Creating a testimonial video is a careful balancing act. While you want your testimonials to sell people on your product, it’s also important that they come across as genuine and engaging. This can be even more challenging in a B2B testimonial video.
A testimonial video is footage of a real-life customer talking about how a product or service has helped their business. It’s one of the most effective pieces of marketing content. Think about it. When’s the last time you made a big purchase or even just ordered something online? Did you read the reviews on the website first? Did you go so far as to check out blog posts or reviews on other websites? Now think of how much more effective real people’s reviews were than whatever the brand’s website said. That’s why testimonials are so important.
We’ve all seen botched testimonial videos that come off as infomercials, so it’s understandable why you may be hesitant to make one for your company. However, with a few things in mind, you can ensure you create a testimonial video with an appropriate and (dare I say it?) even engaging tone.
Lose the script
Chances are, whoever you’re interviewing isn’t a professional actor. So don’t give him or her a script to read. Not only will it seem tacky to tell someone who enjoyed your product how exactly to praise you, but it’ll be obvious that they’re reading lines. The charm of a well-made testimonial video is the fact that it feels so real.
If you have certain points that you want to make sure are touched on in the video, just let your interview subject know — preferably in advance so he or she can prep for the video.
Make it relatable
What pain points brought your interviewee to you and how did you solve them? The best way to get people engaged in your testimonial video is to put them in your interviewee’s shoes. Whatever you did for the person on screen can be done for them too. This testimonial from Slack discusses how the software helps streamline business communications:
Like case studies, as we discussed in our last blog, Essential Video Ideas for Your B2B Video Strategy, your testimonial video isn’t really about your company. It’s about your customer’s experience with your company. Let your interviewee be the focus of your video and your company’s success will shine through.
In post-production, edit your video to tell a story with a clear beginning, middle and end. What brought your client to you? How did you solve his or her problem? What were the results?
Get plenty of footage
Like most of your marketing videos, you should keep a testimonial quick. Vidyard says that the “sweet spot” is between 45 and 60 seconds, and up to three minutes is acceptable. Make sure you get a complete idea of your customer’s experience but don’t bore your viewers. Feel free to interview your client for as long as it takes to get about a minute of great content, and expertly edit it in post-production.
Vidyard also suggests including more footage than just your interview subject’s talking head. Start your video with footage of your interview subject walking in the door, or use a voiceover while panning around your visually appealing office space. Make sure you shoot plenty of b-roll to ensure you have enough variety to keep your testimonial looking as interesting as it sounds. This testimonial video from HootSuite is a great example of effectively using b-roll and varying camera shots:
Speaking of streamlining social media effort, testimonials are easily digestible and shareable, so they’re always a great option on social media. Maybe even include a CTA that asks your followers to share their good experience with your company as well!
