactic has worked 100% of the time for me.
Come back tomorrow and find out -
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