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Other Added - Using the Power of Client Testimonials to Grow Your Business
A business needs a merchant credit card account to accept credit card payments from customers. These companies accept credit card payments through a combination of software and hardware and are usually referred to as credit card merchant accounts. There are two types of merchant credit card accounts. One is the physical credit card merchant account and the other is the web credit card merchant account. By and large higher rates are paid by businesses with web credit card merchant accounts.As a business owner, it would be prudent on your part to open up a merchant credit card account since so many people
You may want to ask your clients some or all of the following questions and to customize each email with the name of the product or service the client purchased. When a client has purchased more than one product or service, send a separate email request for each.
- What first attracted you to (name the teleclass, internet course, product or service the client purchased) and why did you decide to purchase it?
- What was the most beneficial tool, concept or idea that you gained from (the product or service)?
- How are you currently utilizing (the product or service in your business and/or life)?
- Has it saved you and your business time, money or energy? If so, in what way(s)?
- Why would you recommend (the product or service) to your associates, colleagues or clients?
- What would you like to say to someone who is considering purchasing
It doesn't matter what business or investment you are looking at...it all comes down to analyzing a few key factors.The higher each of these factors rate with you, plus the combination of them all, the better your potential for return.Industry - Is the business's industry expanding or contracting?Trends - Will you be ahead or behind the trends?Timing - Are you early or late in the product & industry life cycle?Products - Do they provide value for money to the end user?Uniqueness - Does the company have any exclusivity, patents, etc?Demand - How big is the market
Human nature gives testimonials such power because we love discovering what one person thinks of another – even when it’s positive! It’s the same dynamic that makes gossip so hard to resist. As a professional coach, you want the positive “gossip” that testimonials provide because you can use that information to promote yourself, your services and products, to call attention to your strengths and to distinguish yourself from your competitors.
Testimonials also are powerful because they are first-person accounts: when a client makes a positive statement about you and backs it up with his or her name and contact information, it enhances your credibility.
In addition, written testimonials are fabulously flexible. They can be used powerfully on your website, in printed and electronic promotional materials, following the signature line of your emails and in many other ways and places. Once you have obtained testimonials from your clients, you will think of a hundred ways to use them!
Now that we have established the value of client testimonials, here are a few dos and don’ts to guide you as you obtain and use them to grow your business.
DO let your clients know the benefits to them of providing testimonials that will be used on your website(s), such as:
- increased exposure for their business, thanks to internet serendipity;
- increased website traffic and/or business for them, generated by a link from your website to theirs;
- enhanced standing among search engines, due to more internet exposure; and
- that genuinely warm feeling that comes from helping another “solopreneur”!
DO obtain your clients’ permission to use their full name and email address because it will give their testimonials a great deal more credibility. (Let’s assume I have written a glowing testimonial for someone whose services I use. Now compare the impact of these two testimonial signatures: “A.S., Coach” or Alicia Smith, Business Coach and DISC Ninja; Alicia@aliciasmith.com. The second is far more powerful.)
DON’T (ever) use fictional testimonials because they can destroy your credibility.
DO utilize honest (verbatim) testimonials that speak to what your potential clients will most want to know about you, including (but not limited to!) why you are such a fantastic coach and why you, your services and your products are so special.
DO store your client testimonials in a Word document or Excel database so that you can find them easily. You may want to organize them by client name, service or product.
The next step is to obtain testimonials from your clients. Here are the basic steps and some questions to get you started.
Begin by sending your clients a friendly email stating that you are seeking a testimonial you can use in your marketing. Personalize your communication as much as possible. For example, your letter may begin, “Dear Jim: Last December, you participated in my teleclass, (name of class). I certainly hope you found the class to be helpful. Because I am revamping my marketing materials, I am writing to ask you a favor: I would deeply appreciate it if you would take a few minutes to answer the questions below.” (Be sure to work into your letter the benefits to these clients of providing testimonials that will be used on your website.)
You may want to ask your clients some or all of the following questions and to customize each email with the name of the product or service the client purchased. When a client has purchased more than one product or service, send a separate email request for each.
- What first attracted you to (name the teleclass, internet course, product or service the client purchased) and why did you decide to purchase it?
- What was the most beneficial tool, concept or idea that you gained from (the product or service)?
- How are you currently utilizing (the product or service in your business and/or life)?
