There is no better advertising than a genuine testimonial from a raving fan! Let Your Clients Be Your Raving Fans! When I first began asking for testimonials I was a little hesitant about asking, thinking they wouldn't want to write one for me. Thankfully that was so far from the truth! There hasn't been one client that has said no to writing a testimonial since I began asking about 25+ years ago. Some clients write some pretty amazing long letters. And some testimonials are short and to the point and that's great too. All that matters is that you at least ask for testimonials!
What are you going to do with your testimonials? You can use the testimonials in many ways: on your website, presentations to potential clients, brochures, mailings, e-newsletters, just about anywhere you want to get out authentic publicity about you. Spread your raving fans word about YOU!
The key word is 'authentic' testimonials. Testimonials must be believable. It's pretty easy to spot if it's a real person behind the letter and not just a copywriter writing it for you. And testimonials should be as specific as possible about your services and why they would recommend you to their friends, family and business associates. Be sure to use their exact words, then show it to them once it's up and thank them of course! When I ask for testimonials I say something like, would you be so kind as to write up a short testimonial of my services and if you'd recommend me to your friends and associates? And again - they always are happy to do it - so don't be shy!
Be sure to get different types of testimonials. Why? So you can show the depth of your business services. If what people read are all about the same service or situations or from the same people over & over, your testimonials will kind of all run together and look the same. And yes, there probably are some clients that have used your services for many years.
For example, one of my clients purchased a Scottsdale home way back in 1993. They are now ready to buy a new home and then sell the old home. Here is the testimonial they sent me recently. Why did they send it before they actually bought and sold again? Because I asked them too! Ask and you shall receive! People are happy to help you build your business - they really are! If you've done right by them! But that's another subject....
I just wanted you let you know what a fantastic job Anna Banana has done for us over the years. We purchased our first home from her over 20 years ago! We were new to the Scottsdale area and Anna made sure it was going to be an excellent investment for us as well as a wonderful home. Now we’re getting ready to sell and buy again and we are working with Anna Banana because we know she have our wants and needs down to the nitty gritty! We are busy people that don’t want to worry about the details and it’s comforting to know that they take the stress out of selling and buying. You can count on Anna Banana to go over and above the call of duty and then some. What we don’t understand is how she gets it all accomplished and it appears to be effortless. We have referred many, many friends and associates to Anna Banana over the years. The feedback from all of them is what we expect from them……outstanding service, knowledgeable and very pleasant. That’s Anna Banana for sure….all that and more!
Now it's time for you to get to work on asking for testimonials and/or updating your testimonials. And that goes for me too! I was thinking about this subject a few weeks ago and thought - holy smokes - it's time to update some of them as well as ask for some new ones - which I forgot to do. You see, even us 'oldies' in the business need a little coaching from time to time!
Let Your Clients Be Your Raving Fans!
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