How to Get Testimonials From Clients (Email Scripts Included)

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Before we discuss how to get testimonials from clients, we should examine why we should bother in the first place. If you’re cynical-minded, you might wonder if testimonials matter since businesses are only going to post glowing words from their clients and customers, right?

Here’s the thing: Even if our logical minds realize this, our emotional minds are still influenced by people’s experiences. And this is even more true on review sites like Yelp, Trustpilot, or Rotten Tomatoes.

Bottom line: Business testimonials and reviews serve as an important signal that the brand, service, or product is real and legit.

But I’m getting ahead of myself. 🙂

Below, I tackle the following questions. (Click on a link to jump directly to that section.)

Also, I can’t recommend this book enough: Using Behavioral Science in Marketing: Drive Customer Action and Loyalty by Prompting Instinctive Responses by Nancy Harhut. NOTE: It’s an Amazon affiliate link. As an Amazon Associate, I earn a small commission if you buy, but it won’t cost you more if you do. I own this book, and it’s incredibly insight, especially when it comes to things like social proof and customer testimonials.

What are testimonials? Are they the same thing as reviews?

A person gives “testimony” to the benefits they experienced using your products or services. People will sometimes use the words “testimonial” and “review” interchangeably.

Technically, business testimonials are usually managed by the business itself. The business asks its customers or clients to write testimonials via email and uses them in various marketing channels, like the website.

If the testimonial is less than positive, the business doesn’t have to post it. The business has editorial control over the content (like fixing typos or condensing the quote).

Reviews, on the other hand, are typically posted by the person writing them on places like Trustpilot, Yelp, Google, Amazon, Rotten Tomatoes—you get the idea.

Reviewers post the good, the bad, and the ugly. Barring something egregious that violates the platform’s policies, businesses don’t have much recourse for negative reviews aside from responding (which isn’t always a good idea—more on this in a moment).

Businesses can benefit from having both testimonials and reviews.

On the company website, the business can post testimonials it received directly from a client or customer. Reviews on places like the company’s Google Business Profile and Trustpilot happen organically.

However, it’s also not unusual for businesses to add a module to their site that draws in reviews from other sources, such as Amazon product pages (this is common in the B2C world).

For the purpose of the article, I’m primarily referring to business testimonials—the ones that the company directly asks its customers or clients to write. But I’ll touch on customer reviews, too.

Why do advertisers use testimonials?

Testimonials and reviews can be extremely persuasive, even for folks who pride themselves on being rational and logical.

It turns out that most of us don’t make buying decisions based on logic—at least, not in the beginning. We’re emotional creatures at heart, and emotions drive our decisions.

In her excellent book Using Behavioral Science in Marketing: Drive Customer Action and Loyalty by Prompting Instinctive Responses, Nancy Harhut says, “People decide based on emotional reasons—even really smart people, even in B2B.” (Note: The book link is an Amazon affiliate link; I’ll earn a small commission if you buy it.)

So even though our logical brain might point out that a business will only ever post positive testimonials on its site, our emotional brain doesn’t care. We need to hear about other people’s good experiences with the business, product, or service.

Why? We don’t want to make the wrong choice. Knowing that other people have already worked with this company or bought the product helps our brains feel comfortable with our decision to buy.

Think about it. Have you ever mentally crossed off a service provider from your list because it didn’t have many (or any) Google reviews? Or, as you debated between two similar products on Amazon, did you lean toward the one with more positive reviews? You’re not alone. That’s how it works.

We humans want to know we’re in good company and that other people have already tried and tested the product or service.

This concept is known as “social proof,” a psychological phenomenon in which people copy or are influenced by other people’s actions. It was coined by American psychologist Robert Cialdini in 1984 in his book Influence: Science and Practice. (The book link is an Amazon affiliate link. As an Amazon affiliate, I earn a small commission if you buy, but it won’t cost you more to do so.)

A good example that people of a certain age will likely remember is the “4 out of 5 dentists agree” testament that Trident used in its advertising. Who wouldn’t trust dentists about gum recommendations, right?

In the digital era, social proof like testimonials and reviews are important trust signals on long-form landing pages selling products or services.

Reviews help 90% of online shoppers make buying decisions. Next time you’re on Facebook or Instagram and you encounter an ad for something, click over to the landing page. I can almost guarantee two things: It will be a long scroll, and it will have reviews/testimonials sprinkled along the way.

