Testimonials are very powerful tools when it comes to convincing a prospective client to work with you. Third party evidence of your expertise, work quality, and responsiveness is difficult to beat! And they can be used in a variety of places — web site, proposals, newsletters, social media profiles, emails signatures, etc. With a bit of upfront effort you can start to gather a collection of testimonials to draw from for different situations.

It is my belief that high impact (and genuine) testimonials are grossly underutilized in all industries. Don’t overlook one of your greatest potential competitive advantages!

But how do you go about gathering them? And what if you don’t have any clients yet? I’ve got you covered!

Today I’m going to share three tactics you can immediately apply in your consulting / freelancing practice regardless of whether you’re just starting out or you’ve been at it awhile:

• I’ll walk you through a technique for getting testimonials (legitimately) before you have any clients. This technique is also useful even if you already have clients because it’ll give you a larger pool of testimonials to add to your business arsenal.
• Then I’ll show you a technique for getting possible testimonials from every consulting engagement past or present.
• Then I’ll share a technique you can use for increasing both your testimonial gathering success rate and testimonial quality at the same time.

You can see how I use a few of the testimonials I’ve gathered here and you can also see a larger collection here (that I draw from for different situations as needed). What I describe below are the same tactics I’ve used to gather my testimonials.

Here’s what you do to gather up a handful of testimonials no matter where you are at in your consulting career.

This approach will work if you have a lot of clients already. It’ll also work if you’re just starting out.

Leverage Current and Recent Professional Connections

First, make a list of your current co-workers, team members, and supervisors. If you do not currently have any of these, start with the last ones you did have.

Don’t forget to consider folks from other parts of the organization that you may have assisted and left a positive impression with too! Also, in some cases, there may be other folks you can include if you worked closely enough with them: vendor key contacts for example.

Now that you have that list of people, ask each of them to write a couple sentences about your work together. Let them know you won’t be offended if they don’t feel comfortable writing up anything at all (and make sure you mean it!). You definitely don’t want anyone to feel pressured or awkward just because they were too busy or don’t like having their name shared publicly.

Here’s a simple testimonial request email / letter you can borrow:

Subject: Feedback on our past work together?

As you may know, I work for myself now and I’m still growing my independent consulting / freelance practice. I have a favor to ask: We’ve worked together previously so you know something of my character and capabilities. I’d appreciate a couple sentences – a brief testimonial – describing your impression of me, our work together, and your satisfaction with the results.

I’d really appreciate it! And it would go a long way towards growing my business, particularly when I’m under consideration by someone who hasn’t worked with me before.

Only include what you’d be comfortable with me sharing with someone else and isn’t considered confidential or proprietary.

And if you don’t feel comfortable providing a testimonial – no matter the reason – that’s okay too! Thanks!

Leverage Former Professional Connections

Next, make a list of all of your prior job(s) or positions – even from years back – and follow the same approach as you did for your more recent co-workers, team members, and supervisors to identify a handful of folks to ask.

Once you’ve listed them, if you don’t know how to reach them you can try looking them up on LinkedIn.com (and if you’re really stuck check out How to Find, Reconnect With, and Revive Your Professional Network). In fact, check out LinkedIn.com either way because just browsing it may remind you of a few folks you forgot about on your first pass.

Here’s an approach email sample, which is just an adaptation of the prior one but for your older contacts:

Subject: Feedback on our past work together?

It’s been a while and you may or may not know, but I work for myself now. I’m still growing my independent consulting / freelance practice and I have a favor to ask: We’ve worked together previously so you know something of my character and capabilities. I’d appreciate a couple sentences – a short testimonial – describing your impression of me, our work together, and your satisfaction with the results of our shared projects.

I’d really appreciate it! And it would go a long way towards growing my business, particularly when I’m under consideration by someone who hasn’t worked with me before.

Only include what you’d be comfortable with me sharing with someone else and isn’t considered confidential or proprietary.

And if you don’t feel comfortable providing a testimonial – no matter the reason – that’s okay too! Thanks!