- Has it saved you and your business time, money or energy? If so, in what way(s)?
- Why would you recommend (the product or service) to your associates, colleagues or clients?
- What would you like to say to someone who is considering purchasing
If you are in business for yourself you know how important it is to get good business advice.When I first started out in business at the age of 20 I knew nothing about business and what was involved.I had always been a bit of an entrepreneur, I used to sell bits and bobs to school friends and I was always thinking of new ways to make money.When I left school my father advised me to get a trade, so I trained as a Plumber, and hated very minute of it. I was working for slave wages and getting all the dirty jobs that no one else wanted to do. I stuck at it for 4 years until I finally decided t
In addition, written testimonials are fabulously flexible. They can be used powerfully on your website, in printed and electronic promotional materials, following the signature line of your emails and in many other ways and places. Once you have obtained testimonials from your clients, you will think of a hundred ways to use them!
Now that we have established the value of client testimonials, here are a few dos and don’ts to guide you as you obtain and use them to grow your business.
DO let your clients know the benefits to them of providing testimonials that will be used on your website(s), such as:
- increased exposure for their business, thanks to internet serendipity;
- increased website traffic and/or business for them, generated by a link from your website to theirs;
- enhanced standing among search engines, due to more internet exposure; and
- that genuinely warm feeling that comes from helping another “solopreneur”!
DO obtain your clients’ permission to use their full name and email address because it will give their testimonials a great deal more credibility. (Let’s assume I have written a glowing testimonial for someone whose services I use. Now compare the impact of these two testimonial signatures: “A.S., Coach” or Alicia Smith, Business Coach and DISC Ninja; Alicia@aliciasmith.com. The second is far more powerful.)
DON’T (ever) use fictional testimonials because they can destroy your credibility.
DO utilize honest (verbatim) testimonials that speak to what your potential clients will most want to know about you, including (but not limited to!) why you are such a fantastic coach and why you, your services and your products are so special.
DO store your client testimonials in a Word document or Excel database so that you can find them easily. You may want to organize them by client name, service or product.
The next step is to obtain testimonials from your clients. Here are the basic steps and some questions to get you started.
Begin by sending your clients a friendly email stating that you are seeking a testimonial you can use in your marketing. Personalize your communication as much as possible. For example, your letter may begin, “Dear Jim: Last December, you participated in my teleclass, (name of class). I certainly hope you found the class to be helpful. Because I am revamping my marketing materials, I am writing to ask you a favor: I would deeply appreciate it if you would take a few minutes to answer the questions below.” (Be sure to work into your letter the benefits to these clients of providing testimonials that will be used on your website.)
You may want to ask your clients some or all of the following questions and to customize each email with the name of the product or service the client purchased. When a client has purchased more than one product or service, send a separate email request for each.
- What first attracted you to (name the teleclass, internet course, product or service the client purchased) and why did you decide to purchase it?
- What was the most beneficial tool, concept or idea that you gained from (the product or service)?
- How are you currently utilizing (the product or service in your business and/or life)?
- Has it saved you and your business time, money or energy? If so, in what way(s)?
- Why would you recommend (the product or service) to your associates, colleagues or clients?
- What would you like to say to someone who is considering purchasing
KNOW WHAT YOU NEED Understand how you intend to use business financing, how much funding you need and how you intend to repay the loan. Be able to communicate this clearly and confidently with prospective lenders.UNDERSTAND YOUR CURRENT SITUATION If you are an existing business, are you profitable, and does your balance sheet have positive equity? What does your credit look like? Have a clear understanding of any existing liens and lien priority. Know your credit score and answers to derogatory credit issues (liens, judgments, slow pays, collection actions) before presenting your application. If the
- that genuinely warm feeling that comes from helping another “solopreneur”!
DO obtain your clients’ permission to use their full name and email address because it will give their testimonials a great deal more credibility. (Let’s assume I have written a glowing testimonial for someone whose services I use. Now compare the impact of these two testimonial signatures: “A.S., Coach” or Alicia Smith, Business Coach and DISC Ninja; Alicia@aliciasmith.com. The second is far more powerful.)
DON’T (ever) use fictional testimonials because they can destroy your credibility.
DO utilize honest (verbatim) testimonials that speak to what your potential clients will most want to know about you, including (but not limited to!) why you are such a fantastic coach and why you, your services and your products are so special.
