From pod-cast hosts, to influencers, to lifestyle magazines and celebrity stories, we look at how the testimonial technique of propaganda is used to persuade and influence us.
When a message or idea is promoted and backed by a famous, respected, or trusted person, it is more likely to become accepted.
The person’s credibility is used to influence and persuade us to accept what we are being told.
The Testimonial technique is a recognised form of propaganda and is used to influence our opinions, views, and beliefs.
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The Testimonial Technique_ How to Spot Persuasion from Someone You Like
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- By Patrick
- Everyday Persuasion Articles, The Theory
- Reading Time 10 Minutes
Table of Contents
I Hadn't Thought of it Like That
When a likeable figure with their own platform — Joe Rogan being one example of many — talks through their opinions on subjects such as about global institutions, they aren’t telling you to believe the same, they are simply sharing a personal journey.
The message isn’t “this belief is correct,” but “this is how someone like me has come to see the world.”
Because the figure is seen as intelligent, independent, and likeable, their viewpoint stands in for evidence. The belief gains credibility through association, not proof.
That’s the testimonial technique at work: we are influenced by the authority of a trusted voice, rather than the evidence behind the idea.
Is Testimonial an Endorsement or Propaganda?
Endorsement
When a celebrity or influencer tells us that product X is really good and they would recommend it, that’s an endorsement. It’s a clear promotion of that product or service.
Testimonial technique
But when they talk casually in conversation and mention something they have done which has been good for them, that’s a testimonial.
They are not telling you to go and buy the product because it is good, they are simply telling the audience about something that was good for them.
Propaganda
You are then left to fill in the gaps yourself.
This person who I like and admire benefitted from this thing, we are similar minded people, therefore it might be good for me too.
This type of Persuasion without overt selling is propaganda.
An Everyday Case Study
Will Camden, author of the novel Confessions of a Professional Conspiracy Theorist shares how he would use the testimonial technique in his normal work in PR –
“We used to work on these lifestyle magazines. They looked innocent enough—full of horoscopes and human-interest stories. But they were just elaborate fronts.
They were all owned by PR companies, designed to sell our clients’ products and services.
We’d run a two-page feature on some bloke called Dave from Doncaster who’d had a hair transplant. The story would be all about how it had changed his life, how he’d found new confidence, a new girlfriend, a new job.
It was framed as an inspirational, heart-warming tale, but it was actually an advert. Thousands of middle-aged men reading that story would suddenly think, maybe a hair transplant is what I need. We weren’t selling them a product; we were stoking their insecurity, then planting the idea of the solution.
With only two companies in the UK who specialised in hair transplants, our client was going to benefit.
That’s how we used the testimonial technique in those days, but things have moved online now”.
Modern Day Testimonials
When David Beckham is photographed wearing a particular watch, he doesn’t have to outwardly endorse it.
Instead the manufacturer will ensure that he will asked about the watch, and a story will be told about it being a gift from his wife.
Celebrity Testimonial
This Google expert is being asked about a subject outside of his expertise.
You can read more about how non-qualified people are used to teach us to believe in aliens here.
Think about a podcast where a “neuroscientist,” or “former intelligence analyst,” or “ex-Google engineer” casually endorses an idea outside their actual expertise.
Their title uses authority bias and helps to persuade the viewer.
The Expert
Star ratings, Trustpilot quotes, and “people like you also bought…” are testimonials stripped of celebrity but amplified by volume.
One normal person on their own won’t influence you, but 10,000 people saying it feels like consensus.
People Like You Also Bought
Testimonials succeed because they exploit:
Authority bias — we defer to perceived expertise
Social proof — we follow admired or familiar figures
Identity signalling — choosing what people like us choose
Cognitive ease — it’s simpler than evaluating evidence
The testimonial technique plays on you recognising yourself in the person giving you the message.
Why Testimonials Work
Politics, Ideologies and Worldviews
Testimonials aren’t only used to shape what we buy – they shape what we believe also.
Political views, ideologies and belief systems often arrive via people we trust, rather than through careful reasoning. If the person feels credible, their views, opinions and outlook tend to slip through with very little resistance.
After major bans, online mentions of David Icke often spike, with hundreds of pages and groups using his name and image.
The act of being “silenced” is used as a testimonial that he is important, targeted and therefore worth believing.
Public speeches that invoke unnamed experts who supposedly support a policy are textbook testimonial devices with no verifiable detail.
Politicians or newspapers often cite “top legal minds” or “the best doctors” in an attempt to influence the public.
In wartime and Cold War broadcasts, prisoners or captured agents are shown speaking against their own country — or in favour of their captors.
These statements are a clear, traditional example of the testimonial technique at work in what most people would recognise as propaganda. But propaganda is no longer confined to wartime or ideological messaging. It has been rebranded, normalised, and absorbed into everyday persuasion — shaping opinions and beliefs in far subtler, more familiar ways. You can read more here.
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