Are you promoting your good points? Testimonials, videos, reviews…it all counts!

I read the latest blog post this morning from Seth Godin titled: No one plays the lottery if there are no winners…

Looking at the title, prior to actually clicking through and reading, I assumed the piece would encourage an underlying message of “in order to attract people to do something, you’ve got to give them a credible reason / or chance of believing they too could achieve it.”

In fact, the post didn’t focus on that – it talked about why most people actually play the lottery – and it’s more about the ‘rush of the opportunity’ that they MAY win.  Rather than really believing they can win.

I read the post – and whilst it had a little subliminal message there, and an angle to think about re the psychology of consumers form a marketing perspective – it wasn’t what I was expecting.

My angle would be more along the lines of why businesses must be ‘selling the dream’ aspect.

If no one ever won the lottery – and we didn’t read about their sometimes credible, incredible, unworthy and worthy stories, then we’d never believe it was feasible. If we didn’t believe it was feasible – we’d be complete idiots to buy a ticket.  We see the reality, we understand it’s a gamble, a long shot etc – but you just never know.

Similarly, in our marketing activities when selling our products and services – we’ve got to make what we do ‘credible’ – believable.  If you can’t show someone ‘winning’ and gaining from your products and services – who is ever going to believe that you can deliver what you say you can.

It's all very well your features and benefits promotions spouting forth about what you do - and how great your services are.  However, that's no where near as powerful as someone else, someone 'who's won the lottery with you' - telling them.

This brings me to the importance – now more than ever before, of good old fashioned ‘word of mouth’ – and how social platforms enable that all important factor.

Not only by the viral element of people talking to one another online about your services, or collecting referrals and ratings for your services and products – but also getting your customers views right out there in front of people’s faces via video testimonials, or customer satisfaction dashboards.

If your business has a website – (and let’s face it, if it hasn’t, it needs to get one, and get one fast to catch up).  Then be sure to be publishing testimonials, case studies, videos etc whenever you can.

Here’s a quick 3 tips ‘word of mouth’ checklist to ensure that you’re making your service / product offerings ‘credible’:

1)         Create a system to regularly collect and record how you are doing. Customer satisfaction / customer reviews.  Collect them and publish them.  This adds to the ‘trust factor’ particularly online.

2)         Contact your customers and ask them to provide you with testimonials. Again, create a system where you regularly collect these so that you have fresh comments to post on your website and other marketing materials.

3)         Register with a review site so that customers can create online reviews which you can regularly publish. FreeIndex or Review Centre or you’ll find some business reviews here http://www.marketingzen.com/online-business-review-sites/ .

Michelle Carvill is owner and Marketing Director at Carvill Creative - a graphic design and marketing services agency based in Maidenhead, Berkshire.  The agency covers all aspects of graphic design and marketing - covering social media marketing and social media training, user focused website planning and conversion focused website design.

For marketing and social media advice – view the Carvill Creative Blog