Take case study writing as a serious business. It gives a lot of credibility to your organization in the eyes of your prospects. The major problem occurs when the technical guys are unable to explain the technicalities to the content writer, or the writer is unable to bring out the finer details with a marketing twist. Take help of professional writers who have experience in writing for your industry, or give a comprehensive brief.
The 10 most important elements of a compelling case study
A case study should start with a powerful headline highlighting the major result or benefit of the project. Important elements include:
1. A short summary of two lines that could act as a link to the main case study on the website
2. Client overview and major business problems faced
3. Reason why the client selected you for this project and not any of your competitors
4. Solutions provided by you
5. Process followed in the project execution along with diagrams and illustrations
6. Challenges faced while working on the project
7. Benefits of the solution
8. Results or benefits that the client had
9. Client testimonial
10. A powerful design that highlights all important points
Make your case studies realistic
Elaborate the problems faced by the client in a realistic manner and explain the logical solution. Your readers should be able to relate to the case study and feel that - "Yes, I am also facing the same problems with my business."
Boost credibility by adding client testimonials and quantifiable results
Providing real testimonials adds more credibility than any other content in the case study. High bandwidth has also enables use of video testimonials. Ask the right questions to your clients to get the right answers that you can use in your case studies. To make your results and benefits more attractive, attach a number to it.
Incorporate power words in the case study
There's a wide list of powerful marketing words available across the web. Some of them are - boost, enhance, guarantee, free, what's in it for you, transform, secret, new, the top 10, save, increase, reduce, profits, strategies, double, explode, key, and many more. Incorporating such words in your case study will make it powerful without much effort.
Make two versions
Case studies should be created for two types of audiences - the internal team and the external clients and prospects. Professional help should be taken for client-facing case study. You may also make a detailed version and a shorter version. The ideal length of an online case study ranges from 300-500 words.
Back your case study with a powerful design
Your client-facing case study should be designed for higher impact. A good designer will put the most important point and triggers at the most powerful positions.
Provide date for the case study
Always mention the date of creation of the case study. Also include the project start date and project end date. Update the document if it's too old.
Author's Resource Box:
Do Right Marketing offers freelance content writing services. These include writing for the web, intranet, marketing and sales collateral such as case studies, newsletters, whitepapers, articles, blog posts, website navigation, editing, and proofreading, etc. Visit:
www.dorightmarketing.com to know more.
