Five ways to gather customer testimonials

To get clients interested in sending notes of thanks, advisors have to be sure to take care of rule No. 1 in the testimonial game …

Earn it
The best–and most difficult, but worth it–way to garner customer testimonials is to make yourself worthy. Be the advisor you claim to be and your clients expect. Promise the moon and the stars, then deliver the moon, the stars and the planets.
Use their words
Whether you take great notes during a meeting or record the proceedings — with client permission — never let a moment of praise go undocumented. If a client says something that strikes you as testimonial-worthy, be sure to get it down so it can be presented to the client later.
Client advisory boards
Testimonials are a nice bonus, but advisory boards should be aimed at gathering direct and honest feedback. How can your practice run better? What services should you offer?
Client appreciation events
These are also good testimonial creators. They’re opportunities to mingle with clients in a no-pressure setting that tells them how much you appreciate their business. They’re also events that leave clients with good feelings toward their advisor, feelings they may want to translate into kind words.
Help from NEB
Members already let clients and prospects know they are National Ethics Bureau-affiliated. Now they can inform clients they are going to ask them to fill out a survey at the end of the meeting or series of meetings. The client or advisor will send those forms to NEB, and comments included on those forms can be turned into testimonials–with client permission.

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