How to Collect and Use Customer Testimonials

Customer testimonials are one of the most effective forms of social proof.

When used well, they go beyond basic customer reviews, they show real experiences, address pain points, and help potential customers see the value of your product or service in action.

This blog post explains how to collect and display customer testimonials in a way that supports your marketing materials, improves conversion rates, and strengthens your customer experience.

Happy customers are your most credible marketers. Their words carry more weight than any brand copy, especially when they highlight specific outcomes or problems solved.

Unlike standard customer reviews, testimonials are curated to tell a clearer story. They let you go deeper into the why behind someone’s success, making them ideal for blog post testimonials, case study testimonials, and social media posts.

Testimonials also support:

• Higher conversion rates on landing pages
• Better use of customer feedback in content
• More persuasive marketing materials
• Ongoing trust-building with potential customers

Not all testimonials are created equal. A high quality one should include:

• Who the customer is and what they do
• The pain points or goals they had before using your product or service
• Specific results or improvements they saw
• A sense of their customer experience or interaction with your team
• Natural, unscripted language

You can collect this via email, forms, or customer satisfaction surveys.

The best responses come when you ask at the right time: after a milestone, a support win, or strong product outcome.

To get more useful quotes and stories:

• Prompt with simple, open-ended questions
• Make it part of your offboarding, feedback, or customer service workflow
• Use testimonials as a follow-up to customer satisfaction surveys
• Offer video or written options, (remember, not everyone wants to be on camera)
• Show examples of what you're looking for (without putting words in their mouth)

If you're showcasing testimonials across different pages or channels, it helps to ask for permission to edit and reuse them.

If you need a volume of testimonials, especially across different products, plans, or use cases, a giveaway is a smart way to get more people to share.

It's also a good way to encourage testimonials that take more effort to submit or people might be more reluctant to share, like videos. A prize makes it feel worthwhile and gives a bit of an incentive.

You can:

• Offer a monthly prize draw for anyone who submits a testimonial
• Run a themed giveaway (e.g. “Tell us how you use X for a chance to win…”)
• Include it as part of an existing referral or loyalty campaign

This works well if your goal is to surface a broad range of feedback quickly, or if your customer base is active on social media. Just make sure your form is simple, and your terms are clear.

Incentives don’t have to be large, the key is making the customer feel appreciated. A thoughtful reward can encourage more detailed, high-quality testimonials.

Some good options include:

• Gift cards or store credit
• Product upgrades or free add-ons
• Early access to new features
• A simple thank-you note and spotlight on your website

These kinds of gestures help deepen loyalty, while also producing stronger stories you can reuse in marketing.

Video testimonials can show trust in a way written quotes can’t.

Plus, the good thing is that a short clip filmed on a phone often feels more genuine than something overly produced.

Use video in:

• Homepage sections or landing pages
• Paid ads or retargeting campaigns
• Social media posts
• Investor decks or feature launches

If your customer isn’t keen on video, even a photo and name next to a quote can boost credibility.

Place testimonials where they’ll support decision-making:

• Next to feature descriptions or pricing tables
• On landing pages, especially near CTAs
• Within case studies or dedicated blog post testimonials
• In your welcome or lead nurture email sequences
• As highlights in decks, reports, or updates
• In social media posts to show real results or quotes
• Build a Social Media Wall on your website, as social proof.

You can curate your strongest success stories on a dedicated testimonials page to give visitors a place to explore different industries, outcomes, or customer journeys in one view.

On the flip side, it's a good idea to not lump them all on one testimonials page. Spread them out so they’re visible where the user needs reassurance so you're making sure everyone who visits your site sees them.

Good testimonials are about convincing other potential customers that you're product is worth it. If someone reads one and thinks, 'that sounds like me', or 'wow, that's really convincing', they’re more likely to act.

Make it easy for happy customers to share their experience. Then reuse their feedback wherever it helps others trust you.