How much would you pay for a super-powerful persuasion tool that’s no-brainer easy to use, and that turns suspicious and resistant prospects into passionate believers and raving fans?
If you’re smart, you’d pay a fortune, but the good news is — it’s FREE!
Not only FREE, but you can have an infinite number of “these tools.”
Because TESTIMONIALS are there for the taking… IF… you know how to collect them and how to use them correctly.
So let’s dig a bit deeper into this powerful but underused tool and ask the most important question:
WHY Make Such a Big Deal about Testimonials?
Because no matter what you say about yourself ―how persuasively, how often, or how powerfully― what others say about you is 10 times, no, make that 100 times more convincing… even if your testimonials seem to stutter on paper, have misspelled words, and they read like they were written by a 3rd grader.
There is just nothing like testimonials to instantly provide PROOF that you’re as good as you say you are―even better than you’d dare say about yourself because no one would believe it if YOU said it anyway. But when your clients, customers, and patients praise you from the rooftops, even the “outrageous” is easy to swallow.
And let’s face it, no one likes to be “sold.”
Just remember the last time you were in a store where some pushy salesperson was on you like white on rice―when you just wanted to browse. It’s really annoying and makes you dig in your heels like a two-year-old. Makes you want to do the opposite—even if you were planning to buy in the first place.
So instead of being pushy or desperate, let your testimonials do the talking for you. It’s like when you were a kid and had an older brother or sister stick up for you.
2 Most Ridiculous Myths About Testimonials
Myth #1: The biggest myth about testimonials is that people will automatically give them to you just because they’re happy with you.
This is very much like the mistaken belief that if you’re great at what you do, the word will spread, and your business will be packed with clients.
That may have been true a hundred years ago, but today, with a daily barrage of thousands of marketing messages, word-of-mouth is unpredictable so you’re better off taking charge of the process yourself.
And bottom line, there’s no shame in this. You’re just tapping into a natural process. Most of those who are willing to say good things about you are already saying them to their family and friends. But it doesn’t do you much good out there in the ozone.
Sure, maybe you’ll get a few new clients now and then… but we’re going after a tsunami of testimonials and in a way we can predict and control. We don’t have to leave it to chance. If you want a deluge, you’ll have to ask.
Myth #2: A corollary to the above is that you shouldn’t have to ask for testimonials, that it’s somehow beneath you, and that asking is demeaning and cheapens the testimonial.
I’m here to tell you that you should not only ask for testimonials, but you should ask and request that your clients give you the specifics you want in the testimonials — I’ll show you how and when to ask.
And surprisingly, most folks will be flattered — even proud that you’d ask them and want to use their name. Few will turn you down. You’ll be surprised.
How to Extract the Perfect Testimonial
WHEN to Ask.
Having a nice big batch of testimonials and presenting them the right way and at the right time, gives you real marketing clout. The more you have, the more your proof becomes insurmountable, uncontestable, and irrefutable!
So when is the best time to ask for testimonials?
Well, using one of Robert Caildini’s powerful psychological triggers, you ask for a testimonial at the point of highest reciprocity… which means when they’re the most delighted with their progress or success and what you’re doing for them.
Because that’s also when they’re subconsciously feeling obligated to do something in return. In other words, strike while the iron is hot!
If you wait too long, they may forget how happy they were in the heat of the moment.
HOW to Ask.
There are plenty of ways to ask, but the main thing to keep in mind is that your clients are busy.
So the easier you can make it for them, the more likely they’ll respond the way you want them to.
In fact, you can even offer to write the testimonial for them, then let them look it over and give you their approval (you must have written approval).
Another way to make it easier is to have your own testimonials available for them to model. If you have an office, you can have a testimonial book on the table with the magazines. If you’re strictly online, send them to a page with a big batch.
This serves two purposes. First, they have a “template” which shows them what you’re looking for. Secondly, reading your testimonials reinforces the fact that they’re in the right place and you’re the expert they need.
One more key point is to think of all testimonials like the ones you see in a weight loss ad — in other words, you want to get as close to a BEFORE and AFTER photo as you can.
For example, here are a couple from one of our landing pages.
Notice all the specifics and the attention-grabbing headline at the top:
“Dug Far Deeper into My List and Quadrupled My Sales…”
“Science of Client-Getting dug far deeper into my list and quadrupled my sales – for real, that is not hype. It generated a tsunami of orders I had no idea were even there.
In just two weeks, we pulled $300K in immediate sales for 3X Sellerator, plus another $100K+ in payment plan sales, all from a list of fewer than 25,000 names. People who had already been exposed to a recent launch for 3X VSL Generator.
That’s well over $16 per name! Amazing!”
Jon Benson, Author, marketing consultant, creator of 3X Sellerator
Here’s another with specifics and a bit of a story-like description, which is one more persuasive element you can ad, especially if they want you to write it for them:
“Scaled to a Mid Six-Figure Turnover Within 4 Months…”
“Not only did this give me an excellent system to model my own work on, it helped me add massive value to my clients as conversions simply went up. The fact of the matter is, the ‘done for you’ templates and systems allowed my team to scale rapidly, yet all the while developing a valuable asset in the strength of our marketing.
Another added bonus was the business element of the curriculum, which gave me financially valuable ideas that we were able to leverage immediately, and within 4 months we had scaled to a mid-6 figure turnover with relative ease. A huge win!” –Dan Meredith, The Fitness Copywriter
How to “Frame” your request.
Here’s one last thing about how to present your request for a testimonial, from my days as a chiropractor, but the strategy works for any niche.
I’d frame the request by asking…
“Would you be willing to help me help another person in pain?”
And of course, they almost always say yes, so then I’d go on to tell them a little story:
There was a guy, I’ll call him Tony, who’s back we fixed up. And the upsetting thing is that after his back was feeling great, he asked me if I could treat headaches.
I almost kicked myself.
I couldn’t believe I hadn’t gotten the word out about one of the most common problems we treat―and very successfully. Headaches aren’t usually too hard to fix, so I don’t want people to be wondering if it’s something we do here. And that’s how I want to use your story, to get the word out about what we do.”
When it’s true and you’re sincere, people respond and are more than happy to help you out.
OK, that’s enough about testimonials for now, but here’s a link to see more examples using video, headlines, photos, niche celebrities, etc.
Because a variety of presentation styles will appeal to different prospects.
Check it out here. The testimonials are under Daniel’s talking pitcher’s mitt LOL.
In the meantime, Happy Selling!
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