We're biased. Video testimonials have been major workhorses in our experience at startups and publicly traded companies over the last 13+ years. And the original research we did about the impact of testimonials videos on digital marketing recently backs this observation up. In fact, our study showed that 72% of marketers realize an ROI of 50-500% from testimonial videos, including significant conversion improvements.
But we figured that the best way to tell the ROI story for small businesses would be to hear from a couple directly. Check out the insights below from these two small business owners in the coaching and real estate industries.
Speaker: Kadidja Yansane, Business Coach, BloomIntoYou.com
Why are testimonial videos important in your industry?
Kadidja Yansane: Hey, it's Kadidja Yansane from BloomIntoYou.com and founder of the Client Creation Queen program. I cannot recommend video testimonials highly enough in the coaching industry because video is incredibly powerful.
Video testimonials provide social proof: you see someone you believe it, you identify with them and you feel like if they can do it, I can do it too.
It gives a live face to your ideal client. People don't think you're just making up an ideal client. They actually see someone that's worked with you and when they feel that 'know, like and trust' with someone, it makes them confident to make a buying decision.
How do you use testimonial videos at your company?
Kadidja Yansane: There are so many ways to use video testimonials. At my company BloomIntoYou.com, I love to interview clients. We get on Zoom together and I interview them for about 20 minutes. I ask a little bit about them what made them decide to work with me. What were the results they achieved? And any challenges they bumped up against along the way? And what that does is it has people feel like they can identify with their story. Hey, she's an executive coach - like I was, or she was in Corporate America - like I was, or she was a yoga teacher - like I am. And I love to share these testimonials all over social media. My Facebook group, Instagram, and my email list. I also use video testimonials in Facebook advertising which is incredibly, incredibly powerful. I highly recommend that if you have not done any video testimonials that you start doing them whether it's interview style, or just asking clients if they wouldn't mind themselves doing a one minute or two minute video to share a little bit about their experience with you. I'd love to hear how it goes.
What’s the ROI of customer testimonial videos, and how do you measure it?
Kadidja Yansane: Here's how I measure the ROI of video testimonials. I hold discovery calls or free consultations to find out if I'm a fit to work with a potential client. And in that process there are some consultation prep questions that I send before I get on the call just so that they can get the most out of the session. I always ask: "How did you hear about me?" And quite frequently people will say that they've seen a master class or they saw my testimonial video. I had that with a person recently who said she watched a testimonial video and that encouraged her to book the call.
So I'm always asking how people found out about me. I do that in the coaching call and consultation prep ,and that is how I'm able to track if these efforts if this video testimonial efforts are working - and they are working.
People have said to me, "I've seen all your testimonials," and so even if they don't say it doesn't mean that they're not seeing it. I hope that that convinces you to start using video testimonials if you haven't been already. Incredibly powerful social proof that you're actually working with clients, that people are investing in your services - and getting great results.
Speaker: Nick Disney, Owner, Sell My San Antonio House
Why are testimonial videos important in your industry?
Nick Disney: Testimonial videos are important in my industry, because they allow our potential clients to hear directly from previous clients about what their experience was like working with us. What the issue was that we were able to solve. We often hear that, "Well I watched this testimonial and I was really able to relate to that person. And that's why I called you."
How do you use testimonial videos at your company?
Nick Disney: We use testimonial videos in a few different places. We have a few on the homepage of the website. We also have them on a review section on the website. There are some written reviews and video testimonials there, and then the other place that we use them a lot is on social media. So if we get a video testimonial we'll put it out on the different social media platforms so that when somebody is researching the company, they might find us on social, or maybe they find us on the website. But they're always going to get the opportunity to hear from some of our previous clients.
What’s the ROI of customer testimonial videos, and how do you measure it?
Nick Disney: The return on investment for our customer testimonials - it's really two things.
Since we started putting them in different spots on the website, people stay on the page longer because they watched the videos.
But the biggest return we see is that we consistently get new clients that call us and tell us, "Hey, I watched this video," and they'll name the person that was in the video and say, "I can really relate to them. And that's why I called you all and I'd like to see how you can help me out." So new customers have definitely come from new video testimonials.
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