Leverage Each New Client

Finally – once you have a client or two – there are two places you should look at to gather testimonials from them for possible use:

1. Review any emails they’ve sent you at various progress points in your work together (i.e. a positive line or two about the results of a project). Once you’ve found some worthy ones, strip out anything likely proprietary or confidential and request their permission to use the quotes and/or to adjust them in any way they’d prefer. Note: Absolutely do not just take their emailed comments and just start using these as a testimonial without getting permission; it’s still private correspondence … plus it’s the professional thing to do!
2. Alternatively (or in addition) ask them to specifically write you a testimonial. Tell them exactly why. Something like:

Subject: Glad the project went well / a favor to ask

As you know I work for myself. I have a favor to ask: I’m always looking for new clients I can collaborate with just as well as you! If you’re comfortable doing so, I’d appreciate a brief testimonial.

It only has to be a couple sentences describing our work together, your impression of me, and your satisfaction with the results of our engagement. Only include what you’d be comfortable with me sharing with another prospective client – there’s no need to include anything proprietary confidential.

I’d really appreciate it! And it will go a long way towards keeping my business sustainable. And when I encounter a prospective client who hasn’t worked with me before, they’ll be better informed.

If you don’t feel comfortable providing a testimonial – no matter the reason – that’s okay too! Thanks!

You can send the above email to your buyer (the decision maker that hired you) or anyone else involved in the project that worked with you in any way. (I suggest you do both).

Pro tip: The best time to ask for a testimonial is right at the moment the project has been substantially completed. This is when everything is fresh in their mind and everyone is happy. People get busy and new projects and problems come up so later is generally not better in business. But don’t stress if you forgot to ask right at the project wrap-up or end up needing to follow-up later on to get the testimonial (or to get them to sign-off on using a quote pulled from your prior correspondence together).

Final Thoughts

I’ve almost always gotten a “yes” when I’ve asked to use a quote from an email. And I’ve had a sufficient enough success rate asking for testimonials that it doesn’t matter if some folks end up being too busy, uncomfortable endorsing you, or unable to provide a testimonial due to their organization’s policy … or whatever the reason.

You can use the process outlined above as a one-off activity and it’ll help your future sales, proposal acceptance rate, and lead generation but…. (see next tip).

Pro tip: Once you complete this activity, add a calendar item to repeat it in a few months. (Ultimately, you should add the client testimonial gathering steps into your post-engagement checklist too).

Bonus mental health tip: Whenever you catch yourself being doubtful of your value as a consultant (such as just as you’re finishing up the final draft of a proposal and are debating as to what fees to include or whether you’re even good enough for the proposed project): review the authentic testimonials people have written about you. It can help with the dreaded impostor syndrome. If they weren’t real this would be a really bad idea, but your collected testimonials are from real people that have worked with you. They’ve genuinely appreciated your contribution to the shared work you’ve been involved in together. So all past evidence suggests … You got this.

Alan Weiss writes:

If you find patterns in your dealings with clients—requests for a “deal,” chronic lateness, insistence on extra work to be done, etc.—the common element is you, not them. You’re giving off “deal vibes” or allowing bad habits which are then continued. Before you complain about lousy clients (or relationships) check to see if the cause isn’t your own behavior and language. That’s easy to correct once you realize it.

We Have Found the Enemy…. – Alan Weiss, PhD

Having a client is a little like dating: it’s easy to attract potential partners that have the same dysfunctions you do … or to attract those that benefit from your dysfunctions.

My own mental health (and happiness with my business) improved dramatically when I realized I had agency, did not need anyone else to empower me, and was on equal footing with my clients, prospective clients, and business partners.

