Customer Review vs Customer Testimonial Definitions

Key Takeaway

• Reviews and testimonials play a powerful role in influencing consumer behavior.

• Reviews are brief, anonymous, and can be positive or negative. Testimonials are more detailed, positive, and personalized.

• Testimonials come in diverse formats such as video, written, audio, social media posts, and even celebrity endorsements.

• Reviews offer social proof from unbiased users, and testimonials serve as persuasive marketing tools.

Do you know what the majority of consumers do before making a purchase? They look at internet reviews and testimonials to check the quality of products or services. 

You will be surprised to know that online reviews and testimonials are just as trusted as word-of-mouth referrals by 88% of consumers. 

Hence, you can touch the sky of success by collecting lots of positive testimonials and reviews. Also, customer feedback assists businesses in creating a product that their target market likes the most by giving insights about a product or service's loopholes. That is why every big brand and startup should consider its consumers as important collaborators on their innovative journey.

Now, you learn how customer reviews and testimonials can change the game of your business's growth. Let's explore how they differentiate from each other.

Difference Between Customer Review vs Customer Testimonial

Reviews and testimonials provide information about a customer's experience with a product or service and have the power to sway a potential customer's final decision to pick a business. 

Data also says that before making a purchase, 92% of business buyers examine reviews and testimonials. Still, there are a few differences in their characteristics, which you will find below:

Basis Of Comparison: Platform

Review: Reviews frequently feature on third-party websites, which can be online directories or websites where consumers can look up business names and learn about other consumers' feedback and experiences. 

There could be websites dedicated to reviewing businesses in particular sectors. For example, a person who wants to travel to another country can check online reviews about travel agencies to learn how people feel about their services to make the final selection. 

The reviews can also appear on a search engine when you look up the company's name online.

Testimonials: A client or customer testimonial could be found on a separate platform from a review. 

Businesses frequently display testimonials from customers on their websites, demonstrating their ability to lead successful projects in the past and showcasing their high-quality work to attract potential clients. 

Testimonials may also be used in group gatherings to remember team successes or in sales presentations to close business-to-business negotiations.

Basis Of Comparison: Nature

Review: A review can be a short & concise customer experience with your product or service. They are typically written from an anonymous account. 

It frequently shows up next to star ratings (usually between 1 and 5 stars) on well-known review websites like Google My Business, Yelp, TripAdvisor, etc. 

Reviews can be both positive and negative; you can use them to improve your products and services.

Testimonials: A testimonial is a more extensive recommendation from a happy client. Testimonials, in contrast to reviews, are often not anonymous and may contain the client's name, title, business, and even a photograph of them. 

Testimonials are intended to offer prospective clients a sense of what it's like to work with you, and they are often favorable. 

On websites and in promotional materials, testimonials are frequently prominently displayed. Businesses frequently utilize them to gain the trust of prospective clients.

Basis Of Comparison: Control 

Review: A further distinction between a review and a testimonial is the control over the client's or customer's message. Reviews are usually posted via third-party sites, so businesses have little influence over what clients or customers say about their brand. 

Representatives can only reply to reviews as on customers' encounters with your product and services. You can thank customers for their support or address any concerns they may have had, but businesses have no control over altering the content of the message or its online visibility. 

For example, a review left by a client at a cafe gets 100 responses, making it the first message that appears on the list. The cafe owner will be unaware of the review until they keep an eye on online reviews regarding their space.

Testimonials: On the other hand, testimonials are used in marketing materials, so business representatives have the freedom to choose the content that will work for them and the platform that will connect with customers. 

For instance, businesses can use testimonials to praise team members at assembly meetings. 

They can display a testimonial on the website that elaborates business's excellent service or product, so their target audience is attracted to them.

Types Of Testimonial

Let's explore the types of testimonials that you can use to boost the credibility of your business:

Video Testimonials

In a video testimonial, a consumer expresses their opinions about a product, service, or business in general in their own words.

Data says business website traffic can be increased by 157% using video testimonials.

The reason for its popularity:

• Compared to reading words, watching videos is considerably easier to understand. Unlike audio, video content is retained by viewers for a significantly longer period of time.

• Video testimonials provide a more engaging and human experience by telling a story and expressing social indicators like emotions, gestures, and facial expressions.

• The video has a greater conversion rate. According to two out of three customers, seeing a testimonial video increases their likelihood of making a purchase.

Written Testimonials

This type of testimonial is a client's statements in writing that show how much they value your company or product. The reason for its reliability:

• Written testimonials are simple to gather and can be utilized on webpages, brochures, social media platforms, and other marketing platforms.

• Regularly posting customer testimonials on your product page can boost your yearly sales by 62%.

Other Testimonial Types

Audio testimonials -

It is a short recording of customers recommending your goods or services.  

Case studies -

This is a more in-depth account in which clients talk about the issue they faced, the resolution your company offered, and the outcomes.

Social testimonials -

Testimonials posted on social media platforms, including Facebook, Instagram, YouTube, and TikTok videos, are known as social testimonials.

Celebrity or influencer testimonials -

These are usually (though not always) compensated partnerships in which a powerful celebrity promotes and sometimes even advocates for your business, product, or services.

Type Of Reviews

Now it's time to shed some light on the types of reviews businesses. Furthermore, you can always buy Google reviews and use them to raise the online presence of your business.

Reviews of Products or Services

You are all accustomed to reading reviews of goods and services;  In fact, before purchasing a product, 93% of consumers check internet reviews first. In light of this, businesses that use customer reviews report a significant rise in conversions.

Reviews of Companies

Reviews of businesses are used to establish credibility. Approximately 74% of customers believe that positive Google reviews increase their trust in a business.

This kind of review can help startups or tiny enterprises to build social proof to get started among big fish.

Reviews on Social Media

According to one report, globally, internet users spend an average of 143 minutes a day on social media. Therefore, it makes sense to display reviews on these platforms where your consumers spend the most time.

Conclusion

Now that you have understood how reviews and testimonials offer much-needed credibility for businesses of all types, that's where the similarities end.

A testimonial is a highly sought-after statement of admiration that is mostly used for marketing, whereas reviews are candid accounts of consumers' interactions with firms.

Reviews and testimonials can both increase consumer confidence in your product and increase conversions via a variety of channels and stages of the customer journey.

Meanwhile, if you need assistance, getting more positive reviews to expand your business, connect with BuyReviewz. Our team is happy to assist you in your journey of bringing more Google reviews and enhancing the overall reputation of your business.