Not Segmenting Testimonials

• Businesses often do not segment their testimonials based on different types of clients that they serve. When a brand has multiple products or services, it should only display those testimonials that are relevant to their prospects.
• Showing testimonials that are relevant to a specific visitor will have the biggest impact on the visitor and improve the chances of making a sale. Thus, not doing so does not maximize the impact a testimonial could have.
• It matters because the brand could gain more credibility "by using testimonials to address the biggest pain points and concerns that a prospect might be having."

Untrustworthy Testimonials

• Companies often ruin reliable testimonials "by making the design look unprofessional, not using images of the people behind the testimonials, using fake names, or even making obvious spelling mistakes."
• It is a bad practice because it makes testimonials seem unreliable or untrustworthy.
• It matters because such a testimonial can be ineffective or turn clients away.

Avoid Anonymous Testimonials

• Avoid using testimonials from only anonymous users. Also, use the reviewer's actual name and not just a job title.
• Using only anonymous testimonials will impact the credibility of the testimonial. Using only a job title will make clients wonder if the company is hiding something.
• It matters because testimonials that have the most impact are those that are seen as trustworthy and trustworthy testimonials are those that have the most information on the reviewer.

Summary of Findings

• During the initial hour of research, we focused on finding things not to do when soliciting or sharing testimonials.
• Three "bad" practices were found and shared that focused on sharing testimonials. They focus on the credibility and impact of testimonials and what decreases this impact.
• While best practices are abundantly available, "bad practices" weren't and were often incorporated in the best practices.