Some examples of adjustments I made involving clients over the years, each of which felt scary to execute on, but amazing upon completion:

• Making it customary to collect a significant portion of my engagement fee upfront before I even schedule a new project.
• Eliminating hourly fees.
• Committing to offering a strong, clear, and compelling guarantee within every one of my proposals.
• Telling a client flat-out that the work they wish to hire me for is not something I’m particularly qualified for.
• Nodding and smiling politely while being told my fees are higher than expected and far higher than “other consultants even in more expensive markets” … then leaving my fees entirely alone.
• Refusing to negotiate fees.
• Committing to my first substantial retainer arrangement.
• Explaining for the first time how certain things I was being asked to do weren’t covered under our retainer arrangement, but I’d be happy to assist with outside of it.
• Being willing to accept projects with select clients that were just vague enough that I normally would not accept them, but where I trusted my judgement regarding my relationship with the buyer that we could make adjustments along the way if need be and had sufficiently clear and trustworthy lines of communication with each other that I was being realistic in my judgement.
• Pausing a large prepaid engagement indefinitely because of continuous waiting and bottlenecks within the client’s organization that were not being addressed.
• Telling a prospective client that we simply aren’t a good match.
• Refusing to talk any further with someone (within an otherwise attractive organization for me to work with) that was not in a position make the decision to hire me, but kept insisting I draw up a proposal.
• Raising my fees a little.
• Raising my fees a LOT.
• Stating politely – but firmly – that “I’d be happy to discuss how I might assist you with that matter, but only after we wrap up this one.”
• Refusing projects that no longer interested me, even if I had done similar ones in the past and was pretty good in that problem area.

There are many more, but you get the gist.

Certainly do it for the health of your business. But, perhaps more importantly, do it for your mental health.

One of my favorite things to do in my consulting business has been to annually recognize “client anniversaries.” I send out enough cake or fancy chocolates (complete with disposable plates and silverware if appropriate) for the buyer within the client organization as well as their entire team to enjoy. And then every year thereafter I try to do something similar at about the same time for that same client.

I like doing this because it shows appreciation for our relationship and past work together in a fun way, reminds clients I exist regardless of whether we’ve done work together in the past year, and feeds goodwill with both the buyer and their staff. It’s also highly unusual, which means it’s even more appreciated.

This a highly effective client relationship tool and I urge you to steal it from me.

Bonus tip: Have the delivery person (or ask your client) to take a photo with their cake. I use these photos sometimes in newsletters plus it’s nice to see them smiling eating cake when you can’t be there yourself.

Becoming independent is easy; remaining independent is difficult.

Some of my low years have been so deep that I arguably really should not have continued my solo practice. While the high years generally made up for it, that wasn’t helpful when in the middle of those low points …when I really needed to pay myself a living wage (not to mention my overhead).

There are numerous ways to maintain a baseline of revenue. One way I’ve found sustainable income is retainer arrangements, which work well for the types of clients which benefit from being able to periodically access me for advice and small requests, and which desire priority access to me when something important and urgent arises.

I happen to like recurring revenue because it reduces my ongoing sales and marketing needs (to an extent) and makes my short-term cash flow more predictable. This frees me up to serve my clients, to pursue newer (more risky or less predictable) business opportunities if I so choose, and helps stabilize my income in a way that I haven’t been able to meet through any other technique.

I also personally prefer it because I like to work with the same clients over long periods of time, and retainers focus my energy on those types of clients.

Retainer arrangements are like Membership offerings — Only Better

I view retainer arrangements essentially like a paid membership offering — only better. Membership has its privileges (that is, after all, why someone joins) and in and of itself — with some creative thinking — you can create something valuable to your types of clients.

But even more interesting — each individual arrangement can be customized — one can tune the specific benefits and specify other perks that are appropriate and valued by each individual client in question. Costco can’t do this. You can.

This increases value to the client. This, in turn, increases conversions of proposals into sales, better retention (renewals, which decrease time devoted to sales and marketing and increase your operating profitability), and boosts what you can charge. Win-win!

Payment Terms

My retainer arrangements are typically one of monthly, quarterly, or annual. I automatically invoice at an appropriate point near the end of the current period for renewal. I also require a heads up a reasonable period prior to renewal if the client won’t be renewing.

One difference between retainers and other types of work, is that full payment is always required prior to each period — not during or after. This is important, as it’s helps justify the discount you’re effectively offering in exchange for your receiving prepaid guaranteed income; this goes away if you bill after the period is over.

