Svaha:  the time between seeing lightning and hearing the thunder

What people say

Jon Hansen You have given words to a process that defies words. And you’re constantly in a position to help me continue to hone that, deeper and deeper and more and more resonantly, who I am and what I offer, which is truly invaluable. — Jon Hansen, The Remembering Room, Richmond, Illinois
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Daniel Stone Working together was absolutely key, and I think that’s what made it such a great experience. I felt like you were my partner in this. I felt like my success was your success. To me, someone who has that attitude and the skills to go with it — that’s an unbeatable combination! — Daniel Stone, www.danielstone.com, Washington DC, New York City, Delaware, South Carolina, and India
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Bev Dwane I have a website I’m proud of — but for me, the hugest benefit has been increased self-confidence. Because of the process we went through, and the validity that came with the process, I trust what I think and I trust myself to speak about it. I have greater confidence and clarity in my message about who I am and what I do. — Bev Dwane AICI CIP, www.bevdwane.com, Durham, North Carolina
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Introducing ...
The Art & Science of Great Testimonials:
a step-by-step guide to gathering powerful social proof

(Recognized in the San Diego 2011 Local Authors exhibit)

Fantastic work!

Great testimonials are the most effective way to show (instead of telling) prospective clients why they want to buy from you.

And the process of gathering great testimonials helps you in surprising ways — ways that go far beyond your obvious goal of making more sales to your ideal customers.

Gathering great testimonials is an art and a science.

It’s an art because it involves people — the art of communication, the art of interaction, the art of understanding each other.

And it’s a science because there really is a clear, defined process you can use to reliably, consistently, and easily gather powerful testimonials and case studies from your clients.

Fortunately, both the art and the science are easy to learn and straightforward to use.

The Art and Science of Great Testimonials: a step-by-step guide to collecting powerful social proof

A comprehensive home-study program that teaches you an effective and fun process for gathering great testimonials.

It’s a process that gets results. You’ll have testimonials that present the authentic value of your work in your clients’ own words — without their having to struggle with writing them for you, and without your having to ghost-write them.

And it’s a simple process you and your clients will enjoy.

Daniel Stone I was in Rome last week, and met with one of my testimonial people, and she talked about how great it was to talk to you and what a great conversation it was. They all experienced the testimonial interviews as being a really positive thing for them to do — it was a fun, useful, interesting experience for them, and I think they felt very gratified by it.
- Daniel J. Stone, Organization Change Consultant, DanielStone.com, Washington DC, New York City, Delaware, South Carolina, and India

With this workbook-and-audio package, you’ll have everything you need to get started right away.

You’ll have everything you need to gather authentic, convincing testimonials and case studies for your website and other marketing materials.

Fabeku Fatunmise I really dig what you’ve put together here. It’s good. Really good. It’s full of clear, concrete stuff that people should really be able to rock. I also think the Quick Start guide is super smart. At this point, I usually skip bigger/longer products. But I’m way more likely to jump in if somebody gave me a guide to help me get oriented and navigate the terrain. You did a gorgeous job!
- Fabeku Fatunmise, Sankofa Song, Cincinnati, Ohio

Know you want it?

(Please click the “return to Svaha Concepts” link when you’ve completed the transaction. There’s one more step that will help ensure you receive the download information immediately!)

What’s Included

The program is delivered electronically — you get immediate access to all the components.

Written materials are in PDF and Microsoft Word format. The recordings are MP3s that you can listen to from your computer, transfer to your iPod or other MP3 player, or burn to a CD.

How to Use This Program. The program is intended to give everyone just what they need — whether you’re a “big picture” person, or you’re more detail-oriented and want all the nuts and bolts of every step. This brief guide outlines the program components and helps you find exactly what you need.

The Art and Science of Great Testimonials: a step-by-step guide to collecting powerful social proof — the full-length PDF-format workbook. 87 pages of solid content (not counting cover, copyright, table of contents, or “about the author” pages) with step-by-step details on

Click here to download the Table of Contents and a sample chapter.

The Quick Start Guide jumps you right in — you don’t have to work through all the material before getting started with your first testimonial.

The Technology Guide to help you find and use the most appropriate tools for your level of technological understanding and interest. (Most of the tools are either free or low-cost.)

The Testimonial Examples includes recordings, full transcripts, and each editing step, and describes what to notice in each of the eight examples. You’ll experience how to modify the approach for different situations and different styles of communication.

For each of the 8 examples, you get:

The testimonial examples are

This process works in any industry and for any type of business. I’ve collected testimonials and case studies for corporate clients as well as the individuals and small companies listed here. Because corporations have stringent restrictions on what they’ll allow to be published, I couldn’t get permission to use any of the full-length materials in this program. However, you will see real testimonials I’ve gathered on behalf of clients who work in the corporate world.

The price: $87

(Please click the “return to Svaha Concepts” link when you’ve completed the transaction. There’s one more step that will help ensure you receive the download information immediately!)

The guarantee:

Sixty days, 100%, no questions asked. It’s that simple.

You buy it, you try it, and if it doesn’t work for you, just let me know within 60 days of purchase and I’ll refund your total purchase price, no questions asked.

(Please click the “return to Svaha Concepts” link when you’ve completed the transaction. There’s one more step that will help ensure you receive the download information immediately!)

Got questions?

I want to be sure you have all the information you need to make the best decision possible. Use the form here to ask me anything at all. It sends an email directly to my personal email in-box, and I’ll get back to you as soon as possible. (And that’s usually very soon. Certainly within one business day, usually within an hour or two.)

Note: after the email form below, I’ve answered a few questions I thought you might have. Take a look and see if your answer is there!

Your name:

Your e-mail address:

Your phone number (with area code) — optional:

What questions do you have for me?

Questions you might have

Why aren’t there any business/corporate/larger companies in the examples? Does this process work for those types of organizations?

Yes, the process absolutely works for all types of business. However, larger companies are restrictive in what they’ll allow their employees to participate in and what they’re willing to have published about themselves (even when it’s positive!). So although I’ve used this exact same process for several corporate clients, I was unable to get permission from any of them to include their materials in this book.

I include examples, with links to where they’re being used, to some of those testimonials within the workbook so you can see the finished product, even if not the steps along the way.

Tell me more about how the conversation thing works.

It’s a conversation between you and your client in which you ask just seven simple questions — questions which are (of course) provided within the material.

The conversation lasts 20 minutes (and often less). It’s easy, painless, and fun for both you and your client.

What if I want to use this process to gather testimonials for my clients — meaning, from my clients’ clients?

Go for it!

I know my clients won’t let me use their full names or photos. What can I do?

First: don’t be so sure of that. Most of my clients make that assumption, yet as we work through this testimonial process they’re often surprised by their clients’ willingness to include name, job title, and even a photo. When you do good work, people who receive that work are usually very pleased to be able to support you. And the workbook includes sample emails to help you phrase your request.

On the other hand, if you’re in a highly sensitive field (for instance, one of my clients is a relationship and intimacy counselor), your prospective clients will understand why you’re not including names. (And you may still find that one or two will be up for it — which will give all the rest of them greater credibility just by association.)

Got questions not answered here? Just fill out the question email form — I’ll get back to you within one business day (and usually much less).

Ready to buy?

(Please click the “return to Svaha Concepts” link when you’ve completed the transaction. There’s one more step that will help ensure you receive the download information immediately!)