Third-Party Validation Is Your Secret Weapon to Closing the Deal Validation by third-party experts can enhance a new product/service's reputation and credibility.
By Adam Aronson Edited by Dan Bova
Opinions expressed by Entrepreneur contributors are their own.
Launching a new product or service is not an easy task. Small businesses know in order to be successful, they must provide something unique that fills a void or a service. That service needs to intrigue new customers and bring back existing customers again and again. While there are many marketing strategies that can help you reach your end goal, the most effective can often be validation by third-party experts. After all, listening to someone tell you how awesome their product is will fall on deaf ears, but if a credible source talks about your service, suddenly doors will begin to open.
Related: 9 Entrepreneurs Reveal How They Validated Their Business Idea
For example, the remote video auditing service, Arrowsight, found that in order to break into any company involved in healthcare and food services, validation through third-parties, such as medical journals, is a necessary precursor to trials for the service and trust for expansion. Third-party endorsers can enhance your reputation and validate your product tremendously.
Whether your target influencers are medical journals, bloggers, technology experts or consumers, each brings an extra layer of expertise and knowledge within your industry that can be leveraged to increase your bottom line and build your company to last.
Here are some reasons third-party validation is a cornerstone to success for any entrepreneur or small business:
1. Building company credibility
Regardless of what your company does, building credibility is a main driver to the success of your brand, and will affect whether or not your customers come back. When an unaffiliated or third-party expert talks positively about your brand, it can be an instant credibility booster that takes out of the equation you simply boasting about your own product. This third-party approval will speak volumes and will resonate with buyers and partners thinking about carrying your product or service.
Related: Test and Validate Your Business From Both a Product and Brand Perspective
2. Validating your product/service
The value of third-party validation is substantial. While it's common for brand managers or internal employees to speak positively about features and benefits; third-party validation is what really provides confidence and accountability to companies and consumers to fully commit to spending their money. The bottom line is, companies want to be sure that what you're selling will do what you say it will. It's a known fact that decision makers do their research and trust third-party validations.
3. Achieve broader exposure
In addition to building credibility with potential customers, getting the nod of approval from third-party influencers will also leverage credibility with the media. This could lead to securing coverage of your product or business in top tier news outlets in the country. Media and publicity can also help your burgeoning company gain access to potential customers who follow the outlets insights and recommendations.
Related: Investors Will Show Love to Entrepreneurs Who Do Their Homework
Ultimately, third-party validation is your secret weapon in closing a deal. Nothing you say about yourself will have as much impact as what others say on your behalf. The road to developing relationships with third-party influencers will take time and effort but the reward will be a successful product or service that others are clamoring to have too.
