The Value Of Testimonials

by Tom Ruwitch

And How to Get Your Happy Clients to Share Their Experiences

A few weeks ago my wife and I received an email from our insurance agent that gushed with marketing savvy.

She wrote: “I wonder if you would consider writing a brief testimonial describing your experiences over the years with our personal risk management services and handling of your family’s personal property and casualty insurance account. We are rebranding ... and are building a new website. We would like to include comments from (hopefully) happy clients on the personal insurance section and I thought of you.”

I replied that I would happily write a testimonial.

Have you ever sent an email like that to your clients? If not, I suggest you draft something similar and add it to your marketing mix.

I like her email for several reasons:

1) It’s personal. This wasn’t a mass email sent to a list. This was a one-to-one message. Sending individual requests takes longer than mass mailing. But if you’re going to ask for a favor, a personal request works better.
2) “I thought of you” are words every client likes to hear. She’s asking me to do something for her, but she does so while reminding me she doesn’t take me for granted.
3) The request is humble and polite. She seeks testimonials from “(hopefully) happy clients.” That’s a nice touch. She also isn’t pushy. Her request doesn’t rush me and doesn’t seem like a burden.
4) Most important, the email reflects knowledge of a core principle: Testimonials strengthen brands and help businesses sell.
Testimonials from happy clients help businesses establish trust, answer questions and address objections. Prospects are naturally skeptical of your marketing claims. But when happy customers share their experiences, prospects listen more receptively and less skeptically.

The day after I received the testimonial request, I was searching online for vacation home rentals. I found 10 properties that matched my criteria. Each property listing included basic data – number of bedrooms and bathrooms, amenities, and so forth – and a photo gallery. I skipped all of that and jumped first to the reviews/testimonials. If the listing didn’t include multiple positive reviews, I bolted – no matter what the data and photos showed.

Most of us gravitate to the reviews when we visit restaurant directories, property listings or other online catalogs.
If you put testimonials in your web pages, social media profiles, emails and other marketing materials, your prospects will read them and they’ll be more likely to do business with you.

Tom Ruwitch is founder and president of MarketVolt. To attend a free webinar in which Tom demonstrates how to quickly and affordably set up automated marketing processes, go to MarketVolt.com/automation.