The idea of using video testimonial scripts is appealing because it feels like it adds structure and repeatability to the otherwise hit-or-miss process of getting great testimonial videos.
After all, it’s appealing to believe that if you can just create the most effective testimonial script, you’ll know ahead of time that your video testimonial will turn out amazing and convey a message that’s valuable and on point.
Unfortunately, this is usually a false sense of control over the process.
In our experience (we have over 10 years of it!), using an actual ‘script’ in its truest sense, just leads to different problems. Instead of providing high-quality, powerful, and compelling content, you’ll get something robotic and stale.
You’ll immediately lose the possibility of your potential customers making an emotional connection with your brand as they realize it’s not a genuine testimonial and that the speaker has simply been told what to say.
Instead, businesses can get consistent, high-quality results by using a simple framework of successfully tested questions that prompt authentic and valuable responses, and tease out impactful stories that your current and potential new customers will love.
Below, we’ll show you exactly what that framework of questions looks like.
We’ll demonstrate how to use the sample questions provided in our 45 video testimonial templates, and how to adapt them to your own specific needs, including:
- Starting with broad questions to maintain authenticity.
- Requesting a few specifics.
- Asking for anecdotes and stories.
- Getting your customer thinking before they start recording.
Note: We’re Vocal Video and this is exactly what we do. Our platform provides you with everything you need to ask for, record, collect, edit, share, and host your own high-quality customer testimonial videos. Sign up for a 100% free trial of Vocal Video to try out the platform yourself — you can collect unlimited videos and no credit card is required.
#1: Start with Broad Interview Questions for an Authentic Customer Testimonial Video
The first step in putting your video subjects at ease and getting them to record the best testimonials is to ask them broad questions that will guide them, but won’t be prescriptive about what they should say.
This leverages the power of authenticity by allowing your customer to talk off the cuff, while still gearing them towards the kind of information you want for your video marketing plan.
In the sample questions below — included in our video testimonial templates — you can see that we’ve asked open-ended prompts and softball questions:
- Could you describe your experience of working with us?
- What makes us stand out against the competition?
This gives the testimonial subject the freedom to answer however they want.
It may seem scary to relinquish control and give your customer this amount of freedom, but in fact, the magic of video testimonials lies in the unexpected and powerful stories they can generate.
You can choose to use the sample questions in the Vocal Video templates just as they are or you can choose to use them as a starting point to come up with your own questions.
(We have sample questions in each of our 45 testimonial templates, each focused on a wide range of use cases.)
Using broad questions also means you don’t have to ask a huge number of prompts because they cover all the bases and allow your customer to be real in their responses.
For more information about how that works, and more specific instructions on how to design your own testimonial interview questions, take a look at our in-depth article about why you don’t need 25 questions for your next customer video testimonial.
#2: Ask for Some Specifics
Although broad questions are a must to give your target audience a customer testimonial that feels authentic, getting specific also offers up solid proof of real, verifiable results, which is extremely important for potential customers.
That’s why it’s also an advantage to give your video testimonial subjects a chance to mention some metrics or figures in their video review.
This is especially important for B2B video testimonials and those involving a decision maker inside your customer’s organization. These specifics from managers, business owners, and other people in charge can turn your customer testimonial video into its own mini case study.
It’s a good idea to decide what kind of metrics would be useful for your video marketing campaign and to tailor one of our sample questions so that you get that specific information.
This is how you turn a good testimonial video into a great testimonial video.
Some options are:
- Increased revenues
- Time savings
- Cost savings
- Tangible pain points that your brand solved for them
- Other metrics specific to your business
Once you’ve decided what kinds of metrics would be most helpful for your prospect to talk about, make sure to let your interviewee know what metrics to prepare before the interview (more on that in a bit).
#3: Ask at Least One Question That Can Elicit a Story
The power of storytelling in marketing is not a new concept and when it’s combined with the awesome power of video, you get a one-two punch.
That’s why it’s a great idea to ask at least one question that is likely to elicit a story or anecdote. This is especially important when you are asking for a testimonial from an end user of your product or service who won’t have strong metrics or figures to fall back on.
Real, candid stories, from genuinely satisfied customers are easy to relate to, give your target audience the chance to recognize themselves, and make an emotional connection with your customer and your brand — which is ultimate in social proof.
For more about the power of storytelling in video customer reviews see our interview with Zoey Meyer, founder of customer-360.
#4: Get Your Video Subjects Thinking Before They Start Recording
The fourth, and final step, in preparing your questions in the right way is actually the first piece of information you’ll send out to the happy customers that have agreed to provide you with a testimonial.
When you send out a testimonial invitation, you have the opportunity to give your customer a heads up about what you’ll be asking.
(Our video collector templates give you a sample three-step email sequence to simplify that process, too.)
As you can see in the sample email invitation above, we’ve provided three suggested questions ahead of time to give the customer a chance to think about what they want to say.
This eliminates anxiety, and in turn, makes your customers much more likely to send you a completed testimonial where they’re prepared to talk about specific numbers or metrics, as necessary.
You won’t be putting them “on the spot” and — continuing with the example from the image above — they can research and think about a time that your brand helped them, or come up with three words to describe your organization, and something that makes it unique, or anything else that you decide to ask.
Zach Windahl, the founder of The Brand Sunday was happy to make a video testimonial for ACTIV. He spent a few minutes recording his answers with ACTIV’s Video Collector sent through Vocal Video. The ACTIV team was careful to write questions to elicit details about the challenges he faced, how he found ACTIV, and ultimately, how ACTIV helped his business.
Vocal Video Gives You Everything You Need to Ask the Right Questions and Capture Great Testimonial Videos
Coming up with the best testimonial questions for your video marketing needs doesn’t have to be a complicated process when you use Vocal Video’s 45+ included templates.
But our platform also provides you with much more than that.
In fact, you get everything you need to:
- Ask your happy customers for testimonials (using our tried and tested customizable three-step email sequences).
- Help customers record a testimonial using a simple, proven, step-by-step process (in just 5 to 10 minutes, asynchronously, at a time that’s convenient to them, and on any device).
- Receive a pre-edited version of each customer testimonial (including your own logo, branding, colors, and background music).
- Easily edit and trim your video testimonials for impact (using our simple editing tool designed to be used by anyone — even if you have zero video production experience).
- Host your videos, recordings, and the capture/collection process directly on our platform (with your own branding in place and without your customers having to download any apps or documents).
- Share your videos on social media and other platforms (using a simple embed code).
Vocal Video’s proven video capture process makes it super easy to record and collect candid, high-quality customer testimonial videos inexpensively, repeatedly, and at scale. To find out more about exactly how it’s done, see this post.
Note: The Vocal Video platform provides you with everything you need to ask for, record, collect, edit, share, and host your own high-quality customer testimonial videos. Sign up for your free Vocal Video account now.