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Casual Articles - Using the Power of Client Testimonials to Grow Your Business
What Color is Your Marketing and What is It Saying? special.Do you have any idea what role color plays in your marketing efforts? And if so, do you know what message your marketing efforts are conveying with the colors you use? Let me tell you that the colors you use in your marketing efforts – your brochures, business cards, letterhead, signage, office interiors, and more – play a very important role in motivating people. The colors speak loudly and clearly, so I believe it is in our best interest to learn what the colors convey in our marketing.The importance of color because of its “hidden language” is well known. I witnessed this firsthand several years DO store your client testimonials in a Word document or Excel database so that you can find them easily. You may want to organize them by client name, service or product. The next step is to obtain testimonials from your clients. Here are the basic steps and some questions to get you started. Begin by sending your clients a friendly email stating that you are seeking a testimonial you can use in your marketing. Personalize your communication as much as possible. For example, your letter may begin, “Dear Jim: Last December, you participated in my teleclass, (name of class). I certainly hope you found the class to be helpful. Because I am Do You Have a Disaster/Recovery Plan? Client testimonials are one of the most powerful marketing tools coaches can use. Did you know that they can help you attract new clients, increase customer confidence and generate a positive “buzz” about you and your services? (Actually, those are just a few of their marketing uses.)Do You Have a Disaster/Recovery Plan?With the recent onslaught of ice storms and flooding happening all over the US and Canada, as well as the hurricanes that ripped through Florida and the south earlier this year, many people are finding themselves faced with tremendous losses regarding both their homes and their offices. Most people have some type of homeowner's and business insurance to help rebuild and replace personal and business items, but what about your business records and critical files? If your office was destroyed today, would you be able to continue serving your clients and running your bu Human nature gives testimonials such power because we love discovering what one person thinks of another – even when it’s positive! It’s the same dynamic that makes gossip so hard to resist. As a professional coach, you want the positive “gossip” that testimonials provide because you can use that information to promote yourself, your services and products, to call attention to your strengths and to distinguish yourself from your competitors. Testimonials also are powerful because they are first-person accounts: when a client makes a positive statement about you and backs it up with his or her name and contact information, it enhances your credibility. In addition, written testimonials are fabulously flexible. They can be used powerfully on your website, in printed and electronic promotional materials, following the signature line of your emails and in many other ways and places. Once you have obtained testimonials from your clients, you will think of a hundred ways to use them! Now that we have established the value of client testimonials, here are a few dos and don’ts to guide you as you obtain and use them to grow your business. DO let your clients know the benefits to them of providing testimonials that will be used on your website(s), such as: - increased exposure for their business, thanks to internet serendipity; - increased website traffic and/or business for them, generated by a link from your website to theirs; - enhanced standing among search engines, due to more internet exposure; and - that genuinely warm feeling that comes from helping another “solopreneur”! DO obtain your clients’ permission to use their full name and email address because it will give their testimonials a great deal more credibility. (Let’s assume I have written a glowing testimonial for someone whose services I use. Now compare the impact of these two testimonial signatures: “A.S., Coach” or Alicia Smith, Business Coach and DISC Ninja; Alicia@aliciasmith.com. The second is far more powerful.) DON’T (ever) use fictional testimonials because they can destroy your credibility. DO utilize honest (verbatim) testimonials that speak to what your potential clients will most want to know about you, including (but not limited to!) why you are such a fantastic coach and why you, your services and your products are so special. DO store your client testimonials in a Word document or Excel database so that you can find them easily. You may want to organize them by client name, service or product. The next step is to obtain testimonials from your clients. Here are the basic steps and some questions to get you started. Begin by sending your clients a friendly email stating that you are seeking a testimonial you can use in your marketing. Personalize your communication as much as possible. For example, your letter may begin, “Dear Jim: Last December, you participated in my teleclass, (name of class). I certainly hope you found the class to be