Testimonial collection software - a complete guide

Forget confusing forms, slow uploads and complex code, and instead use a testimonial collection tool. But before you decide which tool to use, here's everything you need to know about the various options that are available:

What is testimonial collection software?

Testimonial collection software is a platform that is used to gather customer feedback, reviews, and testimonials.

It is used by all types of businesses - particularly sales and marketing teams - to automate testimonial collection. It also helps you understand and improve customer satisfaction, build trust and credibility, and increase conversions.

Testimonial collection software can help you collect, manage and share text and video testimonials with ease. Here's the three core areas most software contains:

Collect testimonials

Collect video and text feedback and testimonials with form  as online surveys . Share your form on social media, email, or in-person interviews.

Manage testimonials

Features for managing, organizing, and analyzing the collected testimonials like search, tagging, sentiment, source or word clouds. These can also include video transcriptions and export.

Share testimonials

Features for displaying your testimonials on a website, social channel as images or other marketing and sales materials. Most commonly these tools let you create website widgets, Walls of Love and testimonial images.

Different types of testimonial software

There are lots of similar types of testimonial tools, but each has slight differences. This article is focused on testimonial collection software but you may also be interested in other types of testimonial and review software.

These can be classified into 5 key categories based on the specific features and policies they offer:

Review and ratings platforms

Used for: independent platforms where your customers can leave reviews

These are tools that allow businesses to collect and manage customer reviews and ratings. They often include features for analyzing customer sentiment and identifying areas for improvement. You can consider positive reviews on these platforms as testimonials.

Examples include TrustPilot, Yelp, and Google Reviews.

Survey and questionnaire tools

Used for: running surveys to help you understand the customer's experience

These are tools that allow businesses to collect customer feedback through online surveys or questionnaires. They typically include features for creating and distributing surveys, analyzing results, and visualizing data. When you receive positive feedback you can then request a video or text testimonial.

Examples include Jotform, Google Forms, and Typedream.

Reputation management platforms

These are tools that provide a holistic view of the customer experience, including tools for collecting and analyzing customer feedback and testimonials. They often include features for managing customer journeys and identifying areas for improvement

Examples include Qualtrics, UserTesting, and CustomerSure.

Testimonial and review management platforms

Used for: collecting, managing and sharing testimonials.

These are tools that allow businesses to collect, manage, and display customer testimonials and reviews on their website. They often include features for collecting feedback through various channels, such as email and social media, and for integrating the testimonials into marketing materials.

Examples include Shoutout, Endorsal, and FameWall and of course Senja.

Video testimonial platforms

These are tools that allow businesses to gather and display customer feedback in the form of video testimonials. They typically include features for managing and organizing the video testimonials, and for integrating them into marketing materials.

Examples include Boast Video and Vidyard.

How to choose the right testimonial collection software - things to consider

The are now 100s of options for testimonial collection software, all with different features, policies and  price points. To help you choose the right software for you, review the important factors in the following the checklist:

The ease of use for you

Is this software easy for me and my team to use?

The ease of use for your customers

As importantly, the software should be a delight for your customers to use too.

Reviews and reputation of the provider

Can I trust this company? Do they have positive reviews? Do they use their own tool to collect and share customer testimonials?

Collection limits

Are there limits on the number of video or text testimonials I can collect? Is there a free tier? If so, how many testimonials are included in the free tier?

View limits

Some testimonial collection software comes with view limits. You pay based on the number of views your widgets get. Is there a limit on video testimonial or widget views? How much will that cost you? Can you afford to pay if your widget views increase?

The price of the software

How much does the software cost? Do I have the budget for this?

Most common testimonial collection software features

Ability to import testimonials

Can you import your testimonials and reviews from other platforms like LinkedIn, Facebook, G2, Trustpilot?

How can I share my testimonials?

How many sharing options are there? Can I share widgets? Can I share as a Wall of Love, and is there a link? Can I turn my testimonials into images? How many template designs are there to choose from?

Can I incentivise collection?

You might struggle to get a high response rate from customers when collecting testimonials. This can be due to a variety of factors, such as a lack of incentives for customers to provide feedback. Make sure your tool has options to incentivise.

Can I hide testimonials?

Another issue is that the collected testimonials might not be representative of the overall customer experience, or might be biased in some way. For example, customers who have had a particularly negative or positive experience might be more likely to leave a review or provide feedback, leading to an inaccurate portrayal of the customer experience. Make sure you can hide these.

Can I manage and organize feedback?

It can also be challenging to manage and organize large volumes of customer feedback, especially if the testimonial collection software does not have robust testimonial management features.

This can make it difficult for you to identify patterns or trends in the feedback, or to prioritize actions based on the collected data.

Look for tools that include testimonial management features including searching, filtering, tagging and word clouds.

Can I add testimonials to my website?

You might also encounter issues when integrating the collected testimonials into your marketing materials or website, or when displaying them in a way that is visually appealing and effective at driving conversions.

Look out for tools that offer lots of ways to share your testimonials. For example Senja, includes sharing as testimonial widgets, images and Walls of Love, and you can embed on over 20 different platforms including Gumroad and Shopify.

Can I customize the collection forms and widgets?

Some testimonial collection software tools might not offer a high level of customization, which can make it difficult for you to ensure it matches your branding. Look out for tools that offer custom domains and branding.

What is the best testimonial collection software?

We would love you to consider our own tool. Senja is a video and text testimonial collection software that is free, and allows you to collect, manage and share 1 or 1,000 testimonials.

