The Value of Client Testimonials
A common pirate myth is buried treasure, which comes from romantic literature and movies about pirates. The truth is that most pirates spent their acquired booty as fast as possible in whatever port they found themselves. When you think about it, what use is gold if you hoard it? The value is in spending it.
You’re probably sitting on a hoard of gold right now in the form of client testimonials. And the time to spend is now! Client testimonials are an important part of your brand and a valuable marketing tool.
“But how do I ask for testimonials? And once I have them, how do I get the most value from them?” Glad you asked.
How to ask for a client testimonial
There’s no magic to asking a client for a testimonial; you simply ask. The simpler the request, the better. You might be reluctant to ask for testimonials because you believe it’s “bugging the client.” If you did a good job and the client is happy with their experience, there’s no reason not to ask for a testimonial.
Asking the Right Questions
In order for your testimonials to be valuable they need to contain the right information. A good testimonial should include the following elements:
Explains the problem the client had
Discusses their experience with you
Reveals how you solved their problems with flying colors
Here’s an example:
Hi [first name],
I have a favor to ask.
80% of my clients learn about me through a personal referral, and client testimonials play a huge role in creating trust with those referrals.
Would you be willing to write a testimonial about me? You can talk about your experience working with me, what your expectations or challenges were prior to working with me, and what the outcome was.
Thanks in advance!
Timing is Everything
Don’t rush to ask for a client testimonial but don’t wait too long. I use a process in which I send out a hand-written thank you card shortly after the final invoice and then, a week later, send an email to the client requesting a testimonial. The key is to ask for the testimonial while the good feelings from the work experience are still fresh in the client’s mind. Because clients are busy with their own work and emails can get buried in their inbox, I sometimes need to send a friendly reminder a week or so later to refresh their memory.
How to get the most value from your client testimonials
Your Website
A lot of websites have a dedicated testimonial page, which is fine. It’s better than not displaying testimonials at all and makes it easy for a visitor to locate them if they’re looking for social proof of your product or service. However, I like placing testimonials throughout the website for two reasons:
1) Strategically placing them for a 1-2 punch.
A testimonial that mentions one of your services placed on the Services page or a testimonial about a particular project placed on that project detail page or within a case study has much greater impact than it living within a list of other random testimonials.
2) Increasing the chances a visitor will see at least one testimonial.
Not everyone will land on your home page from a Google search or take the time to look for a testimonials page. Distributing testimonials throughout your website is like casting a net to catch fish rather than placing a single hook in the water.
Your Social Media
Testimonials are great social media content, used in proper amount. Think of these like salt: a little bit goes a long way to enhancing the flavor of your other social posts. I keep a list of collected testimonials and will select one to post about every 4-5 weeks. I create a branded graphic of the testimonial and supplement it with text about how much I value client feedback. That way, it shines a light on both me and the clients.
Word of Mouth
In the days before COVID, I did a lot of face-to-face networking and would tell client stories or paraphrase their testimonials as a way of answering the question, “So, what do you do?” People love stories, so why not let your client testimonials sing your praises? It will likely make some of your Zoom calls a little less tedious.
Be more like a pirate
By leveraging client testimonials you’ll be spreading the message of your brand in the voice of your most valued clients. So don’t hoard your client testimonial gold, but spend it generously by distributing it throughout all of your marketing channels.