How To Use Social Proof For Your Online Business

Convincing new customers of how great your products or services are is a big
task, especially when you try to handle it without help. While having a great
marketing team and solid brand image is very important, one of the best ways to
convert cold traffic is through social proof. Although social proof is a term many
are familiar with, going a little more in-depth to see what it truly means and how to
use it can help give your company the boost it needs.

What Is Social Proof?

Social proof is the positive influence that is created by current or past customers.
Social proof uses this influence to draw in more customers, by allowing others to
see how popular or in-demand their company’s services are. For example, if you
are looking for a place to eat and you see a long line of people waiting, you are
likely to assume that the restaurant is very good because it is in high demand.
When people are looking into your company, they are looking for good reviews
(the more the better). Basically, social proof is the concept that people will
conform to popular ideas on the assumption that since they are popular, they must
be correct. There are many types of social proof that you can use, depending on
your company’s specific needs.

How To Use Social Proof:

In addition to the various types of social proof, there are many ways you can use
social proof. Utilizing different types for different aspects of your website and
social media can be very effective.

Customer Testimonials:

Showing potential customers how satisfied current and past customers are can be
incredibly helpful for your conversion rates. Adding customer testimonials on your
landing page assures potential customers right away that you do have a quality
product that is backed by “real” people, not just employees trying to make sales.
This allow allows customers to vocalize what they like about your product in their
own language, which is probably different that the way you have your product
description phrased. Testimonials convey more trust and authority than even the
most persuasive sales tactics, since these customers have nothing to gain from
the praise they are giving you.

Celebrity Endorsement:

If your company is big enough, consider getting celebrity endorsement for your
product. Even though fans know that their favorite celebrities are compensated for
their public praise of your company, they are still going to listen to and trust them.
This is a great way to let a bigger audience know about your product in a fairly
simple way. If you are not a large enough business to hire a big name celeb, consider contacting a local influencer or a professional in your industry.

Social Media:

Social Media is an ideal place to show off social proof because it is often where
customers will turn first. You can run a contest by asking users to follow your
account, tag a friend, and share your picture to win a prize to gain followers and
spread your name via word of mouth marketing. Instagram offers interactive
features on your Instagram story, which is a great way to get audience interaction
via polls. The poll results are available in real time, which encourages users to
interact so they can see how their answer compares to other poll takers. Not only
is this a great way to collect data, it is fun, encourages customer interaction, and
starts conversations.

Although this is just a small sampling of the ways you can use social proof, it is a
good reminder that a lot of the time the best advertising comes straight from the
heart of your company- your customers. There are is such a variety of ways to
implement social proof on your website and social media that there should be no
problem finding the best ways to show off all of your best reviews.