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Why Customer Stories Matter More Than Ever in 2026

Tue, 16 Dec 2025 20:32:14 +0000

Moving into 2026, marketers and business owners know that attention is harder to earn, trust is harder to build, and buyers are more skeptical than ever. Audiences are surrounded by polished brand messaging and AI-generated content that’s difficult to believe. That’s why customer stories matter more than ever in 2026. Let’s take a closer look at why that is, and what you can do about it.

4 Templates to Ask for Reviews on Social Media

Tue, 23 Sep 2025 14:00:59 +0000

Social media can be a great way to reach new customers, extend your audience, showcase your business, and connect with your existing customers. You can show off new products and services, share your marketing efforts, show how your business works, and more. If you have a strong social media following, this can also be a great place to ask for reviews. Let’s take a look at a few strategies and templates that you can customize to ask for reviews on social media.

The Step-by-Step Guide to Get Your First Testimonials (With Examples!)

Tue, 09 Sep 2025 20:41:16 +0000

Testimonials and reviews help customers find your business. Once you have a few testimonials or reviews, it’s easier to get more, but getting your first testimonials can be a challenge. Let’s take a look at how new businesses can get their first testimonials, step by step.

How Testimonials Turn Skeptics into Shoppers, According to Science

Tue, 26 Aug 2025 14:00:45 +0000

When shoppers hover uncertainly over the “buy” button, what overcomes their doubts and turns interest into a purchase? What is the “tipping point” for different buyers? And is there science behind this process? Yes. Testimonials and social proof play an enormous role in turning skeptics into shoppers. Many of these effects have been studied, and shown by science. Let’s take a closer look.

12 Testimonial Guidelines to Ensure You’re Not Breaking the Law

Tue, 12 Aug 2025 14:00:14 +0000

Every business wants to see positive reviews. Customer review statistics show that 77% of buyers research reviews before a purchase, and 90% say what they read makes or breaks their buy. With this level of influence, many businesses try to “bend” testimonial guidelines. What’s the worst that could happen?

Why the Brain Believes Video More Than Text

Tue, 05 Aug 2025 14:00:51 +0000

Online reviews are everywhere. From new restaurants to software tools to dentists and everything in between, you can find reviews and testimonials about it. But written reviews are becoming harder and harder to believe. Video testimonials, however, are still reliable. Our brains are wired to respond more deeply to visual and verbal cues than written words alone. Let’s take a look at how the human brain processes credibility, and why the brain believes video more than text.

Customer Stories as Cognitive Shortcuts: How We Decide in 60 Seconds

Tue, 08 Jul 2025 14:00:44 +0000

When it comes to buying decisions, customers don’t always weigh every feature, compare every competitor, or read through pages of documentation. Instead, most people rely on mental shortcuts, also known as heuristics, to help them make decisions quickly and efficiently. These shortcuts are powerful tools our brains use to navigate complex choices in everyday life. This is also why reviews and testimonials can be so influential; customer stories support cognitive shortcuts, and help customers make decisions without needing to weigh every aspect. Let’s dig deeper into how this works.

What is Brand Evangelism and How Can You Inspire It?

Tue, 03 Jun 2025 14:00:37 +0000

Brand evangelism can be defined as a consumer’s dedication and enthusiasm about a brand, generally inspired by an emotional connection. Brand evangelists are your most valuable customers—they enthusiastically recommend your brand simply because they enjoy it, which is the most valuable type of free advertising. Not everyone can or will become a brand evangelist, and not all brands easily inspire this behavior. So how can you improve brand evangelism and earn more of these invaluable customers? We’ve updated this blog post in 2025 to give you even more strategies for creating brand evangelism and inspiring brand loyalty.

11 Tips to Make Great-Looking Testimonial Videos on a Smartphone

Tue, 22 Apr 2025 14:03:00 +0000

Smartphones have made it easier than ever to capture video of all types, including video testimonials. But testimonials with poor lighting, background noise, or awkward framing, can be a turn-off. Whether you’re encouraging your customers to record their own testimonials or filming them yourself in person, these tips will help you capture professional, authentic footage—no camera crew required.

11 Powerful Ways to Use Social Proof in Your Marketing (Examples Included)

Wed, 11 Dec 2024 15:00:27 +0000

When researching a new product or service, consumers often rely on what other people have to say. They want to see proof that the product or service does what the brand claims it can do. Making promises to prospects is no longer enough, consumers need proof – social proof. In this blog, we’ll discuss what social proof is and 11 powerful ways to use social proof in your marketing. We’ve updated this post for 2025 to give you additional information and new types of social proof that can help you sharpen your marketing strategy.

Fake Reviews Are Getting Worse—What’s Being Done?

Tue, 09 Jan 2024 15:00:29 +0000

Fake reviews have been a problem for decades. As more and more people use the internet to decide which businesses or products are best for them, businesses have more incentive to generate reviews. Many people are wondering, what’s being done about fake reviews? Is there anything that businesses, platforms, or people can do? Recently, review platforms have cracked down on this practice.

Are Old Reviews Still Valuable?

Tue, 14 Nov 2023 15:00:47 +0000

Customer reviews are particularly important in the age of online shopping and digital decision-making. Customer reviews are like a compass, guiding potential buyers to a purchase that best suits them. But, what factors make reviews convincing and compelling? Does it matter how old reviews are? Let’s explore the recency of customer reviews and compare new and old reviews.

Google Review Policy: What Business Owners Can and Can’t Do to Get More Google Reviews

Thu, 20 Jul 2023 15:00:15 +0000

Google is the number one site where consumers go to read and write reviews. To find out if your business is worth a visit, many prospective customers turn to Google reviews. In this blog, we share everything you need to know about Google review policies. Keep in mind that Google can update the policies and guidelines at any time. We updated this blog in 2023 to include the most up-to-date information.

