Many online users rely on business testimonials when selecting the brand, product, or service they are looking for. This article will help you understand how to leverage business testimonials to improve your credibility. 

No matter how convincing your sales or marketing pitch is, a new customer is probably thinking… ‘Of course, you are saying all this great stuff about your business, but how can I believe these claims?’ While a blog, an informative white paper, or a web page can help them see the finer details, a good word from an existing customer will go a long way in building the trust that you seek. A business testimonial from a current or past client is a reliable proof of work and can help increase your conversations in more ways than one.

But while many brands delight customers with their stellar products and offerings, they are unsure how to approach and get the customer to write a business testimonial that is ideally suited for this requirement. To help you out, here is a quick look at how business testimonials can help improve your brand credibility and the 5-step process to writing a good business testimonial.

What is a business testimonial, and why are they effective?

A business testimonial is a word of recommendation or praise from your consumer or client that informs others about the value provided by your product, service, or brand. The testimonial can be in written format, video, or audio. It talks about the product or service, how your customer used it, and its advantage or value in their business (B2B) or personal life (B2C). 

While business testimonials significantly boost the brand or service, customer testimonials also go a long way in convincing potential buyers or target audiences to trust your brand. This is because testimonials from known or reputed sources help your target audience empathize with your brand and know that the value you promise is genuine. In addition, since it comes from an existing happy customer, they are more likely to relate to the testimonial, which helps increase your brand’s trustworthiness. 

As per findings, positive reviews or business testimonials can have a massive impact on your business, as:

  • 97% of consumers search online  for a product or service that they need
  • 93% of these customers refer to online reviews to make their purchase decisions, and 91% of those in the age group of 18-34 years trust testimonials as much as personal recommendations

Thus, showcasing your testimonials or positive reviews on your page, social media, or other channels is crucial to help improve the conversion rate for your marketing activities. These also act as proof of work for potential customers, who are more likely to interact with or choose your brand after reading your reviews or testimonials. 

How to Write a Good Business Testimonial in 5 Steps

Your customers will always have a story to tell about your brand, be it positive or, in certain circumstances, negative. To turn the positive stories into actionable business testimonials, you can work with custom writing or professional writing services to convert the insights into value. However, you can also get this done in-house and speak directly with your customer to get the details that can help create a valuable business testimonial. 

To help you start framing your story and create a testimonial that not just praises your work but also provides insights on what you can deliver, here is a 5 step process that you can follow:

  • Describe your customer's experience from start to the outcome

For a testimonial to have valuable information, it is always good to follow a template. The overall business testimonial template can have a logical flow that helps share the customer journey and capture the details of the situation before your product and service came into the picture and the benefits they obtained with your product or service. The general customer template goes as follows:

  • The customer
  • The situation before your product or service
  • The challenge
  • Your offering (product or service)
  • What was it set to achieve?
  • Outcomes delivered
  • Ask relevant questions

To capture the end-to-end customer journey, you can ask relevant questions when reaching out to your customer for a testimonial. This could include questions like:

  • What was the situation like before? What challenges did they face?
  • Why did they select your offering or brand?
  • How did it create the right business outcome?
  • What does the future look like with your product or service onboard?
  • How would the customer describe your service?

  • Set clear expectations

When you reach out for a testimonial, know that your customer will want to know what you expect and what the result will look like. Try to simplify the process by showcasing already published testimonials, the template they need to fill out, and the relevant questions. Tell them they will be your piece’s hero, and take consent before publishing. 

  • Keep it simple and authentic

As a brand, one is always tempted to amplify the positives and bring out the best of your brand. However, a business testimonial is impactful only if it sounds authentic. If the testimonial seems to be sales-focused, or as if you have put words into the customer's mouth, the impact will be exactly the opposite. So do not try to blow anything out of proportion, and stick to being simple and honest.

  • Highlight results with a proper conclusion

With any business testimonial, your potential customers will also want to know about the benefits derived from your product or services. Make sure this is mentioned with factual information and actionable details. For example, if your product enables cost savings to the consumer, instead of saying ‘Helped customer save cost’, mention specifics and provide granular information like ‘Enabled a large eCommerce business to save costs by 0%’. This helps make the conclusion logical and effectively highlights your brand's value proposition to the potential buyer.

To summarize, a business testimonial is a must-have for your website, social media page, or other content material. Having a customer talk about your brand or share their experience helps you in two ways:

  1. It helps your brand build trust and improves your reputation in the market
  2. It helps create a positive brand image among your target customers and thereby enhances your conversion rate

Getting positive feedback from your customer is all about being a customer-centric brand, but channeling their experiences to help your brand showcase its best to the consumer requires niche marketing. To help you create powerful testimonials from customers' stories, you can work with social media content writing services to help you out. The writing service can take the customer input to create a compelling story that helps you improve your testimonials to capture all the right details while being honest and factual. These testimonials, written and refined by testimonial writers, help your target audience understand the brand with a natural flow of language and ensure your brand's story is showcased to the audience.