Author: Sebastian Scheplitz
Testimonials are statements supporting your brand’s credibility, expertise, and reputation. They represent the trust your clients have in your brand, making it one of the most persuasive marketing tools out there.
They are a fantastic marketing tactic that helps drive more interest from new and existing clients towards the ultimate goal of becoming a better, more successful business.
And here is a short summary of how testimonials can help iGaming businesses:
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The fact that viral marketing relies so much on word of mouth proves how compelling testimonials are.
Case in point: a research study from Nielsen states that 92% of customers rely on online reviews before they choose to buy a product or service, while 70% of them trust product reviews and recommendations from complete strangers.
Moreover, testimonials from local players can help online casinos and sportsbooks break into entirely new and potentially lucrative market segments.
In short, verified, authentic testimonials are effective because they are credible third-party endorsements coming from another customer/client rather than your brand’s self-promotion. Here’s why:
Social Proof: The Power Behind Testimonials
For all the talk about how humans have evolved eons from our earliest ancestors, there is one thing about us that hasn’t changed: humans are social animals.
That means each and every one of us craves one thing: social acceptance.
We desire to fit in with our groups, and this inherent need for social acceptance influences our thought processes, behaviors, and actions – buying included. We look for social proof and act on it subconsciously.
Think about it – what was the first thing you looked at before choosing an online casino to play at?
Your instinct would tell you to do your due diligence and read customer feedback about the said online casino before depositing your hard-earned money to it. In addition, your intuition would advise you to research who’s running the casino, as well as what other people think about its games, promos, and bonuses.
In the end, every single testimonial that exists about the online casino you’re researching is an indisputable social proof. And if you went ahead and signed up and played at the said casino, then you’ve been influenced by this social proof – not just because of irresistible promos and persuasive copywriting techniques.
The very existence of social proof is what makes any business instantly more reputable and trustworthy. That’s because the endorsement comes from legitimate customers whose voices tend to carry more weight than carefully curated corporate messaging from brands themselves.
Social proof goes beyond the people we know and trust. It doesn’t matter from whom or where the evidence comes. What matters most is that the recommendations from other consumers – in this context, other players and iGaming aficionados – are there. And that gives all of us an extra layer of security that the decision about playing in a particular online casino is the right one.
And as we will see, testimonials, as well as iGaming influencers, play an essential role in breaking through potentially new and lucrative markets, mainly when sourced from individuals located in the regions your brand may wish to target.
Different Types of Testimonials That Online Casinos Can Use
Testimonials come in all sorts of shapes and sizes, so you need to choose the ones that will help achieve your organizational goals.
Here are some ideas for testimonials you can collect from players and local media as part of your iGaming localization marketing strategy.
Quote Testimonials
Written quotes are often used as testimonials in the form of interview excerpts, reviews, customer feedback, magazine articles, and other publications.
These quotes are concise bits of testimonial advertising that are no longer than a short paragraph. They add an aura of credibility to any marketing asset.
Social Media Testimonials
Social media comments are easy to use as testimonials. Your customers might volunteer to post reviews on your social media channels in the form of reactions and comments on Facebook, Instagram, and Twitter. Just pick and choose, and ask for their permission before using it for marketing.
Video Testimonials
Video content makes for highly authentic and engaging testimonials because it can bring the customer experience to life.
They reek of authenticity and trust, and provide intangible value in the form of time your customers have taken to convince others about how special your casino is.
It’s challenging to get just about perfectly, but it works like magic when it’s done right.
How to Obtain Testimonials
One of the best practices is to go to your most engaged players for testimonials that provide value and more details. These might include testimonials stating why your online casino is better than others in terms of gameplay, deposits/withdrawals, customer service, or the bonuses or game selection on offer.
Use testimonials that are as specific as possible and those that discuss the most common pain points your regular customers know to be existing issues.
Another option is to formulate a guideline questionnaire to get more specific feedback from players.
Today’s increasingly sophisticated clientele can spot fake testimonials from real ones. Using them can (and will) cause irreparable damage to your iGaming brand’s reputation and credibility before it ever gets built.
How to Ask the Right Question for Testimonials
It’s not enough to use a testimonial that says your online casino is the best (e.g., “This is the best online casino in the world!”).
Sure, it’s a direct, third-party recommendation for your online casino. Still, it provides no value to potential customers in the process of making a final decision of where to play.
So, what questions does a good testimonial answer? As with any purchase decision, players need to know if your online casino’s interface, gameplay, and services are good enough for their tastes.
- What did current and former players think about your customer service?
- Were the bonuses on offer enticing?
- What games do players come back for?
- Was there support in their desired language?
All of these play a considerable role in substantiating the social proof that every online casino brand craves while helping potential players make an educated decision as to whether they should play.
Localization: The Key to Breaking Through New Markets
Not paying attention to the cultural and linguistic nuances that these new audiences can erode just as much trust as not having legitimate, verifiable social proof, or worse, turn off an entire set of potential new players from ever setting foot in your online casino.
Obtaining testimonies of local players in a particular region is vital to establishing that coveted element of social proof. After all, it’s hard for a non-English speaker, for instance, to evaluate your online casino’s testimonials when they all come from exclusively English-speaking regions.
Moreover, there’s no way to assess reviews when all the evidence is Greek to an individual. And with the constantly rising number of players worldwide, social proof is needed in every language.
The premise is the same as the benefits of translating and localizing your website: personalizing a potential new customer’s attention and creating essential conditions for them to play in your online casino, regardless of what region they’re in.
Localization gives the impression that your company cares about the local players, which can, in turn, derive a more immersive iGaming experience based on trust and loyalty.
Why iGaming Brands Should Use Testimonial Marketing
Customer testimonials – especially those substantiated by local customers in the targeted region – are more important than ever to building trust and relationships.
Back then, brands could easily pull the wool on their customers from any bad press coverage. Nowadays, any Tom, Dick, or Harry with a phone, a social media account, and an internet connection can elevate your iGaming brand’s reputation and credibility (and destroy it) in the span of a few keystrokes.
Fortunately, there are plenty of opportunities for iGaming brands to display their testimonials across the full spectrum of marketing communication platforms — from press releases, landing pages, brochures, emails, and web pages to blogs.
So, take a proactive approach and leverage the power of testimonials by displaying them wherever applicable. Make sure you’re getting the testimonials that accentuate the best while providing an honest opinion on what can be better.
Testimonials from clients are among the most effective trust signals your iGaming brand can use as part of your online casino’s marketing campaigns. From landing pages, FAQs, and product pages, to advertisements, a well-placed persuasive testimonial can sway even the most hesitant of potential clients. That makes them a potent device in your iGaming brand’s marketing strategy.
Leveraging the power of testimonial marketing builds your online casino’s trust and reputation, particularly in an age where online casinos and betting exchanges are mushrooming left and right.
Therefore, adding that localized touch to the testimonials is what will provide you with the ultimate layer of credibility that delivers the trustworthiness your iGaming brand desires.
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How did you like Sebastian Scheplitz’s blog post “Localized iGaming Testimonial Marketing to Break Through Regions”? Let us know in the comments if you have anything to add, have another content idea for iGaming blog posts, or just want to say “hello.” 🙂
