Customers are the key value for every business. That is why lots of time and money are spent to keep the existing clients and attract new ones. Testimonials are a fast and working tool used for these purposes. Every successful company has a list of testimonials. No matter whether the company sells products or services, happy customers’ reviews will help build a good online reputation and attract the target audience. Derek Gehl, the CEO of the Internet Marketing Center, says that adding this very element to the website can multiply profits.
The highly important question to answer is ‘how to encourage customers to leave reviews on the product?’ Let’s analyze the clues to better testimonials in 6 simple tips.
Feel free to ask for feedback
After the customer receives a product or service, do not hesitate to ask for a review. It gives your clients an opportunity to see that their opinion is valued. Of course, nobody asks for good reviews as it is a direct way to lose the customer’s trust.
Make it easy for your customers
Let’s be honest: nobody will leave a testimonial if it is hard to find the tab or fill in the form. The best way out would be to place a “leave-your-testimonial” button right below the order form. This will encourage your customers to share their experience of the
collaboration with your company.
Customers have a right to see testimonials and reviews so it is the company’s responsibility to provide such an opportunity.
Be present everywhere
Today, social networks are conquering the world. And people are more likely to read and leave feedback in social nets. It is good to have links to the reviews on off-site pages. The thing is that customers tend to rely on third-party review sites or social media, such as Facebook or YouTube, more than on your own on-site content. It can also create a snowball effect because clients may want to leave testimonials if they found the company through someone’s review. Moreover, off-site content will definitely help build your brand awareness.
It is essential to create corporate pages in all the sources that are credible among potential clients. The top 3 biggest platforms for feedback collection are:
Since YouTube’s popularity today is indisputable, it is a great platform for getting feedback. It is wise to create an account with video presentations of the company’s products there. Encouraging video reviews on products is another way to increase the number of reviews and also to attract new customers. Close collaboration with a reliable
YouTube channel will also work for your reputation.
Most companies promote themselves via Facebook, which is also a perfect means of collecting reviews. But remember that the tab for feedback should be visible and accessible to everyone.
- Google Places and other local search directories
Local businesses can have reviews on different local search directories. To get feedback from someone living in your neighborhood, it is necessary to place listings on a directory and update them regularly. Bear in mind that a lot of local search directories are interconnected so they can get reviews from each other.
The testimonial page should have links to all the platforms where the company is present. The easier the access to platforms is, the more likely your customers will share their experience of working with you.
React to negative testimonials
Negative reviews are also helpful. They play a vital role in understanding in which direction to move and how to deal with many issues. A rapid response to a negative review solves half the problem. It is no use trying to justify the company. A polite apology for the inconvenience and quick help in resolving the problem can turn a negative testimonial into a positive customer experience.
Deal with the negative feedback immediately and in a positive way. The majority of big corporations communicate directly with the customer. That is why most companies hire customer success managers and pay them a lot to handle such cases. There are several ways of how to act but the best ones are to offer a bonus and to
solve the problem. But remember: negative feedback in the list of positive testimonials builds trust. You can’t be perfect 100% of time.
From quantity to quality
The more reviews and testimonials the company receives, the more likely it is that negative feedback will appear. The main goal is to have as much feedback as possible. 8 good reviews out of 10 are better than only one review, be it even great.
To sum up, both positive and negative testimonials only happen for a reason. They always come as a result of the company’s work and the customer’s experience. Following the simple rules mentioned above will obviously increase the number of testimonials. But only hard work and really good products will bring you plenty of positive reviews.
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