How to Get Customer Testimonials That Convert

A 4-step checklist for optimizing your landing page with testimonials

When someone tells you what an amazing job you are doing, or how your product has changed their life, they are giving you a testimonial. They are testifying to your credibility and overall awesomeness.

Now that social media and online reviews are amplifying word-of-mouth marketing, it’s becoming easier and easier to quote someone talking about your product. Simply doing a search for your product using Search.Twitter.com can often give you valuable insight about what people are saying.

If restaurant websites are taking official testimonials from foodie blogs, review sites like Yelp.com and notes from Tweets, there’s no reason a publisher can’t use their own resources. If a blogger reviews your product, feel free to snag a clip of their review. If someone mentions you on Twitter, that counts too!

If you want your testimonials to lend credibility to your name and your product, make sure that you’re able to check off every item on this list when your landing page is completed:

1. User testimonials are credible, and each user is clearly defined.

The most credible testimonials are an accurate transcription of your customer’s own words and ideally should include a full identification of the buyer by name, city, state and occupation.

Kind words from Tom S. in North Carolina are obviously less valuable than those from Tom Smith in Boone, North Carolina. In fact, under-identified testimonials can inspire suspicion and work against your sales message.

Many companies have taken testimonials a step further by adding photos, audio testimonials and video testimonials. Check out our own Mequoda Summit video testimonials for an example.

2. Testimonials feature compelling results and benefits.

The best testimonials are specific and support your key copy points. They work well when integrated into the sales letter flow and feature genuine results and benefits.

When asking for testimonials, it’s OK to ask your user to be specific in their recommendation. When you’re asking for a testimonial, ask them to think about the following questions:

• What problem did this product solve for you?
• How has this product made you a better marketer/gardener/acrobat, etc.?
• Who would you recommend this product to?

By guiding them in the direction you’re looking for, you’ll be able to capture usable testimonials on the first try, every time.

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3. Testimonials are integrated into the sales letter flow.

A good, credible testimonial is an extremely valuable part of any sales letter. When designing your landing page, you should leave a dedicated section for testimonials, or find a way to work them in throughout the copy.

Text-based testimonials will always work, but if you need a creative way to webify your landing page, you can look no further than by asking for video testimonials.

Alternatively, they can appear in a separate list of your satisfied customers, especially if yours is a B2B product, just by citing respected corporations that have bought from you.

4. Testimonials reflect the target users and their heroes.

The most credible testimonial messages feature individuals who share similar demographics to your target prospects or their heroes.

Buyers love having their purchase decisions validated. It comforts and reassures them to know that other customers—just like them—have bought and been very satisfied with your product or service.

There are many ways to use testimonials that will work against your efforts, but if you use the checklist above, you can be sure that these testimonials will help your efforts of converting more visitors into buyers dramatically.

Check out a few examples of awesome landing page testimonial examples here:

• Audio testimonials at PanicAway.com (this is a best-practice landing page all around).
• AWAI’s 6-Figure Copywriting course uses several different formats for testimonials all the way down the page.
• SEOMOz adds testimonials to their pricing page (smart) featuring professional photos and the logos for where they work.