Want to avoid fake-sounding testimonials?
Have you ever looked at the testimonials on a sales page and thought, “This person would be a great friend, but I have no idea whether or not this product will work for me?
Or, have you asked for testimonials, only to get back, “Michele is one of the sweetest people I have ever met, you should work with her.”? Yeah, that’s a great way of making friends, but maybe not the best way to get customers to trust you.
The ideal customer testimonial should do more than just say “awesome work”, it should describe the reason why the client chose to work with you and the results they actually got.
The thing is, your clients are busy people, and they aren’t going to put getting a testimonial for you at the top of their to do list, unless you make it very easy for them. One way to get an awesome, usable testimonial is to provide a few sample questions when you ask them to write one for you.
Here are some questions that I like to use:
• Why did you need (your service here)? What situation or problem did you need to solve?
• Why did you decide to work with me?
• What made you believe I would be the one to help you get to where you wanted to go?
• How did you benefit from working with me?
• What are the two most significant improvements that have resulted from your work with me?
• What exactly did I do to contribute to the outcome you wanted?
• What were the results of working with me?
• Describe why you feel that working with me was successful.
• In the future, what type of businesses would most benefit from working with me?
• If a potential client was on the fence about whether to work with me or not, what would you say to them?
If your questions can encourage your client to open up and provide honest feedback, the testimonial will be convincing. And, it will also provide you with some good information about why successful clients choose to work with you.
Whenever someone provides a testimonial, don’t forget to send them a kind thank-you note. A personal handwritten note is great, or even a personalized thank you gift.
The goal is to make your clients feel that they’ve done a good thing, while also keeping your business in their minds so that they’ll provide referrals and work with you again in the future.
Need some help with your testimonial process? I still have a few openings for one on one strategy sessions, click here to learn more.
