When it comes to creating collateral for marketing and sales, customer testimonials are a must-have.
As the Creative Director and Graphic Designer at ROI Online, I utilize testimonials whenever I can. Why? Because customer testimonials give your business authority and offer your audience a sneak peek into the success they can expect if they engage with your business, purchase your product or sign up for your service.
In this blog, I’ve outlined a few of my favorite ways to utilize customer testimonials. I hope you’ll take inspiration from this list and harness the power of a testimonial for your business as well!
1. Include Testimonials In Your Emails
Whether you are sending a one-off sales email or an email series, it’s a good idea to consider including a customer testimonial.
On average, professionals spend 6 hours a day checking their email. Although that might sound depressing, this fact can be a huge benefit to you. Because when recipients see positive reviews from your existing customers, it creates a sense of confidence and encourages them to take action.
In addition to adding testimonials in your emails, it's essential to personalize your messages based on the recipient's needs and interests. Tailoring the content to address their specific pain points and desires, along with incorporating a relevant testimonial, can significantly increase engagement and conversions.
NOTE: No need to get too fancy. Try accompanying your customer testimonial with a simple picture of the individual who said it or a picture of the product they are speaking highly of.
2. Create Social Media Graphics With Testimonials
In today's digital age, online reviews and social media play a crucial role in shaping consumer decisions. Thus, it's important to leverage these reviews and testimonials and showcase them on your social media platforms to build brand trust and attract prospective customers.
To maximize the reach of your social media graphics with testimonials, consider investing some budget in paid social media advertising. With the help of targeted advertising options, you can ensure that your graphics reach your desired audience and generate the maximum ROI.
NOTE: Because social media is a more visual platform, it’s a good idea to spend some time making your customer testimonial look sharp and catch the eye of your audience. Don’t be afraid to put some $$ behind your social post to increase visibility.
3. Incorporate Testimonials Into Your Website
Your potential customers are doing their research, vetting your business out and trying to make an educated decision. Chances are, they are doing a good amount of this research on your website. Which means, you have the upperhand!
Don’t let them make assumptions about how your business will make them feel, change their lives and solve their problems. Show them, like StoryBrand did here.
NOTE: Make sure your testimonials are visually appealing and easy to read. Including an image that equals “success” to your end user is a huge plus. That could mean an image of a individual they aspire to be, someone they can relate to and respect or a picture of your product/service making someone's life easier.
Remember, the key is to make it simple and enticing for customers to share their experiences. By incorporating a customer-centric approach to your website, you can create an environment that encourages visitors to take action, build a strong brand reputation, and ultimately drive conversions.
4. Create Video Testimonials
To further enhance your customer testimonial strategy, another effective approach is to create video testimonials. In this day and age, people are more likely to watch a video than they are to read text on a screen. And word of mouth is still a huge piece of the sales process.
Creating a video testimonial kills two birds with one stone! A video testimonial can be used on several different platforms, including your website, social media, email campaigns, and sales meetings.
When creating video testimonials, aim for authenticity and relatability. Encourage your satisfied customers to share their experiences genuinely and passionately. Authenticity is key to establishing trust and resonating with potential loyal customers. Consider providing some guiding questions or prompts to help customers articulate their experiences effectively. However, it's crucial to allow their unique stories to shine through naturally.
NOTE: Make sure your video testimonial speaks directly to your audience's concerns and aspirations. Creating a montage of testimonials in a single short video builds your authority and makes the video more entertaining.
5. Highlight ‘Big Name’ Customer Logos
Although this isn’t exactly to showcase customer testimonials, it does accomplish a similar task. It shows your audience that your product or service is trusted by other companies, hopefully, companies they respect or aspire to be like. It also gives you the authority in the sense that this isn’t your first rodeo. Your business has experience and is able to accomplish the same success for others that you can accomplish for them.
Remember, consumers trust online reviews and the experiences of others. By incorporating customer testimonial examples and prominently displaying 'big name' customer logos on your testimonial page, you can leverage the power of social proof and establish a strong foundation of trust on your website.
NOTE: This is a fantastic workaround for businesses that find it difficult to acquire actual testimonials. Be careful not to include too many customer logos, as it can quickly clutter your design and confuse your audience. Quality logos over quantity of logos is key.
Harnessing the Power of Customer Testimonials for Your Business
Incorporating customer testimonials into your marketing and sales collateral is a powerful strategy that can elevate your business's authority and attract prospective customers. Throughout this blog, we've explored five brilliant customer testimonial strategies that you can implement to make a lasting impact on your audience.
But it doesn't stop there.
You may have to look for an platform that effortlessly manage and amplify your success stories. And that platform that you would be needing is GrowthStack CRM.
With GrowthStack, you can automate various processes related to your testimonial campaigns, such as sending follow-up emails to customers after they provide feedback or requesting testimonials at the right time in their customer journey. This automation saves you time and ensures that you never miss an opportunity to capture a valuable testimonial.
But if you're having a hard time crafting compelling narratives that resonate with your audience, you may want to check out StoryBrand.
At the core of StoryBrand is the power of storytelling. It helps you structure your testimonials into a cohesive and emotionally resonant narrative that grabs attention and connects with your target market. Their proven framework empowers you to create engaging and persuasive content that connects with your customers on a deeper level.
By combining the capabilities of GrowthStack CRM and the storytelling prowess of StoryBrand, you can take your customer testimonial strategies to new heights. So, don't miss out on the opportunity to unlock the true power of customer testimonials. Sign up for GrowthStack CRM to streamline your testimonial campaigns and utilize the StoryBrand framework to craft compelling narratives that resonate with your audience.
With these resources at your fingertips, you'll be well-equipped to harness the influence of customer testimonials and drive growth for your business. Start inspiring your audience with success stories that leave a lasting impression and watch your business thrive.
