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    How To Write Good Testimonials (w/ Generator & Examples)

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    In this post we’re going to cover how to write a damn good testimonial.

    If you have testimonials, here’s the first thing you must remember:

    Don’t only post “Ego Testimonials.”

    An “Ego Testimonial” is a testimonial that sounds great to YOU and YOUR COMPANY, but it doesn’t serve any benefit to the customer.

    Here’s an example of an Ego Testimonial:

    Bad testimonial example

    While this is a nice testimonial, it doesn’t give any indication why a new customer should care or results they will see.

    Here’s all it shows:

    • Neville is a nice guy. 
    • Neville is very skilled at writing. 
    • Neville can help your emails sell more. 
    • Neville has a proven track record of results. 

    This testimonial is ok to show once, because it shows "Neville is a nice guy" which is very important, but it’s not useful to hear that same testimonial over and over.

    Instead it’s better to use “Results Testimonials” that show some tangible results your service/product has done for the customer:

    Good Results Testimonial Example

    That’s some helpful advice to follow for Plain Text Testimonials. But with the web we can show pictures, text, videos and more…...so what other kinds of testimonials can you use?

    Well my friend, let’s go over an assortment of different testimonial types. Each with an example:

     

     

    The Plain Text Testimonial:

    This is a plain-old text testimonial with a name under it. This is a common format for a lot of testimonials. These testimonials are great in most instances, but in the next formats we’ll show how to “spice up” a Plain Text Testimonial:

    Plain text testimonial example

     

     

    The Plain Text Testimonial with Picture:

    Adding a picture to a testimonial does several things:

    1.) It adds a face to the testimonial, which people are 80% more likely to look at.

    2.) It adds credibility to your testimonial because there’s a real person attached to it.

    3.) People respond better to testimonials with faces.

    Here’s an example:

    Testimonial with picture example

    People are far more likely to look at pictures of other people. Therefore having a face attached to your testimonial is far more effective in getting people to read your testimonial:

    Testimonial with a picture:

    Testimonial with picture example

    Heatmap of where people first look at this testimonial:

    Testimonial with a picture probability heatmap

    Path the eye follows when viewing the testimonial:

    Testimonial with a picture probability eye chart

    Probability of where a person will look in the first 3-5 seconds:

    Testimonial with a picture probability chart

    Notice everything indicates the most attention-getting thing on this testimonial is the picture.

     

     

    The Giant Number Testimonial:

    This is where you feature big numbers that look impressive. Then use the testimonial below to give context.

    Big Numbers Testimonial

    People love seeing big numbers and big results.  Secretly in their head the customer is thinking "Maybe I could get those results too!"

     

     

    The Data Graph Testimonial:

    Some people love to see results with cold hard data. Trying combining a testimonial with a results data set:

    Data Graph Testimonial Example

    You can even “spice up” this graph by making it easier for people to interpret with some easy visual cues.

    Sometimes graphs like this are difficult to interpret quickly, so we can put some boxes and arrows showing people exactly what to look at:

    Data Graph Testimonial with Explanation

    Anytime you take the “guesswork” out of something, it makes it easier to understand. So adding those red and green boxes help highlight where to look.

     

     

    The Video Testimonial:

    Video testimonials are great, but people don’t always watch them the full way through. For this reason it’s helpful to give a quick snippet of what’s inside.

    We do this with a little header on top of the video with a quote from the video, and some context at the bottom:

    Video Testimonial Example

    Even if someone doesn't watch your testimonial video (they might be busy, have slow internet, be in a crowded place...), with the added context surrounding the video they will still get the gist.

     

     

    The Business Testimonial:

    This is where a business (but not a specific person) is the featured testimonial. Often people have what they call “Resume Clients”, which means those are the impressive clients they’ve worked with that impress other clients.

    Business Testimonial Example

     

    Sometimes it can be beneficial to show off testimonials from larger businesses, especially if you’re trying to get other large clients. If a company like Hewlett Packard sees you’ve already worked with IBM, Cisco, and Dell….they are far more likely to take you seriously.

     

     

    The Testimonial + Link to Product:

    While you’re bragging about your service, take the opportunity to point people to the service/product that you’re talking about.

    Testimonial  with Link Example

    By simply adding a link underneath the testimonial, it could get people interested enough to want to see for themselves.

     

     

    The Star Rating Testimonial:

    People love 5-star ratings, and it’s a common rating system in society now. So if for example you’re selling a product on Amazon, make sure to feature your 5-Star Ratings!

    5 star rating book testimonial example

    The 5-Star rating system is now so ubiquitos across society, it super helps to show your ratings.  Bonus points if you show the number of ratings also.  If you're in doubt how to lay it out, just copy the way Amazon does it!

     

     

    The Real Use Case Testimonial Picture:

    Has a customer sent you a picture of them using your product? Include that picture! Real pictures of people using the product is great validation.

    The “Real Testimonial Picture” is a great way to showcase your physical product.

    real use case testimonial picture

     

     

    The Compare To Other Products Testimonial:

    If you’re in a competitive market with a lot of similar products, it could be very helpful to show people why YOUR product is superior to the competition.

    For example, we made a quick comparison of 3 different mops. It’s almost a no-brainer to see the 1st mop is by far the best.

    Compare to other products testimonial example

    Comparison charts are extremely powerful, especially if your product is on a marketplace like Amazon where other products are clearly displayed. In that case it's helpful to visually show the perspective customer WHY your product is the correct choice over the competition.

     

     

    The Screenshot Testimonial:

    A lot of times your customers will say great things about you via text messages, Facebook, or other social platforms.

    You can simply take screenshots of these compliments and post them as testimonials! They have the added benefit of looking more authentic since they are screenshots:

    screenshot testimonialscreenshot testimonial screenshot testimonial screenshot testimonial

    Screenshot Testimonial Tip: I use a Mac, and anytime I see something nice written about me or my products, I take a screenshot of the text (CMD + SHIFT + 4) and store it in a folder called “Testimonials.”

     

     

    Getting Good Testimonials from Your Audience:

    Here’s a script you can use for a survey to get good testimonials. Remember, you don’t JUST want people to say flattering things about you....instead you want them to give tangible results they got from your product/service.

    Here’s some questions you can ask your customers in order to get good testimonials out of them:

    Notice how we try to capture actual projects, numbers, and results. You can swipe this email and modify it as your own.

    Well my friend, I'm afraid we've covered most of the testimonial styles, and now this post is over :-(

    However if you'd like to keep a copy of this entire post in your files, you can download the entire post (including all scripts, pictures, and examples) for your own files here:

    Download This Testimonials Guide:

    We send posts like this to our email list on a weekly basis. Join the email list, and we’ll also immediately send you a copy of this Guide To Testimonials in PDF, Word, and Google Doc format:

    Click here to subscribe

    Click the image above to get the download. You can then:

    -Share this document with your colleagues-

    -Model your own testimonials after these examples-

    -Save this document in your files for later reference-

    Enjoy!

    Sincerely,

    Neville Medhora - Copywriter


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