How to start offering retainers

I got my feet wet with retainers by offering them as an optional add-on to existing client projects at proposal time. I spent time thinking about each project and determining where there was value-add to ongoing follow-up of some sort. Not everyone went for it, and some projects were better fits than others, but enough did… until it donned on me I could make this a central part of my practice not just a small revenue bumper tool.

I suggest this route because it allows one expand their comfort zone in a low risk manner, without scaring off clients or cannibalizing existing business. And, over time, it’ll give you a better idea of which opportunities make the most sense to explore and which clients really see the value in this sort of arrangement (many clients won’t and that’s fine).

What to include in retainers

This is really something that you will know best as you know your specific types of clients best and your market. Here are some suggested places to look for ideas that worked for me:

• Look at past project proposals and ponder what types of add-on or ongoing value-add offerings might have been appropriate
• Look at existing projects in progress and do the same
• Chat with clients about their ongoing non-project needs.
• Brainstorm ideas, even ones that sound far-fetched and commit to selecting one or more of them to tack on your next few proposals as optional add-on offerings. Ask for feedback after proposal acceptance, from those who did not opt for it.

Should project work ever be included in retainer arrangements?

Should project work ever be completed as part of a retainer arrangement? That depends on your goals. Some of my retainer arrangements have been about establishing predictable income and basically are designed to be cash cows for me, albeit heavily discounted versus if I’d performed the same duties on a project by project basis. I was willing to accept this because my priorities were different at the time. There’s nothing wrong with this, but know why you’re doing it if you do it.

Most of my retainers include a discounted rate for project work, applied either to my hourly rate or to my quoted fee for any future projects we do together during the term of the retainer arrangement. The client will still be paying separately for the project work, but gets a discount in recognition of their membership status.

Final thoughts

I think retainer arrangements are a good component of a well rounded solo practice. They bring additional value to clients, encourage long-term client relations (leading to more project work), often can make project work more successful (by incorporating ongoing maintenance and adjustments), can reduce firefighting (by encouraging reaching out for advice and assistance with small tasks), and can bring stability to our cash flow and income.

One of the biggest reasons prospective clients don’t proceed with a project after having you provide a thorough proposal is because they are concerned about their options if you mess up. Take that risk away: Offer a strong guarantee. Here’s how I do it in my consulting practice.

Something like this will do:

The quality of my work is guaranteed. If you do not believe I have met the mutually established objectives for this arrangement, I will continue to work toward those goals with you for no additional fee. If, after such an additional attempt, you still believe I have not met your objectives, I will refund your fees in total.

I borrowed this idea from Alan Weiss years ago, include it as boilerplate in every proposal letter, and haven’t looked back.

Is the above scary? Are you taking on more of the risk? Yes. That’s why it’s powerful.

Do you have to use exactly this language if it makes you too uncomfortable? No. But make sure you pick something that makes you a little uncomfortable. Otherwise it’s meaningless and not compelling. And therefore not of value.

(Also, you’ll have to adjust the language if your projects aren’t fixed fee — like mine predominantly are — but the spirit can be similar.)

Not incidentally, offering a compelling guarantee is also justification for charging higher fees. Accepting risk — taking it away for the client — has value. Clients aren’t simply paying you for your advice or your labor, but everything you bring to the table.

If accepting this level of responsibility for your work isn’t acceptable to you, that’s fine. Just expect to close fewer, smaller, and less profitable deals. Which is fine if it helps you sleep better.

But I sleep better doing things this way[1].

[1] You don’t have to go crazy. Try it on a proposal or two and see what happens.

I could make this article very short with the smug answer: “Just ask for it.”

But I know from real world experience that the more accurate answer is it’s both exactly that simple and, at the same time, not just that easy.

How much do you ask for? When do you ask for it? How do you ask? How do you make it in the client’s interest? How do you deal with objections?

How much you can ask for:

• A portion of the fee upfront.

