Five Steps to Effective Customer Case Studies
By Casey Hibbard; article originally appeared in the June 2002 issue of Software Business
In the competition for customers, investors and media attention, more and more software companies are realizing that case studies on their satisfied customers are a must-have marketing tool. They are essential in enhancing a company's credibility with all its audiences and offer prospects specifics on how a product delivered true value and a return on investment. Here are some time-tested tips for creating engaging, effective case studies.
1. Strategically select featured customers
Truly effective customer case studies start with choosing the right customers to profile. If your company is just starting out, you may not have many options for your featured customers because you simply don't have enough customers yet. However, in this early stage, case studies are critical for establishing credibility for your company and products. In this case, even or two case studies with some ROI details and a fairly strong story on those first customers can help you make a sale or convince an investor of your viability.
As you add more customers, it's time to take a strategic tack. Consider these five primary factors when weighing whether a customer would make an effective case study:
- Name recognition of the company - Fortune 500 companies tend to carry the greatest weight with any audience that might read your case studies.
- Fits a targeted vertical niche - Does the customer operate in a vertical industry your company is targeting?
- Strong, specific ROI details - Look for time savings, productivity gains or cost savings.
- A unique, engaging story about how the customer uses your software - Especially if you're pitching your case studies to the trade media, unique usage stories attract the most attention.
- And finally, a company that doesn't have a policy against publicly endorsing specific products - Know upfront whether the company will likely approve your written case study.
2. Interview the best spokesperson(s)
Your best customer contacts may be in one specific department, such as IT, sales, marketing, finance, human resources, or executive level, depending on the type of software you provide. Different contacts will see different kinds of value in your software. IT will focus on implementation and ease of administration, while managers and those in specific functional areas will focus on gains in their business operations.
Determine what you'd like your case studies to cover, then ask the appropriate people for their willingness to answer some questions. You can interview more than one person, but more than two will likely add too much length to your case study and the approval process time.
3. Match the "tech-speak" to your audience
Who is the primary audience for your case studies? If you've identified IT managers as the decision makers on your product at prospective companies, then your case studies should include a fair amount of technical details. Those in IT roles will want to know specifics such as server and database needs, implementation time, integration with other applications, ease of administration, and ease of customizability.
For non-technical individuals, include basic technical specifications and provide layman's explanations on how the software enhanced the company's business processes. Clearly call out ROI and how the product improved operations.
If you're addressing both types of decision makers, strike a balance—give the tech specs IT managers need, but keep the case study written clearly enough that anyone can understand it.
4. Ask the right questions
Your interview questions are another essential area for separating great case studies from so-so ones. Your questions should cover every area that's important to your prospects and give them a clear understanding of how your product met the customer's needs.
To do that, ask your customer about some of the challenges they face in their industry or company, the issues or needs that led them to look for such a solution, how they went about their selection process, and why your product stood out. You also might want to ask about implementation and, if relevant, about their experience working with your company's representatives, tech support or solutions partners.
Ask specifically about the product's various functionality and how it enhanced the customer's business practices. Though you can't always elicit specific ROI from your interview subject due to their inability to calculate a specific number or privacy concerns, try to get approximate numbers by asking specific questions. For instance, ask how much it saved a person or team on a daily, weekly or monthly basis? Or, ask how much a particular activity cost in time or costs before as compared to now.
Whether you're creating the case study in-house or outsourcing it, the interviewer should have a solid grasp of the product and marketing goals.
In a nutshell, the messaging in your case studies should match what you're promising prospects in your marketing materials, so make sure your questions touch on those features and benefits.
5. Tell a strong story
Whether your audience is prospects, investors or the media, or all three, everyone likes a great story. Engaging case studies paint clear pictures of the company, its needs and concerns, and how the software filled those needs. Like any good feature story, pepper the story with real quotes from real people. Also, break out business benefits with bullets, give it a captivating headline and make it more digestible with subheads. Enlist a professional to create an attractive layout template for all your case studies that works on the Web and in print.
As with any marketing initiative, by taking a strategic, orchestrated approach to your case study program, you'll succeed in creating exceptional case studies that achieve your company's goals.