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When I talk with my clients about adding testimonials to their marketing toolbox, I get a lot of nodding heads and agreement. And yet, many businesses put testimonial gathering on the back burner. It becomes one of those 'important but not urgent' activities. I'd love to see you turn up the fire on this no-brainer marketing tool that yields strong benefits at miniscule expense.

Here are a few tips and compelling reasons to begin creating your inventory of client testimonials:

Credibility ' We simply believe another person's touting of a business more than whatever the business may say on it's own behalf. Testimonials provide external evidence of your success and abilities.

TIP: Get your clients' permission to use their full name, title and company name along with their quote.

Human Interest ' People, and what they say and do, are always more interesting than straight-up information (well, to most of us, that is!). Your audience will read quotes from other people before they read your carefully worded marketing bullets.

TIP: Put your best testimonials in prominent places on your website, brochure, proposals and other marketing materials.

Trust ' Testimonials show your prospective customers that you are trustworthy with other clients who are willing to brag about you.

TIP: Strive to create testimonials that convey specific benefits and results ' these are more powerful and come across as more authentic.

Community ' Most people have a natural inclination to belong to and be 'part of' successful ventures. By displaying your roster of happy clients, you invite new joiners into the fold.

TIP: Be strategic about gathering testimonials from your ideal clients so that you attract more just like them.

Here's an example from my own stash of testimonials (yes, I do follow my own advice!):

'Martha has a wonderful ability to bring fresh ideas to a situation, which continually helps you look at things in a new way. She is fun to work with, she makes me feel comfortable and challenges me all at the same time."

~ K.M., Senior Engineer, Colorado Springs, CO

Take these steps to get started immediately'

Make a list of your happy clients (okay, they are all happy, so this will be a list of ALL of your clients).

Begin with those who you know are chatty and have been forthcoming with praise and positive comments in the past (some folks are just more expressive than others).

Contact each client ' by email or phone or in person, depending on how they like being communicated with ' and ask if they would be willing to provide a testimonial for you.

Make it easy for them to provide the kind of testimonial you'd like to have by providing them with 'prompter' questions. Examples: What have been the most notable benefits of using my services? What makes our company unique? How has your business improved as a result of the work we did for you?

Make it easy for them, period. Some of your clients will zip off a quick email to you with a great testimonial. Others will take this on as a 'project' and may be slow to get it done. They truly want to do a good job for you and may put more work into it than necessary. Take the pressure off ' offer to have a quick phone conversation with the client, where you can ask pointed questions and jot down notes from what they say. Then, you can write up a quote and have the client review it. This minimizes their workload and increases your ability to get a great quote from them. A win-win!

No matter what, always give your client a chance to review the testimonial before you put it on any of your marketing materials. You want them to feel proud of how their comments are portrayed so they continue to be in your fan club.

Going forward, be sure to collect a testimonial from each and every client after you complete an engagement ' the success will be fresh in their minds, which creates an even better quote. (Plus, you won't have to backtrack later.)

If you provide a service that calls for discretion, or are in a highly competitive industry that requires client confidentiality, you can still make use of testimonials, but may have to use the individual's initials or skip their identity altogether. A real name is better, but not at the cost of exposing clients who want or need to remain anonymous ' always give them the choice.