Hi there,

Yesterday we were talking about the need to include powerful testimonials in your sales letter now let’s have a look at some ways you can get them.

In the ideal world your satisfied customers will simply write to you with a tetimonial and thank you for the solution you have provided them for their problems.

Whilst this does happen quite frequently it often takes a while for such testimonials to filter through and you need them now especially if you have a new product that hasn’t made any sales yet.

In fact this is a common dilemma for many an Internet Marketer:

So how do you get testimonials for a new product you haven’t offered it for sale yet – without faking them?

It really is quite simple – you ask people for them!

Who was it who said “ask and you shall receive?” that’s all you have to do, but you may also have to offer a little bribe in the way of a complimentary product to make someone take the time to give you a testimonial.

The first people to ask are your customers – give them a week to use your product then drop them a short note asking if they like your product and also whether they’d be prepared to send you a testimonial stating how your product has helped them solve their problem.

When you ask for a testimonial don’t forget to ask the giver for a copy of his photo.

Here are some other ways to create powerful testimonials:

1. Hold contests for the best-written testimonials. Give the writers a reward, gift or some publicity in exchange for their testimonials.
2. Ask your customers, vendors, suppliers, and any associates you have. Use them to promote your products and services. When you use testimonials to add credibility to what you do, you are letting your customers do some of the marketing for your business.
3. If you are just starting out or have a new product, give a sample version of your product or trial service to those whom you know. They can be your business associates, friends, or people whom you know need your solution. This is the fastest way you can get testimonials – it’s the old saying, “give to prove your worth.”
4. Get top names, influential people and experts to endorse your product. Look for their e-mail addresses, E-mail them and politely ask for their endorsement. All they can do is say no, but if they say yes, then what a powerful endorsement.
5. You can participate in active forums and newsgroups where people of similar interest and mindset gather around and discuss the same topic. This is a good place to meet people and get their testimonials. You simply give them a sample of your product, ask for their testimonial and get their permission to publish it. If your product is of genuine quality, you can count on them to send their honest opinion in and spread the word for you.

After reading the above you will see that you have to give copies of your product away to gain testimonials and you may be thinking “but I’ll be losing money like this!”

Look at it in a different way…

A few testimonials will dramatically increase your sales, so the money you ‘lose’ by giving a few copies of your product away to collect some powerful testimonials is actually an investment in your riches. You’re not going to be giving away millions of copies of your product just to collect a dozen or so testimonials are you now?

What’s more you can use this process to test the accessibility of your download page links to make sure that people from different regions can access your website – You score both ways!

Using Testimonials

Okay, so you’ve collected a whole sheaf of testimonials for your product, now you need to use them in the most effective way. But before you go plastering them ‘willy-nilly’ all over your web page let’s just recap why you need them.

They are a psychological trigger to your prospect that tell him your product is good, they remove the barrier of being a pioneer. They make him think “…if these people have bought this product then it must be good and can really help me with my problem”

So with that statement in mind have a think about where you should put them in your sales letter and I’ll be back tomorrow with another update so that we can compare notes.

By the way if you want to share some other ways that you’ve collected poweful testimonials leave a comment for our other readers to look at – after all we’re all one big family right.

Speak to you tomorrow,

Stuart.