Offering Gift Cards For Reviews: How to Get Reviews Fast (And Legally!)

Tue, 07 Mar 2023 15:00:45 +0000

If you’ve struggled to get reviews or testimonials for your business, you might’ve considered offering gift cards as an incentive. Your customers are busy people, just like you, and they may need a bit of a push to take that extra step. So how can you make it easy to offer gift cards for review? And what are the rules for giving gift cards in exchange for reviews? We’ve updated this post in 2023 to give you additional information about how to offer gift cards for reviews and the rules that apply.

9 Examples of Testimonial Request Emails That Work

Thu, 02 Mar 2023 15:00:00 +0000

You know testimonials can make a big impact on influencing prospects to do business with you. But knowing how to ask for a testimonial isn’t always so simple. That’s why we created this guide—to arm you with the information and tools you need to effectively ask your customers for testimonials and generate a compelling collection of praise. We’ve updated this guide for 2023 to give you even more ways to request testimonials this year, and useful templates to help you get started.

8 Creative Product Promotion Ideas to Reach New Audiences

Tue, 13 Dec 2022 15:00:17 +0000

There are more ways to introduce your product than ever. There is also more competition for consumers’ attention than ever before. The right product promotion can help you reach new audiences and gain more attention than competitors. Let’s take a look at some creative product promotions that you can use across many different media types.

Testimonial vs Review: What’s the Difference and Why Does it Matter?

Tue, 08 Nov 2022 15:00:19 +0000

The terms “testimonial” and “review” are sometimes used interchangeably, but there are important differences between them. Knowing the differences between a testimonial vs. review and what each can be used for will help you to use your customers’ sentiments effectively. We’ve updated this post in 2022 to give you even more information and help you nail your review and testimonial collections.

SEO for Testimonial Pages: 8 Helpful Tips

Tue, 13 Sep 2022 14:14:37 +0000

The social proof generated from customer testimonials makes them one of the most valuable additions to your website. By strategically segmenting the testimonials you collect and placing them on your website you can ensure that you reach the right target audience. An important piece to ensuring your testimonial page performs well is optimizing the page for SEO. Taking steps to ensure that your page shows up in search for the right audience is the best way to draw traffic organically to your testimonial page. SEO strategies are changing all the time, so we’ve updated this post in 2022 to give you the most up-to-date information.

30 Testimonial Examples To Inspire Your First Campaign

Mon, 13 Jun 2022 14:00:54 +0000

Creating an engaging and effective page to showcase your customer testimonials can be hard when starting from scratch. Just like any other marketing tactic, it can be helpful to see examples from industry leaders first. We’ve compiled a list of testimonial examples that can help you design the ideal testimonial page, or showcase your testimonials anywhere they’ll be effective. We’ve updated this post in 2022 to give you more testimonial examples to get inspired and some more information about what makes a great testimonial.

How to Make a Testimonial Release Form (With Template!)

Tue, 17 May 2022 13:00:39 +0000

When a customer gives a testimonial, you need to have their permission before you use it. A testimonial release form will prove that the customer gave their permission to use the testimonial, and help keep your business out of legal trouble. A testimonial release form can also inform your customers about how you plan to use their testimonials, and prevent confusion. Let’s take a look at how to make a testimonial release form, some testimonial release form templates, and how to customize these to suit your needs.

5 Compelling Reasons You Need Social Proof

Tue, 03 May 2022 14:20:50 +0000

Social proof is the idea that people take cues from one another in order to determine the quality or validity of a particular decision. In a marketing context, this means customers look at the experiences or concerns of other customers before buying. Social proof is helpful for customers, but it can also be helpful for businesses, when used properly. If you aren’t convinced about social proof and its usefulness, here are some compelling reasons you need social proof.

The Marketer’s Guide to Online Review Sites: How to Use Third-Party Review Sites

Tue, 05 Apr 2022 13:44:26 +0000

Today, over 90% of customers look at online reviews before buying. Many customers start with third-party review sites, like Facebook, Angie’s List or Google Reviews. Third-party reviews are often seen as more trustworthy or unbiased than reviews or testimonials provided by the business itself. With this in mind, let’s take a closer look at how to use third-party review sites, and what marketers need to know about online reviews.

23 Companies That Are Using Customer Testimonials The Right Way

Mon, 21 Mar 2022 12:30:50 +0000

Testimonials give prospective customers trust and confidence in your product. Testimonial statistics show using reviews and testimonials on product pages can improve clicks, conversion rates, and purchases. We’ve updated this blog post to include 23 customer testimonial examples to show how popular brands with dedicated followings use testimonials most strategically. These brands use testimonials to not only inspire clicks and purchases, but also to strengthen relationships with existing customers, show your company culture and values, and encourage customer evangelism.

How to Ask for a Google Review: 11 Proven Techniques to Use (+ Templates)

Mon, 07 Feb 2022 17:49:46 +0000

Google is an excellent resource for consumers to learn more about a business through general information and reviews. Establishing your business online is essential to boosting your SEO, brand awareness, and loyalty. Google makes it easy for people to leave reviews, and these reviews will show up with your Google Business listing. To build a strong reputation online, you need to know how to ask for a Google review. Take a look at these 11 strategies (with templates) to painlessly ask for a Google review.

8 Essential Components of a Case Study (Includes Interview Questions)

Tue, 01 Feb 2022 19:39:32 +0000

Building trust with your prospects is crucial to growing your business. However, earning that trust can be challenging. You need to show proof that you can deliver on your promises. One way to show proof is through case studies. In this blog, I’ll explain what case studies are and share the eight essential components of a case study.