We all understand that customer stories are a hugely integral part of marketing collateral, but how exactly does one go about creating a case study? And how can one showcase these case studies to their audiences and prospects?
In this week’s #SproutChat, Sprout All Star Elite, Erika Heald, joined us to share her insights on the value of case studies. This week’s participants chatted about the distinctions between case studies and use cases, best practices for conducting a case study and how to leverage them in your social strategy.
Full Context Creates a Better Story
We often conflate the terms use case and case study. Both are great for highlighting customer stories in your content strategy, but there are key differences. A use cases speaks to the benefit of a specific feature or use, while case studies provide a story in full-context—including the issue at hand, the resolution reached and key metrics throughout.
A1a: A use case details how someone is using your product or service. A case study goes farther than that, to provide the context of the problem it solved and the results from using it. #SproutChat https://t.co/N9V437jdQY
— Erika Heald | Freelance Chief Content Officer (@SFerika) February 7, 2018
A1b: If your case study only answers the question “How are you using [product]?” It is a use case, not a case study. #SproutChat
— Erika Heald | Freelance Chief Content Officer (@SFerika) February 7, 2018
A1c: A use case can give current or prospective customers ideas on how to use your product or service, but a case study provides the WIIFM—what’s in it for me. #SproutChat
— Erika Heald | Freelance Chief Content Officer (@SFerika) February 7, 2018
A1: A case study is more in-depth than a use case. Think more of answering the Ws AND how, instead of just the H. #SproutChat
— Netvantage Marketing (@netvantage) February 7, 2018
A1: use cases are generic and focus on the problem(s) solved by the product, a case study is a specific story of how a company used your product to solve their particular issues #sproutchat
— Jill Liles (@JillLiles1) February 7, 2018
A1. A case study is an in-depth look at how an organization grappled with an issue or solved a specific problem for the purposes of generalizing to industries or businesses at large. #SproutChat
— allison ryder (@allisonryder) February 7, 2018
A1 A case study should tell a story. For example: Challenge faced, Solution applied, then Results realized. #sproutchat
— Martin Lieberman (@martinlieberman) February 7, 2018
A1. My understanding is that a case study is specific to a particular brand's implementation where as a use case is more about the form in which something can be applied. E.G. A case study is a Dominos pizza but a Use Case is a recipe for pizza. #sproutchat
— Colby Reade (@colbyreade) February 7, 2018
A1: I feel like a use case would be equivalent to flash cards and a case study is the textbook…#SproutChat
— Shannonigans (@mausi_nana) February 7, 2018
A1. A case study goes in depth to what type of strategy works for a particular business or organization #SproutChat
— Cheval John (@chevd80) February 7, 2018
A1: Case studies are abbreviated narrative problem-solving accounts. Use cases on the other hand, technically describe why your product or service is the best fit for a job. #sproutchat
— SocialXpresso (@socialxpresso) February 7, 2018
Think Beyond B2B
While case studies may seem like a strictly B2B marketing move, they can be used in consumer marketing as well. Consumers are genuinely interested in hearing how brands have helped people achieve their goals.
A2a: Case studies are an important part of a #B2B sales process, but they can also work well for consumer marketers too. #SproutChat https://t.co/K7JTkNoUAb
— Erika Heald | Freelance Chief Content Officer (@SFerika) February 7, 2018
A2b: In fact, you often see sponsored influencer blog posts on the #B2C side that are, basically, paid case studies. #SproutChat
— Erika Heald | Freelance Chief Content Officer (@SFerika) February 7, 2018
A2c: This is a great example of a first-person B2C case study on @problogger detailing how to get into a daily blogging habit https://t.co/FgyPwtLvTv #SproutChat
— Erika Heald | Freelance Chief Content Officer (@SFerika) February 7, 2018
A2. Absolutely not. Every business needs to develop case studies to demonstrate how their product or service solved a customer need. From mega B2B corporations to local mom and pop shops so solopreneurs. #SproutChat https://t.co/0CIJ26vn6O
— Colby Reade (@colbyreade) February 7, 2018
A2: They could probably be used for B2C as well, but we usually use case studies for B2B and testimonials for B2C. #sproutchat
— SocialXpresso (@socialxpresso) February 7, 2018
A2: Definitely not. I think they are used more formally in B2B but customers in any industry can benefit from seeing how a product or service can help solve pain points in their lives. Case Studies (maybe we should call them Case Stories?) make things more relatable. #sproutchat
— LookBookHQ (@lookbookhq) February 7, 2018
A2: Not at all. Although they may be a little more "snackable" for B2C. but the underlying concept applies to anything #sproutchat
— Jill Liles (@JillLiles1) February 7, 2018
A2: Case studies aren't just for B2B companies. They can be used in a variety of fields to provide valuable, in-depth information. #SproutChat
— Express Writers (@ExpWriters) February 7, 2018
A2: You could use the same format for B2C and call it a Customer Success Story. #SproutChat
— Carole Cudnik ☕ (@cacudnik) February 7, 2018
Highlight Quick Information for Social
If you want to pull from case study content for social keep in mind that speaking to your social audience is much different than a one-on-one sales call. Tailor how you deliver content on your social platforms by sharing small nuggets of hard-hitting information or engaging visuals.
