There’s no denying that video content is taking over for the simple reason that today’s fast-paced world prefers video content over other types. It can also increase sales, conversions, and many other marketing & sales KPIs. Moreover, algorithms on Google and social media like it. Therefore, having a well-defined video marketing strategy that is efficient to execute is essential for it to be successful. An important segment of video marketing strategy are insightful customer testimonial videos, which can be the turning point of its success. To have satisfied customers building social proof via testimonial videos that spread the trustworthiness of your company to the leads is invaluable.
Video testimonials from customers can be a persuasive tool in building trust, credibility, and engagement. They allow real people to endorse your products or services, ultimately influencing decision-making and boosting your business's reputation.
Video testimonials have different types. In the interview style, the interviewer asks specific questions about their experience with the product or service, allowing the customer to provide detailed responses. This format captures in-depth insights and showcases the customer's story.
On the other hand, the case study style testimonial focuses on the customer's journey and the results they achieved. It typically includes before-and-after comparisons, highlighting the positive impact of the product or service.
The success story testimonial is a stronger version of this. It focuses on customers who have achieved exceptional results or accomplished significant milestones with the help of the product or service.
A product demonstration testimonial showcases the customer in action, explaining how they use a product and demonstrating its features or capabilities. This format is particularly effective for products that require visual representation or have unique functionalities.
Then, we have testimonial montages, which are compilations of multiple customers sharing their experiences in short snippets. They provide a quick overview of overall customer consensus and can be visually engaging.
Collaborating with influencers or industry experts can make testimonials more impactful. These individuals have a significant following and authority in their respective domains, which can boost the trust and visibility of the stories you share.
Today, we will share a detailed guide on how to record a perfect customer testimonial video that brings measurable results, and here are some good video testimonial examples.
After you’ve got a customer willing to record a testimonial, it is important to have them prepared in advance. That’s why it is ideal to arrange a pre-recording meeting to get to know the person and familiarize them with the filming. A pre-recording meeting will also allow you to build rapport and you’ll get to know what the interviewee is/isn’t comfortable talking about.
Furthermore, it will give you information on how to design the interview questions, tailored to the customer’s personality. This is important because it gives the most organic and insightful testimonial videos.
Additional tips for this stage:
With gathered insights from the previous step, now is the time to craft the interview questions. You should already know how you want the testimonial to look like and have a script that follows the testimonial’s key objectives.
You should focus on open-ended questions, and here’s how to construct them:
Finally, do not use scripted questions because they can hinge spontaneity of the testimonial. Your questions should also be designed to answer “the whys” behind the customer’s story. For example — “Why did you decide to sign up for our service at that time?”
When choosing the equipment you should consider a high-quality one with additional perks (if possible) for video and audio recording. You should also consider using a 2-camera setup for the best versatility of recording.
To create a fully professional recording make sure to have:
First, start by choosing the ideal setting depending on the type of testimonial (brand, product, or service) you are making. You can choose your/interviewee’s workplace, a place where the interviewee feels relaxed or inspired, or even a professional studio.
The next part is properly placing the lighting and testing it from multiple angles. The goal is to have the interviewee’s face clearly visible and the colors in the video that appear natural. Also, try to harness natural light as much as possible and record your testimonial at its peak, at mid-day.
Make sure to test and double-check all the gear the day before recording.
In general, you should define which recording techniques you will use and gauge how they can contribute to the quality of the customer testimonial. For best results stick with long-sided interviews which will instill professionalism and high-levels of immersion in the viewers. You’ll need patience and possibly some iterations to get the recording right.
Speaking of immersion, filming B roll is a great way to make the testimonial video more appealing and add context. You can tune up your testimonial in many ways during post-production or even hire experts to do it. It is also smart to include other visual elements like overlays, text, or graphics to contribute to the overall quality. Finally, adding opening and closing sequences and CTAs or branding is what wraps up the testimonial.
You will have minutes of raw footage at your disposal, but your finished testimonial will be significantly shorter, depending on your marketing channels.
This guide covers the advice mostly for B2B companies who want to record highly-professional, but also organic B2B video testimonials. Depending on the type of your business and customers, you can tone up & down the way you’ll record video testimonials. Your testimonials should transfer the context of your company along with building social proof.
Lastly, it is also essential that you follow-up on the testimonial’s success. Make sure to analyze changes in your business’ KPIs that are directly related to the metrics of your published testimonials. Depending on the insights you acquire you can change or further adjust the way you record video testimonials to better fit your business objectives.
Sam Shepler is the founder and CEO of Testimonial Hero. 150+ B2B revenue teams at Google, UiPath, Medallia, InsightSquared, and many others use Testimonial Hero to easily create customer videos that engage prospects, reduce friction in the sales cycle, and drive more revenue faster.
Social media accounts:
www.twitter.com/testimonialhero
www.linkedin.com/in/samshepler