This one seems obvious to me now, but I went several years before I moved beyond the “work a bunch of hours then send an invoice and wait” model. You can do this whether you are fixed fee or hourly, basing the latter on an estimate. It did wonders for my cash flow, for my scheduling, and for eliminating clients (or worse, prospects — i.e. folks I’d never worked with at all before) that would say “Let’s do it” then drag their feet or expect me to move quickly to do my thing for them, but then would take forever to pay me for my promptly completed work.

• The entire fee upfront.

You’d be surprised how acceptable this becomes once you simply start making it your convention. And, really, it’s not all that strange when you consider that you can’t drive away with a car (or even walk out of Walmart) before paying for your purchase, as well as the fact that in most cases you are taking on greater risk than the client is by working on a project for a client for a few weeks or months with only the “hope” that you’ll get paid at the end. You are a freelancer, not your client’s banker/lender.

When can you ask for it:

• After you’ve set your fee (but not a moment before).

When you get paid is a discussion about payment terms, but not about your fee itself. I learned this from Alan Weiss. I don’t discuss payment scheduling until at the very end of my full proposal. The easiest and most seamless way to do this is to require payment as part of proposal acceptance. That is, nothing means anything until a check is in hand (you can’t deposit a signature and people can drag their feet even after signing agreements).

How you can ask for it:

• At the end of your proposal.

A simply line or two entitled payment schedule or payment terms, at the very end of the proposal (after fees have already been stated), right where they are expected to elect any options and accept the proposal. My favorite way to do this (and what is in every proposal I send out) is an approach I borrowed and adapted from Alan Weiss is to require signature to proceed and to make payment equivalent to a signature:

Upon your acknowledgement I will provide an electronic invoice once you’ve made me aware of which options you prefer and if you wish to take advantage of any of the discount payment terms, which may be paid online or by check. Once accepted, all payments are due in accordance with the payment schedule above.

Your choice of option(s) and your signature indicate acceptance of this proposal as discussed and described above (in the absence of your signature, your payment also will indicate acceptance of this proposal).

• With a discount carrot.

I routinely offer a discount of 5% to 10% for receiving full payment upfront (sometimes up to a year ahead). And no discount (or a smaller one) for receiving no or only a partial payment upfront. As a bonus, some organizations are required to take these discount terms when offered.

• Offer different payment terms depending on the option chosen.

In nearly all of my proposals I give the client several options for achieving the agreed upon objectives, each with varying levels of risk, speed, client involvement, etc. This makes it easy to also associate different payment terms which each option. For example, for lower end (and generally lower fee) options I usually require the full fee upfront. This is justifiable because part of the way I’m able to offer a cheaper option at all is because I get paid upfront for it — i.e. it offers lower risk for me so I don’t need to get compensated for taking that risk, while for higher fee options I am more flexible — i.e. 50% of the fee upfront and the balance in 30 days.

How to handle objections:

• Offer a strong guarantee.

One of the biggest reasons clients don’t like to pay upfront is because they are concerned about their options if you mess up. Take that risk away:

The quality of my work is guaranteed. If you do not believe I have met the mutually established objectives for this arrangement, I will continue to work toward those goals with you for no additional fee. If, after such an additional attempt, you still believe I have not met your objectives, I will refund your fees in total.

• Make sure it’s really payment terms being objected to.

I never negotiate fees. I only negotiate two things: payment terms and project scope (which for me primarily entails engagement objectives and implementation approaches). This makes it important to distinguish between whether the objective is about the payment terms or about project value. The former is a very different discussion from the latter.

• Be willing and flexible when it comes to negotiating payment terms (but not fees).

It’s okay to negotiate payment terms. I suggest that if it seems like you can’t get anything at all upfront, that you tie the first payment to a meaningful, but fairly minor milestone. As soon as the first payment is actually received, the remaining payments are far more likely. And your only concerned with payment terms for two reasons: to manage your cash flow (i.e. sooner is better; some is better than none) and to minimize your risk (i.e. of non-payment, of slow payment).

If you enjoyed this, I suggest you check out the book Value-based Fees by Alan Weiss.