Testimonials – why you need them, how to get them, how and where to use them

WHAT ARE TESTIMONIALS?

Testimonials are your clients and customers saying what they think of you, your service and/or your product. 

They can add massive weight to your credibility and are a wonderful way of giving social proof to your audience – as far as I am concerned, the more the merrier!  

But…are they a part of your PR strategy? 

Essentially, PR is other people saying that you are good at what you do, which is exactly what testimonials do.

So in answer to the question – YES! They are a crucial part of your PR strategy. 

 

HOW DO YOU GET TESTIMONIALS?

You need to be consciously aware of testimonials and asking for them in your work. Look at your business processes and work out when would be the best time to ask your client/customer for feedback. 

Anyone who completes one of my 1:1 PR Strategy Sessions, is sent a simple questionnaire that is delivered to them when they receive their final strategy notes. We also ask them to supply an image of themselves that they’d be happy for me to use on my website alongside their testimonial.

Questions include:

1. In terms of your business, where were you before we worked together?
2. What difference did the strategy session make to you and your business?
3. What have been the results and how will you use that session moving forward?
4. Anything you would change/improve?

The questions are framed to pull out the transformation of that client, looking at where they were before the session, through to finding out what they can do now, that they couldn’t do before and what difference that will make to them. 

Not only is this a powerful piece of information that you can use as a testimonial but it also allows you to see what an impact you are making to your clients in addition to seeing opportunities for improvement. 

So make sure you are asking for testimonials as part of your process and build that into your client journey!

If you feel it is appropriate, you can always incentivise the ask, by offering a discount or gift card for future purchases for every review received. 

HINT: Why not ask if they are willing to do a video testimonial for you? As a minimum, always ask for a written review, but have the option for video for those that are willing to do that for you. Hearing the testimonial coming directly from your client’s/customer’s mouth is always going to be incredibly powerful. 

 

HOW CAN YOU USE TESTIMONIALS?

Once you have your testimonial in either written or video format, how can you then use them in your business?

For anyone who might follow me on social media, you will see that every Tuesday I will share a graphic of a testimonial with the clients name on and a caption with the full testimonial and more information about the business owner. I share those on Instagram, LinkedIn and my Facebook page every week and tag the business owner in the social post where we can. 

HINT: make sure you ask the business owners permission before sharing any quotes they may have provided! 

Other areas you can share your testimonials:

1. Client proposals
2. Website 
3. Create case studies
4. Landing pages/sales pages
5. Email signatures

 

I would really encourage you to use testimonials in your business and use these powerful pieces of content to build your reputation and credibility. Collect them, log them and share them! 

 

Are you looking to get more visible in 2023? Then sign up for a 2-hour Cheerleader PR Strategy Session with me 📣.

Book now here.

To see my live video talking about ‘testimonials – who, what, where, when, why’, click here.