Serious question for all the software and technology marketers out there: did you know customer success stories are one of the most effective forms of marketing content to use for lead generation and nurturing? In fact, according to the 2024 Technology Marketing Benchmarks & Trends Report, 25% of marketers listed customer referrals as the MOST EFFECTIVE lead generation tactic in 2023.
In other words, you should be loud and proud about your customer success stories. Sing about them in the rain. Shout them from the rooftops.
Read on for tips, tricks, and best practices when it comes to making customer success stories a part of your marketing campaigns.
Where Do I Start?
Every company has a couple raving fans; figure out who yours are and start there. Find out which customers are extremely happy with your product or service, and reach out to them and ask if they’ll do a testimonial for you.
It’s important to make it as easy as possible for your customers to share their story. Document as much as you can without their help: what product/solutions are they using, how long have they been using it, what are their company demographics, etc. These are likely things you’ve kept track of during the sales process; noting them ahead of time will save time and make your customer feel you know them well. Then, when you meet with them, make sure they know they’re valued and how much you appreciate their time.
What Format Should I Use?
There are many ways to go about shouting your customer success stories from the rooftops – blogs, video, webinars, written PDFs, use cases, infographics, website blurbs, reviews on sites like Google, and more! The good news is that there is room for every one of these in any marketing campaign, and each of these is just as valuable as another. You should evaluate the best format based upon your client on a case-by-case basis.
For example, if you’re able to schedule a video interview with the project lead who has a great social presence and talking voice, a video testimonial would be an excellent place to start. This could be transformed into a written version, or sliced and diced into previews and snippets for social media, and more.
However, if you can’t schedule an interview, and the best you can get is a couple of written quotes from the IT guy – who may not be the most sociable on camera but is brilliant at what they do – a blog or infographic-style case study is just as awesome. And, as an added bonus, could be done even faster than video.
Tips & Tricks For Impactful Case Studies
So, what can you do to make your customers’ stories shine?
- First, keep everything short and sweet. Videos less than 5 minutes are shown to be the best performers in B2B marketing. Blog posts should be between 300-500 words. Remember, today’s digital audience has a short attention span. Do what you can to catch and keep it as quickly as possible.
- Next, provide clear ROI examples and quantifiable benefits to capture people’s attention. People want to know exactly how your product/solution will benefit them – so be loud about any stats you can provide. Bonus points if they’re about work life balance, because that’s key these days.
- Finally, be proud of your customers and your solution. If you’re not excited about their story, no one else will be either. Make sure everyone knows how excited you and your team are to showcase every customer you have.
Want to learn more about how to create the best customer success stories? Check out the April 2024 Marketing Group Chat from Channel Marketing Academy, where expert channel marketers shared what’s working for them.
Need help creating case studies? The Partner Marketing Group is here to help. We have created case studies in many different formats and can help you to not only save time, but also add a new creative way to feature your customers. Check out the different ways we have created our own case studies!
When you’re ready, visit https://thepartnermarketinggroup.com/contact/ or email info@thepartnermarketinggroup.com to start the conversation.