header-logo header-logo

04 February 2010 / Joe Reevy
Issue: 7403 / Categories: Features , Profession , Marketing
printer mail-detail

Testimonial gold-dust

words4business_1_4

Joe Reevy emphasises the importance of keeping the audience in mind when writing testimonials

I have lost track of the number of times I have heard marketers say that testimonials are gold-dust and indeed they are: some of them. But which ones?

Our research in the South East in 2003, revealed that real (behaviour-changing) client satisfaction is based mainly on how the client is treated rather than the technical quality of the work done. These results contain a clue as to why some testimonials are better than others.

Here’s an example of a testimonial on a law firm website: “During this time he has repeatedly demonstrated a high level of legal skill, accuracy and attentiveness. I particularly appreciate his eye for detail and ability to take complex legal issues and explain them in lay terms…is extremely personable and down-to-earth…”

Saying what you mean...

“During this time Joe has repeatedly demonstrated a high level of legal skill, accuracy and attentiveness. I particularly appreciate his eye for detail”

All this is saying is that Joe

If you are not a subscriber, subscribe now to read this content
If you are already a subscriber sign in
...or Register for two weeks' free access to subscriber content

MOVERS & SHAKERS

Switalskis—Naila Arif, Harriet Findlay & Ellie Thompson

Switalskis—Naila Arif, Harriet Findlay & Ellie Thompson

Firm awards training contracts to paralegals through internal programme

Ward Hadaway—Matthew Morton

Ward Hadaway—Matthew Morton

Private client disputes specialist joins commercial litigation team

Thomson Hayton Winkley—Nina Hood

Thomson Hayton Winkley—Nina Hood

Cumbria firm appoints new head of residential property

NEWS
Freezing orders in divorce proceedings can unexpectedly ensnare third parties and disrupt businesses. In NLJ this week, Lucy James of Trowers & Hamlins explains how these orders—dubbed a ‘nuclear weapon’—preserve assets but can extend far beyond spouses to companies and business partners 
A Court of Appeal ruling has clarified that ‘rent’ must be monetary—excluding tenants paid in labour from statutory protection. In this week's NLJ, James Naylor explains Garraway v Phillips, where a tenant worked two days a week instead of paying rent
Three men wrongly imprisoned for a combined 77 years have been released—yet received ‘not a penny’ in compensation, exposing deep flaws in the justice system. Writing in NLJ this week, Dr Jon Robins reports on Justin Plummer, Oliver Campbell and Peter Sullivan, whose convictions collapsed amid discredited forensics, ‘oppressive’ police interviews and unreliable ‘cell confessions’
A quiet month for employment cases still delivers key legal clarifications. In his latest Employment Law Brief for NLJ, Ian Smith reports that whistleblowing protection remains intact even where disclosures are partly self-serving, provided the worker reasonably believes they serve the ‘public interest’ 
Family law must shift from conflict-driven litigation to child-centred problem-solving, according to a major new report. Writing in NLJ this week, Caroline Bowden of Anthony Gold outlines findings showing overwhelming support for reform, with 92% agreeing lawyers owe duties to children as well as clients
back-to-top-scroll