A3a: Case studies can produce all sorts of great content nuggets that can be used for social media. #SproutChat https://t.co/61HCKmRx9v
— Erika Heald | Freelance Chief Content Officer (@SFerika) February 7, 2018
A3b: For instance, you can use an image with a great quote as a standalone piece of social content, or with a link to the full case study. #SproutChat
— Erika Heald | Freelance Chief Content Officer (@SFerika) February 7, 2018
A3c: If you record all or part of your case study on video, you can easily use a short excerpt on social. #SproutChat
— Erika Heald | Freelance Chief Content Officer (@SFerika) February 7, 2018
A3d: I love this video case study from a social agency that worked with @CocaCola on an influencer campaign https://t.co/gWwBvnMgtC — it’s a great showcase of the agency’s work and their results. I could see a short version doing well on social. #SproutChat
— Erika Heald | Freelance Chief Content Officer (@SFerika) February 7, 2018
A3: Results of a case study that proved applicable to your audience could be summarized in to a blog and then shared through social channels.#SproutChat
— John Venen (@JohnVenen) February 7, 2018
A3: Yes, but it may look more like an ad. (Our product made this customer 40% thinner and grew back all his hair.) #sproutchat
— Brad Lovett (@Brad_Lovett) February 7, 2018
A3: Your case studies will have points that hit a nerve with different segments of your audience.
Find out who needs what information and tailor it to them based on where the spend the most time.#Sproutchat
— Jeff Higgins Reads Playboy For The Articles (@ItsJeffHiggins) February 7, 2018
A3: Yes! Our audience loves learning from other brands and case studies perfectly address this because they portray a result that other brands want to replicate. The case study shows them what they can do to get similar results. #SproutChat https://t.co/JUIwZiNyg4
— Simply Measured (@simplymeasured) February 7, 2018
A3. Absolutely. In previous B2B and B2C roles I would pull out "snackable" data points (often with a graphic) and share with a link to the broader case study for deeper info. Great thought leadership fodder. #SproutChat https://t.co/GhNtDjhbYK
— Colby Reade (@colbyreade) February 7, 2018
A3: We always pull intriguing data points from our case studies to create fun infographics that get shared on social. Smaller, quicker to digest, visual. #sproutchat pic.twitter.com/lyer2punkd
— Mike Bryant (@MichaelRo22ss) February 7, 2018
Communicate With Success Teams
While in the process of identifying potential case study interviewees, take care to connect with any individual that has an existing relationship with the point of contact for the account. This might be someone on your client success or sales team, but could also be a personal contact. Be sure to check in on the status of this person’s account and how happy they are as a client.
A4a: Always start by talking to your customer success team. You want to identify customers who are happy with your organization, and who have a long-term relationship with you. #SproutChat https://t.co/J4mXFY6W48
— Erika Heald | Freelance Chief Content Officer (@SFerika) February 7, 2018
A4b: There’s not a lot worse than working on an amazing case study only to be unable to publish it because they came up for renewal and you couldn’t come to terms with them. #SproutChat
— Erika Heald | Freelance Chief Content Officer (@SFerika) February 7, 2018
A4c: You also need to ensure you are talking to someone who has the ability to approve your publishing the case study. Proactively ask if you need to work with their legal/compliance team. #SproutChat
— Erika Heald | Freelance Chief Content Officer (@SFerika) February 7, 2018
A4d: Also, conduct the interview in the person's native language whenever possible. If they choose to do an interview in English and it's not their native language, don't try to feed them marketing talking points as "help" expressing their point. #SproutChat
— Erika Heald | Freelance Chief Content Officer (@SFerika) February 7, 2018
A4. You identify the right customers by the relationship you've built with them and how they use your products and services. #SproutChat
— SourceMedia (@SourceMediaCo) February 7, 2018
A4: We look at:
-Our relationship with the customer
-The length of our relationship
-The products they use
-How they use our products
…just to name a few. #SproutChat https://t.co/vKLYLrqHDd— Simply Measured (@simplymeasured) February 7, 2018
A4. You basically listen to them and see if they is a gap in the market and then you put together content that solves that gap #SproutChat
— Cheval John (@chevd80) February 7, 2018
A4: Luckily we have an amazing in-house client success team that is very familiar with all of their accounts and each individual success story. We meet with them often to get updates and find out who is likely to participate in a study. #sproutchat pic.twitter.com/1ObHDEePLu
— Mike Bryant (@MichaelRo22ss) February 7, 2018
A4: Most businesses have "ideal" customers, we always recommend starting with them. The hope is always the case study will attract more "ideal" customers. #sproutchat
— SocialXpresso (@socialxpresso) February 7, 2018
A4: My first response is to showcase a success story, BUT you could also highlight a failure that you learned from. #SproutChat
— constancegail (@constancegail) February 7, 2018
Test out Videos
Videos can be a great addition to your overall content plan for case studies. Even if you don’t have the resources for larger video production, you can utilize video for conversations with your interviewee to set a more conversational tone.
