Improve Your WHY With Testimonials

Do you have trouble communicating WHY people should buy from you? Let your clients do it for you. They are usually better at it – and more believable – than you are.

According to a Nielsen Survey word-of-mouth marketing is the most trusted form of advertising. In North America, consumer opinions posted online were trusted by 66% of respondents. Globally, recommendations from consumers were trusted an average of 78% of the time.

Word-of-Mouth -- referrals, references, reviews and testimonials –– is critical to marketing success. Start by exceeding customer expectations and creating an amazing customer experience. Then get to work using positive feedback to boost your sales. Your best, most satisfied clients will do a better job of selling your services than you can.

Put testimonials and customer stories front and center in all your marketing and sales tools. Testimonials help prospective buyers see and understand WHY they will be happy when they buy from you. If possible, include real names and photos!

Ask for testimonials. Make gathering client feedback and testimonials a core part of your sales and marketing processes. Create multiple ways for people to tell you (and others) how much they like your product or services.

Say thank you. When a client vouches for your company, say thank you with a note, a gift, or a voucher for service. People like getting gifts, even small ones -- it's fun!

Small bribes work. Most people like free stuff. Sending a small gift (like a treat or a cool t-shirt) will improve survey response rates because it demonstrates how much you really do care about what they have to say.

Text is dull. Blah, blah, blah. Skip the long pages of text. Instead, use images, typography, audio and video to bring your clients' voices to life!

Use Video For More Impact

Video interviews boost the credibility and impact of your testimonials -- and pack more emotional punch. The fact that people are willing to appear on camera and "testify" on behalf of your company is impressive!

Video testimonials don't have to be fancy, and they are not difficult to produce. Here are some options for shooting and editing video. 

Option A: Bungalo Video Interviews.

We provide the HD camera, professional videographer, makeup, lighting, interviewer, white background, and location. So all you have to do is ask your clients if they would like to participate. It's an easy and fun way to shoot high-quality, HD video interviews. You can also sit down in front of the camera and tell your own story. Pricing starts at $597. Learn more.

Option B: Work with a video professional to plan, shoot and edit your video.

Bungalo Group creative partners provide custom video production including location shooting, music, graphics and scripts. For more information contact us.

Option C: Do It Yourself

Prepare a list of 6-8 questions about their experience working with you. Keep it casual and relaxed. Ask questions like: What did you like best about working with us? How were we different from other contractors? Or, what would you tell a friend or neighbor about us? Try to capture the feeling you get when you talk to a friend about a product or service that they have used. With the right equipment and software (like my iMac and iMovie) you can edit the video yourself. Or you can hire someone to help you finish your movie and put it on your website.

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Capture Reviews on Your Website

Ask your web developer to help you capture reviews from your clients and post them online. Use them everywhere on your site. Don't bury them in the About Us section. Get your clients' words, pictures and voices to help prospective buyers see WHY you can feel confident choosing you. Here's one way to set it up:

Start with a simple email. Ask just one question: Are you satisfied? Your email might look something like this:

If they click yes, take them to the landing page on your website where they can write a review.

After they complete the review, show them a thank you page. It's OK to remove "spammy" reviews, but all legitimate reviews should be posted. The weaker reviews add credibility to the stronger reviews.

If people click NO, take them to a different landing page, where they can contact you or write a review if they wish. Top level managers and owners with the authority to remedy difficult situations should answer calls promptly.

Ask for Social Media Reviews

Reviews on websites like Yelp or Google Places can improve search engine rankings. Ask for reviews on Facebook and your site, as well as before, during and after the sale. Including links in your email signature to popular consumer review sites is also a simple way to remind people that you value their reviews. Ask for reviews in printed collateral, proposals and invoices, too.

Create an Online Survey

Tools like SurveyMonkey make it easy to gather feedback from clients. A Bungalo client used SurveyMonkey to gather feedback from clients before developing a new service. The response was strong, and helped make the launch successful. 

Set Up a VoiceBox

Surveys, emails, and paper forms are nice, but some people would rather talk than write... Create a hotline your clients can call anytime day or night to "sound off" about your services. Don't forget to remind people to call whenever they have a suggestion, complaint, or compliment.

Here's a fast and easy way to capture audio testimonials and feedback.

1. Use Google Voice to create a special phone number for compliments and complaints. Make sure people know about it.

2. From Google Voice you can download the message as an MP3 file.

3. Make sure you get permission to use client comments in your marketing.

4. Don't forget to thank people for their feedback and respond promptly to any concerns or complaints.

5. You can add client comments to your website as an audio file, or combine the audio with images to create VSVs (VeryShortVideos). Include pictures and names of your clients whenever possible.

6. Combine audio files and images of projects or photos from multiple clients to bring your story to life.

Respond Fast To Complaints and Concerns

Gathering feedback is critical to improving your customer experience. You'll get plenty of compliments, but you'll also hear complaints and concerns. Some minor, some major.

Put a process in place for dealing with glitches in your client experience. One of our clients has created what they call a "boo-boo" strategy. There are three response levels. The goals is to proactively spot and stamp out customer satisfaction "fires" before they get out of control.

Level One: Minor Mishap. Customer experience has a scratch. Quick first aid will prevent infection. In this case, customer-facing staff sends a simple note or apology. A supply of coffee cards is always on hand for anyone to use.

Level Two: Urgent. Things not going smoothly. Series of mishaps. Customer experience bruised. Painful injury or series of injuries. In this case, field or sales staff notify the customer service manager. Together they do whatever is appropriate to ease the client's pain. Customer care is always tailored to fit the situation.

Level Three: Critical. Customer experience broken or bleeding! Requires serious attention. In this case, the client gets immediate attention from company owners who are in a position to remedy the situation. Often, customers who have experienced a Level Three response become highly satisfied clients, because they respect and appreciate how the company has managed a difficult situation and made things right.

Bungalo Group helps companies in the residential building industry create better business results. For help communicating your WHY with testimonials, contact us.