Senja is highly regarded for its exceptional user experience (UX) and top-notch customer support.

It is also known for its unique ways of sharing customer testimonials, through 1000s of customizable widgets that can be embedded on any website. As well as with Walls of Love and images.

These features make it easy for you to showcase customer testimonials in a way that is engaging and effective at driving conversions.

Overall, Senja is a top choice for testimonial collection software due to its focus on user experience, excellent customer support, and innovative ways to share testimonials. Here's an example testimonial widget from Senja, showcasing our a few of our happy customers:

Common how tos: testimonial collection software

How do I collect testimonials?

Create and distribute a customer survey or questionnaire. Testimonial collection software tools often include features for creating and distributing surveys or questionnaires to collect customer feedback. To do this, you will typically need to create the survey or questionnaire using the tool's design and customization features, and then use the tool to distribute the survey or questionnaire to your target audience. This might involve sending an email or other notification to invite customers to participate, or embedding the survey or questionnaire on a website or social media platform.

Read more on collecting testimonials.

How do I manage and organize the collected testimonials?

Testimonial collection software tools often include features for managing and organizing the collected testimonials. This might involve creating folders or tags to categorize the testimonials, or using search and filtering tools to find specific testimonials. It can also involve using analysis tools to identify patterns or trends in the collected data.

Read more on managing testimonials.

How do I display the collected testimonials on my website?

Testimonial collection software tools often include features for integrating the collected testimonials into a business's website or marketing materials. This might involve using widgets or other embeddable elements that can be placed on a website or social media platform. It might also involve using the tool's design and customization features to create visually appealing displays of the testimonials.

Read more on how to share testimonials.

How do I display the collected testimonials on my marketing materials?

Testimonial collection software tools often include features for integrating the collected testimonials into a business's website or marketing materials. This might involve using widgets or other embeddable elements that can be placed on a website or social media platform. It might also involve using the tool's design and customization features to create visually appealing displays of the testimonials.

Read more on how to share testimonials.

How do I display the collected testimonials on my social channels?

Testimonial collection software tools often include features for integrating the collected testimonials into a business's website or marketing materials. This might involve using widgets or other embeddable elements that can be placed on a website or social media platform. It might also involve using the tool's design and customization features to create visually appealing displays of the testimonials.

Read more on how to share testimonials.

How do I analyze and act on the collected testimonials?

Testimonial collection software tools often include features for analyzing the collected testimonials and identifying areas for improvement. This might involve using data visualization tools to identify patterns or trends in the collected data, or using sentiment analysis tools to gauge the overall tone of the collected testimonials. Based on the collected data, businesses can then take action to address any issues or areas for improvement identified in the testimonials.

How do I manage customer reviews on review websites?

Some testimonial collection software tools include features for soliciting and managing customer reviews on review websites such as Yelp or Google. To do this, you will typically need to use the tool to send a request to customers to leave a review, and then use the tool to manage and respond to any reviews that are left.

Alternatives to Senja

Here are a few leading alternative to Senja's free testimonial collection software that you might consider:

Famewall
This is a platform that allows businesses to showcase customer testimonials and reviews on their website. It includes features for gathering feedback through various channels, such as online surveys and social media, and for displaying the testimonials in a visually appealing way.

Pros: Fair pricing
Cons: Lack of good-looking widgets

Boast Video
This is a video testimonial platform that allows businesses to gather and display customer feedback in the form of video testimonials. It includes tools for managing and organizing the video testimonials, and for integrating them into marketing materials.

Pros: Focus on authentic video
Cons: Really expensive

Shoutout
This is a customer feedback and review management platform that allows businesses to gather and display customer testimonials and reviews on their website. It includes features for collecting feedback through various channels, such as email and social media, and for analyzing and managing the feedback.

Pros: Simple to set up
Cons: Limited import function

Endorsal
This is a customer feedback and review platform that allows businesses to gather and display customer testimonials and reviews on their website. It includes features for collecting and managing feedback, and for integrating the testimonials into marketing materials.

Pros: Great integrations, and some unique widgets
Cons: Complex pricing - including views-based

See more comprehensive reviews and comparisons in our round-up of the best testimonial collection software.

Alternatives to testimonial collection software

If you don't want to use an all-in-one testimonial collection software, there are other ways that you might consider gathering feedback, reviews and testimonials from your customers.

Here's what you can try:

Ask with a customer feedback form

Many businesses link to simple online forms on their website or over email to collect customer feedback, reviews and testimonials.

This can be a quick and easy way to gather testimonials from customers, but won't include features to record video, manage or share your testimonials.

Ask your customers on social media

You can also use social media platforms, such as Facebook, Twitter, or Instagram, to solicit customer feedback, reviews and testimonials. You can link to a form to collect on these platforms too.

This can be a good way to gather quick feedback and engage with customers, but it's not as structured or organized as using a dedicated testimonial collection software tool. You'll still need to find ways to manage share the testimonials.

Ask your customers in-person

You can also collect customer feedback, reviews and testimonials in person, through methods such as in-store surveys, phone calls, or feedback forms.

This can be a good way to get more detailed and personalized feedback, but it can also be time-consuming and resource-intensive.

List on independent review websites

You can also encourage your customers to leave reviews and ratings on websites such as Yelp, Google, Trustpilot or TripAdvisor.

This can be a good way to be discovered, gather feedback and build credibility, but it can also be difficult to manage and control the content of these reviews. Senja's testimonal collection software will let you import these reviews as testimonials.

If you're looking to collect, manage and share testimonials, try our free testimonial collection software Senja.