If you've got even a handful of happy clients, it's time to do more with them than just ask for testimonial statements or referrals.  Your next step is to develop a case study program that includes your top customers.

In a service-based business, what you're really selling is the solution or beneficial result that your client receives from your work.   And what will often turn a prospect into a paying client is proof that you can provide them the solutions and results they want.

A written case study on each of your best customers is an ideal form of proof,  because it takes the intangible nature of your services and puts them into a more tangible demonstration of your competence, reliability and credibility.

What is a case study?

A case study is simply a synopsis of a success story of one your clients -- a brief write-up on the "before and after" results they received from using your service, with an angle on highlighting the steps you took to help them solve their problem.

What does a case study include?

The best case studies for business-to-business services use the following format:

Headline
Use an attention-getting headline that describes generically the problem and the results.  Avoid using your own company name in the headline (that is self-serving).  If the client's name is well-known in your market, then use it; otherwise avoid it as it can be confusing or distracting.

A couple of sample headlines:

If you're a financial consultant who helps companies reduce their costs, a case study headline might be:  

"How a local shipping company reduced operating costs by 12% in 3 months"

Or, if you are a product development coach who helps companies identify new opportunities, a case study headline might be (in this case, "ACME Corp." might be a leading company in your market...your spotlight client with big name recognition...which could make it wise to include in the headline):

"ACME Corp. turns economic rough times into new $500,000 business opportunity"

Part I - Background
In this section, you give some brief details on the background of your client (such as what business they are in, how long they've been in business, who the decision maker is, etc.).

Part II - Challenge / Problem
Here's where you describe the nuts and bolts of the problems or challenges that were facing your client.   List these succinctly, and ideally in a way that perhaps other prospective clients can relate to (especially if you serve a variety of different industries -- using too much technical jargon relevant to only one industry can make the case study ineffective). 

Part III - Solutions
This section allows you to describe what solutions you provided.  This is your chance to spell out the assumptions you made about the problem, the solutions you thought were right to take, and the steps you took to implement them.  What's important here:  save the results or benefits of these solutions you list here until the next section.  The next section is your powerful "close" on the case, and you want to save the best for last.

Part IV - Results
In Parts I-III you have now "built the case" of your client's situation and how you set out to competently solve it.  Here's where you shine and show the results of your work.  The more specific you can be the better.  

For example, if you helped a business reduce their operational costs, stating "we helped them reduce their costs" is too generic to make any impact on the reader of the case study.  In this case, you'd want to give give specifics that are measurable and relevant to other prospective clients.

Stating "costs for XYZ were reduced by $15,000 last year" is more specific, but the dollar amount may not be relevant to a company that is smaller or larger than the one in the case study, or to a company that is in a different industry.

Stating "costs for XYZ were reduced 12% in just three months" is more convincing because it is much more specific, yet also generic enough that anyone could relate to (that is, nearly any company reading the case study would like to know how to reduce costs by 12% in three months).

What to avoid

At all costs, avoid writing "salesey" copy that includes statements of how great you are, how "best of breed" your solutions are, etc..   Your prospective clients what proof of results, and don't want to hear you talk about yourself.  They want to hear how your other client's problem was solved.  

Let the case study do the selling for you.  If it's truly a good case study with specifics, the solutions and results should be self-evident, and their impact on prospective clients will be watered down if you add a lot about "we implemented our best of breed services to tackle this problem" type phrasing. 

Certainly, the footer of the case study can include your company logo, contact information, and a small call to action for "more information", etc.  

But for the guts of the case study, stick to telling what the problem was, what the solutions were, and give the results.   For bragging, let the client's quotes in the case study do it for you.

Spice up the case study

You can make the case study more easy-to-read and eye-grabbing by adding quotes from the client, graphs and bar charts, photos or digital scans of the "before and after" results, or other interesting elements.

Avoid using pictures of you, the front of your office location, or face shots of your client (unless they happen to be highly recognizable in your marketplace).

Remember, the key impact of a case study on your prospects is to make the results of your service as tangible to them as possible, demonstrating your credibility and competence. 

Getting the client's participation and approval

Just like when asking for testimonials or referrals, your happy customers will usually be open to the idea of you writing a case study about them.  The best way to bring it up is to simply tell them you are interested in writing an article about the successful results of your work with them, and that you would be including the article in your marketing efforts.  Give them an outline of what you'd like to include, and if they agree, write up your final draft.

When presenting the final draft, it's imperative to get a written approval from the client that authorizes you use the case study in its final form (similar to the approval you might get to use testimonial statements).  This should also include approval on how and where you plan to use the case study.  Written approval is especially critical if you are quoting the client in the case study and/or mentioning specific tactical solutions or results.  A client might, on one hand, be glad that you want to write about them, but then when they realize you want to include specific details, they may deem those as "proprietary".

So be cautious, and always aim to get the client's participation and approval for any case studies.

How and where can you use case studies?

• Case studies have multiple uses in marketing your services, all of which can be very cost-effective.  Here are a few ideas:
• Have them printed to use as inserts in your presentation folders, press kits or other marketing materials
• Post them to your website
• Include in your newsletter or ezine
• Re-work the case study a bit, and make into a newsy press release

Make your efforts to get case studies a regular effort in drumming up new business. Each time you have a satisfied client, don't just ask them for a testimonial and a referral, also ask them about including them in your next case study.    Over time, your case study will become a powerful marketing weapon.