We all know how powerful testimonials and success stories are as a tool to open doors with prospects who don’t know you yet. But, capturing such information has traditionally been time consuming and difficult. How many times has a client promised to write a testimonial letter for you and then never did it? It's usually not because your client is insincere; more likely they just got too busy with other things that were a higher priority. Besides, who writes letters today anyway?
The good news is most of you have a very powerful technology tool in your pocket that allows you to capture testimonials, or even fleeting comments clients make about how valuable you have been developing a solution for them. I bet you have already guessed what device I'm referring to— that's right, your smartphone. Here are some easy ways to use your smartphone to capture valuable comments from your satisfied clients:
- Most smartphones do a really good job of capturing video these days. I bet you've used yours a lot to capture video of family, friends, pets, etc. When your client comments about how well your solutions have delivered, or how valuable your work has been or that of your team, simply stop and ask if you could share those comments with prospects that don't yet know you very well. Most happy clients will readily consent. Then ask your client if they would mind repeating those comments, this time with your smartphone shooting some video. By the way, most smartphones are set up to post your videos directly to YouTube as long as you have your account set up. It's easy to do.
- Your smartphone probably also has a voice memo feature allowing you to record the complimentary comments your client is willing to share. So, as an alternative, you can simply record their comments as an audio file that can easily be forwarded to a prospect who doesn't know you yet.
- Dictation apps are another good way to capture testimonials. When your client speaks, the app will turn his or her words into text that you can later clean up and include in all sorts of e-mail messages, letters—you name it.
- Every smart phone has a "notes" feature, so you could type in those golden words the client just shared and agreed to allow you to share with future prospects.
The point here is that supportive comments and testimonials from your clients are literally drops of gold when used to break the ice with prospects, and establish some credibility for yourself and how you do business. So think of yourself as "panning for gold" each time you sit with your client. Keep your antenna up for comments on how your systems have solved problems and produced great results, and how your personal contribution and that of your team have made a big difference—and NEVER fail to capture those comments and ask for permission to use them with prospects. You'll find clients are generally happy to help in this effort and even happier they have no further work to do beyond sharing the comments at the moment.
The technology is in your pocket or in your purse. Get familiar with the functions and make it easy for your clients to open doors for you with valuable prospects.
