Our original Press Release for our Testimonial Verification Service

Solana Beach, CA December 12, 2006. For immediate release.

Testimonial Shield works to provide peace of mind and build trust by verifying the authenticity of customer testimonials published on websites.  The presence of Testimonial Shield’s  web seal  helps consumers and businesses identify trustworthy online organizations.

Company founder, Peter Monaco, was always a bit skeptical about those sparkling customer testimonials found on almost every website selling something.  They so often seem too good to be true, and after some research, and the FTC’s own findings which have led to a new set of laws surrounding customer testimonials, it appears that the vast majority of the testimonials used to sway would be buyers are in fact fictitious.

“From my experience with my own previous businesses, I would occasionally get an email from potential clients accusing me of having fake testimonials - I knew they were true, but really, looking at it from their angle, how would they?“ says Monaco.

We all know to look for the safety icons accompanied by an image of a strong padlock regarding encrypted financial transactions: Verisign®,  TrustE®, Authorize.net®,etc.  These indicate that others won’t be able to steal or share our personal or financial information, but how do we know about the ethics of a company?  The quality of the products or services they’re selling?  Their customer support or ability to deliver in a timely and as described manner?  Any company can use a secure shopping cart and do the right things to keep data encrypted, but what about the experiences of other customers?  That’s where the real indication of a company’s quality is revealed – non-paid customer testimonials.  But testimonials are only effective if people believe them.

Many people base a decision to buy a product or service based on past customers reviews; that’s easy to do when it’s a local business referred to by a friend, but the web is such a huge global place.  There’s just no way to know.

Testimonial Shield’s preliminary survey indicates that a vast majority of web users do not believe most of the testimonials they read on small business websites, and that testimonials do, in many cases, make or break a sale.

It’s also a means of rewarding honest companies.  “It gives honest companies the edge they deserve over those that are just making up testimonials.  If your products are ‘about the same’ and your price is ‘about the same’ I can almost guarantee you that certified 3rd party authenticated customer testimonials will win you the sale every time over the other guy.”

For more information on using Testimonial Shield visit the company website at http://www.TestimonialShield.com