Congratulations on deciding to include testimonials in your marketing materials! Now, you need to make those testimonials as effective as possible. Follow these three tips to ensure your testimonials work.

1. Use specific details instead of general comments. Using details will make your testimonials seem more credible. We’ve all seen the commercials on TV that say “This is a great product” or “XYZ product worked for me!” That just screams “fake”! Anyone could have said those words and they aren’t very effective. Build trust by using details that people will want to hear like “XYZ product helped my pimples go away in less than a week!” Also, don’t polish or edit the customer’s testimonial – the testimonial is more convincing when it’s not edited for style (editing for grammar is okay though).

2. Attribute the quote to a real person that has a full name. When you get a postcard mailing piece that has a testimonial from “A.T. in Boston,” what do you think? I bet you think that A.T. doesn’t exist because that’s what I think! To increase credibility, attribute the testimonial to the full name of a person. If you can get permission from the person, include their city and state, and job title and company (if you’re using a client). The more information you have about the person, the more believable your testimonial will be. To cap it off, include a photo of the person – then there’s nothing to leave to your readers’ imaginations!

3. Group all of your testimonials in one spot in your marketing material. The other option of displaying testimonials is to scatter the quotes throughout your brochure or whatever marketing pieces you’re using. If you group them, you can put them in a text box or on one panel of your brochure. Both methods work, but when people read many testimonials at the same time, they have more impact.