Testimonials from satisfied clients can be a powerful marketing tool. An endorsement from a real person can boost the confidence of prospects who might have doubts about choosing you as their advisor. When incorporated into your marketing materials, testimonials demonstrate your value to clients, enhance your credibility and open the door to new business.
“Think of client testimonials from the perspective of addressing the worries of prospective clients,” says Larry Distillio, director of financial advisor business management at Mackenzie Investments in Toronto. “They give you a starting point to creating the right message.”
Ask clients if they would be comfortable recommending you, Distillio says. By soliciting testimonials, your are in effect asking existing clients to influence prospects to work with you. A client who provides you with a testimonial is putting his or her reputation at stake.
These tips will help you get testimonials that work:
> Start with client feedback
Ask your clients for comments on what aspects of your relationship worked; how exactly you have helped them as clients; and what concerns they had initially about working with you. The answers will provide you with relevant “touch points” that can be addressed in a testimonial, says Lou D’Aversa, senior financial consultant at MD Physician Services Inc. in Toronto.
For instance, D’Aversa says, you might ask: “What was the most beneficial service that was provided for you?”; or “Could you tell me of the benefits of our working together?”
> Be specific
“Testimonials should focus on work you’ve done with clients,” D’Aversa says, “such as how you’ve helped them achieve specific objectives. If testimonials simply state that you are a good person to work with, that doesn’t cut it.”
D’Aversa advises getting testimonials from clients whom you’ve helped in different niche areas. He suggests using two or three testimonials, which would allow you to target clients with different needs in areas you wish focus on.
> Make them authentic
“There is a love/hate relationship with testimonials,” says George Hartman, CEO of Market Logics Inc. Toronto. That’s because some people believe they are fabricated.
The best way to ensure testimonials are credible is to use clients’ full names (instead of just their initials) and include pictures. “I always get clients’ signed permission,” D’Aversa says, “and place it in their files.”
Using names and faces not only adds credibility, Hartman says, but it also allows prospects to relate to the experiences of your existing clients.
“It’s human nature to try to put yourself in someone else’s shoes,” D’Aversa says, “or to try to identify with individuals in similar situations.”
> Consider helping clients with testimonials
Some clients might be too busy to write a testimonial. If this is the case, offer to help write it, Distillio suggests.
Or, you could solicit comments over the phone, then write and edit them. Later, read the testimonial back to the client for approval.
Says D’Aversa: “Testimonials express a feeling, an emotional response.”
IE