There are many ways to show your customers that you’re the right choice, but few can compare to testimonials of satisfied users. 

Even if you have the best product on the market, word-of-mouth and recommendations from satisfied users are still among the best ways to increase your sales. 

When you pair that with video content that’s been a go-to strategy for marketers for a while now, you get a match that’s likely to make your results soar.

Video testimonials are an ideal way for your customers to become your brand ambassadors and share the story of how you solved their problems. 

Video testimonials are an ideal way for your customers to become your brand ambassadors and share the story of how you solved their problems. 

By leveraging this approach, you get content that’s both good for conversions and awareness since it stands out as something trustworthy and reliable. 

Why remote video testimonials are great for your marketing

What makes video testimonials different from other promotional content is that your audience is getting recommendations from people that were in a similar situation as they are, making them more likely to relate compared to a standard corporate video.

And the best part is – you don’t have to film them in person. 

Gathering materials for your video testimonial campaigns remotely has become simpler than ever. A lot of people already got used to doing things remotely. 

With many tools available for recording and editing, there’s no reason to leave testimonials out of your content strategy.

Going remote provides you with multiple advantages – you don’t need to think about equipment, arranging the time to visit your customers or even if you’re in the same country.

Even though it’s not complicated to make a video testimonial, it can still turn out bland and not dynamic enough to keep your audience’s attention.

Let’s talk about the ways to make ​​remote video testimonials as engaging as possible and key steps in creating compelling content that you can use in all of your channels.

The guide to filming video testimonials remotely

1. Make a plan

If you want your testimonials to work, you need to create a roadmap of all the steps that you have to cover.

This means you should aim to form a vision of the content before you even contact the speakers.

Firstly, think about the context of the story and pick the right person accordingly. They should be users who are genuinely satisfied with the experience they had with your product. This way it’ll be much easier for them to share a story that will resonate with the audience.

Even though the story has to be sincere, you still need to create a flow that the video will follow. Think about the key points that the speaker needs to cover – introduction, their issue, how your product solved it, and the aftermath.

Source: Explainify Success Story | Testimonial Hero

The key to making the video testimonials engaging is to get specific and create a structured story. You need to have the viewers’ attention in mind – there’s no need for your content to be longer than two minutes.

A good way to go about this is to create separate videos for different parts of your target group and let the satisfied customers cover specific pain points that correspond with relevant situations your product can come into play.

The key to making the video testimonials engaging is to get specific and create a structured story.

2. Prepare the speaker

When you’ve decided on the story you want to showcase and picked the right person to tell it, you should make sure you’re on the same page before you start recording.

The briefing shouldn’t feel like you’re listing out demands they need to cross off a list.

Instead of a script, share with them a general idea and ask how they feel about it. This way you’re making sure that they’re bringing in the emotion that sets apart a good testimonial from classic promotional videos.

The good idea is to provide them with video testimonial examples to give them a feeling of what the end product should look like.

Of course, you shouldn’t just copy something, but showing references paired with the most important questions they need to answer can greatly improve the result you get.

Source: Testimonial Hero

Another thing that’s important to consider when creating remote video testimonials is the setting and the ways that the speaker can contribute to content looking as good as possible.

This doesn’t mean they have to think about the equipment, but they can help you pick the best location and the environment to set the video in.

Working on a video should always feel like a collaboration, as their input can give a new perspective that you maybe wouldn’t consider previously.

3. Think about the details

The customer participating in the process should be aware of distractions that could occur and how the place they’re at could have an impact on the quality of the recording – does it get noisy at their home in the afternoon? Is their office too dark? How are the acoustics at the cafe?

All of the seemingly small things can amount to a lot if you don’t map out everything before you start gathering the material.

Just because you’re recording remotely it doesn’t mean that the video should look like a random Zoom call. For example, by simply using some books to prop up the camera or the laptop to eye level you immediately get a feeling of a video that was created with attention and not just as a side thought.

Source: Testimonial Hero Youtube Channel

While you’re rehearsing, pay attention to all the things that are visible in the video. The speaker shouldn’t be the only thing that’s in the frame, but too many things can be a distraction, especially something like a poster with a lot of words.

Even though the talk should feel natural, suggest to the person you’re recording that they don’t move around too much, as it can both be a visual distraction and lower the sound quality. Another detail to think about is visibility – the light source should be in front of the speaker, not behind them.

Pro tip: the light source should be in front of the speaker, not behind them.

4. Use all available resources

Making proper preparations is essential but you should also think about additional elements that can help your videos be more dynamic and complement the story.

One of the best ways to make your videos more polished is to add graphics that will make the key information stand out, such as numbers popping up or making a bullet list as the user is mentioning the steps of their journey.

If the speaker is comfortable enough and has adequate materials, you can add a few frames from their office or them working at home as a b-roll.

Depending on the assets available, you can also turn to stock footage instead. You shouldn’t overdo this to avoid your video testimonials looking like commercials, but when used sparingly they can serve as good transitions between parts of the story.

Source: Celect Success Story | Testimonial Hero

You can also showcase your product by inserting recordings of it being used, before and after shots of it being applied or simply showing interface screens to complement the parts of testimonial where the customer talks about how they used it to solve their issue.

It may not always be necessary, but if you want to go another step beyond, some simple animation can round up the video and grab the viewer’s attention, especially when placed at the beginning.

Putting it all together

If you put in the time to plan everything out and consider your audience, you will quickly come to engaging testimonials that aren’t just another promotional video.

Start by putting together an overview of how you’d like your content to look. Sketch out the key points the customer will touch upon and think about answering the most important questions your audience might have.

When you have an idea for your videos pinned down, choose a secure video conferencing software solution that the customer speaking is most comfortable with and talk them through the process.

Accept their stance and let them speak in their own words while following the frame you created.

Consider all the details while filming and don’t be afraid to experiment. After you’ve got the initial materials, you should always think about the ways the content can be improved by small additions that will make it more dynamic.

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About the author: Sam Shepler is the founder and CEO of Testimonial Hero. 150+ B2B revenue teams at Google, UiPath, Medallia, InsightSquared, and many others use Testimonial Hero to easily create customer videos that engage prospects, reduce friction in the sales cycle, and drive more revenue faster.