Bottom line: Advertisers use testimonials because they understand we humans are influenced by other people’s experiences with the product or service.

How to get testimonials from clients. Plus, how to ask customers for reviews.

Here’s the thing: Asking people for testimonials and reviews isn’t a one-and-done task. Businesses should always ask customers and clients for reviews and testimonials.

For e-commerce, this process is often baked into the post-purchase workflow.

Anyone who’s bought something from Amazon has likely received one of these emails.

Image of "rate your experience on the Amazon marketplace" with five stars that you can fill in

 

For other B2C businesses, following a multi-step process can help encourage more customer reviews:

  • Verbal reminders: Encourage sales staff to deliver lines like, “If you liked our service/product, we welcome your reviews on places like Yelp and Google.”
  • Visual reminders: For businesses with physical locations, have signage that reminds people that their feedback and reviews are welcome. You could include a QR code that people can scan with their phones and write a review. This can work well in places like hair salons, car dealerships, restaurants—you get the idea.
  • Text reminders. One of the biggest challenges in getting people to give reviews is timing. Happy customers are usually very willing to talk about their experiences, but their good intentions can easily melt away if the review process is difficult. People are married to their phones, so sending texts with a link that brings people to the primary place you want a review (like Google) can improve conversion rates big time.


Here’s an example of a text testimonial request that I received. And yes, it did prompt me to write one right then and there.

 

Screenshot of a text from a service company asking for a review

 

PRO TIP: Products called reputation management tools can help streamline the process.

Not all businesses necessarily have a presence on popular review sites like Yelp or even Google. Should they still solicit customer reviews? Short answer: YES.

My business is a perfect example. I’m a freelance copywriter. I work with small business owners, marketing agencies, and marketing managers within companies. I display customer testimonials on my site.

How to get testimonials from clients. Here’s my process:

When a client sends me an email and mentions how much they like my writing or working with me, I’ll respond with a “thank you for the kind words” and then ask if I can use their words in a testimonial for my website and other marketing materials.

If a client verbally expresses how much they like working with me—or something specific, like “You ask such good questions”—I’ll follow up with an email repeating what they said. Then, I’ll ask for permission to use their words as a testimonial.

I always give people the option to use their name or not (or a partial name, like “Jessica B.”)

Most people are fine with me using their name and title. Occasionally, they might need to get permission from their boss or the company’s legal department. That’s when things can go sideways. But in almost all cases, I can simply leave out the name and use something like “Marketing manager for a health and wellness company.”

If I know a client is happy with my work, I can also ask them to write me a LinkedIn Recommendation. I can then use the recommendation on my website.

How to request a testimonial from a client – real examples

Here’s an example of an email testimonial where I asked a client if I could use some of her kind words on my website.

Example of a short email asking a client for a testimonial

 

And here’s her response.

Response from client about testimonial request

 

Don’t be afraid to give people direction. Here’s an example of me asking a client to write a testimonial about a specific skill.

 

Example of an email request asking a client to write a testimonial

 

Here’s the result of that request.

Example of a client testimonial

 

How to use customer testimonials

Don’t stockpile your customer testimonials into a “testimonials” page on your site and then forget about them. (It’s OK to have a repository, but not everyone will visit that page. Not to mention, a laundry list of quotes doesn’t make for riveting reading.) Instead, get as much mileage out of your testimonials as possible.

Here’s how to display testimonials on a website and beyond.

Website home page. Home pages tend to be the most trafficked pages. Having that all-important social proof in the form of a customer testimonial or review is essential. Here’s an example of one B2B business:

 

Example of a testimonial on a website home page

 

Service/product pages. Same idea. Social proof is essential. If you’re wondering how to display customer testimonials on your website, adding a review plug-in automates the process.

Landing pages for paid ads. If you run ads on places like Facebook or Instagram, think about where you’re sending people to. Those landing pages must look great and read well and convincingly—and the latter is where reviews come into play. Luckily, products exist that can help you create high-converting landing pages.

Contact pages. Reinforce how fabulous the company is and reassure the person who is about to make contact that they are indeed making a smart decision.

Team pages. If you have bio pages for employees and testimonials that speak directly to the employee, add a snippet of that review to the person’s bio. I write for a urology practice, and that’s the strategy we follow for doctor bios. Here’s an example.

example of a testimonial on a client bio page

 

Social media. Have fun and get creative with how you share snippets of reviews. Here’s how one of my clients does it:

 

Example of a client posting a positive testimonial to its LinkedIn page

 

Corresponding case studies or customer stories. Using real quotes in case studies is what brings the narrative to life and makes it feel more real.

