Case Studies vs Customer Stories

There's a difference between a written case study that focuses on product application to a problem and the ROI of the solution for the customer and the experiential impact for the customer.

The difference is perspective. But it's also about storytelling as a conversation starter.

A case study gets into the nitty gritty details and the measurement of successful outcomes, which is fine and well and has its place. But what about the emotional impact? Regardless of the complexity of purchase, there's always a degree of emotion involved.

The emotion of business is often equated to trust. That's the overlaying emotion - the reality that you've done what you've promised. It's a level of intimacy we all aspire to achieve with our customers.

But look farther. Look at what your customers have been able to achieve with their customers. [If the solution is internal, then the customers in question are the company's employees.]

Look for the truly outstanding experience your customer may have achieved because of whatever your solution enabled them to do that they couldn't do before. It may not be one of those things that adds up to a measurable improvement. Some impacts transcend measurement and yet become stories that pull mindshare and generate conversations for years to come.

These are stories that your salespeople can talk about in meetings. They can also be lead-ins to educational articles - the subtle nudge about "why it's important to think about this issue" introduction. To be a conversational story, it should be short, easy to tell. These are the "Wow - we'd love to have that happen!" feel-good stories that put emotions into play.

These stories:

• show the overcoming of adversity
• have concrete details that help people visualize
• are simple and clear
• are authentic

If you can generate emotional attachment, you've got a tremendous opportunity to keep the person's attention because you've demonstrated an impact they can relate to. One they'd love to create for themselves.

Because sometimes what's truly engaging just goes beyond the numbers.