Today, we are going to do a step-by-step walkthrough of how to use the “start here strategy.”
This strategy is a bit more advanced than what most people will talk about when it comes to testimonial videos, but it’s very powerful.
And it’s based on the five stages of customer awareness you’ll find in the book Breakthrough Advertising by Eugene Schwartz.
He lists the five stages of customer awareness as…
- Unaware
- Problem aware
- Solution aware
- Product aware
- Most aware
For what we’re talking about here, we are going to start from the second stage of the process (problem-aware).
Knowing this, I am going to show you a way to filter your leads using testimonial videos and move them through the awareness journey so they are more likely to buy from you.
And we are going to do it without all sorts of tech stuff or advanced coding.
So let’s dive in.
The first thing you want to do is go to your website and create a page.
Name this page “Start Here.”
It doesn’t have to be that exactly. It could be something more SEO-friendly if you want that too.
This is going to be the first page you want a lead or prospect to go to.
On that page, there are going to be three options (which cover the five awareness stages) for the visitor to choose from.
Each of these options is designed to get the visitor to select where they want to go.
It’s not like most pages, where they have no options and are forced to take the route we want them to.
This lets them control what’s best for them.
For us, it lets us know where they are in their customer journey.
Once the visitor lands on the page, they see a headline followed by the three options:
Headline: What Best Represents Where You Are Right Now?
1) I’m just curious and want to learn a little more.
2) I need help, but I’m not sure what to do or who can help me.
3) Nothing I’ve tried has worked, and I don’t know if anything will.
You can change the phrasing on these, but you get the idea.
Depending on what option the visitor chooses, they are then directed to another page that has specific testimonial videos that answer the biggest questions or objections they have.
So if the visitor chooses option 1 (just curious and wants to learn more), they’ll be taken to a page with testimonial videos specifically for that option.
If they choose option 2, they’ll end up on another page with a different set of testimonial videos.
The same goes for option 3.
By doing this, it allows the visitor to connect with clients who were in the exact same stages they were in, and this creates a stronger link between your business and them.
Plus, you now have your clients doing the sales work for you.
But what clients you choose and what questions you ask them in their testimonial videos are important.
And there are two ways to go about selecting the clients for this.
1) Different clients to do testimonial videos for each option.
The ideal way is to have a set of different clients do testimonial videos for option 1.
Another completely different group for option two, and then another different group for option 3.
But this means organizing and getting a lot of clients to do it.
The better fit for this start here strategy may be to select around five clients total and ask them all the questions, and then just edit the videos so they work for each section.
2) Have the same clients answer questions for all three options.
Whatever you decide, it’s important to know who to choose for the testimonial videos.
If you go the ideal route, then your focus should be to choose the clients based on how they came to you and where they were in their awareness stage.
If you’re unsure of what stage they were in, just ask them where they were based on the three options mentioned above.
On the other hand, if you choose just the five clients and have them answer all the questions, then you’ll have to make sure they can answer every question listed below.
Here Are The Questions To Ask For Each Option
Option One (just curious stage)
1) What type of issues have we been able to help you with, or what did you need help with?
2) What options did we present to you to help with these problems?
3) What was the experience like working with us, and what makes us different from other things you’ve tried?
4) What results have you seen from working with us?
5) What would you tell someone who is curious about us, and wants to learn a little more?
Option Two (I know I need help, but I’m not sure what to do or who can help me)
1) What specific problem(s) were you struggling with, and how did they impact you?
2) What other programs, products, or things have you tried in the past that didn’t work?
3) Why did you decide to work with us?
4) What has that experience been like?
4) What results have you seen working with us, and what impact have they had?
5) What would you tell someone who needs help but isn’t sure about what to do or who to turn to?
Option Three (nothing else has worked, and I don’t know if anything else will)
1) What have you tried (be specific), and how did you feel when you realized they weren’t working?
2) You had pretty much given up; why did you decide to try one more time?
3) What was it about us that made you curious, and why did you decide to try us?
4) What was the experience like working with us, and how was it different from everything else?
5) What ended up happening/ what results did you get?
6) What would you tell someone where nothing has worked for them, and how can we actually help?
As you can see, the questions are slightly different for each option.
That’s because each is designed to answer and overcome the biggest questions the visitor has based on the option they chose at the beginning.
Plus, the answers coming from your clients are automatically moving the visitors through the customer awareness stage and making them more likely to buy from you.
But there’s still one more piece to the start here strategy
That is the call to action (CTA).
If you noticed in the questions above, the last question under each option is different.
That’s because the last one is designed to specifically answer the biggest objection the viewer had coming in.
And you want to make sure the client in the testimonial video tells the viewer that you are the best possible solution.
Once your client finishes their answer, you want a call to action in the video about what the viewer should do next.
And directly underneath that video, there should be a link or button for the viewer to select as well.
But depending on what option they chose from the start here page, the CTA will be different.
If the visitor selected option 1 from the start page (just curious and want to know more) do this…
Present them with two links (or buttons).
Link 1 – Click here if you want more information.
This link just directs them to testimonial videos from option two (need help but not sure what to do).
Link 2 – This could be a form, a phone number, or whatever you normally use.
If the visitor selected option 2 or 3 from the start here page, do this…
Present them with one CTA link or button that directs them to contact you/work with you.
People who come through options two or three are much more likely to be ready to work with you than someone who is just searching for info.
Also, this is something I would do, but you don’t have to.
I would include other generic testimonial videos and social proof at the bottom of that page.
Why?
Because no matter where a person is in their journey, the more social proof they see, the better it’s going to be to convince them that you are the one who can help them.
Lastly, setting all this up and collecting the different testimonial videos can be pretty time-consuming.
Especially if you’re getting different testimonial videos for each option.
But if you’d like, I can get all the testimonial videos for you.
And depending on the platform you use for your website, I may be able to set up the pages for you as well.
I would just need to speak to you for a few minutes to get a few details from you so we can make it all work.
If you are interested in this, then all you have to do is click here.
But if you want to run all of this on your own, you have all the information you need listed above.
The great thing about using the start here strategy is that once it’s done, you now have an incredibly powerful asset that you can use forever.
It’ll be just as effective today, as it will be a year from now.
Plus, you’ll have a ton of new testimonial videos. You can even use these testimonial videos in other places too.
So there are a ton of cool ways to use all of this.
You just have to get the testimonial videos and create the start here page to get things rolling.
And if you need help doing that, then just let me know by clicking here.