Lead nurturing emails. Businesses send nurturing emails to marketing-qualified leads (MQLs), people who are a good fit for the business’s product or service but are not ready to buy yet. Using short quotes from real customers can be a great way to prime MQLs for sales-qualified status.

Email signatures. Another way to increase the number of eyes on your reviews is to add a phrase from a stellar review or testimonial with a link to more reviews or testimonials.

Print collateral, like marketing brochures, print ads, and signage at events or in-store.

Product/service videos. You could do a video montage of reviews or highlight some of the more glowing reviews.

Asking for testimonials: tips, tricks, and pitfalls to avoid.

It never hurts to ask.

The worst that can happen is someone will decline (often due to legal reasons) or they never respond to your initial ask. I think it’s perfectly OK and fair to follow up once. (Emails get lost, and good intentions fall by the wayside.) But don’t hound. If someone doesn’t respond to your second request, move on. (And try not to take it personally. Easier said than done, I know.)

When you ask for a testimonial, make it easy for people to say yes.

Your approach will be different depending on the type of business you have. If you’re a solopreneur like me, you’ll likely email people with a request. That’s how I get 100% of my testimonials, and they’re usually based on something the client has said in an email.

I’ll piggyback on the email where they shared some nice words. I don’t revise—I want the words to sound authentic—but I’ll condense as needed or fix any obvious typos or glaring grammar errors.

Take advantage of marketing automation. This is especially important if you’re in retail, e-commerce, or some other B2C business. Automation can make it easy to send reminders to customers via text and email. Products might come with default messaging but always customize it.

Be careful about incentivizing reviews.

Have you ever been offered something in exchange for “an honest review”? Here’s one I got for a recent purchase.

Example of a company offering an incentive for a review

I have no doubt this company means well. (And they aren’t US-based.) But this can get tricky. Chances are someone who takes you up on it will be more inclined to write something positive, which is great for the business. But remember, people rely on authentic reviews to make their buying decisions.

The FTC has some good guidance around this. It says, “If you offer an incentive for a review, don’t condition it, explicitly or implicitly, on the review being positive. Even without that condition, the review should disclose the incentive, because its offer may introduce bias or change the weight and credibility that readers give the review.”

Never do anything deceptive, like pay for fake positive reviews. You also shouldn’t pay someone to write bad reviews about your competitors.

Customer testimonial templates

Here are some templates you can use.

Email template #1 for a client – this will work well if you work 1:1 with the client

Hi [NAME],

I’ve enjoyed our work together and appreciate the kind comments you’ve made along the way. Would you be willing to write a short testimonial that I can use on my website? It doesn’t need to be long at all—just a couple of lines would be great.

I can use your name and title or anonymize it if you prefer.

Let me know what you think.

##

Email template #2 for a client

Hi [NAME],

You recently sent an email with a lovely note about my work, and I was wondering if you’d be okay with me using the quote as a testimonial on my site.

Here’s what I’d like to use: [INSERT QUOTE + THE PERSON’S NAME, TITLE, COMPANY]

If you don’t want to use your full name or company name, I can anonymize it to this: [Example: Jessica B, marketing coordinator in the beauty and wellness industry]

Let me know what you think.

##

Ideas for automated messages requesting customer testimonials

Email subject line options:

  • Let us know what you think
  • Your opinion matters
  • Tell others about your experience
  • Care to share a review?
  • Tell the world about us!
  • Love us?! Tell people!

Body copy that could work for emails or texts

Hi [NAME]

Honest reviews help get the word out about our products/. They also help our team improve.

We’d love to know about your recent experience with us. Care to leave a short review?

Here’s a link to [Name the platform, like Google, Trustpilot, etc.]

How to write a testimonial

For a person: [Name] is a [adjective] [title]. She/he is especially skilled in x, y, and z. [Include final recommendation].

  • In action: Robyn is a talented copywriter. She’s especially skilled in writing long-form content, snappy emails, and SEO website copy. I highly recommend her for any writing projects a small business might have.

For a business, service, product: [Business, service, product] is a [adjective] [category]. [Short explanation of your experience with the service/product.] Final recommendation.

