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Capturing customer testimonials is one of the most powerful marketing strategies an equipment manufacturer has. It is also one of the most neglected. Many manufacturers are too close to their products to find a customer's application story interesting, or they are reluctant to give up the marketing spotlight long enough for a subtler approach to promoting the brand.
Your customers' jobsites are where the best stories start.
People will spend half an hour reading reviews before a small online purchase. That alone should tell you your customers' opinions matter to your prospects.
You may think that does not apply in a business-to-business market. Keep in mind that even when a business is making the purchase, people are still deciding whether to buy from you or from your competitor. And because your products carry a much higher price tag, those people are doing serious homework: online research, conversations with salespeople, reading your literature and talking with their peers. Your job is to help them discover the success their peers, your customers, have had with you.
A quality testimonial works in a wide range of formats: trade media public relations, content marketing, social media, video, advertising, literature and trade show signage. Not every story fits every format, so decide how you want to use a story before you go to the trouble of capturing it.
Every customer has a story worth telling if the storyteller knows how to draw it out, but some are more compelling than others. Your sales team and dealers are the key to finding names and unique angles. Help them help you:
Then do your homework before you call the customer. Research the organization, visit its website, talk to its dealer, look at its social channels and find out what equipment it runs and how. Know how to talk shop in their industry.
Once a lead is vetted, decide how and where the story will be used, because that shapes the questions you ask. Think through the angle before the interview so you can guide it, keep questions open-ended and respect the customer's time. Thirty minutes on the phone is plenty. On a jobsite, the conversation can run as long as they have time for.
Draft the testimonial and route it to the customer for review. Give them the chance to confirm that it accurately reflects them, their company and what they said. Then publish it and promote it everywhere it fits.
We capture and write customer stories for equipment brands every month. Visit our ‣ page if you would like help with yours.