How to Gather Testimonials and Why it is So Important
I’d like to share with you how to gather testimonials. And why it is so very important.
But first, here’s an example:
One reason I am sharing some tricks on this topic is that I am amazed at how many business people equate positive Yelp reviews with the best possible testimonials. As nice as it is to get someone to say “I’m here because I saw your 5 (out of 5) rating on Yelp,” we have to understand that, as a private company, Yelp is legally allowed to follow whatever rules of the road that the company wishes to create.
One of the “heartening” things about companies like Yelp, Trip Advisor, etc. is that consumers feel like they have a place to communicate via third party with a vendor or store.
One of the disheartening things about companies like Yelp, Trip Advisor, etc. is that as a vendor or a store, you really have little or no control over what gets posted.
Yet we still want those positive comments to be on the digital record.
And what we WANT to get even more is those testimonials on video so we can post them on our OWN websites and social media pages.
We collect testimonials:
- Because everyone always says that word of mouth is the best marketing;
- Because buying decisions are swayed by testimonials – both positive and negative; and
- Because if someone is searching for what we do, it would be a pretty awesome thing for them to find us because of a testimonial.
We teach this at our Small Business Marketing Bootcamps, but let’s talk here a little bit about how to gather testimonials:
First, let’s always be listening for a complement from one of your clients.
Let’s say you are a lawyer named Bob Epstein and you hear this:
“Oh, Bob – you are the absolute best lawyer on the planet. I cannot believe you got $50,000 out of that guy when he only owed me $15,000.”
Bob’s response should be:
“THANK YOU…. I appreciate your kind words. Say, may I ask you to put that testimonial on video for me, so I can help other people JUST LIKE YOU? Just a few seconds will do it.”
Some will. Some won’t.
90% of the time they decline only because they do not like how they THINK they look on video. Or they are afraid they will sound silly by forgetting your name, or even their own name or company name.
So reassure them by stating that you even have a card they can read which will make it SUPER EASY for them to share their words.
In the above comment, the phrase ‘just like you’ is key. Psychologically, they will picture themselves, and you, and you helping others.
IMPORTANT: As soon as they finish recording the video you say: “THAT WAS GREAT! Can I get it just one more time, JUST IN CASE ____?”
The second one will almost always be better.
Here is what your card can look like:
Create a sheet like this to help clients give you testimonials
It is also very important to let them know that 20 to 30 seconds is all you need. If it goes longer, that is fine, too. Especially if you are getting great comments.
Sometimes, we even tell a client that we are going to show them how to gather testimonials by having them do one for us. You can do the same thing.
We get asked all the time: How many testimonials is enough? The answer is Infinity. More is always better. Video is better than written, but both are important.
In time, you can choose to only publish the best ones, there are some that we do not promote as much as others. But never erase them because when you are trying to acquire a new client from the same industry, you will be very glad to have it.
If you want help creating and using testimonial videos, and want us to help you learn how to gather testimonials give us a call at 800-705-4265. And if we do a good job for you, please don’t wait for us to ask!
