When it comes to service-based businesses, trust is important. Your potential clients need to feel comfortable and confident that they’re making the right decision by investing in your service.

This is where testimonials come in. Testimonials are one of the best ways to build social proof, whether in written or video format.

Today I’m going to talk about video testimonials – things you’ll need, how to make your client look good in front of the camera and the questions to ask during the recording.


How to record a client testimonial

What you’ll need
  1. An iPhone or a smartphone
  2. A tripod (optional)
Where to film

Just look for a quiet, private place – it can be in your office or an empty conference room – and make sure there’s good lighting. The light should be softly shining on your client’s face and not directly overhead.

There should be a professional background too, because a cluttered background will distract the viewer.

What to ask

Give your clients time to think about their answers to the following questions.

  1. Who are you?
  2. What problem brought you to me?
  3. What almost held you back from hiring me?
  4. What was the specific end result of hiring me?

Make them tell a story, instead of just simply answering the questions.

Make your client look good
  1. Make sure no hair is out of place, their wardrobe is OK and makeup looks good
  2. Hold the camera at their eye level, three feet away.
  3. Point to the lens of the camera and tell them to look into it when speaking, and continue to do so until you stop recording
  4. Before recording, ask them to take a deep breath and smile

From here, you can trim the awkward beginning and end and upload it directly to YouTube or Vimeo.

You can also extract the video transcript and turn it into a written testimonial, which you can ask clients to post on your Google, LinkedIn or Yelp review page.

Or I can record your testimonials for you!

If you work with remote clients or you’re just looking for some help with testimonials, you’re in luck! One service I offer is a testimonial video recorded over Skype. Very similar to the above, but I interact with your clients and I’ll post the video for you. This makes things easy for you and might be more comfortable for your clients.

Click the button to find out more about that service.