  • In action: Awesome Movers is the best moving company I’ve ever used. I’ve moved a lot over the last decade, and this company, hands down, has the best price and the most talented movers. They easily disassembled a complicated office desk and reassembled it in my new home office. Can’t recommend them enough.

How NOT to respond to a review – true story

Even though reviews can help (or hurt) a business, remember that they are first and foremost for prospective customers.

If you decide to respond to a review publicly, well—that response is public. Responding to less-than-stellar reviews in a way that doesn’t appear defensive or out of tune is challenging—if not downright impossible simply because people read things in different ways. You might think your tone is fair, but someone else reading it might think you sound defensive.

If you do respond to negative reviews, here are some things to think about.

Most platforms have protocols for flagging reviews that violate their policies. Carefully review the protocols and only flag a review if you’re 100 % certain the review violates the policy. Note: Someone leaving a strongly-worded negative review isn’t a good reason to flag it.

If you respond to someone who had a bad experience with your business, product, or service, sound human. Responses like “I’m sorry to hear about your experience” aren’t effective because you’re not apologizing for whatever the customer’s grievance is about. A response like that almost makes it sound like the person’s grievance is all in their head. And sure, it might be. But that’s just it. The review is from their point of view, their experience.

Don’t leave comments like “I’m sorry to hear this. We’d like to learn more about your experience. Please contact us to tell us more.” You might think that shows you’re being proactive, but you’re not. You’re putting it back on the customer to take the next step. And it’s even worse if you leave a phone number that leads to an automated main line. And it’s truly even worse if your responses to negative reviews are automated or you say the same thing in every review you respond to.

Want an example of how NOT to respond to negative reviews?

Check out the responses to the negative for this apartment complex.

And finally, here’s a “funny” experience that I had with a handyman. He kept bugging me to leave a review, which was surprising because we had a rough start to our engagement (he was always late, and one time, he blew up at my partner and me in a highly inappropriate manner). His work was OK enough, and because I’m a fellow business owner who gets how tough it can be out there sometimes, I wrote a four-star review (which was generous—I almost made it 3.5).

And guess what? He had the gall to question why we didn’t give him five stars. Yes, really.

See the text exchange below.

text from service provider questioning why I gave him a 4-star review and my response about what I believe constitutes a 5-star review and that he hadn't provided us with that

 

Obviously, don’t do something like that. 🙂

Bottom line: Getting customer testimonials and reviews is important to your business. But how you ask for reviews is also important.

Also, I can’t recommend this book enough: Using Behavioral Science in Marketing: Drive Customer Action and Loyalty by Prompting Instinctive Responses by Nancy Harhut. NOTE: It’s an Amazon affiliate link. As an Amazon Associate, I earn a small commission if you buy, but it won’t cost you more if you do. I own this book.

Got questions? Get in touch. If you’re interested in more topics like this, browse my blog or visit my YouTube channel.

20 Business Anniversary Marketing Ideas For Big Milestones

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It always amazes me when companies overlook simple things, like their own birthdays. Marking major milestones, like 10, 20, or 50+ years in business, is a great way to engage customers, reinforce credibility, and garner press. In 2022, I’m celebrating 20 (!) years in business as a freelance copywriter. So in the spirit of my anniversary, here are 20 business anniversary marketing ideas.

Don’t feel like reading? Watch my video with Stewie, my sidekick sloth. Otherwise, keep scrolling!

1. Modify your website logo and/or create a universal header that highlights the anniversary.

I’m not talking words, but rather some sort of a visual that appears on every page. (Yes, you’ll want to note it in words as well.) Adding a banner graphic that notes the anniversary and having it link to a retrospective blog post is a good strategy. (Bonus: add the banner to social sites, like FB, Twitter, and LinkedIn.)

2. Have all employees add a line in their email signatures.

Something like . . . Celebrating 25 years in business in 2025.

3. Don’t forget after-hours phone messages or on-hold messaging.

You have a captive audience, after all. So plug your big anniversary, and be creative. For example, if your company is celebrating 100 (or more) years in business, the on-hold message could say something like . . . “Proud to be celebrating 100 years in business, long before phones were a ubiquitous thing.”

4. Think signage.

If you’re in a business that has a van or a storefront, think of signs, posters, and visuals in the windows. And you can wrap your company vehicles.

5. Think employees and their uniforms.

If you have employees who interact with the public, think buttons that promote the anniversary. Amazon makes it super easy to create and order custom buttons. (When available, I use affiliate links and may earn a commission. As an Amazon Associate, I earn from qualifying purchases.)

