Anyone working in business or as a freelancer, no matter the industry, uses customer testimonials as a marketing tool to promote the trust and credibility of their brand. The same is true for freelance businesses that rely on testimonials to improve their work and reach new customers. A testimonial consists of feedback and quotes from a previously satisfied customer.
With permission, they can be used to endorse individuals and businesses to make them stand out against competitors. The importance of testimonials is paramount to the success of a business and the more positive testimonials a freelancer can provide, the more likely they are to increase their customer base and gain a strong and reliable reputation.
Here are 5 ways you can use testimonials from your customers to boost your freelance business with additional tips on how to get those customers’ testimonials.
1. Increased Trust
Online reviews are more powerful than people first think. Studies have shown that an online review can have as much effect on a person’s opinion on a product or service as a personal recommendation. Everyone expects a business to promote themselves and consumers may be suspicious about their claims. A reinforcing testimonial provided by a real person that the consumer can relate to provides social proof and is perceived as much more genuine, leading consumers to have increased trust in your freelancing business.
Also Read: Freelancing Tips: Clients Interaction Fundamentlas.
2. Affordable Marketing
Testimonials are a tried and tested form of marketing that has as big of a success rate as word-of-mouth recommendations. Almost every company includes testimonials as part of their advertising campaign whether that’s in the form of single customer reviews or stats from survey forms. The ultimate aim of marketing and advertising strategies is to make a specific business or service stand out. A freelance business with a multitude of testimonials to their name will make them distinct in the crowds of freelance competition.
3. Proof of Expertise
The more testimonials a business has, the more credible and trustworthy their work seems. Freelancers should make an effort to collect as many testimonials as they can throughout their work as the more current a testimonial is, the more relevant it seems to readers. Having larger numbers of positive testimonials proves to potential customers the credibility and expertise of freelancers and lets them know that they can be trusted. “As business and individuals increase their numbers of testimonials, their ratings, reputation, and trustworthiness are also reported to increase,” says Nidal Sherahat, a business writer at Australia2write and Nextcoursework.
4. Story-Telling
Telling stories is an age-old essential aspect of human communication and is how we share and learn information. Testimonials act as a story told by previous customers that share information and experiences with potential new customers with the freelancer as the main character. Humans rely heavily on emotion when making a decision which is why a descriptive testimonial that outlines their experience working with a freelancing business can capture the attention of a potential new customer and heavily influence their opinion on the brand.
5. Increase Conversion Rate
Many visitors to a website are still deciding on the right product for them. Freelance businesses can persuade browsing customers that their service is the correct choice with the availability of testimonials. “Making testimonials a key feature of landing pages leads to an increase in the number of visitors to a website that becomes customers”, says Melissa Fischer, project manager at Britstudent and Write My X.
Also Read: Freelancing Tips: How to differentiate yourself as a freelancer.
How To Get Testimonials
Any testimonials that are used to promote your freelancing skills must be legitimate. The customers that write the testimonials must provide the review in written form and freelancers must obtain permission to use it. There are many sources and methods for getting good testimonials, all of which require communication and collaboration with customers. The process should be made convenient for the customer so that they are more likely to provide reviews.
Freelancers can ask for testimonials via email, post or online on forums or social media. It’s useful to provide a testimonial sample so that customers understand how to write amazing testimonials. An alternative way to gain feedback is to provide a feedback form that prompts customers to provide more relevant information. Once obtained, testimonials can be used for work proposals, on websites, in emails, and on social media to show off your past success to future clients.
Conclusion
Freelance businesses have everything to gain from including positive and well-written customer testimonials in their marketing materials. Standing out in the crowd has never been so simple as freelancers can rely on their good work and customer relationships to do the talking for them.
Author Bio:
Michael Dehoyos is a marketing expert who imparts his expertise as a content marketer and editor at PhD Kingdom and Academicbrits while contributing writing to numerous sites and publications including Research Paper Help. Additionally, he offers marketing consultancy to companies in need of strategy.