helpful. Because I am A Powerful, Profit-Generating Strategy Any Business Can Use our strengths and to distinguish yourself from your competitors.Teleconferences, also known as teleseminars, are fast becoming one of the most valuable strategies you can use to increase your market position, your lead generation list and your profit margins. You can quickly become known as an expert in both your field and market through the power of teleconferences.Why Host A Teleconference? Consultants, coaches, speakers and trainers can literally make tens of thousands - even hundreds of thousands – of high profit margin dollars without ever having to leave home.Vendors can easily educate their client base through the proper use of teleconferences. By doi Testimonials also are powerful because they are first-person accounts: when a client makes a positive statement about you and backs it up with his or her name and contact information, it enhances your credibility. In addition, written testimonials are fabulously flexible. They can be used powerfully on your website, in printed and electronic promotional materials, following the signature line of your emails and in many other ways and places. Once you have obtained testimonials from your clients, you will think of a hundred ways to use them! Now that we have established the value of client testimonials, here are a few dos and don’ts to guide you as you obtain and use them to grow your business. DO let your clients know the benefits to them of providing testimonials that will be used on your website(s), such as: - increased exposure for their business, thanks to internet serendipity; - increased website traffic and/or business for them, generated by a link from your website to theirs; - enhanced standing among search engines, due to more internet exposure; and - that genuinely warm feeling that comes from helping another “solopreneur”! DO obtain your clients’ permission to use their full name and email address because it will give their testimonials a great deal more credibility. (Let’s assume I have written a glowing testimonial for someone whose services I use. Now compare the impact of these two testimonial signatures: “A.S., Coach” or Alicia Smith, Business Coach and DISC Ninja; Alicia@aliciasmith.com. The second is far more powerful.) DON’T (ever) use fictional testimonials because they can destroy your credibility. DO utilize honest (verbatim) testimonials that speak to what your potential clients will most want to know about you, including (but not limited to!) why you are such a fantastic coach and why you, your services and your products are so special. DO store your client testimonials in a Word document or Excel database so that you can find them easily. You may want to organize them by client name, service or product. The next step is to obtain testimonials from your clients. Here are the basic steps and some questions to get you started. Begin by sending your clients a friendly email stating that you are seeking a testimonial you can use in your marketing. Personalize your communication as much as possible. For example, your letter may begin, “Dear Jim: Last December, you participated in my teleclass, (name of class). I certainly hope you found the class to be helpful. Because I am Moving Boxes and Supplies Across New York ient testimonials, here are a few dos and don’ts to guide you as you obtain and use them to grow your business.Whether you are moving to New York or within New York moving isn’t an easy task. Moving means careful packing of all the items and furniture so that they aren’t damaged while moving. This is when moving boxes and supplies play a vital role. In fact moving boxes and supplies actually kick start your moving procedure and planning.It has been seen that many professional moving companies tend to emphasize more on moving boxes and supplies. Before packing your items make sure your moving boxes and supplies are big and sturdy enough to accommodate all your belongings. Many New York moving companies, nowadays, DO let your clients know the benefits to them of providing testimonials that will be used on your website(s), such as: - increased exposure for their business, thanks to internet serendipity; - increased website traffic and/or business for them, generated by a link from your website to theirs; - enhanced standing among search engines, due to more internet exposure; and - that genuinely warm feeling that comes from helping another “solopreneur”! DO obtain your clients’ permission to use their full name and email address because it will give their testimonials a great deal more credibility. (Let’s assume I have written a glowing testimonial for someone whose services I use. Now compare the impact of these two testimonial signatures: “A.S., Coach” or Alicia Smith, Business Coach and DISC Ninja; Alicia@aliciasmith.com. The second is far more powerful.) DON’T (ever) use fictional testimonials because they can destroy your credibility. DO utilize honest (verbatim) testimonials that speak to what your potential clients will most want to know about you, including (but not limited to!) why you are such a fantastic coach and why you, your services and your products are so special. DO store your client testimonials in a Word document or Excel database so that you can find them easily. You may want to organize them by client name, service or product. The next step is to obtain testimonials from your clients. Here are the basic steps and some questions to get you started. Begin by sending your clients a friendly email stating that you are seeking a testimonial you can use in your marketing. Personalize your communication as much as possible. For example, your letter may begin, “Dear Jim: Last December, you participated in my teleclass, (name of class). I certainly hope you found the class to be helpful. Because I am The Unseen Benefits of Going Public cause it will give
