Making A Case for Case Studies: How Customer Stories Can Be Great Content For Your Small Business Website

When you’re ready to make a big purchase, do you…?

A) go on a gut feeling

B) see what people are saying about it online

C) trust the salesperson

The Answer

Chances are, most of you picked “B.”  Studies have shown that 90% of consumers say online reviews impact their buying decisions.  And this doesn’t just relate to appliance purchases.

Prospects are online, right now, reading up on your business. The bigger the sale, the more information they need to make a decision. What they find or do not find, in their mind, speak volumes about your credibility.

Consider Case Studies

Like online reviews, case studies are a great way to establish trust.  They give potential customers or prospects an opportunity to see what you’re capable of.  They may sound intimidating, but case studies are simply stories about real people in real scenarios. And unlike promotional pieces, case studies are solution-oriented, illustrating, through your customer’s eyes, how you solved their problem.

Four Key Parts to the Story

Case studies vary in format, length, and style.  Some look like those long narratives we dreaded being assigned in college, and others are brief and straight to the point.

But, the bones of a case study are consistent, and usually have at least the following four parts:

• Customer Identification
• Description of the Problem
• Proposed Solutions
• End Results

How to Get the Story

Now that you know the key parts of a case study, let’s gather the information to start building it…

1. Review your current customer list. Customers that you’ve established a great relationship with – those with whom you’ve experienced the biggest wins – will yield the best stories. Make a list of those you want to approach.
2. Develop a list of questions. To adequately convey your customer’s journey, you’ll need a little more backstory than you may already know. You need to know how your customer knew they had a problem, how they first tried to fix it, and how that worked out. Just as important, if not more so, is how your solutions impacted the problem, the end result of your efforts, and your customer’s reaction to these results.
3. Reach out to your customers. You know which communication style your customers respond to best. So meet them there. If it’s email, do email. If it’s a phone call, then go that route. In all scenarios, first ask their permission to tell their story. If they say no, thank them for listening, and move on to the next customer. If you get approval, start working through the questions on your list.

Tell the Story

Now that the interviews are done, it’s time to pull your case study together and tell the story.  Use the four key parts (customer, problem, solution, result) to walk readers through your customer’s journey.  When done right, prospects reading your case study will see themselves, and the problems they’re experiencing, within the story and be convinced that you can help them, too.

Happy Ending

Case studies are customer stories. And customers rely on each other for direction.  Make sure your case studies find a visible home on your website. They should be easy to find – posted on a separate page or used as blog posts – and be easy to share.

If you remember nothing else, remember this … Customers are looking for a happy ever after, and a good case study can give them just that.