Clean It Up

UK Floor Cleaning Forum => Carpet Cleaning Forum => Topic started by: Hilton on August 19, 2015, 02:47:45 pm

Title: Is it illegal to use fake testimonials and reviews on your marketing
Post by: Hilton on August 19, 2015, 02:47:45 pm
Either in the local paper,magazine etc or on your website, ie.......

Wonderful carpet cleaner , great prices best carpet clean I have ever had.  ;D

I was just wondering as the government has just done this, so why not everyone.
Title: Re: Is it illegal to use fake testimonials and reviews on your marketing
Post by: jasonl on August 19, 2015, 04:02:18 pm
I hope not !
Title: Re: Is it illegal to use fake testimonials and reviews on your marketing
Post by: Mike Halliday on August 19, 2015, 04:17:53 pm
It's a gray area,

do you think the boys & girls on itv with amazing clear skin ever had acne ? But they are in adverts selling spot cream .

Or do the ladies in the Tanna adverts really pee themselves when ever they dance?

They are basically lying just like most advertising, but if it's lying to deceive then it's illegal but if it's giving a typical representation of a given result then it's not.
Title: Re: Is it illegal to use fake testimonials and reviews on your marketing
Post by: Stoots on August 19, 2015, 04:23:08 pm
Marketting is mostly an exageration of the truth if not just simply lying

i would say go to town with the fake testimonials, i certainly will on my site

i never believe them anyway and if you do you are an idiot and deserve to be lied to lol
Title: Re: Is it illegal to use fake testimonials and reviews on your marketing
Post by: Hilton on August 19, 2015, 04:27:36 pm
It's a gray area,

do you think the boys & girls on itv with amazing clear skin ever had acne ? But they are in adverts selling spot cream .

Or do the ladies in the Tanna adverts really pee themselves when ever they dance?

They are basically lying just like most advertising, but if it's lying to deceive then it's illegal but if it's giving a typical representation of a given result then it's not.
In a commercial everyone is aware its actors in the ad.

I am talking about attributing a testimonial to a particular person when its actually fiction.
Title: Re: Is it illegal to use fake testimonials and reviews on your marketing
Post by: derek west on August 19, 2015, 06:59:02 pm
if your own family members won't write you a testimonial then god help ya.  ;
Title: Re: Is it illegal to use fake testimonials and reviews on your marketing
Post by: *Hector* on August 19, 2015, 07:17:30 pm
Apart from when you very first start out..... why on earth would you need to fake testimonials??

Why not just get the real thing??
Title: Re: Is it illegal to use fake testimonials and reviews on your marketing
Post by: Radek Jablonski on August 19, 2015, 08:20:07 pm
if your own family members won't write you a testimonial then god help ya.  ;

 ;D
Title: Re: Is it illegal to use fake testimonials and reviews on your marketing
Post by: Stoots on August 19, 2015, 09:42:43 pm
Apart from when you very first start out..... why on earth would you need to fake testimonials??

Why not just get the real thing??

saves asking, whats the difference why bother getting real ones when you can make it up
Title: Re: Is it illegal to use fake testimonials and reviews on your marketing
Post by: *Hector* on August 20, 2015, 04:53:49 am
because it is all part of the after clean marketing..... Ask at the same time as asking for referrals...

or don't you bother doing that either??

after all it may be too much trouble eh??  ::)roll ::)roll
Title: Re: Is it illegal to use fake testimonials and reviews on your marketing
Post by: Hilton on August 20, 2015, 08:44:11 am
Why bother asking ?
It's all too much trouble ?

Shows a lack of confidence

If you are happy with the job and the customer is happy with the job, its a simple question to ask.

When he/she (in Hectors case ;D) says she is pleased just say 'can I quote you on that' they all say yes, that's all,job done , no need to 'make it up'

 Mrs Jones Acacia Avenue Bumpkingshire...." very pleased with results" etc etc  others that live in Acacia Avenue or in and around the area will have a point of reference,  thats why you don't make it up,unless your splash and dash of course all their testimonials are fake.

Title: Re: Is it illegal to use fake testimonials and reviews on your marketing
Post by: Craigp on August 20, 2015, 04:08:58 pm
Mine are real.

What really impresses customers is when you prove it at the quote stage.
Title: Re: Is it illegal to use fake testimonials and reviews on your marketing
Post by: John Kelly on August 20, 2015, 04:30:57 pm
A folder worth of written testimonials is worth its weight in Gold, especially for commercial work.
Title: Re: Is it illegal to use fake testimonials and reviews on your marketing
Post by: maxcampbell on August 20, 2015, 05:32:55 pm
Ours are all real, and we say so. Anyone using fake testimonials, whether it's legal or not, don't deserve success - scum.
Title: Re: Is it illegal to use fake testimonials and reviews on your marketing
Post by: Mike Halliday on August 20, 2015, 06:31:36 pm
Looks like I'm scum :'(

Just checked my site and I have some fake testimonials  :o

I think they are stock quotes  put on by the designer, never even knew they were there.

 bit lazy of Mark as I had some real good ones on my last site,  he could have just cut & pasted them across

Title: Re: Is it illegal to use fake testimonials and reviews on your marketing
Post by: Stoots on August 20, 2015, 09:45:29 pm
lol @ scum

testimonials are generally something you have on your website, say half a dozen

they usually say something like "great work" jill
or "excellent results" barry

so when building a website, would i just write half a dozen or go do 6 jobs and say what did you think of my service?

who knows mine are fake and your are real?
Title: Re: Is it illegal to use fake testimonials and reviews on your marketing
Post by: maxcampbell on August 20, 2015, 10:13:14 pm

who knows mine are fake and your are real?

You do
Title: Re: Is it illegal to use fake testimonials and reviews on your marketing
Post by: scott johns on August 20, 2015, 11:28:56 pm
do you guys not do good work that impresses your clients?  why would you want fake ones people
will see through you at least if there all yours you can get excited about them and explain in detail
what you did for them the client will then believe it to be true I hope you ncca members remember
the ncca rules about integrity and honour otherwise you are as bad as bait and switch con artists.
Title: Re: Is it illegal to use fake testimonials and reviews on your marketing
Post by: Stoots on August 23, 2015, 06:08:37 pm

who knows mine are fake and your are real?

You do

exactly, me and only me, and im not bothered so no ones bothered


and i dont clean carpets yet or have any testimonials on my site, im just arguing for the sake of it
Title: Re: Is it illegal to use fake testimonials and reviews on your marketing
Post by: Jamie Pearson on September 05, 2015, 07:29:56 pm
I used to use testimonials for our commercial carpet cleaning site.
One day one of our customers called the person who gave us the testimonial and they made us take it down as they didnt like being approached directly..
They then gave us a Royal Appointment to make up for it and now I cant use any other testimonials with that.
I suppose its pretty weighty though.
I personally wouldn't make up testmonials. It feels better earning them and the rewards they reap.