Here are my top tips for building a good and engaging case study.
Case studies are a great way to explain what it is that you do and demonstrate the positive outcome for your clients. How you use them is up to you but web content, social media and exhibition stands can be a good place to start.
- It is the story that counts not how big your client is. So, choose a strong a compelling story with a clear outcome and tangible benefit to your client.
- Make it concise. Keep your word count under control. Perhaps no more than 500 words or your audience will start to turn off. Use subheadings to break up the copy and enable for speed reading.
- Get to the point. Don’t assume that the audience will read between the lines to work things out for themselves. Be specific and provide answers.
- Make it relevant. Build a library of case studies to address different topics and outcomes. This way you are more likely to have a story that will get a reader’s interest and hold their attention. And keep them fresh, as time and technology wait for nobody.
- Give it a human angle. Find a champion within your target company to interview. Ideally, he or she will provide a quote and have the authority to sign off the finished story.
- Engage with your customer. This a great opportunity to build a rapport and let your customer know how much you value them. It is also the time to let them know they can approve the story before it is used.
- Pictures speak a thousand words. Use the best images you can to illustrate the story and to make the document attractive. A page of text is unlikely to grab anybody’s attention.
- Get it out in the open. With your story complete, make it available. Either in print or digital format make it accessible and get it out to your customers and prospects.
For a little inspiration here are some I prepared earlier: