Thursday, June 26, 2008

How To Get Testimonials That Are Effective

By Brian D. McEvoy

If you don't have any testimonials on your website then you could be missing out on a lot of sales. They're not difficult to get yet have a dramatic effect, helping to convince skeptical visitors to go ahead and purchase.

Let's look at 7 key methods you can use to get them

1) Ask - no harm in asking. Your customers won't mind and there's nothing wrong with seeking feedback. They may even appreciate the fact that you care about them and took the trouble to find out what they thought of the product or service you offered.

2) Try giving out some free copies in return for a review. When your product is new your sales could suffer if you don't have testimonials. But because it is new no-one will have bought it, so giving some away for free, in return for their comments is a great alternative.

3) Why not make it a part of the deal? Why not make it clear before purchasing, that your clients will agree to provide you with feedback. You just need to be honest and say you're looking to get some positive comments about the product. If you provide a great product then of course this won't be a problem.

4) Offer a bonus. Let's make something perfectly clear right hereyou should never bribe anyone for their testimonial. It's just not ethical and could get you into a lot of trouble. There are certain lines that you should never cross is this is one of them. Offering a complimentary bonus for anyone who completes a 'feedback' form can be extremely effective, however and won't get you into any trouble.

5) Ask for beta testers. How come a just launched, brand new product still has testimonials? The answer of course is the product owner will have contacted his existing customers to beta test the latest one. If he already has a relationship with these clients, it's easier to get their feedback. They get something brand new to try at zero cost in return he gets some great testimonials.

6) Try a pay-per-click ad. If you have no clients to beta test your latest product try a small targeted pay-per-click advertising campaign. It's simple to offer a complimentary copy of your new product in return for their feedback. Word the advert carefully to avoid the timewasters and for perhaps just 5 cents a click, you get some great new web traffic who will be delighted to take you up on your kind offer.

7) Hold a competition. My favorite method for getting great testimonials and one I have seen used by many other successful marketers - hold a competition. If you had a weight-loss product and held a regular competition, every month or year for the customer who lost the most weight, do you think you'd get some great testimonials? Every month you're going to get fantastic results and people just love to include photos of what they used to look like and the much slimmer version!

Now you know how to get testimonials there should be nothing stopping you. Add them to your site and see your online sales improve.

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