Instead of having a testimonials page that no one reads, you'll have a reviews page that customers find incredibly useful.

You can't assume people have already seen all the reviews they want to read. Not even the knowledge graph or Page 1 of your branded search results will show people all five or ten sites where you've got reviews. Especially if it's not the site(s) you link to and showcase as a place for customers to leave their feedback.

People who are already on your site might be interested in reading what others have said about doing business with you.

Instead of asking for testimonials, why don't you ask for honest, genuine reviews instead? It seems like people would be more likely to take the time if they felt it was worth while and not just another way to boost a company's ego or sales numbers?

Here is an answer from Yelp that might help clarify things:

Can You Repurpose Customers' Reviews on Your Website?: An Answer From Yelp HQ

While there isn't anything explicitly stated against linking to your reviews, the advice given by Yelp itself seems somewhat contradictory. If you want customers to leave honest and unbiased feedback about doing business with you then why not give them multiple platforms where they can do so?

As for quality control issues on third-party review sites like Yelp (which does have its own set of problems), here is what one reviewer had to say:

'Customers want to read honest, unbiased reviews from real people who've actually done business with a company. They don't care about reading glowing praise written by the same group of paid reviewers over and over again.'

In conclusion, while having an official testimonials page may not be enough on its own anymore (thanks in large part to social media), using customer feedback as part of a larger marketing strategy can still pay off if done right. So go ahead - ask your customers for reviews!

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