Customer testimonials are quite possibly your most valuable resource in terms of what people see when they find your business. They could be reviews through Google, Yelp, or any of the like. A positive customer review (or better yet several or more) can make the difference between a new customer booking a job with you or turning them away to give their business elsewhere.
The only problem with testimonials and reviews on these free websites is the fact that unless you know the person and can substantially validate that they posted the review, ANYONE could have written it. There are also many potential customers out that are well aware of this fact. You can't trust everything you read on the web and testimonials, even ones that appear completely legitimate on the surface CAN be illegitimate. This is why it is better if you post reviews that you yourself have reached out and attained on your website, and base them on your website rather than link them to the website of the review.
In these reviews you should get the customer's full name, location, and even a date. These facts will help make them much more real and much more believable than a foreign linked testimonial. You could even add a customer picture...obviously all these facts rely on some customer disclosure but nothing a good evangelist customer shouldn't be willing to do. Not to mention it creates great and useful content for people to see on your webpage without having to rely on a link to get your customer to your review or get the review to your site. One good believable testimonial could boost your conversion rates by 100% or more, and it doesn't even have to be incredibly in-depth. Sometimes a more concise, modest review, can be more beneficial and believable to potential customers than an over-the-top one. The more honest it sounds the better.
Know the difference between a good customer testimonial, and a GOOD, valid customer testimonial and why they are more advantageous than one from a third-party source.
by Nick Sidla of ServiceTask.com
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