We’ve always known that case studies are one of the top dogs of B2B content marketing, but new research from the LinkedIn Technology Marketing Group now proves it.
The LinkedIn Technology Marketing Group recently conducted a survey with more than 600 B2B marketing professionals about the current state of content marketing.
The results show that when evaluating content marketing effectiveness, lead generation continues to be the top goal. Meanwhile, case studies take the #1 spot as the most effective tactic and format. Case studies topped the results in two categories – the most effective content subject to write about and the most effective marketing tactic.
Why Are Case Studies So Effective?
Today’s B2B buyers are self educated and don’t want companies to constantly sell to them. Adding case studies to your lead generation mix helps build trust with buyers, as they hear about you from your customers’ voices – not from your corporate voice. A hawkeye study found that between 71% and 77% of B2B buyers cited testimonials and case studies as the most influential types of content.
When B2B buyers conduct research online, they look for peer reviews, testimonials and case studies. All three of these items provide social proof that your products or services deliver results. This proof helps buyers feel confident when they make purchasing decisions. .
The more compelling case studies you have, the more you can engage skeptical prospects and shorten your sales cycles. A relevant case study can capture a buyer’s interest and motivate them to reach out to you earlier.
Plus, adding more case studies and testimonials to your website can boost your conversions. WikiJobs increased its conversions by 34% simply by displaying testimonials prominently on a web page.
How You Can Use Case Studies
Case studies allow you to tell your story from your customers’ perspectives. They are also a great way to get your best customers more involved with your company and give them recognition for all of the awesome things they are doing.
Here are some places where you can share your case studies to reach a wider audience and engage more leads:
- Sales collateral for your team
- Segmented by product or industry, so you can share the right story with the right prospect
- Event handouts
- Presentations at conferences, user groups, and other events
- Social testimonials
- Email promotions
- Sprinkled throughout your website as testimonials
- Blog posts
- Video content
- Stories for your white papers and ebooks
- SlideShare presentations (don’t forget to post these to your LinkedIn profile)
- LinkedIn recommendations
A successful case study requires both telling a great story and supporting it with a great user experience. Organize your content so prospects can easily find what they need, develop headlines that capture their attention, and present your content in a way that’s interesting and informative.
Case Study Resources to Help You Convert More Leads
Although case studies are an integral part of your B2B content marketing toolkit, they can be difficult to acquire and execute. Here’s how to create case studies that resonate with prospects and motivate them to say, “Yes!” to your product or service: 5 Ways to Take Your B2B Case Studies from Blah to Brilliant.
Once you have some killer stories here are 21 Place to Share Your B2B Case Studies. And if you’re still in the process of developing case studies, here’s How to Make B2B Buyers Believe You (Even When You Don’t Have Any Case Studies, yet!)