The Most Underused Component in Web Site Advertising

By:Alan Richardson

Perhaps the most powerful component of any Web site sales copy is the use of testimonials. Inserted in your sales copy, unbiased words of praise from satisfied customers have the following potent effect for your prospect. Effective testimonials;

Rationalize your prospect’s buying decision

Back up the claims you make for your product or service

Vouch for the benefits of your product or service.

However, despite their clout as an influential sales tool, it is amazing how many clients fail to effectively gather and use this precious commodity. Some tips for including this essential component in your future promotions.

· Whenever a great unsolicited testimonial from a customer crosses your desk, contact the customer for permission to use all or part of it in your marketing campaign. And also request a photo.

· Always include the full name, as well as address under the testimonial.

· Be proactive in soliciting testimonials from your customers. Send personal letters or notes to your customer list indicating you are updating your marketing program and would be grateful for comments about what they liked most about your product or service. Phone surveys are also an option. Elicit the reasons they purchased your product, the three features or characteristics they like most about it (and why), and the product’s strongest feature, More importantly, ask them how the product or service has most benefited them; e.g. how it saved them time, money or frustration. And of course, solicit any comments they have on what they would like to see changed.

Note a secondary benefit of such an approach; learning things about your product or service that can be improved or corrected.

· Of course, if you are not receiving testimonials from customers, find out why. The problem is most likely with your product or service. Improve that and the testimonials will come…as well as increased sales!

Sprinkled throughout your sales copy, testimonials provide a compelling reason for purchasing your product or service. A good rule of thumb is; include 1-3 testimonials for each product or service benefit. A collection of testimonials can also be included as a separate stand-alone piece of your promotional package.

Wherever you place them, make sure each testimonial adheres to the four golden rules…

Be specific

Stick with one benefit per testimonial

Make sure all claims are believable

Keep the testimonial targeted to your audience, excluding anything irrelevant or offensive.

Copyright Alan Richardson

Digg del.icio.us Blink Stumble Spurl Reddit Netscape Furl

Article keywords: web site advertising, website marketing, website development

Article Source: http://www.articles2k.com

Alan Richardson is a well-known internet consultant and publisher with www.optimalwebservices.com - a Web resource firm in North Easton, Massachusetts, offering free advice and information for web-based small business entrepreneurs.

To read other articles by Alan, click www.optimalwebservices.com/articles

To signup for the free 'Optimal Web Services for Small Business' ezine, click www.optimalwebservices.com/subscribe

