You can motivate prospective clients by sprinkling testimonials throughout your website that attest to your clients’ satisfaction with your work. If you don’t use this tactic, you really are missing out on one of the most important things your website can do for you.
Regardless of your customer base—corporate or individual—showcasing positive reviews reinforces that your firm is a solid performer and that you and your staff hold clients as the Number One priority. As CrazyEgg notes, someone is making the decision about who to hire (essentially, buy) legal or accounting services—and buying is an emotional decision.
I know I don’t need to remind my legal clients that they absolutely must get clients’ written permission to use their words, images, and names (even if it’s only initials) before they can post testimonials. It certainly is worth reminding other clients of this as well.
How To Get Client Testimonials
Not everyone is comfortable asking for a favor, particularly from clients. But have they reached out to you to let you know how much they value your work? Do you receive thank-you notes or emails from satisfied clients? What about Christmas or other holiday cards? Tell these clients you appreciate the acknowledgement and ask if they would be open to providing a testimonial about their experience with your firm.
Do this in a personal email, or if you actually have a lot of clients who have expressed gratitude, write a highly personal note with your request. Be sure your list is blind carbon copied (bcc) so that clients do not see one another’s email or other personal identifying information. Or, better yet, use a tool like Constant Contact to really personalize your mass email.
If your website gets a lot of client traffic, there are WordPress testimonial plugins you can feature on the site to gather them passively. However, my experience has been that a more direct, proactive approach is much better.
Derek Halpern, the founder of Social Triggers, strongly suggests interviewing clients to get their own words, which provides the backbone for a great testimonial. If this sounds a bit intimidating, consider that your best clients—those who come back to you over and over again for services—are very likely to be happy to help you out, as marketing consultant Allison Shields points out. Just make sure the testimonials you get aren’t bad ones in the sense that they don’t provide enough detail about why your service is so good.
Useful Details Make for Great Testimonials
Halpern and Shields both point to getting details that explain why your firm is the one a prospect should go with. This is directly related to relevancy, which incidentally is what Google is all about. Don’t sweat about whether a testimonial has the right keywords or try to place these words in the clients’ description. Their honest words are what can help you boost your reputation and get the point across that you can be trusted to provide reliable services with proven results.
You can, of course, provide a few prompts:
- Were they comfortable interacting with you and your staff?
- they always treated politely and respectfully?
- Were questions and phone calls promptly answered?
- Ask for examples of what brought the most satisfaction. Don’t just rely on “we won the case” or “my tax problems went away.”
- Ask if you and your staff relieved them of burdens like dealing with creditors, insurance companies, the IRS.
- Did the outcome let them get on with their lives, better care for a family member injured by an accident or negligence, save their business from bankruptcy, remain in their home, etc.?
Put Testimonials All Over the Website
Don’t rely only on a testimonial page. Sprinkle testimonials throughout the website. Studies show that placing testimonials near calls to action (such as the “Contact Us” form) can boost conversions from site visitors.
Be sure your site shows icons that indicate your firm’s professional reputation, such as industry honors and recognition, special certifications, and professional memberships. Link to news stories or features in professional journals that highlight successful outcomes. These add to the message that your firm is trustworthy, responsible, and go above and beyond professional expectations.
Most of all, remember today’s consumer is very likely to rely on the words of a peer when making a decision about whether to hire you.
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