Why You Need Customer Testimonials on your Web Site
A web site with a hundred customer testimonials will generate more leads and close more sales than a web site with no customer testimonials.
Customer testimonials are a large factor when it comes to making the decision of whether to make a purchase or not. If you are not utilizing the praise that your existing customers have for your business, you are missing out on a huge opportunity to have them help you sell to other prospects. Do not let excuses such as, “we are too busy to ask for testimonials” hold you and your sales back! ASK FOR THEM NOW! If this article has helped you generate your first customer testimonial, Like or Recommend us on Facebook.
This is important because as you grow, you can better deliver your products or services to your existing and growing customer base. In short, everybody wins. New customers will benefit from your products or services. Your existing customers will be happy that you are growing and expanding your ability to provide them with said products or services. This will also serve to validate the decision they made to have purchased from you in the first place.
Revenue is simply a result, a result of how helpful your products or services are. If you are not making any money, you are not helping anybody.
All of us are all influenced by the opinions of others, to some extent. The phenomenon of social proof actually speaks directly to this. But how much do testimonials really influence us when it comes to making a purchase? Well, did you know:
- 70% of customers check out reviews or ratings before making a purchase and 63% of them are more likely to make a purchase if it has reviews and ratings. (PeopleClaim)
- 79% of customers tend to trust online reviews as much as recommendations from friends and family. (BrightLocal)
- 67% of customers read 6 reviews or less before they feel they can trust a business enough to make a purchase. (MarketingProfs)
- 80% of customers have changed their mind about purchases based on NEGATIVE information they have found online. (ReputationAdvocate)
- Customer testimonials have the highest effectiveness rating for all types of content marketing, with a rating of 89% (WebDAM)
- Customer reviews create a 74% increase in product conversion (PeopleClaim)
Product reviews and ratings from existing customers are one thing, but what if you sell Services? Yup, it works for those too!
Get Customer Video Testimonials
Text based testimonials on your web site, with no customer name or photo, appear to be created by your business. This offers no value to the visitors since these testimonials cannot be validated. Worse, they appear inauthentic and will create a feeling of discomfort in your visitors. Text based testimonials also lack the “emotional connection” that a customer video testimonial can produce. If a picture is worth a thousand words, then moving pictures (which is what a video is) is worth multiple thousands of words.
If you are just using text based customer testimonials on your web site, you are failing to utilize one of the best marketing tools to its full potential. Make the effort switch to customer video testimonials, they are far more engaging and convincing. It will be worth your time and prove to be highly valuable. They will keep visitors on your web site longer (an average of 2 minutes longer – source: ComScore) and increase the chances that they will convert into a customer making a purchase.
Word-of-mouth marketing is a very effective tool that has become even more important with the rise of social media. When devoted customers agree to record a video testimonial, you should share them not only on your web site, but across your social media accounts. Consumers are more likely to trust people they have a relationship with, what more powerful sales tool can you have than real people vouching for you and your business?
The best thing about customer video testimonials is that you can create them with something that’s in your hand, pocket or desk – your smartphone. More on this in a bit.
65% of the population are are visual learners (WebDAM) and 64% more likely to buy a product from an online retail web site after watching a video (ComScore).
How to Create Customer Video Tutorials
Use your cell phone! Most modern cell phones are capable of capturing high definition video. Just use your phone to capture a satisfied customer’s testimonial on video to post to your web site and social media networks. Here are a few notes to keep in mind when capturing your next customer video testimonial:
- Who is being filmed? Make sure to have the customer include their name, business and location.
- What was provided or solved? Make sure your customer briefly describes the problem they were having before you came along.
- How did your product or service fit it? Make sure your customer provides a
- Be authentic, sincere! It’s okay to exclude any videos that seem like the customer is uneasy. Not everybody is comfortable behind the lens.
The above elements are a must! Without them, the customer video testimonial might not have the desired effect.
We hope this article on customer testimonials has been helpful to you. If so, please take a moment to Like or Recommend us on Facebook, share this on your social media. Let us know if you have any questions that we may be able to assist you with.
