Written by: Producer, Rachel Leskanic

When I was younger I remember watching TV with my family. My mom would always see testimonials in commercials and say ‚“How do I get that job?” I now have an easy answer to that question. Befriend the production assistant at Concepts TV! If you’ve ever wondered about those testimonials, I can now tell you they come from hours of phone calls, power points, and lots of searching.

Testimonials can be easy to find or extremely difficult to find, depending on the product. When we are told by clients that they want testimonials in their commercial, my first instinct is to clarify age and gender. Once I’ve done that, I can go back to my desk and get down to business. First, I brainstorm. Do I have any family members that might benefit from the product? Do any of my coworkers know someone who might be interested? Are there any previous testimonials from other spots that might want to try another product? If I’ve answered those questions and still haven’t found any testimonials, I head straight to Facebook. Facebook postings are quick, easy, fun, and almost always generate a response. The goal is to find real users that will tell me the honest truth about the product.

Testimonial searches for a workout machine are easy. Everyone wants a new and simple way to work out and get in shape. But for a coffee maker the search is a little more difficult. Lots of people don’t drink coffee (I wouldn’t know, I don’t associate with non-coffee drinkers).

The best way to gauge someone’s interest is a quick phone chat. For example, if it’s a knee brace, I ask questions like ‚“What kind of knee pain do you have?” and ‚“Why would you like to try our knee brace?” For each testimonial, I’ll prepare a synopsis of the person’s story and add a little picture. Power point is the easiest way to organize people and stories in a powerful layout for the clients.

My last step is the most important, the pre-shoot interview. This usually comes a few days after the testimonial has used the product and a week before the shoot. Now I want specifics. I want to know when your knee pain started, what the cause is, how many other remedies you’ve tried, when and where it hurts the most, and how it affects your life. These interviews give me the meat of the story. If a testimonial indicates she hurt her knee running, and she can’t bend down to pick her young baby up, I now know exactly what footage I need to get to complement their story. If someone says he hurt his knee skiing, my next questions would be where and when can I get some skiing footage?

Whether it takes me one day, or one week to find the testimonials, I can guarantee that each and every one is 100% real. They have used the product, they have loved the product, and they have told the truth. When it comes to Concepts TV’s testimonials, real means REAL.