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Testimonial questions for forms and interviews

The questions decide the testimonial. Ask whether someone liked your product and you get a polite yes; ask what they were struggling with before and what changed, and you get a story another customer can recognise. These question sets are built to produce that story, in the order people find natural to answer.

Each set is plain text you can paste into the form builder, survey tool or call notes you already use. Keep the short form for busy customers and the detailed one for those who have a lot to say.

These are templates, not testimonials. Every example on this page is a structure with placeholders such as [Name] and [Company]. None of it is a quote from a real or invented person: fill it only with what your customer actually told you, and publish it only with their permission.

Fill in the blanks

Replace the words in square brackets with your own details. With JavaScript on, the fields here fill every template on the page for you.

The templates, piece by piece

  1. The short form
  2. The detailed form
  3. The video prompt
  4. The interview guide
  5. The consent step

The short form

For a link in an email or a message after a success. Three questions are enough for a solid testimonial, and short forms get finished.

  1. The situation before
  2. The change
  3. The recommendation
  4. The consent box

Fill-in template, not a real testimonial

Testimonial for [Company]

What were you trying to solve when you started using [Product]?

What is different now?

What would you tell someone who is considering [Product]?

[ ] You may publish my answers with my name and role.

The detailed form

For customers who have been with you a long time or who offered to help. The extra questions give you material for a case study as well as a testimonial.

  1. Context about them and their team
  2. The problem and what they tried before
  3. How they use the product
  4. What changed, in their terms
  5. Consent and how to name them

Fill-in template, not a real testimonial

About you
Your name, your role and your company

Before
What problem were you trying to solve, and what had you tried already?

Using [Product]
What do you use [Product] for most, and who on your team uses it?

After
What has changed since you started? Any example you can share helps.

Recommendation
Who would you recommend [Product] to, and why?

Permission
[ ] You may publish my answers on the website of [Company].
[ ] You may show my name.  [ ] You may show my role and company.  [ ] You may show my photo.

The video prompt

For a recorded testimonial, by webcam or phone. Send the questions in advance, ask for short answers, and let the customer record as many takes as they like.

  1. Practical tips for recording
  2. Four short prompts
  3. How to send the result

Fill-in template, not a real testimonial

Before you record: a quiet room, light in front of you, the phone held sideways.
There is no script. Answer in your own words and keep each answer short.

1. Who are you, and what do you do?
2. What made you look for something like [Product]?
3. What has changed since you started using it?
4. What would you say to someone who is unsure about trying it?

Record as many takes as you like and send us the one you prefer: [Upload link].

The interview guide

For a short call when the customer prefers talking to writing. You take notes, draft the testimonial from their answers and send it back for approval.

  1. A warm-up question
  2. Questions that bring out the story
  3. Follow-up probes for detail
  4. How you will close the call

Fill-in template, not a real testimonial

Warm-up: How long have you been working with [Company], and what is your role?

Story: Take me back to before you used [Product]. What was hard?
Story: What made you decide to try it?
Story: What happened in the first weeks?

Probe: Can you give me an example of that?
Probe: What would you have done without it?

Close: I will draft a few sentences from what you said and send them to you to approve or change.

Add it to every form, and confirm it again before publishing. It records what the customer agreed to, so you only ever publish what they approved.

  1. What you will publish
  2. Where it will appear
  3. How they are named
  4. How to withdraw

Fill-in template, not a real testimonial

How we may use your answers

[ ] You may publish my answers, edited only for length and spelling, on [Where you will publish].
Show me as: ( ) full name, role and company  ( ) first name and role  ( ) anonymous
You can ask us to change or remove your testimonial at any time by writing to [Contact email].

Why these questions work

They ask about experience, not opinion. A question about what changed gets an answer with a before and an after, which is the shape of a convincing testimonial; a question about whether they liked it gets a yes. None of them suggests what the answer should be, so the words stay the customer's own.

The order matters too. Starting with the problem helps people remember why they came to you, and the recommendation at the end draws on everything they just said.

Questions to avoid

Leading questions, such as asking how much the customer loves a feature, put words in their mouth. Rating questions on their own give you a score but nothing to publish. And long forms with every possible question get abandoned; ask the few you will really use.

Keep it honest

In the United States, the FTC’s Endorsement Guides say a testimonial must reflect the honest opinion or experience of the person giving it, and that you may tidy the wording but not reword it so that it distorts what they meant.Source [1] If the customer got something in return that your readers would not expect, such as a discount or a free product, that connection must be disclosed clearly.Source [2] This is a summary, not legal advice.

Collecting testimonials goes faster with a form your customers can fill in on their own. Read how UpVoiced’s testimonial forms are meant to work.

Frequently asked questions

What questions should I ask for a testimonial?

Ask what the customer was trying to solve before, what changed after they started using your product, and what they would tell someone considering it. Those three cover the before, the after and the recommendation.

Should testimonial questions be open or multiple choice?

Open. Multiple choice suits surveys, but a testimonial needs the customer's own words, which only an open question produces. Use checkboxes only for consent and naming.

Can I edit the answers into a testimonial?

You can shorten them and fix spelling, but keep the meaning and the customer's voice, and get their approval for the final text before you publish it.

Sources

  1. Federal Trade Commission, published in the eCFR, “16 CFR 255.1, General considerations (FTC Endorsement Guides)”: www.ecfr.gov/current/title-16/chapter-I/subchapter-B/part-255/section-255.1, retrieved .
  2. Federal Trade Commission, published in the eCFR, “16 CFR 255.5, Disclosure of material connections (FTC Endorsement Guides)”: www.ecfr.gov/current/title-16/chapter-I/subchapter-B/part-255/section-255.5, retrieved .

Collect testimonials with UpVoiced

UpVoiced is adding testimonial collection forms and a wall of love; they are coming soon and not available yet. Its feedback board, roadmap and changelog are in development, and you can try them on a fictional demo.

Check availabilityTry the fictional demo