Testomonials

Boogga

Sometimes I have trouble in recieving a simple testomonial from a client. Even if a client is supper happy with ourwork etc, sometimes they just seem lazyin supplying one to us.

So how do you guys recieve a testomonial easily from happy and satisfied clients. What strategies do you use? I'd be happy and interested to find out please.

Cheers! Happy ANZAC day.

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Mr. Mike

Boogga,

I have the nutts strategy for this.

While on this estimate I show the prospects a book of testimonials about 2 inches thick. When I go over the price I tell them that we have discounts that they could get. One of the discounts worth 5% off the total price is for them to agree on giving us a written testimonial when we are finished.

My testimonials got 10 times as good when I started buying them like this and also everyone gives me one now.

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mikec

I don't have an answer for the op, in fact I have the same problem.
But if someone came to me, and told me I would get money for my testimony, in my mind the 2 inch thick book would lose some credibility. 5% of a 10k job= $500. Most HO's will write whatever you want for $500.

RidgeWalker

LOL! But if I were your home owner and you told me that I'd be like. Hmm all those home owner have been remunerated for their endorsement. To me that would give them much less credibility and I would be less likely to consider doing business with you.

I use a customer satisfaction survery that has a few questions in different catagories. It askes them to rate my company from 1 to 5 and leaves and has a place for comments.

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Boogga

I seem to agree, it's like... you can't buy love.

I think the customer survey is the way to go, maybe another way of getting a testomonial without actually asking for one and hoping you recieve one from them.

Does anyone have an example of a survey which some sought of testomonial can be retrieved?

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George Z

Our completion forms have space for comments,
our job manager must solicit a comment.
The completion form must be filled to validate the warranty,
so it all fits nicely together.

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480sparky

Sounds like many of you must pay a bribe in order to get someone to say something nice about you.

Kinda like your parents tying a steak to your shirt to get the dog to play with you.

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strathd

Two inches thick !!! How many do you need ?

marc

IMO...........You can never have enough.
I do agree that I wouldn't be telling people that you pay for testimonial letters.

That being said, a few years ago I did send out 35 letters to past clients offering them a $35.00 gift certificate to a local Restaurant for a letter of their honest opinion.
I recieve 27 letters.
I think I would have recieved the same with a $5.00 gift card to Dunken Donuts.

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Marc

RCPainting

I put a customer survey form and a stamped, self addressed envelope in with a folder I present in every bid. I think having the stamp on it helps, ho does not want to "waste" it. I get most back.

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Handymanservice

Everyone posts testimonials on their site, how much validity do they have?
I just don't feel that a "posted" testimonial is real believeable. If there was a way of getting the video, that may hold more water, I know it is becoming the new in thing.
I could write a testimonial and post it on My site, add a name to it, and bam, instant testimonial.
That is the one section I pay Zero attention to on any site. I would like to change my opinion, but Mike just reassured me that a testimonial is not as credible as they once were.

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Mr. Mike

Wrong they love it, I promise they are the very best now, and every customer agrees to what a great Idea that is...

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Mr. Mike

People like the truth, and when I tell them that we offer a discount for a testimonial and then say to them "Can you see yourself writing a testimonial for us when we are done painting your house?" And they always say yes this is action wording folks and now they see me completing the job and they visualize themselves writing a testimonial for me when I am done.

Your not crazy but wrong if you think customers think these testimonials are fakes, they all have the names and numbers of the customer on them and they are signed, my contract the other night called a few of them while I was there before signing up on the one call close.

I'm telling you the discount for a testimonial is the nutt's.

DO it like I do it and I'll see you at the top!

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Chris G

Write them yourself. Give them a few options to put their name to.

During the course of the job, they must have said something positive. Even if it was "It's looks amazing, thank you so much", write that down. Or say. "Can I quote you on that?" or "Can I use that as a testimonial."

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Mr. Mike

If I was not 4.3 feet tall I would not have to work so hard, I used all types of strategies in over 10,000 in home estimates and also have used tons of strategies on over 3000 painting projects.

