Brand, Web & Presence

What testimonials or logos can I put on my page when I have zero customers yet?

A starting point

Don't fake logos or invent quotes, it's the fastest way to lose the trust you're trying to build. Instead use real signals you do have: a founder note about your own background, screenshots of genuine early interest, a named advisor, or 'as seen at' from a demo day or community you actually attended. Honesty about being early reads better than borrowed credibility that falls apart on a second look.

Go deeper

Hand-picked from around the web, each with a note on why it earns your time.

2 resources 2 link-checked

Read

📄 Article
✓ Link checked Free Beginner

Why we picked it This walks through eleven kinds of social proof and, crucially, spells out what you can still show when you have no reviews yet: awards and certifications, media mentions, expert or industry endorsements, and aggregate stats like years in business or where your users are. It is honest that most of these are earnable before your first paying customer, so you are not faking logos, you are surfacing real signals you already have. A practical starting point for filling that trust gap without pretending.

How to use social proof in landing pages to boost conversion (11 examples)

From MailerLite by Duncan Elder ~15 min read

  • You do not need customer logos to show social proof: awards, media mentions, expert endorsements, and a founder track record all count and are earnable pre-launch.
  • Aggregate or milestone data (waitlist numbers, years of experience, geographic reach) reads as more honest than one lonely testimonial.
  • Perfect five-star claims actually lower trust; real, slightly imperfect signals convert better, so resist the urge to over-polish.
Open mailerlite.com →
✍️ Essay
✓ Link checked Free Intermediate

Why we picked it Before traction exists there is a vacuum where evidence should be, and this essay makes the case that a genuine founder narrative is the bridge across it. It breaks a real story into parts (origin insight, the problem, your unique approach, founder-market fit) so your About section does the trust work that missing customer logos cannot yet do. Useful as a starting point when your page has more conviction than proof.

The Founder's Guide to Startup Storytelling

From The VC Corner by Ruben Dominguez ~12 min read

  • When you have no metrics, a clear, honest story of why you are building this is the strongest trust signal you have.
  • A good founder story has structure: origin insight, the problem, your approach, and why you specifically are the person to solve it.
  • Vagueness usually hides a half-formed strategy, so if the story is hard to tell plainly, the fix is often the thinking, not the wording.
Open thevccorner.com →

People also ask

What should actually go on my startup's landing page? Above the fold: a clear headline saying what you do, a subheadline saying how, a visual of the product, social proof, and one call-to-action. Below... Beginner 2 resources → How do I build a landing page fast without knowing how to code? Use Carrd for a dead-simple one-pager (launch in an afternoon for a few dollars) or Framer if you want something more designed and scalable. Don't ... Beginner 2 resources → Why isn't my landing page converting visitors into signups? Usually the headline is vague, the value isn't visualisable, or there's too much friction between landing and acting. Julian Shapiro's formula: con... Intermediate 2 resources → How much should I spend on a website before I have customers? Almost nothing. A no-code one-pager and a domain is enough to look real and start collecting emails or bookings. Spend the money you saved on talki... Beginner 2 resources → Do I need a full multi-page website or is a single landing page enough? At the start, one focused landing page beats a sprawling multi-page site nobody reads. It forces you to say one thing clearly and gives you a singl... Beginner 2 resources → How do I make my site look trustworthy and professional on a tiny budget? Trust comes from clarity and proof, not gradients: consistent fonts, real logos of customers or press, testimonials with faces, and a fast-loading ... Beginner 2 resources →