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While it's been established that B2B businesses often benefit from content marketing, one type of content leads the way to more credibility (and conversion): case studies. In general terms, a case study is a winning customer story that you can use to win more customers.

Since case studies demonstrate your expertise to your target audience and demonstrate expertise in a relatable and straightforward way, it's no surprise they perform so well. They supply your audience with relevant information on how your business has previously (and successfully) achieved results in the past, helping you attract more customers simultaneously.

From entrepreneurs to businesses with larger marketing departments, writing case studies can be a long process since the research needs to be on-point. However, with the right approach and skillset, any marketing savvy business professional can learn how to write a case study that inspires trust — and conversions.

Read on if you're looking to learn the following takeaways to help you share a compelling story on why more customers should do business with you:

With these expert tips, you'll have a foolproof structure to prepare the successful foundation for your B2B case studies.

Related: 5 Strategies for Getting the Most Out of a Customer Testimonial

Simply put, it's a detailed description of how a business could solve a challenge for its customers. It involves the unique solutions your business can provide and how the customers benefit from them.

Ideally, they describe, compare, evaluate and understand different problems a customer can face and show, step by step, how your business solves that issue successfully.

The main difference between them and other types of content? Case studies use actual data and rely on real success stories that boost your business' trust levels.

That is not the only reason you should write them, though.

What B2B business wouldn't love to create content that increases lead generation and credibility? Luckily, case studies can do that and much more:

Overall, the perfect case study answers the leads' questions, delivering social proof and providing a valuable connection between marketing and sales. On top of that, they're easy to repurpose and even easier to redistribute.

A simple template is all you need to get your case studies started. From my experience, the following six-point structure works best:

Expert tip: You don't necessarily need to name the company (but make sure to ask for authorization if you do). You can simply describe it (e.g. "Increased traffic by 200% for a SaaS technology startup").

Expert tip: These descriptions can be concise or in-depth. Ideally, a case study should tell how your business solves problems but without spilling your industry's secrets: both a window to showcase know-how and sell. In a nutshell, it's a story of your success.

And the expert tip around gathering relevant data and relevant testimonials? A well-done interview.

To get the correct information, you have to ask the right questions — this is, after all, the foundation of your case study. Try to:

The quality of your questions is critical for the quality of your content. Your customers are busy — be direct and don't waste their time.

Interviews should last from 30 to 60 minutes. It's also good to start the conversation with warm-up questions. Understand that many people will be uncomfortable being interviewed, and it's the interviewer's job to make that person feel comfortable and understand the purpose behind the interview. Once explained, the interview can proceed more naturally.

Related: Interviews Can be Done by Introverts Too

You can also find more interview questions online, but these are the fundamental ones.

A great case study inspires credibility and generates more leads. It's a gamechanger in any B2B content marketing strategy and bring together marketing and sales expertise, delivering great insights internally and externally.

Ready to give them a try?

Source: Entrepreneur

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