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Testimonials are better at making sales than salespeople. Think about it.
What if you were undecided about buying a certain make and model of a car. You saw me driving one and asked how I like it.
I say its a total piece of garbage. The starter blew after just three months. Some of the bolts were loose from the factory. The paint is already starting to rust. In fact, Im going to sell it next month wanna buy it?
Now you dont want to buy the same car as me anymore. And you certainly dont want to buy mine.
But what if I said, its fantastic. Ive never owned a better car. Its three years old and I've never had a problem with it. Just gas and oil, thats it. On top of that, the service people are super friendly, honest and trustworthy.
Now you cant wait to go to the dealership and buy the same car as me.
That's the power of testimonials. They remove risk in the mind of the consumer. They remove objections to the sale.
Is there an objection about price? Use a testimonial to show value. You might not be charging enough, for the amount of value that your product or service provides.
Objection about returns or shipping? A testimonial can remove both.
Is your prospect happy with the current supplier? A testimonial can tell them why your product or service, is so much better than the other guys.
But how do you get testimonials? You ask for them. After youve earned them.
Once you get one, fire off a quick thank you note. Thank them for their kind words and wonderful testimonial. Tell them that youre sure to put it to good use.
Get the testimonials up on your web page. Printed ones are good. Audio is better. Video is the best.
The easiest ones to get are by email. You can put these on your site, but how you add them is the trick.
Have you ever wondered why all testimonials seem to be in the courier typeface and on yellow backgrounds? Theres a reason why I adapted this trend from print advertising and why everyone does it now because it WORKS.
Extensive testing showed that the courier typeface increased reader retention in the testimonials by 30%. Courier is more likely to be read and believed.
The yellow background symbolizes a scrap of paper from a notepad. Something hastily scribbled and sent. The important part is, yellow – the color of hope and optimism – was found to be the most trusted color.
Its the combination of font and color. The testimonials must look notably different than the rest of your site.
Print testimonials still work, but if you can get audio or video testimonials, they work even better. You may need to do a little more prodding to get them though.
But if someone, especially a market leader, has taken the time to write a testimonial, they can often be convinced to provide a video one as well. Just be sure to promise to link to their website, and note their biggest achievements.
Testimonials are the best kept secret a marketer has. They trump emotions and logic. They remove risk and overrule objections. They are the single most important selling tool. And it doesn't matter what you sell. Start using them today and watch as your sales go up way way up.