2 parts to a testimonial

Testimonials are great marketing tools because your prospects are more likely to trust what others say about you than what you say about yourself.

Often, after I do the free consultation with someone who's interested in the Marketing Mentor programs, they'll say, "I think I'll take a look at your testimonials page." So I'm glad I have gathered those comments from happy clients over the years.

One challenge when soliciting testimonials, however, is that some people or companies may not want their name or company name used in your promotional efforts. Sometimes the reasons are legal, sometimes purely personal. No matter.

But don't despair. Just because they don't want their name used doesn't necessarily mean you can't use their comment.

Because testimonials are made up of 2 things: what is said and who says it. Having both is great, especially if the "who" carries weight in the minds of your prospects. But sometimes one without the other is enough. You can use initials to identify or descriptions to clarify.

What do you think? If you were reading testimonials for a service you were considering, how important is the name and company name?

Comments

[Dani Nordin]

I think it adds a certain personal touch when you have the name and company's name - like it was a real person who said this thing. Also, I find that my way of sharing testimonials - including a link to the site that I did for my clients - is a great way of cross-promoting my clients. Two of my clients have actually gotten inquiries about their services because they found their site in my portfolio.

[Barry Hurd]

Testimonials are given by people, statements are given anonymously.

Without a personal name and a way to verify it, the validity and strength goes away. I could write hundreds of awesome fictional testimonials (which many marketing and PR agencies do when it comes to testimonials or quotations without a name)

[David Ross]

I've been reading a lot recently about testimonials, and just about everything says that testimonials with credentials (full name and company) are more likely to elicit a response than one with just initials or no credentials at all.

I sent one of the articles I read (which stated this), to our clients and we encouraged them to provide us with testimonials, and we've had a great response, not only with them providing testimonials (with full credentials) but them asking about adding a page to their site where they can put their own customer's comments.

[Emilie Nottle]

Testimonials with a full name and contact info/url are definitely more believable, and carry more weight.