Copy Tip 44: A Surprising Side To Testimonials
Hopefully if you’ve hung around and taken in any of the fundamentals about direct marketing, you’ll know that testimonials are one of the best ways to help add influence to your copy.
It’s nothing new, and you may have heard it before. (But I reckon there’s a fair bit of insight here that may be NEWS to you!)
But — if it is true that so many business owners know about using testimonials — why are testimonials still so lacking from so much copy in marketing and advertising?
It irks me a LOT that they’re missing … I’m sure if I ever find the Bermuda Triangle I’ll find it stuffed to the brim with testimonials!
They should be in your copy, but mostly they’re not! And — when they are — the used in less effective ways than they should be.
Testimonials add third party authenticity to your copy. Having someone else say something about you is much more powerful than you saying it yourself.
That’s powerful enough as a “weapon of mass influence” that later in this series, I’m going to reveal nineteen ways to use testimonials and seven ways to capture them.
Capturing Testimonials
There are lots of ways to capture testimonials … and I’m going to get to them later in the series. But the important thing to make sure you do is actively capture them! Create surveys and feedback forms (in print or online), interview clients, get them on audio and video, record phone calls (with permission of course), save emails and letters … if you only collect 2 per week (and get permission to use them), you’ll have over 100 in a year!
But No-one’s Used My Product/Service!
That’s not a pitfall for testimonials!
Let’s say you sell real estate, but you’re a brand new agent. Can’t get testimonials from sellers or buyers yet?
You can certainly get testimonials about your character … what you’re like as a person … build trust and get people to like you.
And it won’t take very long to start getting some testimonials, even if you haven’t listed a property or sold one! Visit a prospect, and share your advice — they can give you a testimonial that says you revealed three things to them they never knew about buying/selling, and they’d be confident having you as their agent.
That kind of thing.
Within a few weeks you’ll start to collect testimonials … it might take you two months to get a few and start using them — but you’ll already be AHEAD of most of your competitors who don’t know this stuff or keep their testimonials hidden in a drawer!
Or let’s say you have a brand new info product.
Nobody has purchased it yet.
Want testimonials?
Give away your product for free in exchange for honest feedback! You should have a market (after all — MARKET first, PRODUCT second) … find an online forum, offer your product to several people and get their feedback (eg, info marketers would go somewhere like the Warrior Forum to do this).
You’ll have some reciprocity going on — meaning when give somebody the gift of your product in exchange for feedback, they’ll feel obligated to “return the favor” and give you that feedback.
It wont’ take long and again you’ll be able to add new testimonials in to your sales copy as they arrive — on top of the character-based testimonials and other credibility elements you use.
Using Testimonials
Once you have testimonials, don’t keep them hidden! There’s a stack of ways to use them … before prospects meet you, in your marketing and sales material, in store, online, during presentations … in print, on screen, on CD, on DVD, in a book, on a wall, in an album … even LIVE.
A Surprising Bonus
Here’s one bonus I picked up a couple of years ago listening to Mitch Carson.
When a customer gives you a testimonial — especially one you use publicly — and then you use it … they’re more likely to be more loyal as a customer.
Why?
Well, it’s about Cialdini’s principles of commitment and consistency. Once a customer has publicly declared (made a commitment) their glowing endorsement, they’re more likely to act in a consistent manner in the future in line with what they’ve said … so they’ll be more loyal to you.
And … let’s say you offer consulting with a 6 month guarantee. If you’re doing face-to-face meetings once a month, and getting and using live testimonials … and you’re getting ringing endorsements of your service … then it’s less likely you’ll get refund requests.
Ineffective Usage
To be most effective, testimonials need to be used “strategically.” Here’s two examples of what I mean:
Meaningful Specifics
The ideal testimonial has specific results that were achieved in a specific time period. Why? They should much more authentic, so they build trust.
If you made $5813.00 in 59 days, you’re better saying that instead of saying “almost $6,000 in two months.”
Answer Objections
If you have a particular objection about your product or service, a testimonial that raises this objection and demonstrates how it was overcome is effective.
Let’s say you’re based in the CBD and customers have a worry that you cannot deliver your product to them outside of suburbia.
Having a client provide a testimonial that says “I was skeptical they’d deliver to my country town. But when I ordered, I was pleasantly surprised that my parcel arrived just one day later without any delay.”
It’s likely other country town prospects might be thinking the same thing … so a testimonial that addresses this objection and shows how you met it positively helps remove that objection from the sale.
“Blind” Sources
Ever seen that kind of testimonial signed off by “A.L., Tx” — or in Australia, “A.L., NSW” — just using initials and the state the person lives in?
Believable?
Or just made up fairy dust?
Testmonials really need full names and suburbs/towns, and even occupations or company names if possible.
If one of my testimonials was signed off “Travis Fitzpatrick, Focus Health and Fitness” — and had a video of Travis speaking — is that more believable?
Sure is!
Now sometimes with “sensitive” issues, there might be a need to protect the privacy of your customers.
That’s okay. You can mention that when you use your testimonials — and perhaps have the original letters, emails etc on file if needed.
For some subjects, your prospects will understand that kind of sensitivity — after all, if they become a customer, they might want you to protect their name too.
One Last Bonus Tip
With testimonials — if you have occupations from customers that are relevant to prospects, those testimonials should be used as a priority.
Let’s say your appealing to nurses.
And you have several testimonials from nurses on your file.
Use ‘em!
If a nurse sees a testimonial from another nurse, he/she might relate to that even more than other testimonials.
Before we even get into depth later in this series … this really should be a great starting point for you!
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