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Consumers these days are a skeptical bunch. It's often not enough to say that your product is the best around or that your service can't be beat. People want proof. But you can't always verify the quality of your product or service with a demonstration. The blurb, then, becomes a wonderful tool for building credibility with customers.

Blurbs, also called testimonials, or "third-party endorsements" if you want to get technical (and pretentious), are simply a way of conveying positive aspects of your business, especially customer satisfaction, in a convincing way by putting the praise in the mouths of "real people," your previous customers. They should look something like this:

"Luis's Landscaping turned my lawn from a dry, brown weed-bed into the Garden of Eden!"
Jane Johnson
Eugene, Oregon

Or:

"Terrance's Technology Solutions saved my company millions!"
Steve Smith
Deputy Director, International Office Supplies

An easy way to acquire usable blurbs is to pass out questionnaires or surveys when you make a sale or finish your service for a client. Email works especially well because customers don't even have to pick up a pen. But however you do it, make it exceptionally easy for them; the average person is both very busy and a bit lazy. Another way to get good blurbs is to simply ask your customers, after you complete a transaction, what they think of your product or service. If they say something especially nice, ask if you can quote them on that and jot it down.

Whatever you do, don't just make them up. It's easy enough, and you might get away with it, but if you're found out your credibility will be ruined, and the purpose of blurbs is to build credibility.

Use your blurbs in print ads, brochures and sales letters. They're a valuable tool that can bestow instant credibility upon new and old businesses alike.