How to Get Testimonials for Your Online Business

How do you get testimonials?

You get testimonials by asking a happy customer at the moment they are happiest, and by making the ask small. When a customer tells you something worked, reply the same day and ask three short questions: what was going on before, what changed, and what they would tell someone who is on the fence. Turn their answers into a two or three sentence quote in their own words, send it back for approval, and ask in writing whether you can use it with their name. Most customers who got a real result are glad to help. They do not volunteer because nobody asked, or because the ask sounded like homework.

The pattern I see with clients is that the testimonials already exist. They are sitting in email replies, direct messages, call recordings, and community posts. The customer said the good thing weeks ago and nobody captured it. The work is mostly noticing those moments and following up while they are fresh.

Why most testimonial requests get ignored

Most testimonial requests fail because they ask the customer to do a writing assignment. "Would you mind writing us a testimonial?" gives the customer a blank page and no idea what you want. They mean to do it, it sits in their inbox, and it never happens. The customer is not unwilling. The task is unclear.

The other common failure is timing. A request sent on a fixed schedule, thirty days after purchase or at the end of a program, often lands when the customer is feeling nothing in particular. A request sent an hour after they told you about a win lands when they are already saying the words you need. Specific questions and good timing fix most of the problem.

The Win-Ask-Shape-Permission method

Win-Ask-Shape-Permission is the four-step routine I set up with clients who need proof on their sales page. It works for a course, a service, a coaching offer, or a paid community.

The Shape step is where people get nervous, so to be clear about the line: tightening a customer's own words and getting their approval is editing. Adding a result they did not mention, or changing what they meant, is fabrication. If the quote you want is not in what they said, ask a follow-up question. Do not write it for them.

The three questions that get a useful testimonial

A useful testimonial tells a short story: where the customer started, what changed, and who it is for. Three questions get you that story without asking the customer to write an essay.

1. "What was going on before you started, and what had you already tried?" This gives you the before. It also surfaces the doubt the customer had, which is the doubt your next buyer has.
2. "What has changed since, as specifically as you can say it?" This gives you the after. Ask for specifics, but only use what they tell you.
3. "What would you say to someone who is thinking about it but is not sure?" This gives you the line that answers an objection in a customer's voice.

Let the customer answer however is easiest for them. Some will type a reply. Some would rather send a voice note or talk for five minutes on a call. If you record a call, ask permission first, then use the Claude desktop app to pull the customer's exact sentences from the transcript so you are quoting, not paraphrasing. The third question pairs well with your objection list; [how to handle sales objections](/blog/how-to-handle-sales-objections) covers building that list.

How to get testimonials when you have no customers yet

You cannot get a real testimonial without a real customer, so the honest answer is to get a few customers first, on terms that make saying yes easy. Do not borrow quotes, do not invent them, and do not use praise for something else as if it were praise for this offer.

• Run a small founding round at a lower price and tell buyers up front that you will ask for honest feedback. [How to pre-sell a digital product](/blog/how-to-pre-sell-a-digital-product) covers the founding-buyer setup.
• Do the work one to one for a handful of people before you package it. Their results become your first proof. [How to get your first 10 customers](/blog/how-to-get-your-first-10-customers) covers finding them.
• Until you have quotes, use other honest proof: show the product itself, show your own process, and explain why you are qualified. A clear guarantee also lowers the risk; [how to write a money-back guarantee](/blog/how-to-write-a-money-back-guarantee) covers that.
• If someone gets the product free or at a discount in exchange for feedback, say so wherever you use their quote.

What the FTC says about testimonials

In the United States, the Federal Trade Commission's Rule on the Use of Consumer Reviews and Testimonials went into effect on October 21, 2024. The FTC's own guidance says the rule lets courts impose civil penalties for knowing violations. The parts that matter most for a small online business are short.

• Do not write, create, or buy fake or false testimonials. A testimonial has to come from a real person with a real experience of the product.
• Do not offer payment or any other incentive on the condition that the review is positive. The FTC's guidance says you cannot even imply that a review must be positive to earn the incentive.
• If a testimonial comes from someone inside your business, that relationship has to be disclosed clearly.
• Be careful with results. The FTC's endorsement guidance says a testimonial claiming a specific result will usually be read as what others can expect, and that adding "results not typical" does not change that. Either you can back up that the result is typical, or you clearly say what buyers can generally expect.

In practice this is simple to follow: real customers, their own words, no reward tied to what they say, and no quote that promises a result most buyers will not get. This is a plain-language summary, not legal advice. Read the FTC's guidance yourself, and if you sell outside the United States, check the rules where your buyers are.

Where to use testimonials once you have them

A testimonial does the most work next to the doubt it answers. Match each quote to a specific worry and put it where that worry shows up.

• Next to the price: a quote about the result being worth it.
• Next to the guarantee: a quote from someone who was skeptical going in.
• In the FAQ: a quote that answers "will this work for someone like me?" from someone like them.
• In launch and welcome emails: one customer story per email, not a wall of quotes. [How to write a welcome email sequence](/blog/how-to-write-a-welcome-email-sequence) covers where proof fits.
• In your community: celebrate the win publicly when it happens, with the member's permission. [How to grow a Skool community](/blog/how-to-grow-a-skool-community) covers why visible wins keep members around.

Keep every testimonial in one place with the date, the customer's exact words, the approved quote, and the permission they gave. A spreadsheet is enough. When a customer asks you to take a quote down, do it right away. If you also collect public reviews on third-party sites, that is a related but separate job; [how to get more customer reviews with AI](/blog/how-to-get-more-customer-reviews-with-ai) covers it.