7 Steps You Can Take Now To Get More Testimonials

Customer testimonials are the best way to build trust in your business, services and products. Displaying them on your website or Facebook page tells your online market that you have happy & satisfied customers who stand behind your business. Once you realize the importance of having testimonials on your website to support your business’s reputation, how do you go about collecting testimonials?

Many of our own customers have been collecting testimonials for a while. We have taken their best practices and come up with 7 easy steps that you can take now to get testimonials for your business.

Step 1 – Identify a happy customer – Every happy customer is a testimonial opportunity

The first step is to identify your target opportunities. Here is a list of where we’ve found customer testimonial opportunities:

1. A paying customer. Someone who has taken one of his most precious possessions (i.e. his hard earned cash) and given it to you, is the surest sign that you have a customer who is intrigued and sees the value proposition of your offering.

2. A customer interaction with Customer Service. A short call for assistance or an interaction that started off very bad but then turned great, are both proven testimonial opportunities.

3. An excited customer. Some customers come into your store, buy and leave, while others linger, ask questions, smile or are interested in a conversation. Be on the watch for these engaged customers. They represent prime candidates for giving you a testimonial.

4. A recurring purchase or repeat customer. If they come back you are doing something right. Give them a chance to share their satisfaction with others via a testimonial.

5. A customer who shared their comments about your business with others. They may have recommended you to a new customer or shared their experience on a social network. Continuously scan the internet for these types of customer comments and next time you do business with them, invite them to share their positive energies for your website.

Step 2 – Send a request or ask for a testimonial on the spot

Sending a request via email or sms is the easiest way to pursue a testimonial. You don’t have to deal with the potential of an uncomfortable moment. After the sale, remember to send them an email or SMS asking for feedback or a testimonial. Some businesses have online forms which make it easy for their customers to complete the task. Others offer coupons to purchase again in exchange for a testimonial.

Asking a customer for a testimonial is more direct and is more effective. After a customer leaves your premises, the chances of them leaving you a testimonial begins to diminish over time. They are busy with their own lives and submitting a testimonial to your business is not a priority. This is why soliciting a testimonial directly while they are in front of you will increase the probability of getting one. (Our mobile apps were designed and built specifically for this purpose. Try them out.)

Step 3 – Add a Submit Testimonial button to your website

Make it easy for your customers to leave you something. Nothing could be easier than clicking on a button and leaving comments. You could send people to your website to leave a testimonial there. You could also insert a link to your testimonial form in your regular communication via emails and newsletters.

Step 4 – Display testimonials on your website

This may seem obvious but having new customers see that others have submitted a testimonial will give them further encouragement to leave one themselves. Having up to date testimonials on your website is imperative to continue to show your visitors that your business is still satisfying customers.

Step 5 – Display testimonials on your Facebook page

If you don’t have one, you should set up a business page in Facebook. It is very easy to do. Customer testimonials is a great piece of content to share with your Facebook customers. If you are fortunate enough to capture a video testimonial then sharing it on Facebook can make that testimonial even more effective.

Step 6 – Share on social media and other sites

Being relevant on the Internet today takes a lot of work. This is something we hear over and over again from our customers. There are so many places to add content to. Try to find the most significant places and invest your time there or every week take a different social network and invest some time on that one.

Step 7 – Include testimonials in outgoing correspondence

We have a customer who includes their testimonials on every email that they send out. Others include them in their proposals and newsletters. In our electronic world it is very easy to pop in a link to your testimonial page in your email signature and thus ensure that everyone has access to your happy satisfied customers.

Do you have a favorite method for collecting testimonials? Share them with us and we will provide you with a 10% discount off our company’s testimonial product VocalReferences.

David Wenner