Since I’m into testimonials, I found someone who is an expert at writing them.  Holly Buchanan is a marketing professional and she graciously agreed to answer my questions: 
1.  What makes an effective testimonial?
Effective testimonials do 3 things: They are specific, they overcome objections, and they are properly placed.
#1 – They are specific.
Avoid vague or cliché testimonials like “I was very impressed with your service,” or “Great course. I loved it.”  These have little or no impact.   Look for testimonials that are more specific. “Tech support spoke to me in plain English and isolated the problem in 90 seconds.”  …read more

I wrote about the value of testimonials last week and since then I’ve found out that testimonials – at least some of them – may soon be illegal, if the FTC has its way.
Mark Riffey at Business is Personal writes that the FTC has something in the works to regulate testimonials.  In its 86 page report (I’d like to skip reading that thing), the FTC said it wants to stop the kind of testimonials that “do not describe typical consumer experiences.”  If you can’t get a testimonial from a “typical consumer,” the proposed regulations state, you must disclose “the results …read more