It can be tough keeping up with the pace of online marketing. Every week something changes on social media. Every week someone new has the answer for exploiting that change.
There’s always something new and shiny to capture our attention.
So it’s understandable that we forget the tried, tested and proven ways to market a business.
And the oldest trick in the book is no exception.
I’m talking about testimonials – getting your customer to rave about your business.
Testimonials really are the oldest trick in the book. In the oldest book.
The bible.
After all, what is the bible but a collection of testimonials from people who witnessed historic events?
It’s even in the name – The Old Testament.
The use of testimonials in marketing hasn’t disappeared altogether, but the deep intrinsic understanding of the power of customers’ stories does seem to have all but disappeared.
As a consequence, most businesses are missing out on the most persuasive marketing they could ever have.
Facts Tell But Stories Sell
You ever hear the phrase, “Facts tell but stories sell”?
Your happy customer’s story is your ultimate sales tool. There’s no limit to which you can take that.
There’s a lot more to testimonials than just having a ‘Testimonials’ page on your website.
Even having a ‘Testimonials’ page on your website is better than not having one at all – and if you have a ‘Testimonials’ page on your website, then you’re in the minority of business owners.
A handful of business owners tell me they find testimonials “cheesy and embarrassing” and don’t use them at all.
But the majority of business owners all say the same thing: “I know I ought to have testimonials, but it’s just something I haven’t gotten around to.”
Are you one of those business owners who doesn’t even collect testimonials from happy customers?
If you don’t even have a ‘Testimonials’ page on your website, then you are missing out on the biggest opportunity you could have for marketing your business.
Testimonials are the most powerful and persuasive marketing you could ever have. They don’t cost you a penny.
And when you have the right testimonials strategy and tactics, you’ll have a line of ideal clients or customers, ready to buy from you.
It’s all about how you tell their story – and enable THEM to tell their story to others.
Testimonials Are Sexy
Right now, you probably don’t think testimonials are sexy.
But you will. I’m going to make testimonials so sexy for you that your heart will race from just thinking about getting your next testimonial.
I understand why you might think that testimonials aren’t sexy.
If you live in England, you probably think about the terrible personal injury lawyer adverts on TV when you hear the word “testimonial”. They really can be “cheesy and embarassing”
Frankly, if you’ve seen as many ‘Testimonials’ website pages that suck as I have, then I could understand entirely why they’re so uninspiring.
Long paragraphs of text, one after another, from customer after customer – it’s the layout from hell.
Sexing Up A Testimonial
For some reason, I find that the ‘Testimonials’ page is usually the most neglected page on a business’s entire website.
If your ‘Testimonials’ page was a landing page, how would you treat it differently?
For a start, a landing page would never have as much copy as your usual ‘Testimonials’ page, right?
A landing page would have a headline and a picture.
A landing page would be designed to have each visitor start at the top and guide their reading on through to the bottom.
A landing page would have an appropriate call to action at the end.
Make sense?
So how about if you did that with your testimonials?
I shared just a single tip with my friend, Kevin Ryan, and it had amazing results that you too can achieve. I recommended that he edit the landing page to opt in for his free book and add a headline for each testimonial.
Kevin took action. He did one thing to sex up his testimonials. He added those headlines.
And he reported back to me that his opt-ins went up 50% overnight!
Does increasing your opt-in or conversation rate by 50% overnight sound sexy to you? It does to me!
The Power of Testimonials
I asked renowned British marketing guru, Drayton Bird, for his perspective on testimonials.
“I use video testimonials wherever possible,” said Drayton. “The best story on this subject was told me by my old friend Brian Thomas.
“He told how he advised a client selling a course on salesmanship to use a testimonial in their reply to enquiries. When they did, sales went up. So they tried five. Sales went up again.
“In the end, testimonials worked so well they included 50, reproduced on very thin paper – what we called “onion skin” in those days. Basic marketing, really.”
Perhaps you’re not familiar with why testimonials – social proof – is so persuasive – and why you need to start using them in your business immediately.
Dr Robert B. Cialdini defines six principles of influence in his definitive book, ‘Influence: The Psychology of Persuasion’.
- Reciprocation
- Commitment and Consistency
- Social Proof
- Liking
- Authority
- Scarcity
Four of these principles help explain why testimonials are so important in the marketing arsenal of a business: Commitment and Consistency, Social Proof, Liking and Authority.
In chapter 2 of my book, The Untapped Goldmine In Your Business, I explain why Cialdini’s principles make testimonials so powerful. I also explain why, with a testimonials strategy, each customer who buys does not just bring money in the bank today. Their testimonial also gives you the opportunity to put money in the bank tomorrow and every day after that.
Download Chapter 2 of My Book – Completely Free!
Since I meet so many people who don’t understand the real power of testimonials, I’ve decided to make the second chapter of my book available for for download, completely free of charge.
Simply enter your information in the form below to get your free copy now!
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Wondering if you had any advice about getting reviews for a criminal law firm. People who have been charged with terrible crimes, even if victorious, are often hesitant to write a review online. Even knowing they may be written anonymously, they still must use their email address and they find this concerning. Any ideas?
Lisa,
It’s easy to solve. You have to train and educate them – starting from when you sign them up as a client.
If you get on my free training session, you’ll find I cover this in a lot more detail.
Simon