6. Write a blog post or article about your anniversary.

Been in business for 20 years? Talk about how much your industry has changed in 20 years.

7. Write a blog post about your vision or predictions for the next x-number of years.

Interview key players in your company. Bonus: You can turn this into a video.

8. Beef up your company/about us page section.

Create a page around the milestone. Interactive timelines can be great for big milestones—think anything over 25 years.

9. Don’t forget social media profiles.

Update your bios and various about sections (Facebook, LinkedIn) to reflect the milestone.

10. Do some sort of weekly event on social media.

Maybe every Friday, you pull something out of the archives—an old pic, an old product—you get the idea.

11. Create a promotion around the number.

For example, if you’re an acupuncturist who’s been in business for five years, invite people to enter a raffle to win five free treatments.

12. Do a video retrospective.

It doesn’t need to be professionally shot. Simply gather some footage with your phone and have employees talk about the company. Intersperse with pics.

13. Invest in some anniversary swag.

“Celebrating 25 years in business in 2025” can be a great line for promotional pens and promotional water bottles. (Amazon affiliate links. As an Amazon Associate, I earn from qualifying purchases.)

14. Throw an anniversary party.

Seems obvious, right? An anniversary party is a fantastic way to let your business be REAL. A party is also a great way to thank people for their involvement in your success. I’m talking about employees, customers, and vendors alike. Here in Massachusetts, a fun place to hold a corporate event is Kimball Farm (great ice cream!) in Westford, Mass. Michael Katz of Blue Penguin has been holding anniversary events there for many years.

15. Honor your clients.

Especially if anyone has been with you since the beginning. You can tier your presents/gifts. So if you have some VIPs who’ve been with you since you started, give them a special gift.

16. Honor your employees.

Same thing—has anyone been with you since the very beginning? Give them a little extra something-something. If you’ve been in business for 15 years and you have a few people who’ve been with you since the start, maybe you bonus them $1500. Maybe you give other employees $150. Be creative. You can do thoughtful things within budget. Keep in mind that the things people value most from their employers are money and time off. Maybe you award 15 different star employees with an extra paid day off. Or maybe you give everyone in the company an extra 15 hours off, which is essentially two days. Or maybe you shut down during Christmas week if that’s something you don’t already do.

17. Give to charities in employees’ names.

Here’s a fun idea that gives back and can also please employees. Every month, invite employees to nominate a charity that they’d like your company to donate to. Each month, pick a charity and give a monetary amount in their name. If you’ve been in business for 25 years—do $250.

18. Give managers “just because” gift cards to hand to employees.

If you’re celebrating 25 years, for example, give managers a stash of $25 gift cards that they can hand out to employees who are embodying everything your business stands for.

19. Seek out press, if appropriate.

For really big anniversaries—anything beyond 50 years—you can get press on that, so consider working with a publicist or PR consultant.

20. Enter your idea here.

Solicit ideas from your employees and managers. No doubt, you can come up with something that will be meaningful to your crew. Run with it!

Need assistance developing business anniversary marketing ideas? Get in touch.

The Copy Bitch is at your service. 😉

Does Direct Mail Still Work? (Short Answer: Yes)

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Dear Copy Bitch: We’re an HVAC company, and we keep encountering marketing consultants who say we should abandon direct mail marketing altogether. But here’s the thing: our direct mail pieces convert. The ROI is great. Still, I wonder if this is just an anomaly, and if I should get out while I can and redistribute my marketing dollars elsewhere. We have an optimized website, we add engaging content regularly, and we’re delving into social media. Should we put all our focus in those things, or is it okay to still have some of our marketing dollars going towards direct mail? What say you, oh wondrous Copy Bitch? And if you do think there’s still a place for direct mail, can you give some examples of effective direct mail pieces? Thanks for the great blog!

–M.H., Atlanta, GA

ANSWER: The death of direct mail has been greatly exaggerated, methinks. A good direct mail piece can still work — and might even have a greater chance of working today, thanks to the fact so many people are abandoning this marketing method (i.e. if done right, your piece has a great chance of standing out since there are fewer pieces of junk mail, at least in my mailbox).

Now as my regular readers know, I drink at the Altar of HubSpot, and I worship Saint Godin. HubSpot is all about inbound marketing, but it recognizes that outbound marketing tactics — like direct mail — still have a place in a company’s marketing plan. Saint Godin is all about what works and what makes sense for your business and, most importantly, your customers.

