Testimonials can amplify your value proposition ten-fold; a person speaking directly about your brand and your product provides a source of assurance and experience to your target market. But is there a right and wrong way to feature testimonials in your creative and your website?

The best testimonials come from clients and customers who experienced a transformation with your company. Essentially, they achieved an overall positive change from where they were before to where they are now. 

Example: “Before we found XYZ Company, our commercial cleaning company was in complete disarray. Jobs were left uncompleted and we lost so much time managing their teams for the simplest of tasks. XYZ Company took charge of all of our janitorial needs, everything from parking lot maintenance to supply stocking. John Smith and his team were extremely helpful in listening to our needs. It’s really nice to come into a safe and clean work environment every day!” – Jody Brown, President of ABC Center 

The testimonial above simply states before and after instances that speak to the improvements Jody Brown has experienced. While Jody Brown is no such person at ABC Center, having her name and position also provide veracity to her testimonial. For instance, someone may want to follow up with Jody regarding XYZ Company and the experience she had with their services. Now that Google is the crystal ball of the internet, a simple search for Jody might be completed, and ultimately XYZ Company may get a new lead based on her testimonial.

Jody Brown’s testimonial is concise, yet hooks a consumer with enough information to prompt possible follow up. But one path businesses are taking is showcasing many short testimonials.

Examples:

“Nice work. Will XYZ Company again.” – Kevin Johnson, Account Manager at Things n Stuff 

“Great job, nice people.” – Sally Meyer, Manager at Lots of Things

“I like XYZ Company!” – Gary White, President of Tons of Stuff

Things n Stuff, Lots of Things, and Tons of Stuff may not sound like the most intriguing of businesses. But using short testimonials that do not speak directly to the services of XYZ Company can be more damaging than helpful.

These testimonials are polite; we know the people are nice, and a degree of good to great work is being done. But why is Kevin Johnson going to use XYZ Company again? Why does Gary White like XYZ Company? What does “great job” actually imply for Sally Meyer? All three of these short testimonials lack the necessary hook to draw in a potential lead. Testimonials aren’t supposed to be blurbs on the back of a New York Times Bestseller, or a short comment on a movie trailer destined to go straight to an online streaming site.

But a testimonial isn’t supposed to be an entire plot summary. The only thing worse than a short testimonial is a testimonial that reads like the operations manual for Air Force One. Length is crucial for testimonials to be effective; the average online reader has an attention span for no longer than 15 seconds, and if you have a long testimonial, those 15 seconds add up quickly and could be a loss of potential business for you.

Provide useful, positive testimonials for the consumer and not long winded, lengthy speeches meant to be delivered from behind a podium. The fine line of testimonials lies somewhere between a short text message and that family newsletter you receive from your family member, or friend detailing the entire year every Christmas. After all, the right amount of words could develop into a deeper conversation, manifesting into growth of your business.