Testimonials - there is a better way

Here we address a question that crops up with increasing frequency - why not just show testimonials?

Firstly, let us be clear: showing testimonials on your website is a great first step, but there is a 'but', and that 'but' is all about verification and credibility. In order to be credible in the eyes of today's sophisticated consumer, testimonials must incorporate...

• The customer's full name -  'Mrs J of Chelsea' won't cut it
• The company's name - if it's a corporate testimonial

More importantly, the business must not be seen to be filtering or editing. There is plenty of evidence that businesses showing 100% positive testimonials (in tone and in content) create a 'credibility gap' in the eyes of the consumer. And it's one of the the reasons so many 'independent' review sites (from TripAdvisor to Yelp to AllAgents) have become so popular with consumers.

Where does Dialogue™ add value?

In the eyes of the consumer - first: the line 'we invite all our clients...without any selection or editing' is crucial. It's the main creator of credibility. 

Next: independent verification; thanks, in part, to the Sunday Times (and much other media coverage - the ASA ruling that TripAdvisor couldn't call their reviews 'trusted' is a high profile example) consumers have been made aware that testimonials and reviews can be manipulated by businesses.

For the business:

Because of Dialogue's 'promise to publish' the response rate (to the invitation to write a review) is over ten times higher than that for conventional in-house CRM. Put simply, Dialogue gets reviews.

Dialogue also takes a great deal of the effort (effort = time = expense) out of getting reviews. Clients respond to the invitation in significant numbers - bringing great reviews (as well as issues to be resolved in Resolution™) effectively and efficiently.

And ultimately - credible and verified reviews drive enquiries from your website and conversions at point-of-sale.