How Do Video Testimonials Build Brand Credibility
If you’ve talked to an agency about your marketing efforts for more than two minutes, you’ve been told to “get more video testimonials.” And they’re not wrong—nine in 10 people trust another customer’s word over the business, and more than three-fourths of consumers say that watching a video testimonial directly influences their decisions, according to Wyzowl’s testimonial stats.
Imagine you’re at lunch with a friend who’s raving about their new coffeemaker. They talk about its design, how amazing the coffee tastes and how much better it is than their duddy old machine. They’re not trying to influence you—they’re sincerely satisfied with their purchase. Then, on the train home, you open your phone and see an ad for that specific coffeemaker. By the time you get home, you’ve already gotten the shipping notification that yours is on the way next Tuesday.
Now, imagine you can replicate that type of influence online all of the time. That’s the power of video testimonials, baby!
Build Street Cred With Vid Content
Even though the positive impact of influencers is great, there’s nothing better than a review from Shaina Not-a-Paid-Actor Jones. In fact, the more genuine, the better. This way, you can recreate the authentic effect of the friend who passionately prattles on about her coffeemaker at scale. If you sow your video testimonial content right, you will reap fantastic benefits.
Personal Connection
It's one thing to see an ad in a magazine or read a review about a product and quite another thing to see and hear an actual customer talk about their experience—because at the end of the day, you’re not just selling a product, you’re selling a solution. When someone shares their experience in a video testimonial, they can relate to customers on a deeper level than a company ever could. They get to see facial expressions and body language and hear the tone of voice. Nature wired us to connect with other humans, and nurture (unfortunately) wired us to be suspicious of advertisements. Video testimonials allow brands to circumvent the suspicion and tap into the connection.
Visual Authenticity
Think about the last TV commercial you saw. No matter how real it seemed, the truth of the matter is that it was scripted. Actors auditioned for the part, directors told them how to behave, editors pored over the footage, and distributors decided how and when to share it. A commercial may be entertaining, and may even convince you to buy the product, but it will never replace a raw human touch. Hell, most actors probably haven’t even tried the products they’re promoting. In a video testimonial, you can hear from verified customers who aren't reading from a script or getting paid to blow smoke up a brand’s you-know-what.
Emotional Impact
We've all read reviews. They can be very persuasive. The truth, though, is that written reviews don't deliver the same level of emotional impact as video testimonials. Skimming past a comment that reads “go to Walmart and buy the Patti LaBelle pie” is nowhere near as persuasive as watching James Wright barely contain his excitement as he belts out “Isn’t It a Shame” with pie still in his mouth. When consumers see other real customers expressing their true emotions, they usually can’t help but feel the same thing. It’s damn-near impossible for a brand to elicit the same emotional response.
Social Proof
Have you ever seen someone’s pic at a hot new restaurant, theater or bar and decided to check it out for yourself? Your IG connection may not have meant to, but they created “social proof,” or authentic validation that a service, product or experience is valuable. You don’t even need to know the person who posted it. The fact that, without business involvement, someone felt passionate enough to evangelize a brand, is enough. Video testimonials can bridge the gap—providing genuine reviews even though they’ve been solicited by the brand. And the best thing about social proof is that it has a snowball effect. The more credibility you build, the more you’re likely to gain.
Watch Now: We’ll Elevate Your Videos
If you weren’t convinced before, you should be now that video testimonials are a powerful tool in your marketing workbench. Next, you need to actually create them. This is where a lot of brands either fail to get started or give up entirely. To be fair, it’s not easy to ask things of your customers!
With an award-winning digital and experiential agency at your side, it’s much more seamless to solicit—and far more effective to leverage—your hard-earned video testimonial content. Contact our expert video marketing team today for a taste of our secret sauce when it comes to elevating your credibility online.