The Power of Testimonials: A Marketing Content Goldmine

Are you struggling to come up with some powerful content for your website? Your next email campaign? Facebook? Perhaps something compelling to put on the backdrop of your trade show booth? Powerful client testimonials are your answer. Here’s why:

• 92% of consumers around the world say they trust earned media (like testimonials) above all other forms of advertising. (Source: Nielsen)
• 94% of B2B marketing professionals rated content sourced from customers (such as testimonials) as “very effective” or “extremely effective.” (Source: TechValidate)
• 98% of US adults found user-generated reviews helpful when making their holiday shopping decisions. (Source: EXPO)

Those are some big numbers. It goes to show that a testimonials is an amazing piece of content that you can, and should, be using in your marketing efforts. But how do you get them? Better yet, how can you make them effective and compelling for your audience? By taking an active role with your brand advocates in the development of each testimonial, that’s how.

Here’s the scoop:

• Gather a list of your key clients. Ideally, these would be high-caliber leaders… influential people with great job titles. It’s important that your ideal prospects are able to easily relate to the people on this list.
• Conduct friendly calls to the clients on your list to check-in and see how things are going with your product/service. Of course, note and address any items of importance, but whenever a customer shares positive comments, ask to use their feedback in a testimonial. You’ll rarely get a “no.” This process takes the hard work out of your busy client’s hands! Write up the testimonial on their behalf, based on their verbal feedback, then email it to them for their blessing. Do this to not only get approval for the content used but to also obtain written consent to use the testimonial on your website, socials and other marketing pieces. (Note: If you don’t have the time to do outreach like this, delegate it to a friendly, yet content-savvy person who can.)
• Use the right formula to craft an amazing testimonial. When talking to your promoters who are willing to give testimonials, attempt to gather the facts to define each of the following:
  • Problem – What were the client’s pain points before they started using your product/service? Get to the root of the problem and be sure to tie-in the effect(s) that the problem had on them. I’m going to use a fun example here… an anti-snoring device. So for this example, “My husband snores” isn’t the whole problem. The following example better identifies the real pain points: “My husband snores and I would lie awake all night long because of it. Every day, I was exhausted and drained and had no energy to take care of my two children. On top of that I felt awful for having my family be on the receiving end of my terrible crankiness.” Be sure to match your client’s tone of voice and include their emotions. People relate highly to emotions that they too are experiencing.
  • Action taken – What did the client do next to find a solution? What did they try? Sometimes there may be more than one product used. Embrace this, as it may show that a competitor’s products didn’t fix the problem. For example, “I bought the nose-strip things but those didn’t work for my husband. I then found the ‘XYZ Snore Away device online. I saw a lot of people had success with it and that they had a free 30-day trial, so I decided to give it a try.” (On an aside, one of our B2C clients has an awesome solution for snoring – that absolutely works. Check them out here if you’re on the receiving end of a noisy bed partner.)
  • Result – What were the results from using the product? Try to be specific, using facts and figures. Be authentic and don’t leave out details, like the adjustment period mentioned in the following example: “While it took my husband a short while to get used to it, the ‘XYZ Snore Away’ stopped his snoring the first night he used it! I’ve slept so well every single night since…which has been 2 years now!”
  • Current state – This is where you define the long-term and any other great results. For example, “I am so amazed at how such a small device could make such a major, positive impact in my life. My husband and I both sleep well now, and I can run and play with my kids. Our whole family is less stressed and I truly feel like ‘XYZ Snore Away’ has saved my sanity!”
• Make it credible – Be sure to use real names, real companies, real locations and real job titles. If you can obtain it, get the person’s headshot. (Better yet, try to get a video testimonial …but that’s a whole other blog post.)
• Get permission – I know I already mentioned it above, but it is very important that you get written permission to use not only the testimonial, but the customer’s name, location, photo, plus the approval to use all of these things in your marketing efforts. Getting the “OK” via email puts it in writing and is fast and easy for everyone involved. 

Done! Now go share your testimonial with the world. Post it on your website, create a testimonial deck to send to potential clients, and share it on your social pages. Be creative and turn your testimonial into a visual piece of content (easy to do on Buffer’s Pablo, and free too!) making it even more eye-catching and shareable on social media.

Don’t forget: Using glowing, fact-filled testimonials in your content marketing will provide the social proof required for your audience to know that you’re worthy of their trust. These endorsements get your customers to sell your products for you! The time investment in them as a marketing tool is totally worth the return.

If you need some help creating testimonials, give us a shout.