Top Internet Marketing Articles
1). The Fly & The Window Of Opportunity By : Rick Davies Copyright 2006 1stPromotion.com One afternoon after going through a small backlog of emails, I was daydreaming about how it shouldn't be tough for absolutely anyone out there to make that first online sale and then to go on and make more and more sales. I feel bad for people that have paid money for some of the programs out there that promise to "stuff their wallets effortlessly" only to find that there is no free lunch.
2). Sign Our Guestbook – How Signing Guestbook’s Or Creating Your Own Helps Your Website By : Anton Cheranev Guestbook’s are some of the most popular areas on websites. Before a consumer does business with you, they are likely to check out your guestbook. Guestbook’s are somewhat like testimonials in that they offer real feedback on your site, your business, and your products. They are honest and are created from those that have had some sort of experience with your business or those who simply visit your site.
3). Where To Find A MySpace Friend Adder By : PaulG MySpace friend adders have become a great tool in maximizing the MySpace experience. Since MySpace has become popular, so has the importance of having tons of MySpace friends. This can benefit the causal MySpace user, the MySpace Music artist, and even the web publishers and marketers that use MySpace as a stepping stone toward success. Now MySpace friend adders have gone even further by adding other MySpace abilities to their programming.
4). How To Monetize A 1,000+ Page Site In 5 min. Or Less Without Violating Google's Adsense Policy! By : D Dean Hall As webmasters, writers and authors we all want to find ways to maximize the profitability of our content. We employ a variety of methods such as Adsense, Yahoo Ads, links to affiliate products of all types but there are a couple of problems. There is the sheer time involved in creating these links and then keeping them updated to the most relevant and profitable products.
5). 'Social Bookmarking' As An Aggressive and Acceptable Blog Marketing Tactic By : gregw Social bookmarking websites are becoming more and more popular. They allow you to save bookmarks online and Tag/Categorize them with keywords instead of saving them as bookmarks in the favorite's list of yourbrowser. This is particularly useful when your browser based bookmarks have become unwieldy. It's also help since you can access your bookmarks from any computer where you have an internet connection.
6). The Four Big Adsense Secrets By : Iszuddin Ismail Is there a BIG secret to the huge Adsense checks? Yes, you’ve seen those screen shots of 5-figure Adsense earning … so have I. And that made you thinking, why are some people earning those huge income, and you are not. Whatever people may say, I only see these are the only factors that make the difference between your earning and those ‘big-guns’. 1 - Adsense Placement Yes, putting your Adsense in a special way can be the difference between 1% click-through rate (CTR) and 10% CTR.
7). The Downsides Of Reciprocal Linking To Increase Search Engine Rankings By : Brian Gilley Reciprocal linking is still a highly sought after method for many companies and webmasters hoping to increase their web site’s ranking in the search engines. Back in 2002, when reciprocal linking firmly took its place as a real way to boost your rankings, many webmasters and sites started using it to quickly and frantically get the upper edge on their competition and the search engines.
8). One of the Quickest and Easiest Way to Dramatically Increase Your Website’s Page Rank By : Tim Wright This is one of the easiest and fastest ways that you can increase the number of one way links to your website and dominate your competition.
9). Spy on the Competition, Stay on Top By : Jay Chirino Just when you thought you had this whole online business thing mastered, it turns out that now you must become a secret super spy, break into your competitor’s databases and steal important documented information that you can put to use for your own benefit. So get your rope and mask ready because we’re going in! Oh, and by the way, I’m just kitting.
10). Let's Start! Create A Business Plan By : Helen Chow Let's Start! Create A Business Plan

New Internet Marketing Articles
1). 5 Tips for Making Mounds of Money on the Internet By : Michael Gulbin Make sure you are doing everything you can to make money on the web.
2). Are You Costing Yourself Money With This Common Article Marketing Mistake? By : Chris Ellington The Article Marketer editorial team reveals the worst mistake an internet marketer can make when submitting royalty free articles.
3). Learn To Market From A Child By : Clint Pollard A marketing lesson I learned from my grand daughter.
4). How To Maximize Your Profits From Backend Sales By : Jason Oickle The truth is with backend sales, you can gain additional or continuous profit without having to do any extra work.
5). Web Site Promotion Guides For Newbies By : Obinna Heche If you are new to the internet world you are not alone. There are a lot of people who are not too familiar with the internet but want to join in on the profits that are available.
6). Network Marketing for Overall Growth By : Sanjay Johari Network marketing provides tremendous opportunity to learn and earn. Those willing to learn have unlimited potential to earn and grow.
7). What Should You Know Before You Start A Home Business By : Arun Pal Singh As 2006 dawns on earth I am quite thoughtful. Many persons started their business in 2005. Some succeeded and some left disappointed.
8). Internet Marketing: Give Me Good Content By : Virginia Bola Have you ever considered how much boring, poorly written, superficial, and totally uninteresting stuff there is in those billions of web pages floating in the ether?
9). Internet Marketing: Give Me Something New By : Virginia Bola Give me freshness, variety, and a taste of greatness. I am totally frustrated by the lack of vitality found in the majority of websites.
10). Why Everyone Needs a Mentor. By : Gary Muller Why do you need a mentor and what could they possibly offer to help you grow your business? Discover why even successful marketers utilize the skills and expertise of an internet marketing mentor.