How to build trust with your most powerful case studies

Case studies are a great way of using storytelling to promote your business. They offer the classic story format of starting with a person facing a challenge or desirable goals, a middle plot to share what happened next and ending with the results you delivered for the customer. A well-researched case study goes a step further than a standard testimonial by revealing your unique approach in enough detail to prompt the reader into action. The full story will resonate with people struggling with similar challenges because it shows how well you understand the pains and where you can help others.

To prove the value your products or services offer, you’ll want to share case studies which help convert potential customers into actual customers. With a simple 6-step planning process, your case studies will be more authentic and easy to create. Here's how you can ensure the stories will resonate powerfully with the people you want to reach:

Identify a great case study

When shared on popular platforms, a relevant case study will increase your brand awareness, credibility and authority. Select the ‘best’ customers to feature in your case studies. This means identifying those who tell your brand story, or fit well with your values because they're in industry sectors where you excel or you know you can adapt to. Only choose the stories where you can demonstrate measurable change because we, as readers, all care about results.

Matching the story with your target audience

Review it afresh: who is your ideal audience? What do you know about the specific people you’d like to help and, therefore, want to sell to? It’s no good guessing what your average customer looks like - you need to get into the detail. Whoever they are, those people need recognise themselves and relate to the transformation you're decribing in the case study. To do this, you've got to define their problem with as much detail as possible.

Do the research before writing your case studies

Book time in to talk to the person in your organisation that knows the client best. Spend time discovering more about the customer as a person and research the company they work for. Having a clear understanding of the relationship history and the industry will save you time. When you’re ready to talk to the customer for their testimonial, you can get straight to the heart of the story.

Interview the customer

Many businesses write their case studies without talking to the customer, merely contacting them as an afterthought to get their testimonial. Whereas when you ask a third party to interview them in-depth, you'll hear the truth behind the service delivered. It also saves time for getting it approved - after all, it's a good idea to maker your customer is completely happy before sharing it publicly. Be open and honest about how the case study will be used and what you hope the results will be. Being transparent helps the customer feel more comfortable, which in turn gets you detailed and honest answers.

Adapt the interview questionnaire

Effective interviewing comes with practice, but an easy first step is to plan and adapt your questions. Plan beforehand based on the information you want to get, but be prepared to adapt it on the call to gain deeper insight. The purpose of customising the questionnaire is to cover practical results and also, touch on the team dynamics and emotional impact of the services. Using prompts to explore the interviewee’s answers will get more honest feedback to create a compelling story.

Demonstrating the impact of working with you

To be strong enough to sell your services, case studies have to prove why it’s worth spending money with your business. The most powerful case studies feature measurable results. Instead of tailing off the story with anecdotal feedback, aim to showcase impressive outcomes – the more numbers, the better. To uncover these, your questions would include:

• What differences have you seen since buying this service?
• How is the product or service helping you save time?
• What ￡ costs or revenue impact has there been from using this service?
• How does it enhance your competitive advantage?

A final note: before you define what makes a great case study for your business, it’s critical to consider, what are you trying to achieve? Case studies can certainly help you sell, but if your challenge is gaining greater brand awareness, you could choose a different range of case studies to feature – and make them wider-reaching instead of detailed stories.

Identifying a baseline before you start helps you track the effectiveness and marketing metrics of each case study you share – to see how many people engage with it and goal conversions. Then you can see what’s working well and what isn’t. Use this data to tweak your plans; move on by testing different approaches or find ways to inject a little humour!

About Debra

Debra helps small to medium sized businesses skill up on inbound lead generation - ensuring they have high quality assets to share before wasting scarce budget on digital marketing. Writing copy for websites, inbound campaigns, advertorials, social media and blogging, she covers a wide range of content marketing to bridge the gap before hiring a full time marketing manager to generate leads for your sales team. Contact her here or visit 27.marketing.co.uk if you’d like more information or a free consultation to help plan the right case studies for your business.