11 Ways to Use Social Proof in Your Marketing

hi it's carol with boast when
researching a new product or service
consumers often rely on what other
people have to say they want to see
proof that the product or service does
what the brand claims it can do
making promises to prospects is no
longer enough
consumers need proof
social proof
in this video i'm going to share with
you what social proof is and 11 powerful
ways to use social proof in your
marketing
so what is social proof
it's a psychological phenomenon where
people mimic the action and behavior of
others when faced with uncertainty think
of it this way if someone else is doing
it then i should be doing it too
when consumers begin researching a new
product or service they're looking for
social proof
as a marketer you can help prospects
easily find the proof they're searching
for
we call this proof-based marketing a
modern marketing strategy for building
trust with prospects to increase leads
and sales
this approach relies on testimonials and
reviews to build trust with prospects
with social proof you can tell stories
about past customers and how your
product or service was able to help
solve their problems
proof-based marketing allows you to
connect with your current customers and
wow prospects
when used correctly social proof can
increase sales build trust and grow your
brand let's take a look at 11 powerful
ways to leverage social proof first is
customer reviews customer reviews can
build trust in your brand and increase
your online reputation
it's a simple but powerful form of
social proof over 93 of consumers take
online reviews into account before
making a purchase a customer will
usually leave a review without prompting
but encouraging your customers to write
reviews is a highly beneficial and we
recommend it number two data and numbers
think about how many customers you've
helped or how long you've been in the
business these are numbers you can share
on your website in an advertisement and
on social media for example hubspot does
a phenomenal job of highlighting
essential data from their product and
services they highlight their monthly
blog visits certified professionals who
completed their courses at marketplace
integrations and so much more if your
business is relatively new focus on
numbers that make you seem more
significant for example focus on
percentages by using a customer survey
to determine overall satisfaction
and other metrics number three awards
awards establish credibility and show
you as a leader in your industry
sharing your awards may encourage
visitors and leads to go with your brand
over another
here's an example from sprout social's
website where they feature a few awards
they've received as you can see they
include the award logos with a text
description to highlight their
achievements adding a short description
to the awards is helpful to provide
further context as to why you received
them number four
real-time sales notifications
create a real-time shopping experience
online with sales pop notifications this
type of social proof shares basic
information about your recent customers
and what they purchased these
notifications leverage fomo or the fear
of missing out by showing casual
browsers that people are actively making
purchases from your business number five
testimonials testimonials are a powerful
form of social proof people trust what
other people have to say about your
product or service even if they're a
stranger
it's important to include testimonials
in your marketing to show real people
who had a positive experience with your
product or service at boast we share our
video testimonials on a dedicated
landing page each widget can be clicked
on to learn more about that customer's
experience with boast
number six customers logos
boost trust in your business by
leveraging your customers who have
well-known brands brands are important
to consumers and if they recognize a
brand using your product or service
it may be enough to encourage them to
give it a try if you want to use this
type of social proof be sure to ask
permission to use the brand's logo
before including it on your website or
other marketing materials number seven
case studies
case studies are a great way to show
data-driven results from your satisfied
customers
this in-depth analysis shows how your
customers successfully worked with you
and your product or service to achieve
significant results case studies appear
similar to a blog post but include
elements found in testimonials the
business and customer will typically
collaborate in the writing process to
put a case study together number eight
user generated content or
ugc user-generated content is a powerful
form of social proof that is created by
your customers or the users and shared
online typically through social media
the content can range from a tweet a
full video review an image review on
instagram a tick tock that features your
product and so much more
for the most part your customers create
this content because they truly love it
and want to share it with others
however ugc can be incentivized with a
contest or giveaway
alta leverages the ongoing hashtag of
ulta beauty to capture ugc from its
customers most often customers love to
see their content shared on the
company's social media channel
as it can mean more exposure for them if
that's something they're looking for it
ends up being a win-win for both the
business and the customer number nine
endorsements endorsements can be from
organizations celebrities or influencers
most endorsements have a cost associated
with them but sometimes they can be free
inquire with social media influencers in
your niche to see if they'd be
interested in trying your product
influencers and celebrities have large
followings on social media and can
easily influence people to visit your
site while endorsements can help drive
traffic it does not guarantee that it
will increase sales
take the time to find the right
celebrities and influencers with a loyal
following that matches your targeted
audience number 10
highlight popular choices consumers can
sometimes be overwhelmed by the number
of choices available to them a
phenomenon referred to as the paradox of
choice
when shopping for clothes consumers may
struggle with the choices of color size
pattern etc provide information on your
ecommerce site to assist with these
decisions by highlighting popular
options and including a fit guide so
shoppers know if they should size up or
down based on other customer feedback
businesses that offer services can still
leverage this type of social proof by
highlighting the most popular tier
number 11 press features new sites and
magazines are great resources to expand
your audience reach if your business has
been featured in an article on a
well-known site you should include it on
your marketing as social proof press
features allow you to reach an untapped
audience and you can leverage these
features on your website as social proof
here is an example from sunny
lenarduzzi's website which includes
multiple press features one of the first
things you see on her site is a quote
directly from a senior brand director at
hootsuite she also highlights logos of
other organizations that have featured
her brand there you have it 11 ways you
can use social proof in your marketing
to grow your business if you're
interested in building a library of
proof to leverage in your proof-based
marketing strategy we can help learn
more about proof-based marketing in our
free webinar check the description box
below for a link thank you for tuning in
and i'll see you all in the next one
bye
you