How to structure testimonials - What's really making a testimonial great

I find myself wondering about all kinds of things.

And recently I heard someone say that using real faces in your testimonials would increase conversion rates.

So I decided to dig further.

I don't have conversion data for most of these companies, but I picked only the ones:

1. Leading their category
2. Regularly updating and running tests on their homepage/product pages

So how are big SaaS brands structuring their testimonials?

To sum all up:?What you highlight depends on our target market. Aiming for teams, focus on displaying big company logos. Care more about actually explaining how your tool works? Get that attention over on specific roles.

• Slack?- They don't seem to be big on using testimonials, but when they do, it's all about making sure the big brands stand out. Slack targets teams so they naturally want to validate their product by providing proof of other big names that are using it.
• Basecamp?- The O.G. of testimonials. Cares more about having quick, on-point quotes than roles and all that.
• Hopin?- Simple testimonials with all the right elements. Worth noting their focus is always on what people managed to achieve with Hopin.
• Workable?- Another example with all elements in there + they structure every testimonial with data so it resembles a mini-case study. [here's?another similar example]
• Mailchimp?- One of my favorite approaches: highlighting real users, complete with human images and stats. Plus, their expertise lies in?getting a camera crew over to their clients' business?and putting together pretty decent video testimonials.

I could go over dozens of other examples, but tbh, they're quite similar.

If you're looking for one model to go with,?Intercom's mix of role, image, company, and a short statement is a good starting point. In time, you can develop upon this with extra data points, videos, and case study links.

In case you've got a complex product with several different functionalities and roles involved, set aside a section on your homepage to?redirect people to your case studies. I also like this?Airtable example?where they opted for a general testimonial, coupled with a link to more case studies.

And keep in mind, you don't always need that social proof.?Wix, for instance, is a big brand with enough credibility already. So they ditched most social proof to focus on their features instead.?Zoom, on the other hand, although a big name, is still placed in a super competitive market where similar solutions literally have the same features. So that extra social proof is a must. If this edition made ya' change something about your growth strategy, don't forget to?send it to a friend and save their content!

Until next time,

Alexandra Cote

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