Another way to prove your product is worthy buying is through testimonials. Having quotes from actual users makes the item seem that more desireable. Adding pictures of the item in use by your customers is also bonus. Why do you think testimonials are the majority of Infomercials? They have a special selling power. Its social proofing your products. Wikipedia defines social proof as:

Social proof, also known as informational social influence, is a psychological phenomenon that occurs in ambiguous social situations when people are unable to determine the appropriate mode of behavior. Making the assumption that surrounding people possess more knowledge about the situation, they will deem the behavior of others as appropriate or better informed.

Now why is that important? When a consumer is about to buy something and is just not quite ready to make the purchase, a little nudge from their peers usually does the trick.

I suggest reading Copyblogger’s 10 Quick and Simple Ways to Power Your Customers Testimonials for tips on including them as part of your site.

You can take the idea a step further and allow for product reviews. Product reviews also let your customers see what others think. They tend to contain both the negative and the positive, making them more real. Generally, they feel more honest and trustworhty by comparison to testimonials.

Some shopping carts will come with a product review system built in. Retro Rags Collection utilizes the product review to let potential customers see what other customers thought of the products. The concept takes the Testimonial a step further.

What is your experience with testimonials and product reviews? Do you believe in them? Or do they disuade you? Let us know in the comments.

This entry was posted on Monday, February 9th, 2009 at 10:10 am and is filed under E-Commerce Guide | . You can follow any responses to this entry through the RSS 2.0 feed. You can leave a response, or trackback from your own site.