So, in essence, you’ve answered your own question: your direct mail is working, people are responding to it, you’re seeing conversions, and you’re experiencing great ROI. You have marketing dollars invested in inbound marketing efforts as well. Sounds like you have the right mix right now. The key is monitoring and measuring results. What works today might not work two years from now. But it sounds like you’re well aware of that.

So what does work? Here are three direct mail pieces that were delivered to my mailbox that caught my attention (for the right reasons):

  1. A free DVD of the Oscar award-winning movie Smile Pinki from Smile Train, a charitable organization that I support. Who wouldn’t love to get a free movie in the mail? And this movie has a great way of reaching other potential donors, since I’m bound to share it (and talk about it, like I’m doing here) with others.
  2. Coupon booklets – I always thumb through the coupon booklets I get and often use the restaurant coupons.
  3. The book Linchpin: Are You Indispensable? by Seth Godin. He didn’t send me his latest book because I ordered it. He sent it to me because I’d bought books from him in the past and he thought I’d enjoy it. Of course, I’d planned on buying the book on my own. I hadn’t placed my order yet, but in the letter that accompanied the book, Saint Godin said that if I already had Linchpin, then I should pass on this extra copy to someone else who could benefit. (Is the guy brilliant or what?)

Here’s a piece of snail mail that caught my attention for the WRONG reasons:

TruGreen and Lowe’s sent me an over-sized postcard with a coupon for $29.95 off my first custom lawn treatment. Problem is, I’m in an apartment building. All of us in the building got this postcard. Someone wasted marketing dollars on a mailing list that included apartment numbers, a field that could have been easily filtered out, had someone been paying attention to the details.

Conversational Copywriting: Don’t underestimate “chatty” writing

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Dear Copy Bitch: I’m banging my head over here because, once again, I’ve encountered a client who thinks writing web copy and feature articles in third person is “right” and that “conversational” is unprofessional. I know you advocate conversational copy, so how do you handle this with clients?

—Frustrated Copywriter in Boston

Answer: I feel your pain, Boston Copywriter. This writer does not believe that one should write in third person because the tone one creates is stuffy and aloof. (See?)

And I’d give my favorite George Clooney poster in exchange for the name of the first person who perpetuated the myth that conversational and professional are mutually exclusive terms.

You can be serious, professional, and conversational (next time you get “junk mail” for a charity, read it and consider the tone); fun, professional, and conversational (ditto for junk mail trying to sell you a new cell phone service or credit card); and annoying, unprofessional, and conversational (my neighbor, when he’s trying to sell God-knows-what from his balcony at 2am).

I wish I had a magic wand that I could wave over clients and it would remove any memory of the damage done by well-meaning high school teachers. “Formal writing” is fine for legal briefs and dissertations (I use the word “fine” loosely, because I think both of these items would be easier to read if written in a conversational tone). How many people go, “I’m in the mood for a good dissertation to bring with me to the beach?” No one that I can think of.

I’m also willing to say this: conversational copy is more important now than ever before, thanks to social media. You can’t have effective social media without having conversations, and you can’t have effective conversations if you’re not, well, conversational. As far as I’m concerned, this goes for ALL industries, even those notoriously “formal” ones.

So what can you say to your client? How can you prove your theory that conversational is more effective?  The best way is by conducting a split test, also known as A/B testing, because the proof will be in the conversions.

For web pages, this works really well, and it’s cost effective. Set up two landing pages for a particular campaign and have one page be in “client speak” (let the client write it–just edit it for typos) and the other be in your winning “conversational tone.” See which one converts better.

One thing you should keep in mind is this: it’s hard for some people to let go of rules that they’ve been holding onto since the sixth grade. Either accept this and applaud their baby steps or start working with those folks who recognize the beauty and effectiveness in a well-placed “bullshit.” (Guess which direction I’m taking my business in?)

Learn more about my no-BS approach to marketing writing here.

Wondering How to Engage Customers? Some Do’s & Don’ts

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I wrote this blog post on how to engage customers a bunch of years ago. In it, I share a true story.

And you know what? The lessons within and the customer engagement strategies I share still hold true.

So, let’s get to it: How to engage customers, a true-life story of the good, the bad, and the ugly (including what NOT to do).

It all started with this question . . .