DO store your client testimonials in a Word document or Excel database so that you can find them easily. You may want to organize them by client name, service or product.
The next step is to obtain testimonials from your clients. Here are the basic steps and some questions to get you started.
Begin by sending your clients a friendly email stating that you are seeking a testimonial you can use in your marketing. Personalize your communication as much as possible. For example, your letter may begin, “Dear Jim: Last December, you participated in my teleclass, (name of class). I certainly hope you found the class to be helpful. Because I am revamping my marketing materials, I am writing to ask you a favor: I would deeply appreciate it if you would take a few minutes to answer the questions below.” (Be sure to work into your letter the benefits to these clients of providing testimonials that will be used on your website.)
You may want to ask your clients some or all of the following questions and to customize each email with the name of the product or service the client purchased. When a client has purchased more than one product or service, send a separate email request for each.
- What first attracted you to (name the teleclass, internet course, product or service the client purchased) and why did you decide to purchase it?
- What was the most beneficial tool, concept or idea that you gained from (the product or service)?
- How are you currently utilizing (the product or service in your business and/or life)?
- Has it saved you and your business time, money or energy? If so, in what way(s)?
- Why would you recommend (the product or service) to your associates, colleagues or clients?
- What would you like to say to someone who is considering purchasing
Sellers have historically viewed earn outs with suspicion as a way for buyers to get control of their companies cheaply. Earn outs are a variable pricing mechanism designed to tie final sale price to future performance of the acquired entity and are tied to measurable economic milestones such as revenues, gross profit, net income and EBITDA. An intelligently structured earn out not only can facilitate the closing of a deal, but can be a win for both buyer and seller. Below are ten reasons earn outs should be considered as part of your selling transaction structure.1. Buyers acquisition multiples are a
The next step is to obtain testimonials from your clients. Here are the basic steps and some questions to get you started.
Begin by sending your clients a friendly email stating that you are seeking a testimonial you can use in your marketing. Personalize your communication as much as possible. For example, your letter may begin, “Dear Jim: Last December, you participated in my teleclass, (name of class). I certainly hope you found the class to be helpful. Because I am revamping my marketing materials, I am writing to ask you a favor: I would deeply appreciate it if you would take a few minutes to answer the questions below.” (Be sure to work into your letter the benefits to these clients of providing testimonials that will be used on your website.)
You may want to ask your clients some or all of the following questions and to customize each email with the name of the product or service the client purchased. When a client has purchased more than one product or service, send a separate email request for each.
- What first attracted you to (name the teleclass, internet course, product or service the client purchased) and why did you decide to purchase it?
- What was the most beneficial tool, concept or idea that you gained from (the product or service)?
- How are you currently utilizing (the product or service in your business and/or life)?
- Has it saved you and your business time, money or energy? If so, in what way(s)?
- Why would you recommend (the product or service) to your associates, colleagues or clients?
- What would you like to say to someone who is considering purchasing
With the augmentation and continuous style enhancement, it is vital that you take care of your Gucci watch. If you're going to be spending near a thousand dollars on a watch, and possibly more, you want to make sure it gets treated regularly and is taken care of. Here are 6 tips to help you care for your Gucci watch the way it needs to be.1.) Bedtime. Many of the Gucci watches come with a scratch-resistance of some sort, but its better to be safe than sorry. When you take your watch off, try to always place it back in its case. This will avoid any accidents of it getting knocked over or spilled on by
You may want to ask your clients some or all of the following questions and to customize each email with the name of the product or service the client purchased. When a client has purchased more than one product or service, send a separate email request for each.
- What first attracted you to (name the teleclass, internet course, product or service the client purchased) and why did you decide to purchase it?
- What was the most beneficial tool, concept or idea that you gained from (the product or service)?
- How are you currently utilizing (the product or service in your business and/or life)?
- Has it saved you and your business time, money or energy? If so, in what way(s)?
- Why would you recommend (the product or service) to your associates, colleagues or clients?
- What would you like to say to someone who is considering purchasing (the product or service)?
You now have the basic information you need to obtain client testimonials that you can use to power up your business and Make Money Now! Here’s a very important final tip: once you begin to receive testimonials from your clients, be absolutely sure to enjoy the wonderful things they say about you!
© Copyright 2004, Alicia Smith. All rights reserved.
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