Marketing: Three Tactics for Gathering More Testimonials
While a glowing customer testimonial might not have the power to make or break your catalog or Web site, it certainly can help tip the scales in your favor to convert a few more browsers to buyers.
In particular, says Lea Pierce, a consultant and freelance copywriter in Santa Rosa, Calif., and former creative director with catalog and online marketer Windsor Vineyards, many direct marketers find that testimonials influence sales of highly priced products (say, a $1,000 wine cellar). Pierce offers the following advice for collecting testimonials that pack enough punch to boost your sales numbers:
1. Don’t ask for testimonials, ask your customers what they think of your service or product to get honest, credible feedback.
2. Offer a special discount, free product or prize to customers who send you their feedback. Or, offer to publish the best customer stories involving your product or company in your customer newsletter, catalog or Web site. Cushman’s, a direct marketer of fruit, uses this tactic to not only gather outstanding testimonials but to build a sense of community between the company, customers and gift recipients.
3. Solicit opinions either through purchase follow-up e mails (especially if the product or service was bought online) or through a simple follow-up survey. In either case, asking for feedback two to four weeks after the purchased product was received is probably about the right timing to elicit specific comments as to the item’s quality and the customer’s purchasing experience.
Lea Pierce can be reached at (800) 932-4748 or via e-mail: lea@leapierce.com.