The best one by far that ever was used here at Mr. Mike's was to offer a 5% discount for a written testimonial. I used the customer survey sheets, asked for testimonials nicely but now I just give a discount for them. I also try and insure the prospect that this is the best insurance that I the contractor can pay for to make sure you are completely satisfied because lets face it a bad testimonial would not be valuable to us at Mr. Mike's Painting.
I use this below short and sweet, every truck has them in them and I make sure about the day of or day before to have my leaders give them to the customer and let them know when we will be done and ready for the check and that testimonial form.

Modify and use at will:
revised Customer Testimony.doc

Attached Files

revised Customer Testimony.doc (27.5 KB, 54 views)

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Mike Finley

I don't know how much volume you do but personally I think it's crazy to give away 5% of gross sales which equals at least 8-15% of gross profit, simply for a testimonial.

It's way too easy to get testimonials for free without giving away $10,000, $50,000 or $200,000 (you pick the number) of profits per year. That's free money you are throwing away.

Beside after you have so many, let's say for instance 10 or 20 or 50? what difference does another 10 make?

For the money you are throwing away on discounting your work for a testimonial you could hire a full time person who's only job was to stop by the job after it's done and get a written testimonial right there and then. That same person would still have 30 hours a week of free time you'd have paid for by the amount of money you are tossing out the window.

Doesn't make any sense to me.

Mr. Mike

Mike,
I understand where you are coming from and here is what I have came up with to reason with that.

1st the customers want to see value, my price is marked up to make this 5% up however if they do not want to participate in giving me a testimonial then chances are they will not mind paying an extra 5%. Like we all know I practice the one call closing techniques and these discount's I pack on to a bid are worth there weight in gold to swing a decision today rather than tomorrow.

The testimonial that I am buying from the customer is not worth the money shown for just a testimonial it is however worth the money it may seem to cost me to show the customer that we don't only want their business but we want to pay you for working for us. I am sure there are better words to use to show how I feel about this, I just have a hard time to type them. Trust me on this when a customer questions me on this buying the testimonial thing I have no problem making them like it.

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Mr. Mike

It could be on the line of shady practices to offer a discount on a marked up product, but I look at it as I have a full retail price for the to busy to participate prospects and a discounted price for the participating prospects. My discounted price is above what I need to have to make my profit and the non discounted price is where I hit a home run.

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Wolfgang

The "Discount King" is at it again. I have to agree with Mike Finley. I have binders full of before and after pictures of jobs. I always ask the HO for their permission to use these pictures. Most say yes, and there are some who want privacy and I can respect that.

If I come up on a job bid that is similar to one I've done in the past, I will call that HO and ask if I may use them for a reference; it is their decision and I respect that also.

With all this talk of discounting, pretty soon you'll all be offering rebates just like the car companies. Look where that got them; when rebate offers were low or nil, their sales suffered. If you have to offer a discount to close a sale or buy a testimonial, then I feel you didnt sell them on the quality of your company and your workmanship...you sold them on price.

One of my favorite quotes, attributed to John Ruskin:

There is hardly anything in the world that some man cannot make a little worse and sell a little cheaper....and the people who consider price only are that man's lawful prey.

Mike Finley

Sorry, I just don't see it.

If you are fully capable of closing the sale at the 5% higher fee I don't see any point of giving up 5% of gross yearly sales (which like I said, depending on your volume and profit margin could easily be translated into 8-15% of profits).

Why give up 8-15% of your yearly profits for getting testimonials when you can get them for free.

And again, after you have 10, 20, 30, 40... (you name the number) what difference does 10 more make anyways? It's not like they go stale.

It just seems weird to me to give up tens of thousands of free dollars in your pocket every year for testimonials when you don't have to.

You could go about this differently and have basically $5000, $25,000, $75,000 in free money in your pocket that you don't have now because you are giving that money away.

If I could give myself a 8-15% raise for just changing buying testimonials, I'd be all over it as I'm sure most of us would. Escpecially if we can still get the testimonials for free.