The best marketing tool nobody uses
There are many myths and beliefs about marketing tools. There are those who say advertising is dead, while others have wondered if blogging has been completely replaced by social media. Social media, meanwhile, has turned into an advertising platform, which requires companies to spend money.
The sales phrase “Always be closing” has turned into “always be connecting,” but you still need to keep the objective of making a sale in your mind. Search engine optimization is an incredibly lucrative industry, yet it is a great challenge to be ranked No. 1 for any keyword.
Despite all of these disagreements and challenges, there is one marketing tool that is undoubtedly valuable to every business: word-of-mouth testimonials. No matter the scenario – whether it is face-to-face, social media, email, etc. – word of mouth is one of the most important aspects of your businesses’ marketing strategy.
Michael Porter, famed Harvard professor and best-selling author, defines strategy as, “Performing different activities from rivals’ or performing similar activities in different ways.” It is clear that marketing strategy is supposed to give business a competitive advantage. A testimonial marketing strategy assists in attaining that goal.
While it is considered to be a very good practice to use testimonials to boost marketing efforts, very few businesses use them. Testimonials on websites and other marketing channels are often neglected, are either dull or generic. Testimonial marketing strategy can do so much more.
Many of us realise that testimonials and referrals have the potential to create new opportunities, overcome challenges and close sales. If done with the correct SEO techniques, testimonials can improve search engine results and greatly decrease the amount of negative reviews.
Perhaps the greatest “side-effect” of good testimonial strategy is increased customer loyalty. It is a well-known fact, that keeping your old customers is much cheaper than recruiting new ones. It is natural that we feel good when others like what we enjoy. Showing that your customers are not the only ones who enjoy your service/product, will encourage them to promote the brand to friends and family, providing you with even more clients.
Testimonial marketing is, perhaps, one tool that everyone agrees with. If done right, it works wonders. The issue is that very few businesses get it right, or start neglecting soon after. Don’t be one of them.