What is Social Proof in Marketing and How to Use it (with Examples)
One of the hardest aspects of selling your offering is convincing your potential customers that it really is as good as you say it is. Many customers are skeptical of being sold to, and they trust reviews of others significantly more than anything you might say. In fact, 91% of consumers say that positive reviews make them more likely to use a business. Taking advantage of social proof is one of the best ways you can show potential customers the value of your business.
What is social proof?
Social proof, also known as informational social influence, is a psychology term coined by Robert Cialdini in his 1984 book, Influence. The idea is that people assume the actions of others are correct based on the frequency that they see those actions, and they then copy said actions. Have you ever stood in a long line only to get near the end and realize there was a second, much shorter line just out of eyesight? That’s social proof in action.
Psychology Notes HQ describes 4 main principles of social proof:
Uncertainty. In an unfamiliar situation with an uncertain outcome, individuals look to others for guidance. This is at the core of social proof.
Similarity. Peers are especially important when faced with an uncertain situation. If you see someone similar to you do an action, you’re more likely to as well.
Expertise. Social proof is more valuable by someone perceived to be an expert. For example, if you’re trying to decide what toothbrush to use, you’re more likely to use the one recommended by your dentist friend than your accountant.
Number. In short, the idea is that the more people who do the action, the more valid it appears.
Why is it important?
In marketing, you can harness the power of social proof to show potential customers the value of your offering. With 89% of 35-54-year-olds trusting online reviews as much as personal recommendations, you will increase the amount of trust customers have for your brand when you use social proof.
This is especially true for online or service-based businesses. For a brick and mortar store, customers can come in-store to feel the products, try them out, and decide if they like them for themselves. With online businesses or a service-based business, customers aren’t able to try out the product in the same way. Of course, you can offer a free trial or money-back guarantee, but even then, customers will want to know that they aren’t the first before they try it out. Showcasing examples of past customers will help you build trust and show customers that you are true to your word.
How do I use it?
Now that you know why you should be using social proof, let’s dive into how you can actually put it into action. There is no one way for every business, so pick and choose the options that make the most sense for you.
Customer Reviews/Testimonials.
Probably the easiest to implement, customer reviews and testimonials allow you to showcase happy customers using their own words. These reviews help establish trust and increase the likelihood of purchase. In fact, a 2018 study showed that 35% of respondents chose a higher-priced option because of positive reviews. This beat out brand recognition, convenience, and personal recommendations.
Product-based businesses can easily display reviews next to a product. For service-based businesses, after a project finishes, ask your client for a testimonial to showcase on your website and in marketing materials. You can include testimonials on your homepage and on your services page. Make sure you also include testimonials on your sales page as they can increase conversions by 34%.
Review Websites.
Google Reviews and Yelp provide another opportunity to showcase happy customers. According to Mintel, 70% of Americans are likely to visit user review sites or independent review sites before making a purchase. Since these are external platforms, they are seen as less biased than reviews on your website, which helps customers to trust your brand.
Case Studies.
Especially critical for service-based businesses, case studies help you to tell a longer story than a simple review or testimonial. In fact, according to hawkeye, 71% of B2B buyers in the awareness stage and 77% in the evaluation stage cited testimonials and case studies as the most influential types of content. When writing a case study, you’ll want to choose an example that will resonate with your target audience. Don’t choose a project that had a very unique situation that doesn’t apply to most businesses. Start out by describing the problem, then move into how you resolved it, and the outcome, especially benefits. Make sure you include plenty of quotes from the customer and photos where possible.
User-Generated Content.
When your customers create content that you can use in your marketing, you knock out two goals: generating social proof and creating quality content. In fact, user-generated content is 20% more influential than any other kind of media when it comes to millennial buyers. An easy way to implement this is to have a hashtag specific to your brand that customers can use when engaging with you. You can also encourage them to tag you in their posts, which you can reshare to showcase happy customers in their own words.
Influencers.
Influencers are an excellent way to tap into the 4 principles of social proof if done correctly. For example, if you’re a physical trainer, you can work with an influencer in the fitness or wellness space to try your service and share it with their followers. That influencer is already seen as more of an expert in the health industry, they have plenty of followers, and often followers identify with influencers, which is why they have authority in the first place. Influencer marketing is proven to work. 40% of people say they’ve purchased a product online after seeing it used by an influencer on social media. Find influencers related to your business and have them share their results with their followers.
Customer Count.
Since social proof is all about doing what others are doing, showing that a lot of people have used your service is one way to tap into it. You can display the number of projects you’ve completed or products sold on your website. You may have seen businesses display a pop up that says something such as “John bought Product 12 hours ago”. This helps to establish a recent customer count.
Awards/Certifications.
Displaying awards or certifications shows that you are trusted by an outside authority. If you’ve been featured in recognizable publications or you have a certification relevant to your field, make sure you display those on your website and marketing materials.
Examples of companies using social proof
Scott’s Cheap Flights
Scott’s Cheap Flights uses social proof to help entice new customers to subscribe to their list of cheap flight alerts. In this section of their homepage alone, they execute on several elements of social proof. You can see recognizable brands of authority, such CBS and Conde Nast Traveler. They use the customer count approach to show over 3,000 happy clients with an average rating of 5 stars. They also combine testimonials, case studies, and user content to show a past client who saved hundreds of dollars on a flight. You can also find examples of user generated content on Scott’s Cheap Flights’ social media accounts and in their email announcements. Taking a closer look at their marketing materials is a great source of inspiration for how to incorporate social proof into your business.
Calendly
The online scheduling platform Calendly also uses social proof on their homepage. By showing that they have 5,000,000 monthly users, Calendly establishes trust and also a fear of missing out. Five million is a lot more than the thousands typically shown on websites. Not only that, but Calendly also showcases recognizable customers with authority, such as LinkedIn, and Zendesk. Even if they weren’t customers, displaying the logos of trusted brands immediately taps into the expert/authority element of social proof, which makes Calendly more trusted and have more authority.
Proposify
Similar to Calendly, Proposify shows well-known brands who they partner with on their homepage. This immediately makes their site more trustworthy. They also tap into customer count by saying 9,000 business won over $7 million in the last 30 days. This showcases that not only are customer using their product, but they’re achieving real, financial results.
With these examples in mind, how can you start to incorporate social proof into your business?