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Update: your Testimonials

“When you say something about yourself it’s bragging. When other people say it about you — it’s proof!” (Jeffrey Gitomer)

How good are you at collecting testimonials from your happy customers?

Great? Then well done, keep it up!

You’re in the minority though! Many business owners simply never get around to it, or are a little bit nervous about asking or don’t do anything with them once they’ve got them.

Here are some ‘off the top of my head’ thoughts when it comes to testimonials.

Ten Testimonial Tips

1) ASK! Even your most satisfied customers will need a friendly prompt.

2) Construct a customer feedback form that makes it easy to gather juicy quotes — and have a tick box that asks if you can use their quotes in public. This means you’re gathering their positive feedback at the very moment you’re completing a fabulous job for the customer.

3) Double check you have permission to use the quote.

4) Never make them up! If you’re the sort that has to make up testimonials, I’d seriously worry about your business model!

5) Make sure you quote the giver’s name (and company if relevant) — this gives much more credibility than unnamed quotes.

6) Try and get a testimonial that overcomes a typical buyer objection i.e. something like…”initially I thought the price was high, but bought it anyway and soon came to realise that it was fantastic value for money”

7) Capture off the cuff remarks. The next time a customer tells you something great about your product ask “Can I quote you on that?” Then — write up their quote, email it to them for their approval and there you go — another wonderful testimonial!

8) If you can get a video testimonial these can be very powerful. No excuse nowadays with inexpensive flip cameras and even smartphones providing good enough quality. A one minute video testimonial can be extremely powerful to your
sales success.

9) Never think you’re too late to get a testimonial. Sometimes the effect of a testimonial can be more powerful if you can harness a comment that contains something like “now, six months after xxxx, the benefits are really coming through”. Depending on your product or service these can mean much more than an instant testimonial done at the time.

10) USE THEM! Don’t just collate testimonials and keep them in a folder. Use them on your website, flyers, brochure, exhibition boards, the bottom of emails, the company van!

Hope these help!

Until next time.

Leigh

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For previous ‘Tricks of the Trade’ go here

About the author

Hi I’m Leigh Ashton of The Sales Consultancy

Whether you’re a small business or a leading brand, an area manager or a Chief Executive, whether you’re new to sales or an experienced sales professional. Even if you’re not in sales at all but want to understand it, you’ve come to the right place.

The World of Sales is changing.

Today’s conventional sales training doesn’t address the psychological barriers that get in their way.

My approach takes your sales team through a process that:

* Helps them identify their psychological barriers and gives them the tools to overcome them
* Teaches them how the mind works so they can keep motivated and stay focused
* Gives them the ability to identify the psychological patterns of their clients and prospects so they connect with them at a deeper level and close more sales

And at a higher level…

* It creates more success in other areas of their lives so they are happier generally…and happier sales people generate more sales

Wherever you are on your personal sales journey what’s the best course of action for YOU.

– Sales Training – that actually gets results
– Leadership and Management
– Personal Coaching and Mentoring
– Sales Mentoring Programme
– NLP (Neuro Linguistic Programming) and how it can help you accelerate your success
– Keynote Speaking