There is an old saying that “People buy from people” and anyone who is in the business of selling will know that is true – anyone who ignores that statement is liable to find it a much harder job to get people to believe in their product or service.
The author has had many conversations with clients where they haven’t really understood the value that testimonials on their site have, many have the attitude that it is an un-needed page, that it is just “padding” for the website. The truth is that testimonials add weight to a website, and in turn to the product or service you are trying to sell to your potential client.
People are naturally wary of anything new, especially if at first glance it looks too good to be true – this instinct has kept our species alive throughout the millennia – but it doesn’t make the life of a seller easier, people start to relax when others can say to them “well, I tried that and it worked out great for me…” and the more people that say it, the more relaxed they become.
Testimonials will add credibility to your pitch, the story becoming more believable with every testimonial you produce. This is one area of your website that you can never have too much of, the more the merrier, and don’t just put them on your website, put them on any marketing that you send out, put them anywhere your prospective clients may see them – for instance in a “testimonials book” in your reception that potential clients and visitors can browse through, and even add to.
Testimonials don’t have to be just written ones, you could ask for a video, or audio testimonial too to add extra interest to your site. If you go this route, then make sure that it is something that is clicked to play, rather then something that auto starts as if they play automatically, it puts some people off of the site as it may intrude into a work environment.
They don’t just have to be on websites either, testimonial snippets are a good way to encourage people to take a further look into your business, so put them on the back of your business cards, or on your headed paper, or any printed marketing.
Let’s take a look at a real testimonial from one of our clients – we have blanked out the customer and client details to ensure their privacy:
The above testimonial gives a number of benefits:
- The staff were very helpful
- They managed to sort out problems left by previous suppliers
- Established good procedures and practices for their client to follow going forward
- Given their client confidence in their financial position
- Given their client confidence to look at expanding and developing their business.
If you were looking for a good book-keeper , this testimonial would help you to learn that this was a company that was capable of getting things back on track and this testimonial is just one of several such positive yet believable testimonials on their website.
So the next time you think that your testimonials page is simply padding, or that you worry that it would be seen as bragging, remember that people buy from people, and if your previous customers don’t sell your product or service for you, you may find yourself struggling to do so yourself.
It doesn’t matter what business you are in be it book-keeping like the example above, hand-made gifts, or if you are a lawyer specialising in family law, testimonials can only help your business grow, and for more examples of good uses of testimonials, follow the links on this page to see how other sites use them.