I am writing this article the week following the devastating floods in Brisbane, Australia in 2011.  Certainly, my family and I are personally very thankful for the help of many of our neighbours as we evacuated our house, office and all our belongings ahead of the flood waters.  I wish I could somehow better thank them for their efforts, which made me think that a short article on testimonials might have a certain timeliness to it. 

Testimonials are a key marketing weapon for Professional Services advisers as your prospects are unable to take you for a “test drive” before purchasing.  Referrals and Testimonials (two sides of the same coin) are the next best thing.  Often I say that Testimonials are like a “referral to the world at large” and thus should be sought out as much as single referrals are.  So here are some quick tips.

Provide opportunity

Clients are busy.  Many will happily provide referrals, but it needs to be made quick and easy.  Few clients have the time to type up a letter from scratch and post it to you.  While balance is always needed in dealing with clients, it never hurts to provide some proactive opportunities to provide referrals – email links, website areas to “leave a comment”, testimonial forms in feedback, review or debrief packs and so on. 

Turn compliments into testimonials

Sometimes a client will send through an email of thanks.  If it has a little substance to it, call them and ask if you could rewrite it into a testimonial for their approval.  You will be shocked at just how many clients say yes.  Alternatively, at the end of a

Ask for testimonials

If you need a bunch of testimonials for marketing collateral or your website, don’t be afraid to ask for a few.  You can simply approach happy clients and just be honest about what you seek.  Don’t back them into a corner – make the offer and see if they “have the time” to provide one.  Alternatively, offer a testimonial as an alternative to a referral (a good tip I once read).  If you ask something like “Clients who are happy with our service often become either Referral Clients, asking us to talk to friends or colleagues, or Reference Clients, providing testimonials or acting as referees.  Which one of these clients do you think you might be?” you will probably end up with a lot of testimonials quickly.  Don’t overdo this last tip though as you still need referrals more than testimonials.

Get GREAT testimonials

When you receive a testimonial, you don’t have to take it “as is”.  You can politely ask to make a few little changes to boost the credibility and impact of the testimonial.  For example…

• Be specific with any numbers, dates or results.  A more specific lower number is better than a “generic” higher number.  19% is better than “about 20%” and 18.7% is even more credible than 19% even though it is a lower number (assuming higher is better!).
• Present full names, locations and positions (job titles).  Full names and companies are heaps more credible than “Steve from an engineering firm” or “DK from Kenmore”.
• Dates are useful if you get enough testimonials to keep them fresh.  But as long as the person providing the testimonial hasn’t explicitly changed their view of you (e.g. left for a competitor) and your business remains essentially the same, then testimonials have a long shelf life.
• Story testimonials are much better than generic “you did a great job” testimonials.  Ask for testimonials that tell a “before and after” story.
• Make sure the testimonial is credible – don’t overdo things.  Specificity is more important than grand claims.
• Have the testimonial mention you by name if possible.  Its often YOU that needs the endorsement in the eyes of a prospect, not your company or brand.
• Get permission.  Always ensure you have permission.  Make it clear the comments being provided will be used in marketing material or email to the client and seek explicit permission to use their comments as a testimonial.