A rival in the quote
Testimonials That Mention a Competitor
“We switched from a rival tool and never looked back” is the kind of line marketers love and lawyers frown at. Whether you can publish it depends on what it says about the competitor, whether it is the customer’s honest experience, and where it would appear. Answer five questions to decide what to do with one quote.
- Publish, trim, limit or hold
- Separates opinion from claims about a rival
- Keeps the customer’s consent at the centre
Decision helper
What should happen to this quote?
Have the exact wording in front of you. Answer for that quote only.
The helper runs in your browser and keeps nothing.
The problem, solved
Where competitor quotes cause trouble, and how StoryProof keeps you in control
- Problem 1
It went live before anyone read it
A testimonial naming a rival appears in a widget on the homepage the day it is submitted.
How StoryProof solves it
Nothing a customer submits is published until you approve it, so every quote naming a rival can be read and decided on first.
- Problem 2
We cannot find the ones that name rivals
Two years later a competitor complains, and nobody knows which published quotes mention them.
How StoryProof solves it
Tag each testimonial that mentions a competitor, with the competitor’s name, so you can list and review them in one place.
- Problem 3
The switching story shows everywhere
A quote that makes sense on a comparison page reads as petty beside your pricing table.
How StoryProof solves it
You choose which approved testimonials appear in each widget, so a named comparison can sit on one page only.
- Problem 4
The best line is a claim we cannot prove
“Twice as fast as the old tool” is the customer’s impression, but published by you it sounds like a measured fact.
How StoryProof solves it
Send the customer a fresh collection link asking what changed for them. They can answer in writing, on audio or on video, in their own words.
- Problem 5
Several switchers, no consent for names
A dozen customers moved from the same rival and you would like their stories, done properly.
How StoryProof solves it
Add them as contacts and email a request that asks about their switch, so the answers arrive with consent from the start.
One quote, three versions
Illustrative sample, wording invented for this page
As submitted: “We left [Rival] because their support never answered. Here we had a reply within the hour.”
Trimmed, with consent: “Support at our old provider was hard to reach. Here we had a reply within the hour.”
Held: the first sentence states a fact about a named rival that the business cannot check. The trimmed version keeps the customer’s experience and drops the claim.
In StoryProof
Handle competitor mentions in StoryProof
- 1
Read it in the queue
Every submission waits for approval, so a quote naming a rival never appears by accident.
- 2
Tag the mention
Add a tag for the competitor named, so these quotes can be found later.
- 3
Agree any change with the customer
If the outcome was to trim, send the new wording and approve only after their written yes.
- 4
Limit where it appears
Add the quote only to the widgets on pages where the comparison belongs.
What happens next: Review the tagged quotes whenever the competitor changes its product or pricing. An old comparison can become untrue without a word of it changing.
Before you start
What this page does not decide
What this does not cover, and what to check on your side. Better to know now than after launch.
- 01
Not legal advice
Comparative statements raise trademark, disparagement and advertising questions that vary by country. Have a lawyer review any quote that makes a factual claim about a named rival.
- 02
You can own the customer’s claim
The FTC’s endorsement guidance says an endorsement cannot be used to make a claim the advertiser could not make itself. A published comparison is treated as yours.
- 03
Ads face extra rules
Ad platforms have their own policies on naming other brands. Check them separately before putting a named comparison in an ad.
- 04
The rival’s product changes
A comparison that was fair last year may not be now. Tagging helps you find these quotes; deciding when they are stale is still your call.
FAQ
Questions people ask
Short answers to what usually comes up next.
Is it legal to publish a testimonial that names a competitor?
Often, if it reflects the customer’s honest experience and makes no false or unsupported claim about the rival. The rules vary by country, so take legal advice on anything comparative.
Can I just blank out the competitor’s name?
Only with the customer’s agreement, and only if the quote still means what they said. Send them the new version first.
Is “we switched from X” a problem?
A plain statement that they used another product is usually low risk. The risk rises when the quote describes the rival as worse in a specific, factual way.
Should I warn the customer their quote names a rival?
Yes. Some customers have contracts or relationships with the other company and would rather not be seen criticising it.
Still have a question? Ask the StoryProof team or book a demo.
Read every quote before it goes live
Approve first, tag mentions of rivals and choose exactly where each one appears.
Sources
- FTC’s Endorsement Guides: What People Are Asking, Federal Trade Commission. Checked 2026-11-06.
Last updated 2026-11-06.