their testimonials a great deal more credibility. (Let’s assume I have written a glowing
testimonial for someone whose services I use. Now compare the impact of these two testimonial
signatures: “A.S., Coach” or Alicia Smith, Business Coach and DISC Ninja;
Alicia@aliciasmith.com. The second is far more powerful.)Capital Access: * If a company needs to raise capital, it can sell stock(equity). These funds may be used for a variety of purposes including; growth and expansion, retiring existing debt, corporate marketing and development, acquisition capital and corporate diversity. Unlike an IPO you suffer less dilution. Once public, a company's financing alternatives are increased. A public status can also provide favorable terms for alternative financing. In general, public companies have a higher valuation than private enterprises. Liquidity for Shareholders: * By going p DON’T (ever) use fictional testimonials because they can destroy your credibility. DO utilize honest (verbatim) testimonials that speak to what your potential clients will most want to know about you, including (but not limited to!) why you are such a fantastic coach and why you, your services and your products are so special. DO store your client testimonials in a Word document or Excel database so that you can find them easily. You may want to organize them by client name, service or product. The next step is to obtain testimonials from your clients. Here are the basic steps and some questions to get you started. Begin by sending your clients a friendly email stating that you are seeking a testimonial you can use in your marketing. Personalize your communication as much as possible. For example, your letter may begin, “Dear Jim: Last December, you participated in my teleclass, (name of class). I certainly hope you found the class to be helpful. Because I am Pressure Washing Business: Fixing Heat Issues and Coil Removal special.In the pressure washing business it is very important to know how to repair equipment and to try to do as much of it yourself as possible. Let’s face it the most powerful forces of nature are the erosion of water, heat and pressure. Well that is exactly what goes through your equipment every time you turn it on. It may be necessary to remove he coil because of freeze breakage or to clean soot from it. This can be done easily, however, it can be a very messy job. Follow these steps:You must disconnect the hose from the pump that leads to the inlet of the coil at the inlet side of the pumpThen dis DO store your client testimonials in a Word document or Excel database so that you can find them easily. You may want to organize them by client name, service or product. The next step is to obtain testimonials from your clients. Here are the basic steps and some questions to get you started. Begin by sending your clients a friendly email stating that you are seeking a testimonial you can use in your marketing. Personalize your communication as much as possible. For example, your letter may begin, “Dear Jim: Last December, you participated in my teleclass, (name of class). I certainly hope you found the class to be helpful. Because I am revamping my marketing materials, I am writing to ask you a favor: I would deeply appreciate it if you would take a few minutes to answer the questions below.” (Be sure to work into your letter the benefits to these clients of providing testimonials that will be used on your website.) You may want to ask your clients some or all of the following questions and to customize each email with the name of the product or service the client purchased. When a client has purchased more than one product or service, send a separate email request for each. - What first attracted you to (name the teleclass, internet course, product or service the client purchased) and why did you decide to purchase it? - What was the most beneficial tool, concept or idea that you gained from (the product or service)? - How are you currently utilizing (the product or service in your business and/or life)? - Has it saved you and your business time, money or energy? If so, in what way(s)? - Why would you recommend (the product or service) to your associates, colleagues or clients? - What would you like to say to someone who is considering purchasing (the product or service)? You now have the basic information you need to obtain client testimonials that you can use to power up your business and Make Money Now! Here’s a very important final tip: once you begin to receive testimonials from your clients, be absolutely sure to enjoy the wonderful things they say about you! © Copyright 2004, Alicia Smith. All rights reserved.
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