Using Testimonials to Gather New Customers

With the economic downturn the world has suffered in the past years, people have become more cautious in buying things. Before they spend their hard-earned money on something, they make sure that they will get the best value for their investment. If you are a business owner, you would want to make sure that you look credible to your target customers. One way to increase your credibility is to tell your prospects that your past customers love your products or services and they are happy and satisfied with your offerings.

Incorporating testimonials and positive reviews in your marketing materials such as your postcards will inspire people to check out your business. This is one great way of ensuring that people read your marketing materials and try out your products or services. If you want to put testimonials in your materials, here’s what you need to do:

1. Find out what your customers are saying about your business. You can do this by asking your customers personally or searching the internet. There might be reviews online about your business that you did not know about. Once you know what people are saying, you can ask them if you can use their reviews or testimonials in your marketing materials.

2. If you are asking for reviews, make it easy for your customers to give it to you. Don’t make it hard for your customers to give their reviews. Keep in mind that you are the one asking a favor from them, so don’t give them a hard time submitting their reviews. For instance, you can use email to ask for testimonials or include a form your customers need to return to you. You also use social media to gather testimonials. With more and more people using the online market today, it would be easy for them to give you testimonials. If you do this, you’ll be surprised with how many of your past customers would be willing to give their review.

3. It’s best to get testimonials when people’s positive experience is still fresh in their mind. You can do this by sending a survey form right after a sale. It would be best if you can include open-ended questions to allow you to get good quotes. You can also ask for an interview if you desire to get a longer testimonial. Just make sure that you do the interview when the event is still fresh.

4. Post the testimonials and reviews in publications, blogs, or web site. It’s a great idea to post or publish the testimonials not only in your other marketing materials but in business publications as well. When people read them, they will be more enthusiastic to try out your offerings so they will find out what other people have experienced in doing business with you. This would put your business in a good light and encourage would be customers to go ahead and plunge into your business.

5. Whatever comes out from the reviews and testimonials you have gathered, don’t take them negatively. Don’t assume that all testimonials you will get will be positive. If there are negative reviews, listen to them and use them to improve your business. This will help you shape your business to an establishment that your target customers will want to patronize.