Why You Must "Prove" Everything You Say In Your Advertising
— And How To Do It

Kethyr's CAMEL Report
Mountain View, California
Monday, September 1, 2008

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The persuasion of a friend is a strong thing.
— Homer, "The Iliad"

I submit that everybody — including all your customers/clients and potential prospects — is, by nature, extremely skeptical of just about everything. And if that's true, you have to deal with this natural skepticism head-on in every marketing piece you create.

But even if I'm wrong, and everything you say in your marketing messages isn't viewed with skepticism, what other people say about you and your products and services is still 10 to 100 times more believable and convincing than what you say yourself.

Consider infomercials. Why do you think they have all those people popping up every few minutes singing the praises of the product? Because it works! It increases sales. And the infomercial people know that. They have to in such a high-stakes game. It often costs $100,000 or more to produce and test one of these programs. There's no room for error or omission of anything important to closing the sale.

So, you need to include as much proof as possible. Testimonials, statistics, government reports, articles, celebrity endorsements, signed affidavits, and anything else you can think of.

There's no limit to the amount of credibility you should use. If you have 100 letters from people saying you're the best, use them all (if it makes sense).

In fact, I've even suggested to people who don't have the time or skill to write copy … or the budget to hire a good copywriter … that they just send a short cover letter and a huge three-ring binder full of testimonials.

While that may sound a little ridiculous — and it may be hard to do if you're selling a $19.95 widget or information product — if your product or service runs in the hundreds or thousands of dollars, you may be able to do it. You'll have to run your numbers to know.

Even with low per-unit prices, however, you could probably do this: Have a small (5" x 8") booklet printed up — 25-100 pages — loaded with testimonials. Use a smaller typeface … say, 8-point or 10-point. This booklet would be cheaper to produce and distribute than the binder.

If you have a good product, you should have tons of testimonials. If you don't have them, go out and get them. There are many good and useful ways to generate testimonials. Every customer-service call, for example, offers an opportunity for one. (Even if it comes in as a complaint, you can — and should — change the customer's feelings from negative to positive … and then get him or her to give you a quotation.)

And using testimonials is only one way of establishing credibility. There are many others — expert endorsements, awards, academic credentials, newspaper and magazine quotes, etc. Use your imagination. Start today and brainstorm how you can provide overwhelming proof that what you have is indeed the best of the best.

It could mean the difference between your promotions, and your business, losing … or winning big!

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Quick Tip: How to Use Solid Testimonials to Strengthen Your Marketing

There's no denying it: People love to get an unbiased opinion of a product or service before they buy it. Salespeople can talk till they're blue in the face, and not get the same results as one satisfied customer saying, "I love mine!" or "I couldn't be happier thanks to…" In addition, testimonials boost your credibility faster than almost any other method … when used correctly.

Faced with a pile of rambling, unedited testimonials from customers, you need to take the time to narrow them down to the strongest ones. Here's what to look for and do:

1. The best testimonials tend to be very specific — citing the exact number of hours saved or dollars made.
    
2. Each quote should focus on just one benefit. Too many will dilute the impact.
    
3. Though you will need to edit these quotes, make sure you don't over-edit. You want to maintain the believable, conversational tone the customer used. Add to this believability by including full names and addresses when possible — or maybe even the customer's picture.
    
4. Once edited, try to sprinkle the quotes throughout your copy. Long lists of testimonials tend to get skipped over. However, if you have a product or service that seems too good to be true — or if you're making some very strong promises — you should stock your promotion with as many testimonials as possible. This volume of evidence should overcome any initial skepticism a prospect may have.

If you've got a good product or service but you don't have plenty of testimonials, you should ask for them. If you're lucky, you'll get very specific stories from truly happy customers. And testimonials like this are pure gold … With testimonials, you sell faster and more effectively because it's such a powerful way to show that what you're selling really works.

Yours in success,

Sean Eric Armstrong
Kethyr's CAMEL Report

P.S. For more information about how you can use testimonials effectively in your online and offline marketing efforts, please contact us at info@kethyrsolutions.com.

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