Dear Copy Bitch: I keep reading that I need to engage my customers in conversation, and I feel that my team and I already do that. So why am I not seeing more “benefits” from this engagement?

—Confused in Manchester, NH

Indeed, the buzzword these days is “conversation.” Engage your customers and have conversations with them. That’s all well and good, but I have a question: What if the conversation isn’t satisfying to your customers? Is it enough for your business to simply be having the conversations, or should the goal be to have satisfying conversations?

Here’s my philosophy: Don’t try to engage your customers in conversation unless you’re willing to commit to having satisfying conversations. Now, I realize that you won’t be able to please every customer or prospect you come in contact with. And I’m not saying all conversations have to be intellectual or life-changing. A satisfying conversation isn’t something I can necessarily describe, but I know it when I see it and experience it.

Here’s a true-life example that recently happened to me. This example is a mixture of satisfying and unsatisfying customer engagement.

Here’s the story: Since I live in Massachusetts, I’m required by state law to have health insurance. Since I’m a freelance copywriter, I pay for my own health insurance. The Health Connector is an independent state agency that helps people like me find the right health insurance plan, and it promotes Commonwealth Choice and Commonwealth Care on its website. I get mine through Commonwealth Choice. Back in February, Commonwealth Choice offered e-pay, which I immediately signed up for. I do 99% of my personal and business payments this way for two reasons:

  1. It’s ultra-convenient for me.
  2. It’s a green solution (no more bills in the mail).

However, after having been on e-pay for six months, I kept getting paper bills. The amount due was listed as $0, and there was a return envelope for payment. This went against my whole greener solution. I went on the website to see if there was any information about why I might be getting a paper bill in the mail.

On the FAQs section of the e-pay website, it said (and still says) this:

Question: Will I continue to receive bills through the mail if I enroll in e-pay? Will it show my payment status?

Answer: We will continue to send you a regular monthly bill in the mail.

I don’t know about you, but that FAQ didn’t make any sense to me. So I called Commonwealth Choice and had a very unsatisfying conversation with the customer service rep who took my call. I explained my conundrum, and she didn’t make me feel like I had a valid question. She simply told me they were “required” to send me paper invoices. I asked if she knew whether this would change since it was a policy that was wasting paper, and she said she didn’t know but that maybe people in IT were working on it.

I decided to turn to Twitter, and sure enough, @HealthConnector had an active account. So I tweeted. Here’s how it played out:

ME: @healthconnector Why do you waste paper by sending me “invoices” for $0 (with a return envelope for remittance) when I pay automatically online?

HC:  Hmmm. Good question. Are you a Commonwealth Choice member? And if so, how long have you had E-Pay?

ME: Commonwealth Choice. Signed up for E-Pay right when you started it back in Feb/March. One reason I do epay is 2 b green!

OK, so far, so good. I was pleased with the rapid reply. And for the record, I respect “I don’t know, but let me find out” responses. I appreciate the honesty. Satisfied so far? You betchya. But then four days went by (including two weekend days, so we’ll forgive that). Here’s what happened next.

ME: @HealthConnecter Any word on why I’m still getting paper invoices? Signed up for auto e-pay back in February. ’tis a waste of paper.

And another two days…

ME:  Any word?

Finally, a response…

HC: @RobynBradley E-pay is here, but the e-billing is not yet built out. Until it is, paper is how we confirm your payment status. We’re on it.

HC: Sorry for the delay, btw. Needed to confirm the status of e-billing. Thanks for reaching out — and for going green!

So, what did I think of this digital customer engagement? 

How satisfying was this conversation for me? I’d label it “so-so,” and here’s my point: I had someone or something engaging me, the customer, at every step of the process (meaning the website FAQs, the customer service rep I called, and the person managing the Twitter account). But not every engagement step, and certainly not every conversation, left me satisfied, and here’s why:

1. The FAQ section left me unsatisfied. An easy fix? Simply explain that e-pay and e-billing are two separate things. (I’ll admit I didn’t know this until I went through this experience.) I’d also recommend that the FAQ section not only explain the difference but also why the Commonwealth Choice folks decided to release e-pay first as opposed to waiting and releasing e-pay and e-billing at the same time (like most other companies do). Out of all the vendors that I pay electronically, this is the only one where the e-billing component isn’t working in tandem with epay.

2. Customer service reps should be prepped on these answers as well, and they should be encouraged to acknowledge a person’s query about it and express their understanding as to why someone who is trying to go green would be frustrated by getting a useless invoice for $0 AND a useless return envelope in the mail.

