Do you routinely ask for feedback from your customers? And do you regularly share it with your audience?
Asking for reviews should be a key part of your business marketing strategy if you want to gain credibility and generate more leads.
Customer feedback offers invaluable insights into what your customer likes (or dislikes) about your products or services and sharing positive reviews builds trust with your audience.
Reviews are also important as they can be turned into testimonials and case studies and shared on your website, social media or in your marketing emails to help convert your audience into paying customers.
The benefits of getting customer feedback
Giving your customers the chance to have their say about their experience of using your product or service not only encourages engagement and helps strengthen relationships, but can influence potential customers in their buying decisions.
According to HubSpot, 88% of consumers trust user reviews as much as personal recommendations. So, it’s clear that hearing about a customer’s experience ‘straight from the horse’s mouth’ is a powerful marketing tool.
Why testimonials and case studies are important
Customers trust other customers over traditional marketing, so positive feedback which is a vote of confidence in the value of your product or service is very influential.
Sharing a five-star Google rating or a glowing Facebook review is great but testimonials and case studies are even better.
Why? Because testimonials and case studies are an in-depth account of your customer’s journey and how your product or service solved their problem. Focused testimonials and evidence-based case studies can be highly effective in marketing your business and generating leads.
The difference between a testimonial and a case study
A testimonial is a statement by a customer who was satisfied with their experience and is giving other potential customers the ‘thumbs-up’. If you receive a detailed testimonial or you feel your customer’s journey is worth exploring in more detail, you can turn it into a case study.
A case study is an in-depth story of how your real-life customer overcame a problem or reached a goal by using your product or service. Case studies create empathy with potential customers by speaking to them on their level. By telling them you understand their problems and pain points they will want to find out more about how you can help them.
How to ask for a testimonial or case study
Don’t wait for praise to fall into your lap. Make a list of customers who you’re happy to approach for feedback about their experience with your business. But don’t dive straight in and ask for a testimonial or case study, you need to do your homework first.
Here's 5 tips for getting customer feedback worth sharing:
Give your customer some pointers. Remember you want to show potential customers that your business has done a good job for people like them and that your products and services are top notch.
Note down some product or service-specific questions to guide them towards writing a testimonial which isn’t just complimentary but is informative, engaging and persuasive too.
Ask them to talk about their problems before using your product or service, the transformation you have achieved, their customer experience and what they would say to another business owner thinking about working with you.
Your questions can be sent in an email, a Word document or added to a survey or questionnaire.
Get into the habit of asking for feedback at the end of every project or after every purchase
How to structure a case study
A well-written case study which shows how your customer overcame a challenge by using your product or service will help your audience relate to them and visualise themselves achieving their goals by working with your business.
By using a satisfied customer’s story as an example of how your business operates, your case study will tell others how good it is and set you apart from the competition.
A case study doesn’t have to focus solely on a customer’s opinion, it can include figures, data and analysis.
Think about:
The challenge
The solution
The process
The transformation
How to share a testimonial or case study
Testimonials and case studies can be shared in a number of ways:
In full or as an extract on your website
As a pull-out quote on your social media
In your emails or newsletter
In your marketing literature
As a video
By approaching a customer for a testimonial or a case study, you also have the opportunity to gain new leads by asking if they know anyone else who might need what you do.
Time to get strategic
Know you know why testimonials and case studies are so important, you can start to build them into your marketing strategy.
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