My colleague, Michael Katz of Blue Penguin Development, had a tip for getting testimonials that’s so easy.

Because it’s easy, it’s often overlooked by business owners.

Michael writes from the perspective of a professional looking to be hired, but his ideas certainly apply to any business including retail.

Here’s what Michael had to say …

Today I … received a nice testimonial from a client.

Testimonials – on your web site, on LinkedIn, inside written proposals – are very powerful.

They show a prospective client the perspective of someone who, at one point, was in their shoes, wondering if they should hire you.

Two things I’ve noticed…

#1. You have to ask for them.

Your clients may love you (not as much as mine love me, but still), but it rarely occurs to them to put it in writing. So you have to ask.

#2. Even the people you ask have trouble getting around to it.

First, because they are busy and this is a low priority. But mostly, I’ve found, because they don’t know what to say.

So make it easy on them. Wait until they write or say something nice to you and ask if you can use their name and words.

The client I mentioned above wrote me a little thank you note yesterday, out of the blue. So I asked. All she had to do was say “yes” and she was done.

In the case of the above, the woman had written to Michael. But if someone simply says to you something nice, there’s nothing wrong with saying, “May I use that?” Then while taking it down, you can ask if he or she would like to say more. Often they will.

When using the testimonial on your website be sure to add the city location next to the person’s name for a little boost in search results.

When you see how easy it can be to capture a testimonial, it’s a almost a sin not to grab it.

Easy Web Tip 372: When someone writes or tells you something nice, just ask if you can use it as a testimonial.