3. My initial interaction with @HealthConnector was totally satisfying. Then it wasn’t. But then it sorta was. I appreciate the “sorry for the delay,” but the answer didn’t make sense to me (I actually then had to research that e-pay and e-billing are two different things). The “thanks for going green” comment felt a little hollow because my whole point is that the current situation isn’t totally green yet (it won’t be until e-billing is released, whenever that will be; saying “we’re on it” is okay, but vague).

So what are the takeaways from this?

  1. If you want to have kickass digital customer engagement, simply engaging with customers isn’t enough. The engagement must be satisfying to the customer. You must figure out how to enhance customer engagement at every step of their journey with you. You need to make the commitment to leave them satisfied, which requires you to try to get in their head and think like them.
  2. Look deeper into their questions. My first tweet to @healthconnector mentioned the waste of paper, and my second tweet mentioned that I do e-pay because I want to be green, and my point is that receiving paper and an envelope in the mail every month detracts from my feeling of greenness. But neither one of these important issues was really acknowledged anywhere along the customer engagement process (not by the FAQ, not by the customer service rep, and not by the Twitter exchange).
  3. Now, I realize you won’t be able to satisfy all customers. But what can you do and say differently that would satisfy more of them? How can you change the tenor of the conversation to make it more effective and satisfying?

So what would have satisfied me?

  1. Better FAQ answers
  2. A customer service rep who didn’t make me feel like I was wasting her time
  3. Acknowledgement that the company isn’t totally green yet (since it just has e-pay), but that it hopes to be totally green within x-amount of time. Oh, and thanks for my patience during the wait b/c it must be frustrating getting the paper bills.

What do you think? Is simply having the conversation enough? Or do we need to strive for satisfying conversations?

By the way, if you want to know how to engage customers better, read this book.

I can’t recommend this book enough: Using Behavioral Science in Marketing: Drive Customer Action and Loyalty by Prompting Instinctive Responses by Nancy Harhut. (Note: I’ve included an Amazon affiliate link. I’ll earn a small commission if you buy, but it won’t cost you more.) I only recommend stuff I stand by.

This book, published in 2022, is SO comprehensive and easy to read and digest. It discusses the reasons behind people’s decisions and what sorts of marketing messages tend to resonate.

UPDATE: I originally published this post in November 2009. In 2017, the Health Connector finally launched paperless billing. Think of all the wasted money on paper and postage between ’09 and 2017). It’s 2024 as I make this latest round of edits. What I’m suggesting above still applies. There’s still so much that businesses and organizations need to learn about how to increase customer engagement.

Marketing Tips: Yes, You Have Competitors (Even if You Think You Don’t)

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Dear Copy Bitch: I have a copywriter working on my website copy, and she recently asked me who my competitors are. Here’s the thing: I know it’s a standard question, but we really don’t have competitors. No one does the work as well as we do. We really are different. How do I explain this to the copywriter? Her copy should be focusing on what makes us so great, right?

—Awesome Company, Boston

Answer: Sure, from your perspective your nearest competitor is so far behind you that there’s no way anyone would possibly opt for said competitor over you, right? That’s a fine and dandy attitude to have if you’re, say, eight and still thinking the world revolves around you. But how ’bout putting on your big boy or big girl pants and looking at it from your prospects’ perspectives?

Your prospects don’t know you’re the be-all end-all in your industry, and they certainly won’t “get” it just because you tell them so on your website. Your copywriter is smart for asking about your competitors. Why? Because it’s important to look at how your competitors are positioning themselves, their services, and their products so that you can figure out what they’re doing right (because they will be doing something right, I guarantee it), what they’re doing wrong (ditto), and how you’re really going to demonstrate your company’s unique qualities (i.e., your unique selling proposition).

Remember, your website (and any other marketing vehicles) should be about your customers and prospects first. Acknowledge their needs, worries, fears, and pain and then demonstrate how your company fulfills those needs, relieves their fears and worries, and eliminates their pain.

There’s an adage in creative writing: show, don’t tell. The same is true here. Telling me you’re the greatest and that any “so-called” competitor is a lying heap of horse manure won’t be as effective as showing me how well you take care of your current customers and what makes you different from the competition.

Pretending the competition doesn’t exist or isn’t good enough or is too far behind you to catch up is dumb-ass marketing. Don’t do it.