How REALTORS® Can Use Testimonials to Get More Real Estate Leads

Real talk: it’s been months since we chose a restaurant without reading the reviews first.

The internet just makes it so easy. It used to be that you had to pick up a magazine to find a restaurant review. Now all you have to do is type the name of the place into Google and boom — welcome to review land.

When finding out whether a place is gonna be a delight or a disappointment takes approximately one minute, why wouldn’t you do a little digging before deciding who to give your money to?

That same logic applies to services, like real estate. Of course prospective clients are going to Google the names of local REALTORS® to find reviews. And like we use Yelp reviews to decide between a little Italian spot and a Greek taverna, those prospective clients are going to use testimonials to decide between you and your competitor.

Testimonials aren’t just a nice-to-have. They’re a must-have.

We may have touched on the subject before, but it’s important to stress this fact: Reviews help real estate agents grow their business.

Here’s how you can use testimonials to get more real estate leads.

 

1. Strive For a Variety of Testimonials

Ideally, testimonials will be varied in terms of what they discuss. You want reviews to capture every part of your business, so that a prospective client will find something in those lines that specifically appeals to them.

Strive to have the following types of testimonials in your collection:

 

The results testimonial

This kind of review is focused on the end result of your working relationship.

Instead of just listing a bunch of niceties about your personality, these reviews get specific about what you helped your client do. Such as: “John found us our dream home — and helped us buy it for 5% less than the list price!” or “Solana got our house sold in six days, with the closing terms we wanted and for a higher listing price than we thought possible.” Numbers talk.

The character testimonial

A character-focused testimonial communicates what kind of person you are.

Like, “John was always on time, always had a smile on his face and kept us feeling calm, even when negotiations felt stressful” or “Solana must be one of the hardest-working agents in Vancouver. She spent hours making our home look beautiful before each open house.”

This kind of review is great for everyone, but it’s especially helpful for new REALTORS® who don’t have a ton of experience.

The situational testimonial

This type of testimonial talks about how you handled a specific kind of client or deal.

Such as helping a first-time buyer who knew nothing about the real estate market. Or finding income properties, dealing with the sale of a house after a family death, buying vacation homes or selling a home for someone who’s out of the country.

These situation-specific reviews show off your adaptability, plus they appeal to a potential client who can relate to the scenario mentioned.

As for how you can make sure your testimonials hit all of these marks, we’re about to get there. Keep reading.

 

2. Give Clients Guidance on Writing Testimonials

It would be great if every satisfied client hopped online and left you glowing reviews all over social media. But that doesn’t happen. Because writing reviews takes time and time is precious.

The good news is that most people are nice and if you ask a client to write you a testimonial, they probably will.

That’s part one of getting great testimonials: asking. Part two is giving your clients some guidance as to what to write and where to write it.

Before you ask your client for a testimonial, answer the following questions:

 

Where do you want the testimonial to live? Maybe you just want to feature it on your website. Or maybe you’re trying to increase the number of reviews on Yelp, Facebook or Google.

What was unique about your relationship with the client? Perhaps the client was settling an estate, buying a vacation property, selling their childhood home or trying to sell quickly ahead of a job relocation.

How did you offer value? Real estate agents bring value to each client in different ways. Maybe you drove over to their house and cut their grass twice a week because they were unable to. Or maybe you created an amazing drone video of their property that helped get the listing a lot of attention.

 

Answering these questions for yourself can help you envision and ask for the best possible testimonial. For example:

 

“Hi Chuck,

When you get a few minutes this week, would you mind writing a testimonial for me on Facebook? I enjoyed working with you, and it would mean a lot to have your endorsement. If you don’t mind, perhaps you could mention that we got your house sold quickly or that the pool party open house was a big hit. Any such personal detail would be helpful.

Here’s the link to my Facebook page: _____

Let me know if you have any questions. Thanks so much for your support!”

 

3. Share Testimonials on Social Media

Pick the best quotes from your testimonials and turn them into content for Facebook, Twitter and Instagram.

We like the idea of using photo-editing apps to turn the quote into an eye-catching graphic (sized appropriately for the social media platform of your choosing, of course). Pick your background and add your quote as text on top, in a cool, easy-to-read font.

You can also use a variety of apps and tools to create awesome GIFs for your chosen testimonial quote. This is a great way to make your testimonials stand out on Facebook and Twitter.

On Instagram, use those quotes in your Instagram Stories. You can use specialized apps to create an image with a little more pizzazz than what Instagram offers in-app, then save it to your phone and upload it as a Story. Create an Instagram Stories highlight so you can show off all your testimonial quotes in one place.

 

4. Make Testimonials a Regular Part of Your Newsletters

…By creating a “Client Spotlight” feature, where you highlight your work with a client, changing it up for each deployment.

Add a section that features a client’s name, photo and a line or two from their testimonial, plus a link to their full review on your website. (Get their permission first, of course).

To take it up a notch, customize the client spotlight to target a specific group of leads. Let’s say you’ve segmented your newsletter list and have a sub-list of subscribers that have all expressed an interest in condos. Use the client spotlight section to feature a condo-buying or condo-selling client, and send the newsletter to that sub-list.

 

5. Create Video Testimonials

This takes a little more work, but filming your clients as they review your services can provide you with so many more marketing opportunities.

Chop the videos up into clips for Instagram posts and Instagram Stories. Use multiple videos to create a highlight reel that you can share on your website, Facebook and YouTube, or that you can post to Instagram TV. You can feature a different video in each of your newsletters, or build blog posts around each video. There’s so much potential.

Here are a few tips for creating video testimonials:

• Make it easy for your client. Don’t make them work too hard. If you can, go to their home to film. If they want guidance, give them some speaking notes. Maybe there’s a way you can return the favour afterwards, like linking to their business website when you post the video.

• Keep it short. No one has the patience to watch five-minute-long prank videos, let alone real estate testimonial videos. You don’t need your clients to tell their life story. Make sure you get their name, the synopsis of their buying/selling journey and specific details about how you helped them and why they’re happy to recommend you.

• Use the right equipment. The sound, light and image quality need to be on point. Here are a few tips on how to create effective real estate videos.

• Say thanks. After a client has participated, give them a little token of your appreciation; a gift card, flowers or bottle of wine will suffice.

 

6. Tease Testimonials in Your Email Signature

An easy way to increase hits on your website’s testimonial page is to sneak a link into your email signature.

Beneath your name and title, add a hyperlink with text that says something along the lines of “Why work with me? Ask my clients!” or “ What my clients have to say…”!

 

How do you get your clients to write glowing testimonials? We want to hear your tips!