Customer Testimonials: How To Collect Them & 7 Examples

Customer Testimonials: How To Collect Them & 7 Examples

Karol Andruszków
04-08-2023
Reading time: 19 minutes
Photo representing the subject of the blog

Customer testimonials are one of the most powerful tools a company has to convert leads into customers and increase sales. Not only are they social proof that your product or service is worth buying, but they can also be a valuable marketing tool.

 

But how to get customer testimonials? And what are some effective ways to use them? In this article, I will answer those questions and give you some examples of customer testimonials in action.

What are customer testimonials?

Customer testimonials are statements from customers about their experience with a product or service. They are often used on websites and marketing materials to help potential customers make a decision about whether to purchase a product or service.

 

Testimonials are powerful pieces of marketing content because they provide real-world proof that your product or service works. They can help you close more sales because potential customers can see that other people have had a good experience with your company.

Why are customer testimonials important?

Graphic - Stats about product review

Customer testimonials are important because they provide social proof that a product or service is worth buying. They can help persuade potential customers to make a purchase, and they can also help build trust between a company and its customers.

How can you use customer testimonials in your marketing?

There are many ways to use customer testimonials in your marketing. You can include them on your website, in your advertising, and on your social media pages. You can also print them on your business cards, brochures, and other marketing materials.

How to ask your clients for authentic testimonials? 

Graphic - Stats about influencer testimonial

As a business owner, you know that customer testimonials are essential for winning new business. But how do you get your clients to give you honest, authentic testimonials? Here are a few tips:

1. Make it easy for clients to leave testimonials

Make it easy for clients to leave testimonials on your website or social media pages. Provide clear instructions on how to do so, and make it as easy as possible to leave a review.

2. Ask for feedback

Don’t be afraid to ask your clients for feedback. In fact, you should actively solicit feedback from clients after every transaction. This will help you gather testimonials that are both honest and relevant.

⚡ BOWWE Growth Hack:
Don't just treat reviews as purely marketing materials. Also, use them to find out how your customers perceive your service or product and what improvements they would see.

3. Thank clients for their feedback

Thank clients for their feedback, even if they don’t leave a testimonial. This shows that you appreciate their feedback and that you’re serious about making your business the best it can be.

4. Follow up

If a client provides a testimonial, follow up to ensure they are happy with the experience. This will help you ensure that your testimonials are accurate and reflect positively on your business.

5. Ask clients to recommend you

If a client is happy with your services, ask them to recommend you to their friends and family. This is one of the best forms of marketing, and it can help you win new business without spending a dime.

6. Encourage customers to leave reviews

Offer something to your customers in exchange for filling out reviews. It could be a special discount on your product or service. You can offer other alternative benefits as well. 

How do you add more value to your reviews? 

Graphic - Stats about good and bad testimonial

If you are already investing your time in collecting reviews, it is also worth ensuring that they are valuable and actually helpful to potential customers. How can you do this?

1. Take care of verifiability

Be sure to pay attention to whether the reviews you use for marketing purposes are verifiable. For example, pay attention to whether the opinion's author has signed it with some made-up name. Such things can arouse suspicion in potential customers that such an opinion is not genuine.

2. Publish only authentic reviews 

Remember, publishing made-up and untrue reviews won't do your business any good and will actually harm it. If anyone notices that you are deceiving your customers in this way, your business will lose its reputation for trustworthiness, and, as a result, no one will want to use it. 

3. Experiment with the form

The most common form in which reviews occur is text. Mostly, it is a few sentences about the experience of using a particular product or service, which is later posted on a business website. However, it is worth moving away from this form or trying to diversify it. For example, you can ask your customers to make an opinion in the form of a video, for example.

⚡ BOWWE Growth Hack:
You can find more examples of different forms of testimonials in the later part of the article. Be sure to check them out!

4. Provide details about the author

You have probably more than once encountered reviews on various sites that included a photo, full name, and place of work of the testimonial author. This clever procedure allows easy verification of the authenticity of the testimonial and strengthens its value.

5. Show opinions from different sources

Use other portals to get feedback from your customers. You can use sources such as Google Reviews or focus on platforms that collect reviews only related to your industry (for example, G2 is a platform entirely dedicated to software).  

7 best customer testimonials examples

You already know testimonials and how they can help you get more customers. Now it's time for you to think about how you can best present your testimonials to gain your potential audience's attention. 

1. Product page testimonials

Graphic - Testimonials about BOWWE from marketplace Appsumo

Testimonial about BOWWE from marketplace Appsumo

When you're looking to buy a new product, it's natural to want to hear what others have had to say about it. That's why customer testimonials are so valuable on product pages. 

 

Testimonials from third-party portals can be a great way to get an idea of what a product is like before a potential customer buys it. They can also help decide if the product is worth the price.

