Entrepreneurs in almost every business unit, small or big, need to spend a great deal of resources to endorse its brand and products. While capitalising on endorsement tools such as television advertisements or promotional campaigns could puncture an SME’s branding and marketing budgets, client testimonials often serve as an effective medium to get the desired results of endorsements without a lot of expenses.

Client testimonials are usually positive and direct endorsement of an SME’s products/services by the user. They can be used as a marketing tool on company brochures or website, trade shows, invoices or even sales presentations to enhance the brand image of the SME before prospective clients.

Need for client testimonials

In this context, Nivas Mittapalli, owner of Unique Corporation, a small unit in Hyderabad, which manufactures and exports ladies garments, says, “Client testimonials surely help in impressing prospective clients/buyers about our brand. Besides, these testimonials help in making new clients aware of our capability to deliver quality services on time.”

Client testimonials are extremely effective in attracting prospective buyers as besides highlighting the positive points about the products/services offered by the SME, the satisfied client also puts in a word of appreciation about the SME owner.

According to Sarath Kumar, owner of Petece Enviro Engineers, a small-sized unit in Coimbatore, which supplies industrial pumps, client testimonials help in generating credibility. “These testimonials are often effective in establishing the credibility of a brand, which in turn helps in promoting consumer trust on our products and consequently increases our sales. However, it is not easy to get testimonials from clients because clients are not always willing to offer testimonials,” he says.

An SME owner should essentially seek to maintain a healthy relationship with the client who agrees to write a testimonial for the unit. It would also be polite of the SME owner to offer a small gift or some token of appreciation to the satisfied client out of gratitude for the testimonial to cement the business relationship further.