In this article, let’s go over some of the best ways to gather testimonials for your business- without coming off as pushy or annoying. Everyone can often be held up with their own work, but getting a testimonial can be easier than you think it is. We’ll also be having a look at why you shouldn’t skip this step and how it can affect your business- now let’s get started.

1. Send them a short feedback form

The shortest and best way to get a testimonial without being too intrusive or taking up too much of your customers’ time is by sending them a feedback form that they can quickly fill up whenever they’re free. This can be done via email or text - just make sure you give them a heads up in case they’re prone to overlooking messages.

This way, you won’t have to schedule a separate meeting or interview with them, and they’ll appreciate how considerate you are as well. Just be sure to ask all the right questions in the feedback form which will engage them and make them go the extra mile to talk about what it is that they like about your product or service.

2. Offer incentives or gamify the experience

Very often, customers will not go the extra mile unless there’s some incentive or experience at the end of the task that will motivate them to complete it - and this goes for sharing feedback and testimonials as well.

You can always provide an added incentive such as a discount or a gift for customers who are able to quickly share their testimonials and personal experiences with you, especially long term customers who have been with you for a while. Not only will they appreciate the sentiment behind it but they will also look forward to receiving their free goodies, so it’s a win-win.

3. Make it easier for them

While anyone can write a few good things about their website and put it up there, what really stands out are video testimonials. However, most people avoid this since it may be too much to ask for from customers, but it needn’t be that way if you know how to go about it.

For instance, a proven method to get video testimonials from your customers has been to make it as easy as possible - by giving them a list of easy, straightforward questions that they can answer and also helping them with the video process and editing if they request it. What’s more, this can be combined with brownie points or other such incentives to get more people to participate in it.

However, be sure to not be too forceful in your request, as many people may not be comfortable with the camera and may feel guilty to say no. Instead, send them an email or text first, asking if this is something that they’ll be interested in before going ahead with the process.

Why do you need testimonials?

Now that we’ve seen the “how” of it, let’s take a look at why it’s important to have testimonials for your business:

• It builds credibility, so more people will feel drawn towards your business and will also be easily convinced when they see like-minded people who like the experience.

• It gives your business validation, which is very important in a competitive market.

• It helps with SEO since testimonials can boost your optimization.

• It helps you get feedback to improve your business - always push customers towards being honest in their reviews.