When it comes to testimonials, you don’t want anything that seems scripted. The more natural the flow (think conversational) the more authentic it will come off to your audience. Since Facebook videos are currently getting the most engagement out of available content options, we recommend designing your Testimonials for this platform.  Engaging with customers is vital in the fast-paced digital world that we are living in today!

Testimonial Strategy

The point of testimonials is to be able to share the experiences of your previous clients in order to build trust with potential clients. Word-of-mouth marketing and recommendations are some of the strongest forms of marketing, as they are often given the same credit as a suggestion made by a close friend. Here is a simple step-by-step to getting the best testimonials possible from real customers. 

You Want Customers To Relive The Moment

So the key is to find a way to get them back into the moment of “sale” or the experience itself. This is the easiest way to get them visually interactive when it comes emotions and expressions. The closer you can get them (mentally) to being back at the event, the better the testimonial will be. Any easy way to achieve this is by asking them questions and getting them to think back and relive the experience. Capturing this on camera is important! You’re selling a memory, so showing how fond and vivid those memories can be through visual storytelling is huge! Potential clients want to know they are buying memories for a lifetime.

When To Get The Testimonial

With a non-wedding event, it is probably better to get them in within the first month or two. That way it’s still a fresh memory and experience with visual excitement. Since these aren’t once (maybe twice) in a lifetime events, their window of opportunity is a little shorter to convey the excitement of the clientele. However, when it comes to weddings, in a way… a testimonial 6 months to a year after is just as powerful, if not more. The reason is that you are selling a memory and proving how vivid and lasting that memory is a) is tricky to do and b) extremely powerful. Which is why it may even be better to schedule it months past the event, if not a whole year.

What You Want Them To Say

Anything their heart desires! My rule of thumb is to let them talk for however long they want! Of course, you’re going to want at least a few minutes of content to chop down from. So if they don’t give you enough you can use leading questions to provoke more. The key is that you don’t want it to be scripted… at all. The more genuine and free dialog it is, the more powerful it will be when it comes to customer persuasion. Also, with different kinds of events you want to see if you can get them to highlight the differences (on their own, without it seeming scripted). This should also be done with any customized parts of their event as well. Over time, your testimonials will start to paint a picture of the vast creativity you are capable of supplying your clients.

Get Them Excited About Saying It

One of the best parts of testimonials is that if they are done well and the client is proud of themselves on video, they will share it on social media and with their friends. This is what we want! This is relatively free marketing, just more powerful since it is a first-hand reference. The more excited you can get the client about the testimonial the more likely they are to show as many people as they can. This is one of the main goals of these videos. Also, we can get you on camera saying whatever you want about your company, but potential customers will always put more hope in actual testimonials. So it’s important to have testimonials that back up what you say in your videos too!

Testimonials are an incredible tool for companies when done correctly. The key is to tell a story that your audience can relate to. This means real people, real conversation, and real stories! Some business owners and customers feel they aren’t “good in front of the camera.” The truth is, it doesn’t matter. Not being a perfect actor/actress will actually benefit your video engagement. The more human and relatable the business owner seems the more moving and powerful the video will be. The ultimate goal is to start strengthening the bond you have with your audience. This bond will be the basis of their trust in your brand, so when they need what you provide… they will think of your company first. For more information about creating relatable testimonial content, please feel free to contact us today.