B2B businesses work differently. In this industry, businesses must explain the effectiveness of their products or services to the prospects and customers. Not only do they need to illustrate their valuable offerings but they also need to develop detailed case studies to foster relationships with their customers.
That said, case studies offer a great way to connect with the customers and they leave a profound impact throughout each phase of the customer acquisition process. From brand awareness to consideration and decision-making, the information published in the case studies has the potential to influence buyer behavior and set the company ahead of the competition.
Leading brands such as Maersk, Salesforce, and many more have been known to create strong brand case studies and have achieved success through it. Do you want to be a part of this game? Then read through the following:
Why do B2B businesses need to follow a case study strategy?
Do not confuse a case study with a detailed blog, a case study is different and it offers ample information about a brand so much so that after reading the entire case study, the customer will know the brand in and out including how ROI can be achieved if they use its products.
To create an effective case study, the marketer or sales person must ensure that it aligns and is integrated with other content marketing strategies. A detailed plan must be developed so that special attention can be given to the case study creation. Most of the time, a case study will share the success story of an existing customer with the brand. With a case study, your brand can accomplish the following goals:
- Improved brand credibility
- Highlighting data-backed statistics
- Offers insights for current customers
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Leading brands with successful case studies
1. Salesforce
The competition in the CRM industry is fierce and one cannot refute the role played by SalesForce to make a mark in the industry. That said, the company too had some issues some time back and it decided to do something different.
They leveraged the following methods:
- Floated a presentation sharing a customer’s success story.
- Created a highly entertaining and fun video on marketing and sales.
- They created the world’s first stop-motion slide share.
As a result, they enjoyed an 80% increase in their web traffic, approximately 6500 signups for newsletters, and more than 10000 downloads for their eBook.
2. Sprinklr
The case study created by Sprinklr is a great example for brands entering this arena for the first time. The case study talks about how retail giant Groupon uses Sprinklr’s platform to manage its social conversation. The content is reformatted from a typical PDF to upload on LinkedIn’s SlideShare Platform. Sprinklr could add spice to the previous content and re-purposed the case study into a new format.
3. Bit.ly
This case study from Bit.ly is a simple yet thoughtful one with interesting design elements paired with a unique scrolling format. The case study features a two-column design that encourages the readers to quickly run a cursory sight to the content. With the help of dynamic results, Bit.ly could drive one e-commerce business.
These brands have followed a comprehensive approach to creating their case studies. Let us see how you can create an informative yet effective case study for your brand.
1. Get to know your highly engaged customers
First, you need to be familiar with your audience. For creating case studies, it is good to know which industries your customers serve. Do not fall for the big names, several small-scale industries and organizations are easier to reach when you take a step for a case study.
Keep your pulse on for customer communication.
2. Conduct purposeful research and interviews
Once you have decided on your collaborator for the case study, it is time to meet them in person. Create a thoughtful list of questions and send them ahead of time so they can prepare well. Explain the purpose of your case study before starting the interview. It will help your customer know when and where their information will be used.
3. Identify the pain point and success
As you progress with your interview, you must always note down the “before and after the stage.” Some questions that will help are:
- What problems did your team face before trying our solution?
- What challenges did you face during implementation?
- How did implementing our solution relieve your burden?
- How has your work culture changed?
4. Craft compelling content
The ability to create compelling content is the result of studying powerful sections that seamlessly work to form a complete narrative. Your case study must not lack any piece of information, but do not stress as you can compensate for it in different ways.
5. Use high-value visuals, metrics, and Testimonials
Back your content with powerful high-value visuals, testimonials, and metrics.
6. Share and promote your Content
Last, you must share and promote your content to authoritative places to better output.
Final Word
Powerful B2B case studies can elevate your existing content marketing strategy from good to great. With these case studies, a B2B brand can spotlight its company’s benefits through proven customer stories.
B2B case studies are critical for a brand’s success. Have you got your case study plan in place?
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