"Words, words, words": as Hamlet knew, they're not all alike.
March 03, 2021
By Rachel Smith
Maestro’s 2021 blogs have been focused on DRIVE, our proprietary information-gathering framework. Now that it’s March, we’ll be writing about the “I” in DRIVE—Impact! “I” is both literally and figuratively at the core of DRIVE. It’s the question of “why?” Why do you need our product or service? Why are you doing this? Why is our product important for your organization?
Digging into this will help you understand what your prospect’s pain points are and how you can help them. There’s an important secondary question to ask beyond “Why are you doing this?” That is, “What if you don’t do this?” Asking this question takes a better pulse of where your prospect is in the buying process.
It’s great to hear about why your prospect needs you, but by asking this follow-up question, you can mitigate the risk of not understanding where they are. They have a need, but if they have not yet truly considered the pain of not addressing that need, that’s something you’ll need to facilitate in order to move the sale along.
Once you fully understand the problems your potential client is facing and that they are ready to solve them, you will know whether your products/services can deliver the impact they need. You know this based on your existing customer relationships. But the prospect may not understand it yet.
Your successful customer relationships thrive based on how impactful your products/services are to the client’s function, success, and bottom line. Having a positive impact on your client’s achievements is wonderful for both of you—they have extinguished a pain point, and you have gained a loyal customer.
The story of that positive impact can help you to acquire new clients, solving more pain points and gaining more loyal customers. What is the best way to share that success story? Client testimonials.
We’ve heard a lot about the power of customer testimonials. Here are a few of the more impressive statistics revealed by research:
So, testimonials clearly have a large impact on how customers feel toward a brand and on how much they spend with that brand. But what about B2B sales? That’s a completely different beast than the B2C market.
As it turns out, testimonials may matter in B2B relationships even more than in B2C. 97% of B2B customers cited testimonials and peer recommendations as the most reliable type of content. Also, we know that it’s rarely just one person making a purchasing decision in B2B sales, which is why 92% of B2B buyers who use reviews share them with at least one other person.
Testimonials are so compelling because they don’t come from the vendor. Only 36% of B2B buyers consider vendors to be forthcoming about product limitations, and when asked about which resources are trustworthy in their buying decision, vendor-produced resources are at the bottom of the list. Every company says they have the best products and services, making the claim meaningless. Prospects want to hear directly from real customers.
Online reviews give a customer’s perspective…probably. Unfortunately, customer reviews are fairly easy to fake. Bob from Tulsa might give Company X five stars, but Bob from Tulsa might also be the owner’s brother, or completely fictitious. There’s no way to be sure. Testimonials, when they include someone’s name, position, and company (which they should), are harder to fake. (For an extra level of authenticity, consider providing video testimonials!) Bottom line: testimonials beat online reviews.
Meanwhile, case studies are useful in telling a story about a customer that others can relate to, but they are still vendor-created content. They can be a powerful tool, if the company has first established some level of trust with their prospect. For this, testimonials are great.
A client testimonial with a name and a company is more difficult to fake than a review. Plus, depending on the vendor’s niche, it’s likely that client names will be recognized by prospects. Finally, testimonials are a lot easier and faster to get than case studies.
So now that you’re convinced that testimonials are marketing gold, it’s time to get some. Some people are reluctant to ask, even though their most loyal, enthusiastic customers are eager to give testimonials. Here are some tips that will help you make the ask and get testimonials that deliver impact.
Get Specific
Testimonials are gold, but only if they’re the right kind of testimonial. “Company X is great to work with!” is not gold. It’s not even silver or bronze. If it could have been written about anybody or by anybody, it’s not worth using.
When you ask for a testimonial, let people know that you are interested in their story. It shouldn’t be about you; it should be about them. Remember our blog about how powerful storytelling can be? Think of testimonials as extremely abridged stories. You want prospects to be able to read them and see themselves in your customer.
Ask your customer for specific details. What problems were they facing in their day-to-day business? What were the results that they achieved? How did working with you change how they were able to accomplish their goals? An honest story with details about what your customer experienced is what will prove valuable.
Taking Names
When you include a testimonial on your website or in a presentation, it has to include the name of the individual and the company for which they work. If not, it loses much of its value. “Frank S., Senior Manager at a very large bank” can’t help you very much, but “Frank Sinclair, Engineering Senior Manager at Wells Fargo” can.
Using names and companies is what gives the testimonial credibility. It’s what allows you to establish trust between your company and a new prospect. It’s up to you what you post. You might have a great testimonial from someone who doesn’t want their last name used. Just remember, any detail that is removed from a name, title, or company reduces the impact of that testimonial.
Ask at the Right Time(s)
Be sure you’re asking for testimonials from clients at the right time, and the right time is immediately after something good happens for your customer. Did your client just have their best year in donations because they used your platform? Congratulate them and ask them for a testimonial.
Did they have an issue with your platform and get it fixed right away with fabulous customer service? Ask them about their customer service experience and whether they need help with anything else, and then ask if they would be willing to answer a few questions about their experience. This might seem counterintuitive since it admits fault on your part, but that’s part of what makes it so powerful—it’s honest. Would you rather work with a company that doesn’t admit mistakes, or one that responds to them well?
Not Just for Sales and Marketing
Asking for testimonials should not only be the job of your sales and marketing employees. It should ideally be part of everyone’s job. In the customer service example above, whomever helped solve the problem should ask for the testimonial. Requests can be made by anyone, from a customer service representative to a programmer.
Ideally, asking for testimonials should become part of your process. It’s easy for it to not be on your radar until you’re redesigning your website or creating a new presentation, but the more it can be a regular part of your client interactions, the more you’ll have to work with.
Illustrate What Makes You Different
A truly impactful testimonial not only needs to show that you’re great at what you do, it also has to show that you’re different and better than your competitors. If a prospect is serious about purchasing a product or service that you provide, chances are they have done their homework and are considering several vendors. What makes you special?
To get testimonials with this kind of information, ask your clients questions like, “What were you using before you hired us?”, “What other providers were you considering?” or “What made our product a good fit for you?” Anybody can say they are better than their competitors, but if a customer says you’re better than your competitors, that has impact.
You’ve put in the hard work to make an impact for your customers. Invite them to help you demonstrate that impact for new prospects. It costs you very little in the way of time and resources, and most of your clients will be happy to share their experiences. Social proof is critical to any company, whether B2C or B2B. An honest, detailed testimonial that shows what makes your company stand out is priceless.
If you’re interested in what the rest of the letters in DRIVE stand for and how to use the framework, subscribe to this blog or contact Mastery@maestrogroup.co to arrange a training for your team!
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