Overcoming the Challenges in Customer Case Studies
Customer case studies are often considered the Holy Grail of content. Here are 10 reasons you can give your customers to help persuade them to work with you on a case study.
For an integrated marketing program, customer case studies are often considered the Holy Grail of content. They collect tons of exposure from editors and can be repurposed for video, social media, e-mail content and even webinar material.
And most importantly, engineers love reading them. According to a May 2017 CFE Media Marketing to Engineers® report, 60 percent of respondents said case studies serve as their most valuable content during the research phase in the buying process.
But sadly, case studies can be challenging to develop, as this blog post from ENGINEERING.com demonstrates: "…although many of them [marketers] want to increase their budgets for case studies, most run into challenges in getting their customers to sign off on testimonials. As a result, every year marketers vow to do better, and in most years they fail to generate as many case studies as they want."
Here are 10 reasons you can give your customers to show why it makes sense to work with you on a case study:
Free magazine and media exposure, with opportunities perhaps for a prominent cover story.
Investors and customers will see how your company uses state-of-the-art technology, equipment and service to keep the winning edge against the competition.
Case studies can help as a recruiting tool to lure new talent to your company showing the high-tech equipment being used at your facilities.
Case studies help demonstrate your commitment to quality, as you use the latest technology and equipment to meet customer needs.
Case studies give your products and company positive publicity by showing how you identified and solved challenges.
You’ll be a source for the leading trade editors, which could result in additional long-term exposure for your company or processes (via interviews).
You can use published reprinted articles in your own marketing efforts (with minimal investment).
Story photos with your equipment may appear in other articles, giving your company more exposure.
You’ll get story exposure on the Internet (great for SEO).
Case studies may boost company morale and pride by showcasing employee expertise and hard work — giving them something to take pride in and show their families and friends.
While these tips may not persuade every legal department out there to cooperate on a case study, they may provide just what it takes to persuade a customer to sign off and work with you to produce a top-notch application story that benefits both of you.
Todd Walter - Senior Public Relations Manager
During his 25+ year career in public relations and marketing, Todd has worked in both the corporate and agency environments. He has worked with leading consumer brands, as well as many B2B companies in automation, component manufacturing, chemicals, HVAC, biopharmaceuticals and more.
