The 4 qualities every great testimonial has
The 4 qualities every great testimonial has
1. A person attached to it
The more your testimonials have names attached to them, the better. They’re just more believable
this way. Plus, there’s an outside chance the reader of the testimonial knows the person who wrote it.
This has happened several times for our business and the ensuing behind-the-back conversation
between the two establishes instant credibility.
2. Brevity
3 sentences or less. No more. And no sentence should have more than 15 words.
3. An emotion.
Which of these does a better job?
“Wow, was I surprised. I never thought I could get my accounting
questions answered so fast”
OR
“I got my accounting questions answered very fast.”
You’ll agree that the first one, because of the emotion in it, captures a reader’s attention better.
4. A definable benefit
The reader must see a true benefit to what you offer. Otherwise, the testimonial doesn’t
demonstrate a solution to the reader. For example, it’s not enough for a testimonial to say
“He really knows his stuff”
Instead, the head-turning testimonial would say
“He knows his stuff so well, he saved me at least 20 hours of my own time”
Page 5
This second one points out the tangible results, and therefore makes for a more attentiongrabbing
quote.
Now, which of these is more impactful?
“XYZ’s service helped us launch three new initiatives and save a week’s worth of
management time”
OR
“They really helped us a lot”
Remember…
Testimonials are one of the most powerful tools in your marketing toolkit. Use them when you
want to establish credibility, gain trust or generate word of mouth for your business. The right
testimonial, placed strategically will go a long way towards closing business.
The 4 qualities every great testimonial has - To learn more about this author, visit Jay Lipe's Website.
Like this article? Share it with your friends
The 4 qualities every great testimonial has
1. A person attached to it
The more your testimonials have names attached to them, the better. They’re just more believable
this way. Plus, there’s an outside chance the reader of the testimonial knows the person who wrote it.
This has happened several times for our business and the ensuing behind-the-back conversation
between the two establishes instant credibility.
2. Brevity
3 sentences or less. No more. And no sentence should have more than 15 words.
3. An emotion.
Which of these does a better job?
“Wow, was I surprised. I never thought I could get my accounting
questions answered so fast”
OR
“I got my accounting questions answered very fast.”
You’ll agree that the first one, because of the emotion in it, captures a reader’s attention better.
4. A definable benefit
The reader must see a true benefit to what you offer. Otherwise, the testimonial doesn’t
demonstrate a solution to the reader. For example, it’s not enough for a testimonial to say
“He really knows his stuff”
Instead, the head-turning testimonial would say
“He knows his stuff so well, he saved me at least 20 hours of my own time”
Page 5
This second one points out the tangible results, and therefore makes for a more attentiongrabbing
quote.
Now, which of these is more impactful?
“XYZ’s service helped us launch three new initiatives and save a week’s worth of
management time”
OR
“They really helped us a lot”
Remember…
Testimonials are one of the most powerful tools in your marketing toolkit. Use them when you
want to establish credibility, gain trust or generate word of mouth for your business. The right
testimonial, placed strategically will go a long way towards closing business.
The 4 qualities every great testimonial has - To learn more about this author, visit Jay Lipe's Website.
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Dave KurlanDave Kurlan is the founder and CEO of Objective Management Group, Inc., the industry leader in sales assessments and sales force evaluations, and the CEO of David Kurlan & Associates, Inc., a consulting firm specializing in sales force development. Dave has been a top rated speaker at Inc. Magazine's Conference on Growing the Company, the Sales & Marketing Management Conference and the Gazelles Sales & Marketing Summit. He has been featured on radio and TV, including World Business Review with General Norman Schwarzkopf, in Inc. Magazine, Selling Power Magazine, Sales & Marketing Management Magazine and Incentive Magazine. He is the author of Mindless Selling and Baseline Selling – How to Become a Sales Superstar by Using What You Already Know about the Game of Baseball. He created and wrote STAR, a proprietary recruiting process for hiring great salespeople, and he writes Understanding the Sales Force, a popular business Blog and is a contributing author to The Death of 20th Century Selling and 101 Great Ways to Improve Your Life, Volume 2. - Visit Dave Kurlan's Website |
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David AchesonDavid Acheson is the founder of DCJA Consultancy. DCJA Consultancy is a management consultancy business specialising in B2B sales consultancy. They offer bespoke and packaged sales consultancy including Sales Optimisation Review, Interim Sales Management, Sales & Marketing Review, 1:1 Sales & Management Staff Analysis, Management Training, Solution Sales Training, Creation of New Pay Plan, KPI's, run Customer Feedback Campaigns, assist with Recruitment, Coaching, Appraisals and set up Strategic Marketing Campaigns. David spent his early career in accountancy and then moved into sales in 1982, working in Office Equipment, IT, Advertising, Training, Outsourcing and Consultancy. He has held many Senior Positions in SMBs and Global Organisations including Head of Sales Operations & Head of Business Development. His knowledge, skills and great experience of the Sales Industry has led to David making keynote speeches and running educational sessions to key businesses through organisations including The Chamber of Commerce and Business Link. - Visit David Acheson's Website |
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Linda RichardsonLinda Richardson is the Founder and Executive Chairwoman of Richardson, a global sales training and performance improvement company. As a recognized leader in the industry, she has won the coveted Stevie Award for Lifetime Achievement in Sales Excellence and she was identified by Training Industry, Inc. as one of the “Top 20 Most Influential Training Professionals.” Ms. Richardson is credited with the movement to Consultative Selling and is the author of ten books on selling and sales management, including Sales Coaching — Making the Great Leap from Sales Manager to Sales Coach, and Stop Telling, Start Selling. She teaches sales and management at the Wharton Graduate School of the University of Pennsylvania and the Wharton Executive Development Center. Linda is a frequent speaker at industry and client conferences, has been published extensively in industry and training journals, and has been featured in numerous publications, including The Wall Street Journal, Forbes, Nation’s Business, Selling Power, Success, and The Conference Board Magazine. Learn more about Richardson's sales training and performance improvement solutions at http://www.richardson.com web - Visit Linda Richardson's Website |
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