We’ve all heard the old saying, “A picture’s worth a thousand words.” So if a picture’s that powerful, how potent is a video? I’d say a sales video is worth a million pictures. That a whole lot of words-worth!

But the power and value of video is more than just in looking good. A video is pure communication at the most basic level. Observe a three-year old child watching TV. They’re absorbing and processing visual information a mile a minute.

And though we get older and more sophisticated, there’s no changing those neural pathways. Presenting information visually is a high-speed highway to fast, deep communication. And isn’t communication the key element of selling?

Increase sales with video

If you want to increase sales, especially in today’s online environment, use video. It’s a fact: online video increases sales. It’s pretty easy to see why. Video is a live demonstration of your product or service. Video breathes life into whatever your selling and shows it in its best light. You see it and hear it. It’s the old “Show and Tell” formula you learned in kindergarten!

Do you have a product to sell? Online video product demonstrations show your wares beautifully. If your product moves or performs a function — like a vacuum cleaner, tool, or toy for example — it’s easy to show how it works. Set up a simple before and after sequence that demonstrates your product’s advantages.

Video for services businesses

If you’re in a service business, there’s still plenty of opportunity to use the selling power of video. “But if there’s no product,” I can hear you saying, “what do I show in the video?” In the absence of a product to demonstrate, here’s a very effective technique: make a video of your customers talking about your service.

This is called a “customer testimonial video” – your customers talking about you, your service, and your company in their own words. Surveys by The Nielson Company, world leader in tracking consumer trends, document an interesting fact: almost three-quarters of consumers surveyed said they place great trust in purchase recommendations made by complete strangers!

30% sales increase

Please note: customer testimonial videos aren’t just for service businesses; they work great for selling products, too. One of my clients, www.SeaEagle.com, reports a 30% sales increase directly attributable to using online testimonial videos. See their report, (address).

In summary, whether you’re a manufacturer, distributor, dealer, retailer — even if you run a small home business — putting your selling story out there in video format is today’s most powerful way to increase sales.

Steve Edwards

Copywriter/Direct Marketer

www.EdwardsDirect.net

Ever see online customer testimonial videos? You know, videos of real people talking about a product or service they’ve used. Kind of a reality TV style commercial.

If you’ve gone online recently, I’m sure you’ve seen some. Here’s a great one. http://timberking.com/video.cfm?video=11 Credibility just pours off Bruce Baker. He’s a real customer, a real guy, telling of his real experience, in his own words. That’s good advertising.

The beauty of these online customer testimonials is that they aren’t beautiful. They aren’t Holllywood. They aren’t a fantasy like commercials that promise a better love life if only you had fresh breath…

Pay attention and you’ll see customer testimonials at work all over the place. Magazine ads, newspapers, brochures for all kinds of products and services.

But how do you get customer testimonials?

“Sure,” you say. “I get it: customer testimonials have selling power. But how do I get customer testimonials in the first place?”

You’ve got a business, right? You’ve got customers, right? Well, chances are you’re already receiving great customer testimonials but you’re just not collecting them.

Put your sales people on special alert: “Collect all customer feedback!” And don’t forget the clincher: “And get it to me immediately!”

If you use product registration forms or warranty cards, they’re rich sources of customer feedback. Your “contact us” form on your website is another one. And tell Sales and Customer Service to cc you on any and all e-mail that contains a customer’s opinion or comment – good or bad.

(And by the way, the only thing “bad” about a bad comment from a customer is you, if you don’t respond to it.)

Send an e-mail to your customers asking for feedback. Invite feedback on your website. Mail customers a letter. Talk to them in the showroom. Stop and chat with them in the parking lot.

After you’ve collected customer stories…

Build a library of customer comments then turn them into customer testimonials. Start with the short comments. You can run them as-is in an ad or brochure. “I love my new Mazda. You guys at Acme Motors are the best!”

Stack them up. Build a column of short testimonials in your sales brochures. Put them on your website under “Customer Testimonials.”

But you can do much more. A good short comment can turn into a great long story if you pursue it. Give the customer a call and ask them to elaborate. Tape record the conversation and transcribe it for later use – but ask them if it’s OK first, and get a signed release afterwards.

Harness the power of testimonial videos

A great customer endorsement becomes an extraordinary testimonial when you capture it on video. I video-document my clients’ testimonials with help from www.IncreaseSalesWithVideo.com, a Chicago-based video company that’ll go anywhere, any time to shoot video customer testimonials.

Once in video format, you can mount your testimonials on your website, put them on DVD, use them at trade shows, or loop them on a TV in your showroom.

It all starts with awareness: you’re already getting customer feedback. Launch programs to capture it and build the feedback into powerful, versatile customer testimonials.

Steve Edwards

Copywriter/Direct Marketer

www.EdwardsDirect.net

Shoppers trust advice from those who’ve already purchased.

Whose advice do you trust when you’re pondering a purchase? Most folks’ first pick is a friend who already owns what they’re considering. And, overwhelmingly, their second most-trusted source of purchase advice is a complete stranger.

A stranger, that is, who’s already bought the product or service they’re considering.

If you say it’s true I’ll believe you.

So says The Nielson Company, global leader in tracking consumer trends, in their recent Global Online Survey. Nearly three-quarters of consumers surveyed said they place great trust in purchase recommendations made by complete strangers.

Pay attention, because this is important: a nod from your existing customers can put prospective customers at ease and make them far more willing to do business with you. Simply put, using customer endorsements in your advertising materials – online and offline – will increase your sales.

It only makes sense. Human nature being what it is, when one of your past customers sings your praises, would-be customers believe. And when they believe, they buy.

Harness the power of customer testimonials

Using testimonials in advertising is hardly new. I have in my collection of advertising ephemera a 1920’s ad for a firewood saw in which Mr. G.W. Smith, 73, of Vero, Florida, is pictured and quoted as saying, “I cut 100 cords of wood in 4 days with my Ottawa (Log Saw). I can make good money by having this outfit. I feel very proud of what I am doing for myself.”

Now, if Mr. Smith owns one and says it’s so, it must be. See the ad on my blog at http://www.edwardsdirect.net/blog/

Today’s online sales environment is ripe for the tactical use of testimonials. I’d certainly recommend salting your home page with a few of your best customer endorsements with links to additional stories deeper in your site.

And today’s super-fast connection speeds make it simple to deliver the most potent form of testimonial endorsement ever devised: online testimonial videos.

I spoke recently with Clint Pollock, President of IncreaseSalesWithVideo.com, a Chicago-based video company that specializes in producing testimonial videos. “The testimonial videos we’ve shot have increased our clients’ sales up to 30%,” said Clint.

Lights…camera…action!

It’s easy to see why. Pollock’s videos are like a fireside chat with a friend. Visitors to your site click your video and there’s your happy customer, talking, smiling, and telling the world how great you are.

See testimonials for yourself: www.IncreaseSalesWithVideo.com

And IncreaseSalesWithVideo.com has found ways to leverage their clients’ videos. “It’s easy to distribute your videos broadly using Web 2.0 techniques,” says Clint. “Link videos from your site to YouTube. Send links in e-mail.”

So there you have it. If you want to increase sales, put customer testimonials on your website. If you want to REALLY increase sales, load testimonial videos.

Steve Edwards

Copywriter/Direct Marketer

www.EdwardsDirect.net