Question

Topic: Advertising/PR

Case Study / Testimonial Permission

Posted by Anonymous on 5/15/2009 at 11:26 AM ET 25 Points
Hi there,

I have been asked to deveop a B2B case study or testimonial letter showcasing our services for a few top clients.

1. Should I have the client sign a waiver? Will this jeopardize the opportunity if they send this to their legal department? Suggest any samples?

2. If our decision maker (client) agrees to the case study via email, is that still okay?

3. Which is truly better? A case study/marketing piece or a testimonial letter?
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RESPONSES

  • Posted by ajanzer on 5/15/2009 at 12:13 PM Accepted
    If you ask them to sign a waiver, then they will certainly have to show it to their legal department. If you tell them precisely what the piece is that you are preparing and how you plan to use it (present it to prospects, put it on website, whatever), then they can use whatever policies they have in place for deciding if they will participate or not.

    Personally, I think that case studies have more uses and are more interesting than a 'testimonial' letter, but be sure to get good quotes in the case study. And of course you have to spin the study to make both you and the client look brilliant.

    Good luck.
    Anne
  • Posted on 5/15/2009 at 2:06 PM Accepted
    mktmaned
    Testimonials can be quite powerful and can be nearly as effective as WOM (word of mouth). Getting the "right" company to agree to a testimonial for your company is step one. You have a reputation to uphold and want the company “offering” the testimonial to be on equal or superior footing to yours.

    To avoid potential "headaches" down the road, I strongly suggest that, any testimonial effort you intend to do, is vetted by the individual you are quoting AND by the company, the individual represents.

    Unless the services this individual contracted from you were on a personal basis, he/she engaged you on behalf of his company so the organization needs to grant an OK.

    And yes, it will most likely go through the organization's legal department for final approval - as Anne wrote, be very transparent in where, how and when you intend to use this testimonial and stick to what you said once permission is granted.

    I have done a lot of testimonial advertising for B2B and B-to-C clients and have delivered these through a variety of media - from print to direct mail to DRTV - quite successfully (one DRTV increased leads by 66% in 5 weeks!) I have always gone through the appropriate channels to get the OK from the right people/organization. It might take a bit longer but it will be worth your while to do so.

    Good luck!
  • Posted by Jay Hamilton-Roth on 5/16/2009 at 8:54 AM Accepted
    A case study differs from a testimonial. A case study contains facts + a story and is intended to showcase the process, the working relationship, and the results. A testimonial is more about the results.
  • Posted by marketbase on 5/16/2009 at 4:24 PM Accepted
    In my experience, via follow-up research, I've found that the testimonial letter, written on client letterhead and signed by a person/client has more clout, but the case study, detailing the problem/solution was extraordinarily helpful. Most clients don't want to write the amount of words necessary to detail what all happened!

    Best of luck
    jag
    MarketBase
  • Posted by J Geibel on 5/18/2009 at 10:23 AM Member
    Lots of mixed advice on this one. As a general rule, always be above board on any dealings with a client. Don't try to sneak anything in later, or use anything that mentions them or their employees that they have not reviewed.

    That being said, there are two articles on my website that you may find helpful:

    How to Develop a Deep Case Study
    https://www.geibelmarketing.com/casestdy.htm

    The Sales Autopsy [sm]
    https://www.geibelmarketing.com/autopsy.htm

    The Autopsy article walks you though the sales diagnostic technique that will help you establish a framework for writing the case study. If you mirror the thought process that led the customer to you and your products/services, you will naturally appeal to the (sales) prospects who are in the same frame of mind.

    A caveat: most of the case studies I see are written backwards - the most important information is at the end - and the initial paragraphs are either pabulum or a dry history lesson. Remember - you initially only have their attention for the first few seconds - put a hook in so they keep reading.

    Good Luck
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