A5a: Absolutely! Even if I only plan to publish a written case study, I always do case study conversations through video conferencing. #SproutChat https://t.co/ZXPE7mZy88
— Erika Heald | Freelance Chief Content Officer (@SFerika) February 7, 2018
A5b: Talking to a customer on video chat makes your interview more conversational and human. #SproutChat
— Erika Heald | Freelance Chief Content Officer (@SFerika) February 7, 2018
A5c: You can take the audio from the conversation and use it to obtain a transcript (I do this a lot), or as podcast content later too. #SproutChat
— Erika Heald | Freelance Chief Content Officer (@SFerika) February 7, 2018
A5d: And once you are thinking about creating social video clips or other corporate videos, you’ll have a nice library of customer content to pull from. #SproutChat
— Erika Heald | Freelance Chief Content Officer (@SFerika) February 7, 2018
A5e: Here’s an example of a case study I produced, pulling together a series of stakeholder video interviews to create a unified story. There’s a text-only and a video version. https://t.co/Yjc668YIUd #SproutChat
— Erika Heald | Freelance Chief Content Officer (@SFerika) February 7, 2018
A5: It depends on how you will distribute these case studies and how that audience will respond to it. #SproutChat https://t.co/w5gpheWbAv
— Simply Measured (@simplymeasured) February 7, 2018
A5 I haven't seen one in this format but it could be fun! And since attention span is zip now a days probably more engaging #SproutChat
— Shannonigans (@mausi_nana) February 7, 2018
A5. You CAN, but you don't need to. Video can be a compelling way to tell the story, but you can also create a great visual as a PDF or microsite. The trick is you HAVE to make the video compelling and show the story, not just ten minutes of data. #SproutChat https://t.co/6fctJnOmqs
— Colby Reade (@colbyreade) February 7, 2018
A5: YASSSS! If you have a customer with a good story to tell and who is willing you should tell that story as many different ways as possible. Long form, short form, video form, speaking at events. DO IT ALL! #SproutChat pic.twitter.com/uqxFkKnLWo
— LookBookHQ (@lookbookhq) February 7, 2018
A5: If you can get video, get video! It's 2018, video is our sustenance. But prepare for it, we contract out our high level production and it saves us time and overhead. But don't bother if the sound quality sucks, mic it up. #sproutchat pic.twitter.com/tLXHFmDf6V
— Mike Bryant (@MichaelRo22ss) February 7, 2018
Put the Customer First
First and foremost, when interviewing someone for a case study, take the time to get to know them. Start the conversation off about their role at the company and background about themselves professionally. Setting this tone from the start tells customers right off the bat that this project isn’t merely about work, but about putting them first.
A6a: Never, ever, ever, start by asking “So, how do you use our product/service?” That is a great way to end up with a use case and not a case study! #SproutChat https://t.co/K5Zdb1LKEW
— Erika Heald | Freelance Chief Content Officer (@SFerika) February 7, 2018
A6b: Always start with a few questions that you use for every case study interview you conduct. You want to cover who the interviewee is, what problem they had, how your company solved that problem for them, and their results. #SproutChat
— Erika Heald | Freelance Chief Content Officer (@SFerika) February 7, 2018
A6c: I usually start with “Please introduce yourself how you’d like me to refer to you in our case study, and talk to me about what your life was like before [brand].” #SproutChat
— Erika Heald | Freelance Chief Content Officer (@SFerika) February 7, 2018
A6d: No matter how eager you are to publish, make sure you send it back to the person you’ve interviewed for their review and approval before you hit publish. You may have misconstrued something they’ve said, or they may have given you info they shouldn’t have shared. #SproutChat
— Erika Heald | Freelance Chief Content Officer (@SFerika) February 7, 2018
A6e: If you are an agency or a consultant, you can’t always share your customer results by name. This @sproutsocial case study does a good example of working around that: https://t.co/5uh7Mp2B6I #SproutChat
— Erika Heald | Freelance Chief Content Officer (@SFerika) February 7, 2018
A6: Always come prepared. Make sure you know all about the person you're interviewing, their company, etc. #SproutChat
— Express Writers (@ExpWriters) February 7, 2018
A6: Show you've spent time analyzing their challenges, are invested in their success. Then get into the weeds with specific pain points/solutions that will elicit useful info and build relationship in the process. #sproutchat
— LA Resident Tourist (@LA_Res_Tourist) February 7, 2018
A6: Some things to consider:
1. The hero of the story is an individual (not your brand)
2. Use visual when appropriate
3. Don't gloss over the implementation process.
4. Make it easy for sales to access and use#sproutchat— LookBookHQ (@lookbookhq) February 7, 2018
Join us next Wednesday, February 14, to chat with special guest, Marketo, about the relationship between social media and email marketing. Until then be sure to join our Facebook group to connect with other folks in the industry.
This post #SproutChat Recap: The Importance of Case Studies originally appeared on Sprout Social.
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