How to Collect Powerful Testimonials on Autopilot
Marketing your business as a service provider can be super nerve wracking and awkward. You might be thinking, “So I’m just supposed to talk about how good I am all day long and hope people believe me?”
The short answer: not exactly. You don’t always have to be the one doing the talking. There’s one single marketing asset for service-based business that’s the most powerful…
The client testimonial.
If you aren’t asking clients for a testimonial after working with you, you’re really missing out on a crucial piece of marketing for your business. There’s a long list of benefits testimonials have, but a key benefit is that potential clients are more willing to work with someone that has positive words from past clients to back them up.
Our favorite thing to do when we were offering services was automating the testimonial process so we didn’t have to think twice about it. For some, asking someone to write kind words about them can be really anxiety-inducing, so putting this process on autopilot avoids those worrisome feelings from surfacing.
In this blog post, we’ll tell you exactly how to collect powerful testimonials on autopilot, so you can attract new clients like bees to honey!
Accept Reviews Everywhere
If you have a Facebook page, make sure your reviews section is turned on so that clients or customers can easily pop in there and leave a review. Oftentimes, you don’t even have to ask! Do the same for your LinkedIn and Google My Business profiles if you have them. Basically, anywhere that a client can leave a testimonial, be sure they’re able to. You don’t want to miss a great opportunity to get a bangin’ review!
Create a Feedback Form & Give Guidance for Their Words
The feedback form will be a key piece in your automation process to collect testimonials and get feedback on your services. Writing a testimonial can be stressful for some clients, especially if you’ve built a great relationship with them. They’ll want to make sure they’re accurately conveying what it was like to work with you and the amazing experience they had.
To assist them with this, ask specific questions they can answer to get the words you need for your marketing in addition to a long answer question where they can write their testimonial. You really want them to dig deep and uncover how the whole experience really changed their life or business for the better. Some examples include:
What was your life/business like before working with me? (I.e. What problems were you facing?)
What is your life/business like since working with me?
What made [your business name] initially stand out to you?
What made you happiest during your time working with me?
Was there anything that exceeded your expectations?
How would you describe your experience working with me to someone else?
The last question is really important because it switches their mindset from just writing kind words about you to putting them in the shoes of how potential clients would see your business based on their words. Don’t forget to also ask questions that will help you know what you should improve in your business, too.
REQUEST A VIDEO TESTIMONIAL
Written testimonials will do the trick just fine, but if you want to crank it up a notch and add some diversity to your testimonials, ask for a video testimonial instead (or in addition to the written testimonial). You can do this easily by providing a space in your form for them to upload their video. We prefer using Dubsado forms because you’re able to add a block where they can upload files.
You can even offer to feature them on your website! As a matter of fact, we have Client Feedback and Referral Forms in The Creative Shop Co-op as a part of our Ultimate Dubsado Client Experience Bundle. We created one-click add Dubsado forms with fully customizable Canva templates for a Lead Capture Form, Proposal, Onboarding Guide, Client Portal, and more.
Download this template and every other template in The Co-op for only $47 per month when you become a member!
Create a Canned Testimonial Request Email
If you want to avoid having to type out the same words to every client, just create a canned email that you can automate. You can choose to edit the email further for each individual client— which we highly recommend doing— to add personalization and express how much you enjoyed working on the specific project. Here’s an example of how the email template could look:
Hi, Client Name!
I’ve had so much fun getting to know you these past [time that you’ve worked with them] and helping you achieve [results]! So much so, that I’m hoping to attract others just like yourself to come work with [Your Business Name].
I’d beyond appreciate it if you could take the time to leave a testimonial for me that I could then share on my website and social media channels. After all, I would love to brag about how truly amazing it’s been working with you!
You can share your kind words and answer a few questions in this form. Thank you so much for taking a chance on [Your Business Name]. Your feedback means a lot to me!
Let me know if you have any questions on submitting your testimonial.
Thanks,
Your Name
An optional idea here is, you know those questions we recommended that would help the client dig deeper? You could list them in your email instead as guidelines to help them with writer’s block.
Pro tip: By using Dubsado canned emails, you can use smart fields to automatically input information about the client and project. For example, the client’s first name, their business name, your business name, and the link to the form could all be smart fields, so you don’t have to edit that information manually before sending it off.
Add Your Canned Email or Form to a Workflow
With Workflows in Dubsado, you can really take your automation game to the next level. This allows you to completely automate when your email or feedback form sends off. If you want to send them off to your clients at the end of the year, you can make it happen with Workflows. If you want to send it 7 days or even 30 days after your project with them has ended, you can automate that, too!
On the flip side, even if you prefer to go with the moment and decide organically when the best time is to request a testimonial, you can still choose from your canned emails when sending a one-off email instead.
If you’re ready to start automating how you receive testimonials and— double whammy— refine your client experience to ensure the testimonials you receive are truly powerful, try Dubsado for 30% off your first month or year when you upgrade.
Plus grab a membership for The Creative Shop Co-op for only $47/month.
Dubsado gives you the tools you need to make your client processes smooth and streamlined, and The Co-op has all the templates you need to create beautiful, branded, and strategy-first marketing assets. Dive in today, and start collecting testimonials that will do the selling for you!
