Fact: Few people really like to write testimonials.

But most people don’t mind talking.

Fact: Interviewing is both a skill and an art.

But few people know how to really do it well. It’s too easy to freeze up and revert to yes-or-no questions. (See below.)

I have a knack for knowing exactly how to get my clients’ clients to say the most amazing, awkward-free things about them.

And I love doing it.

Not only do testimonials provide social proof—a powerful element of persuasion—but they can also inspire your messaging, copy, and even new programs and services. They make both you and your clients look smart.

Do you know what kinds of profitable ideas your customers are sitting on? What if not having me interview your customers for testimonials was actually costing you money? Really. It just might be.

Don’t risk it. Make your business—and your clients—look good with Awkward-Free Testimonials.

Here’s how the testimonial process works:

• You complete a brief questionnaire about the project.
• I draft an email for you to send to your clients to request an interview; I schedule the interview; and I get their final approval.
• I interview your client in detail for up to 30 minutes, recording the conversation and giving you an MP3 as well as a transcription of the call.
• I edit your client’s story to create a compelling, readable, professional draft. Draft includes, in the client’s own words, the challenge, the solution, the experience of working with you, and the result, including why they decided to buy from you, with benefit-focused headlines for each section. I also indicate any key quotes you can use for a call-out box.
• I write a compelling title for the testimonial-case study so you can use it on your website or as a printed handout. Testimonials can become the engine of your entire website.

My fee is $600 for each testimonial-case study.

Want to do everything-but-the-interview yourself? My fee to schedule the interview, conduct the interview, and give you the MP3 recording is $200 for each testimonial.
Looking for a magazine-style case study instead? My fee to write a two-page case study is $1,200. Please ask me for samples.

If you think this might be for you (or if you have a few burning questions before you say “YES!”), here’s what to do:

The first step is to fill out the form below. Once we agree we’d both like to do this, I’ll email you payment information, my discovery questionnaire, and a link you can use to automatically schedule our session.

cforms contact form by delicious:days

A word about confidentiality: This is super-important. I will never share your information with anyone without your permission. Your email will not be added to any lists—including my own—without your permission. I will never reveal anything you’ve told me unless you’ve already spoken about it publicly, even if I consider it a minor detail, like that you eat oatmeal for breakfast. I will not tweet about our sessions. I may tweet about you. But not within the context of us working together. And never with any expectation of reciprocation. Whether or not you want to talk about me is up to you. As for me, I keep my mouth zipped. Zip! Unless you tell me otherwise.

Testimonials

“Kelly Parkinson is one of the most brilliant people I’ve ever worked with.

“People call her because the quality of the writing on her website really compels them to go, ‘I want something like that.’ She’s always coming up with new ideas and marketing tactics for tweaking and improving high-end, outcome-based programs. I expect even more amazing things from her in the future.”
Robert Middleton, Action Plan Marketing

“Before I met Kelly I thought copywriting was all loud-mouthed hype and manipulation. It’s not.

“With the right person it’s a way to help your right clients say “oh, that’s me!” and flock to you. Kelly really knows marketing, she knows copy, she knows branding and can infuse all that stuff with complete integrity. I turn to Kelly for advice and input whenever I have to promote a product or program. Plus she’s helped me formulate all sorts of smart, enthusiastic, believable things to say when people want to know what the heck I do. Collaborating with her is always a terrific experience.”
Havi Brooks, The Fluent Self

“I hired Kelly because although people were entertained by the copy I was writing, they weren’t buying what I was selling.

“I wanted copy that sounded like me. I also knew I didn’t want to work with someone stuffy and overly corporate. Kelly made the process fun. She was professional without being stuffy or textbook. She showed me all the things I wasn’t saying about my products that I really needed to be saying so my copy would convert. Kelly’s copy changed the way people interact with my site, and my site copy is converting better than it has in the last two years! Hire Kelly if you really want it done right.”
David Billings, Sparky Firepants

“I was starting a new division of my business, and it seemed hard to explain what I was trying to do.

“I’ve had web copy in the past that was dry, boring, business-y. Kelly’s isn’t like that. She writes copy that is clever and casual and that grabs you in a non-slimy way. There’s something sort of magical about the way Kelly listened, took all of the pieces I gave her, and synthesized them into something that seems casual, easy, and conversational. Working with Kelly, I got really well-written copy, but it was so much more than that. She had an entire marketing plan for me, and she helped me create the framework for the launch of my business.”
Eileen Corrigan

“You out-did my expectations. It’s amazing.

“You seem to have some magical way of pulling out the gems in the rough. I love the way you are keeping it un-wordy and impactful. I am so happy.”
Lauren Oktay, Basic Goodness

“My challenge was figuring out how to approach people who don’t necessarily have a positive relationship with computers.

“I needed to do it in a way that didn’t scare them off. Kelly seemed like she had a really good attitude and I just had a good feeling about her. My clients are more concerned with results than with the method. Kelly helped me come up with something that speaks to what they want, regardless of how it happens and without getting into computer details. I expected more of an exchange where I said, “OK, here’s what I do,” and then I would get copy back. Instead, Kelly helped me understand more about the work that I do, and in the process I also became a better editor and copywriter. I was surprised that it was such an engaging process. I went from being unsure of how to present myself to feeling much more confident about what I’m doing and how I’m talking to people.”
Ezra Brooks, Ezra Helps

“Kelly is one of the most talented writers I’ve ever worked with. She’s phenomenal.

“She offers a perspective that’s more than words on a page–she thinks about the big picture. She’s also very easy to work with, always meets her commitments, and brings new and challenging ideas to every project.

“Recently, I asked Kelly to help articulate my firm’s brand and everything we offer in a way that was authentic, that sounded like me. Kelly wrote the whole site as well as much of the positioning content for it.

“She nailed it. It’s exactly what we need to say and how we need to say it. I don’t think anyone could have done a better job. The feedback we’ve gotten from customers and clients has been clear: Her writing really hit the mark and captured our brand.”
Jennifer Benz, Chief Strategist and Founder, Benz Communications

“The solar industry has a hard time communicating benefits.

“We can talk about features and technical data like the manufacturing process and the glass. But we’re so busy talking techno-jargon that the average person doesn’t see the benefits. What people really care about is how much money they’ll save and how it works. We need good people to help us communicate.

“My company had a pool of copywriters at our disposal, but a co-worker told me Kelly was the best. Not only does Kelly really understand the technical aspects of solar, translating them into terms the average person can understand, but she’s also much more than a copywriter. She’s a marketing person who just happens to be a copywriter. She sees the whole picture.

“Kelly’s method was to immerse herself in our industry and in the marketing materials. She came up with some ideas for new marketing programs for our company. And she became a true partner in developing the marketing materials themselves—rather than just doing her one part of it. Her ideas were genuinely helpful, and she was easy to work with.”
Marketing Manager, Solar Industry