An Automated Method For Motivating FTC-Compliant Testimonials

Hi All.

I've seen a few posts lately about getting testimonials. How do you motivate people to give you testimonials? Should you incentivize them? Etc.

If you're just looking for general "satisfaction" testimonials (to avoid any performance claims), here's what I do.

Once a customer is on my customer list, I set up an auto-responder message for about a week in. This message offers a free report in exchange for filling out a customer feedback survey.

You ask a couple questions, such as "How has your experience with our blue widget been so far?" [excellent][so-so][terrible]

What product would you like us to produce next? [blue widget/red widget/white widget]

Then, before delivering the free report, you say, "Hey, I'd really appreciate it if you'd leave me a testimonial. It's optional, but it would be great if you'd leave one. Here's a sample of what you could write: [sample].

Then have a text area where they could leave their testimonial and their name and city (or whatever).

Then, when they submit, you thank them and deliver their free report.

If you have branching in your quiz software, you can just ask for the testimonial from those who have already indicated that they've had an excellent or good experience.

This regularly gets me bunches and bunches of customer satisfaction testimonials, and I don't have to personally ask any of them for anything. I don't even have to remember to bug people for testimonials either.

I use it with leads, too. I often teach leads techniques, and then get them to give testimonials about those techniques.

This works really well with niche products.

NOTE: you must make the testimonial optional. You are not incentivizing the testimonial. You are only incentivizing the customer satisfaction survey responses.

NOTE 2: You do have to create an attractive bonus for this, much the same as you would for an opt-in bonus.

NOTE 3: You do have to use some sort of quiz software, unless you know how to do web programming.

Jim