2. Quote testimonials

Graphic -  Quote testimonials from animoto.com

Example of quote testimonials from animoto.com

Quote testimonials are a form of customer testimonial in which customer quotes are used to endorse a product or service. Quote testimonials are often used on websites, advertising, and other marketing materials. They are a way to show potential customers that real people have had positive experiences with the product or service.

 

Quote testimonials can be a great way to show potential customers that your product or service is worth considering. Using genuine quotes from satisfied customers can build trust and help people see the value in what you offer.

 

There are a few things to keep in mind when using quote testimonials. 

 

→ Make sure the quotes are genuine and representative of the customer's experience

→ Use quotes that are relevant to the product or service 

→ Ensure the quotes are well-written and easy to read

3. Social media testimonials

Graphic - Social media testimonials from zapier.com

Example of social media testimonials from zapier.com

You're missing out if you're not already using social media to get testimonials from your customers. Sites like Facebook, Twitter, and LinkedIn offer a great way to get feedback from your customers and to show off your happy customers to potential new ones.

 

Make sure to ask your customers for permission to use their testimonials online. You can usually include a short form or survey with your purchase or service. Once you have the testimonials, post them on your website and your social media profiles (make sure to tag the customers who gave you the testimonials!).

4. Case study testimonials

Graphic - case study testimonial from iterable.com

Example of case study testimonial from iterable.com

Case study testimonials are a type of customer testimonial used to provide detailed information about how a product or service has helped a customer achieve success.

 

This type of testimonial is best created with close cooperation with the client. In this way, you will be able to access more accurate collaboration results, which you will present in a case study.

5. Influencer testimonials

Graphic -  Influencer testimonials from notion.so

Example of influencer testimonials from notion.so

Customer testimonials are a powerful marketing tool. But what about influencer testimonials?

 

Influencer testimonials are even more powerful. Why? Because they come from people who have a following and are respected by their peers. When an influencer gives a positive review of your product or service, it can help build trust and credibility with potential customers.

 

But how do you get influencers to talk about your business? It can be tricky, but there are a few things you can do:

 

→ Make sure your product or service is top-notch. If you have a good product, the influencers will take notice.

 

→ Reach out to the influencers you’d like to work with. Let them know about your product and how it could benefit their followers.

 

→ Create valuable content that the influencers can share with their followers. This content could be a blog post, video, or infographic.

6. Video testimonials

Graphic - Video testimonials from hootsuite.com

Example of video testimonials from hootsuite.com

Video testimonials are customer testimonials that are recorded and shared online. Video testimonials can: 

 

a) Show off your customers' satisfaction with your product or service

b) Help to build trust and credibility for your business.

c) Increase your business's online visibility

d) Help to attract new customers, and they can help to keep existing customers interested in your business

e) Allow to humanize your business. 

 

There are a few things to keep in mind when creating video testimonials: 

 

→ Comfortable with being filmed

→  Happy with your product or service

→  Articulate and able to explain what they like about your product or service.

→  Willing to share their testimonial online

7. Image testimonials

Graphic - Image testimonials from trustpilot.com

Example of image testimonials from trustpilot.com

Image testimonials are a great way to show your customers the human side of your business. They can help to build trust and credibility with your customers.

 

By including images of your customers with their testimonials, you can show potential customers that your products and services are loved by real people. Potential customers are likelier to trust a business with genuine, happy customers. Additionally, image testimonials can help to humanize your company. This can be especially helpful if you sell a product or service that is not very personal.

How to add testimonials in BOWWE? 

As part of BOWWE's partnership with Honaro, you can very easily post authentic reviews of your business from Honaro's website. Here's how you can do it:

1. Set up your business profile on Honaro 

Create a profile on Honaro and start collecting feedback from your satisfied customers.

2. Add a "Reviews" widget to your website

Go to edit your website in the BOWWE builder and add the "Reviews" widget to the project.

3. Connect your profile from Honaro to the widget

Go to "Widget settings" and select "Change Profile". Then select the profile from which you want to pull reviews to your website.

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Customer testimonials - summary

Collection of customer testimonials can seem daunting, but with careful planning and execution, it can be an easy and valuable process.

 

By following the tips outlined in this article, you can collect customer testimonials that will help you to build trust and credibility with potential customers.

 

Customer testimonials are a powerful tool for marketing your product or service. When used effectively, they can help you close more sales and build credibility with potential customers.

Article by
Karol Andruszków

Karol is a serial entrepreneur, e-commerce speaker m.in for the World Bank, and founder of 3 startups, as part of which he has advised several hundred companies. He was also responsible for projects of the largest financial institutions in Europe, with the smallest project being worth over €50 million.

 

He has two master's degrees, one in Computer Science and the other in Marketing Management, obtained during his studies in Poland and Portugal. He gained experience in Silicon Valley and while running companies in many countries, including Poland, Portugal, the United States, and Great Britain. For over ten years, he has been helping startups, financial institutions, small and medium-sized enterprises to improve their functioning through digitization.

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