They hit reply and wrote it in the email

When Customers Reply Instead of Submitting

You sent a request with a link, and the customer answered by pressing reply and typing three warm paragraphs into the email. It is a good problem to have, but those words are not yet a testimonial: nobody agreed to publish them and they sit in one inbox. Build the right reply below.

A thank you that asks for one small extra step
A version that quotes their reply back for a clear yes
A note for when they attached a video file instead

Use the free tool Start free

New message

SubjectRe: thank you, Marta

Hi Marta,

This made my day, thank you. "you made the switch painless for our whole team" is exactly what other people want to hear.

Could I ask you to paste what you wrote into the form here? It takes a minute and lets you choose how your name appears: your StoryProof link

If you would rather not, no problem at all, and thank you again.

Dev

4 ready-to-send versions

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The problem, solved

A reply is a yes in the wrong place

The customer did the hard part. These are the snags between their email and a testimonial you can show.

Situation 1 of 5

Their testimonial is stuck in my inbox

Words in one person's mailbox never reach the website, and they vanish when that person leaves or tidies up.

How StoryProof solves it

Send them back to the same collection link with their own words quoted, so pasting is all it takes. The link takes text, audio or video in the browser.

Reply builder

Answer their reply in a minute

Fill in the fields, choose what they sent you, and copy the reply. Every version thanks them first and asks for one thing only.

Ask them to paste it into the form

Best when you want their own submission and attribution choices on record.

Subject: Re: thank you, [Marta]

Hi [Marta],

This made my day, thank you. "[you made the switch painless for our whole team]" is exactly what other people want to hear.

Could I ask you to paste what you wrote into the form here? It takes a minute and lets you choose how your name appears: [your StoryProof link]

If you would rather not, no problem at all, and thank you again.

[Dev]

Ask for a yes to the exact words

For a customer who will not click another link. Keep their written yes with the testimonial.

Subject: Re: may I share this?

Hi [Marta],

Thank you so much for this. May I publish the following on our website, with your first name and company?

"[you made the switch painless for our whole team]"

A simple yes is enough, and if you would like anything changed or your name left off, just say.

[Dev]

Your text is filled in on this page only. Nothing is stored or sent.

Handling the reply, two ways

Copy and paste in a hurry

Their email paragraph goes onto the homepage the same afternoon
Their full name and job title are added from the signature
Reminders keep going to them all week
Nobody can later find where the quote came from

One short reply, then the form

They paste their own words into the link, or say yes to a quoted line
They choose how their name appears
They know a reminder may arrive and why
The testimonial carries a tag saying it began as an email reply

In StoryProof

Move a reply into StoryProof

1
Reply within a day
Thank them and send the reply that fits what they sent. The link they get takes text, audio or video.
2
Warn them about reminders
If you run the follow up automation (from Pro), it stops when a testimonial arrives through the link. Until they use it, tell them a reminder may still arrive and can be ignored.
3
Bring in what they sent you, with their yes
Upload an attached video file, or list agreed replies in a CSV with the name and text columns matched.
4
Approve and tag
Approve only after the customer has agreed, and tag it as an email reply so the source is clear later.

What happens next: If replies keep outnumbering form submissions, look at the request itself. A link buried at the bottom of a long email invites people to answer the email instead.

Before you start

What the product does not do here

Replies are your step to move
Nothing here relies on StoryProof reading the replies to a request. Bringing a reply in, by link or by import, is a step you take.
No in app editing of the words
There is no verified way to edit a testimonial inside StoryProof. If the customer wants a change, ask them to resubmit through the link.
A reply alone is thin consent
Writing to you is not the same as agreeing to be published. The quoted line version exists to get that agreement in writing.
Two versions can end up live
If a customer both replies and later submits through the link, you may hold two copies. Approve one and leave the other unpublished.

FAQ

Questions people ask

Short answers to what usually comes up next.

Can I just copy the reply onto my website?

Only once the customer has agreed to that use. A reply to your request shows goodwill, not consent to their name on a public page.

Is it rude to ask them to fill in the form after they already wrote it?

Not if you thank them first and quote their words back so pasting is easy. Offer the quoted line version for anyone who would rather just say yes.

Why do customers reply instead of clicking the link?

Usually because replying is what they do with every email. A short request with the link near the top and a plain explanation of what happens next makes it the easier choice.

How is this different from praise I find in old emails?

Here you asked and they answered. For compliments that arrived unasked, see our page on turning customer emails into testimonials.

Still have a question? Ask the StoryProof team or book a demo.