No 'Thanks' Please, We're British

The testimonial is one of your best marketing tools.  When it comes to a reassuring presence on a website, within brochures or professional forums like LinkedIn there is nothing better.  Real recommendations; great little adverts for your products and services, do you collect them?  If you do where are they? 

If you are one of the many businesses that collect them lovingly in a file, only to be seen by a tiny percentage of your potential customers, if at all, you are not alone.

Possibly offending our British reserve, it may feel a bit like showing off, yet, if someone has taken the time and effort to put together good words about what you do it seems churlish not to use them and offers a key differential between you and your competitors.

Top Tips for Testimonials

• Talk to your clients about the work you do with them – how do they feel?  What else can you do to help them?  And ASK for a short testimonial.
• Seed them appropriately across your website and promotional material; make them relevant to the content.
• Use ‘pull quotes’ (eye-catching short excerpts).  Not sure how?  Here’s an example:

“… believe me, you won’t find a finer widget…”
“I’ve bought from Acme Widgets for three years.  Unfailingly professional and high quality, believe me, you won’t find a finer widget in the North.”    Bob Brown, Leeds Engineering

• Update them.
• Importantly, do ensure your client is happy for you to publish their words within online and printed material.
• Reciprocate – do your bit and cement good business relationships by giving testimonials.

Finally, it can be difficult to ask for testimonials.  Let’s face it, it is not always an easy thing to do and folks are busy, they forget to respond, even if they are initially enthusiastic.  I work with many of our clients at BIG capturing relevant and potent testimonials on their behalf; talking to their clients, gaining signoff and some of their best sales messages. 

Isn’t it about time you learnt how to take a compliment?