As a B2B marketer, it can be challenging to capture an audience for your brand and keep their interest long enough to make a purchase. And when you finally get a few clients on your doorstep, how do you increase that number?
As frustrating as many sales cycles are, generating leads and making sales is not impossible. Several marketing solutions can help you, but some are more effective than others.
Crafting a SaaS case study for your business is one of the most potent tools for enlarging your audience and increasing your sales. In this guide, I will show you how to write a SaaS case study that helps you reach the audience you desire.
What is a B2B SaaS Case Study?
A B2B SaaS case study is an unpaid customer success story written after they have used a product or service. This case study could also be an interview with a client who expresses the positive outcome of using a product or service. The end goal is to use it to attract potential clients.
Over 80% of tech marketers worldwide employ case studies for marketing, showing that there are countless success stories to choose from. It’s best to identify the SaaS case study template that satisfies your industry and employ the best practices for creating yours.
B2B SaaS Case Study Best Practices
Using SaaS case study best practices will help you create persuasive content that generates better results. To write a B2B SaaS case study that sells, you’ll need to apply these straightforward practices.
The Direct Response Technique
Nothing generates a better response than speaking directly to a person. Using the direct response technique is one of the most productive ways to attract clients to your copy.
Get your readers involved in your case study – let them see that the story is speaking to them. Employ personal stories that show you can relate to the reader to a great extent. Use clear, simple language, and construct your sentences most understandably.
Depending on your audience, you can add infographics to support your sentences and give your prospective clients more reasons to trust you.
Combine Storytelling, Readability, and Sales Approach
Another essential practice is preparing your SaaS case study to feature storytelling, readability, and a good sales approach.
A perfect example is Klaviyo’s Harney & Sons customer story (case study). It was an interesting story that began with an executive summary, followed by the challenges faced, the solution, and the strategy they employed.
The story then ended with a smooth sales touch.
Similarly, your executive summary should highlight you, your industry or audience, product or services, challenges, solutions, and results.
In 30 seconds or less, let your readers know if they need to keep reading. You can write a SaaS case study with ease using these three elements in their correct proportions.
Although you’d prefer to follow the rules, your B2B SaaS case study reads better when your storytelling is natural and readable. Your potential clients should also be able to respond to your sales approach.
Show Data and Business Benefits
A best-selling B2B SaaS case study appeals to your client’s emotions and is reinforced with numbers. Presenting statistical data that captures the business advantage of using your product or service will grant you a solid chance of generating leads.
For example, if you are marketing software that helps a business reduce production time and optimize profit, you can highlight the percentage increase of profit within the period of use.
A perfect example of a B2B SaaS company that practices this is Zapier. In their case study about Fellow, you’ll see how they boldly showed the results: “75% more efficient customer onboarding…”
Potential clients always look out for statistics, so make sure you get those numbers in!
New businesses or recent startups may not have a ton of data to glean from, but you can still use social proof.
Conduct interviews with customers to gather real photos and their quotes. Ensure that your data is human enough to give credibility to your product or service.
Capture Your Unique Selling Proposition (USP)
Since you’re not the only company or brand seeking to partner with your potential clients, your case study should contain clear reasons to choose you over everyone else.
In a multitude of voices, let yours be unique.
But that’s not all. Please make sure you clearly state how you solve their needs and support their company’s vision.
Your SaaS case study should highlight why you are superior to your competitors in your particular industry. Your USP will usually leave an imprint on the minds of your potential clients.
Add a Call To Action (CTA)
Even if you don’t want to sound like a salesperson, it’s always best to leave a compelling note that encourages your readers to act.
Include the CTA throughout and especially at the bottom of your SaaS case study, just like Klaviyo does, as shown below.
Your CTA should be clear and easy to locate – don’t make your readers confused about what you’d like them to do. You can add your contact details to the CTA at the bottom of your SaaS case study so they can reach out to you.
Why is a SaaS Case Study Important?
Every business aims at generating leads and making sales, and it can get frustrating if this is not the case with your SaaS business. Creating a SaaS case study is vital in B2B SaaS marketing because it serves as a unique sales tool in the evolving digital market space, crawling with competitors.
You need to learn how to write a SaaS case study for several reasons.
Here are 3 main reasons that stand out:
1. Improves Lead Generation
Case studies rank among the most engaging forms of content for marketing solutions. Neil Patel, the godfather of SEO and a successful B2B digital marketer, testified that applying case studies in his emails increased his deal-closing ratio by 70%.
Because SaaS case studies are true stories of actual people, it is a trusted content form. As long as your former customers are satisfied, others can trust your product or services.
A good B2B SaaS case study can be a powerful lead magnet. For instance, include a pop-up on your website, encouraging readers to download your recent case study by signing up for your email newsletter. This tactic always converts!
Storyselling
Most people read online reviews of products or services before making a purchasing decision. People would rather choose recommended products or services than buy something they have no clue about.
A good B2B SaaS case study contains relatable experiences about the problem, and provides context to the challenges while highlighting the solution and introducing the goal of your product or service.
Good storytelling can compel other people to use your product, especially when the story appeals to your readers.
A healthy dose of suspense or quick thrills in your story keeps readers enraptured till the end, and therefore compelling them to action.
- Social Proof
If you need to make more sales through your website, a SaaS case study can act as social proof to potential clients that they can trust you. Case studies show how you have helped similar customers in the past, and you’re willing to do more.
Pictures, data, graphs, and infographics are helpful signs that point future clients to the successful projects you have completed with others. Use powerful imagery combined with compelling text to improve your sales in business.
Superb B2B SaaS Case Study Examples
SaaS case studies remain the most effective type of content for influencing B2B purchases. They may appear as merely customer testimonials about a product, but they have more power beyond that.
Let’s quickly study these 3 B2B SaaS case study examples and see why they stand out.
- Monday
This particular case study prides itself on its outstanding numbers, high conversion rates, and impressive results.
Next, they talked about the client, Velv, and the challenges they faced before using Monday.
Most importantly, they showed how Velv uses Monday to manage the post-sales and performance evaluation process.
There’s also enough room for results, and to add specific quotes from the client that make Monday look even more credible.
- Heap
This case study’s format incorporates all the components it needs to stand out. It showcases the client’s industry, results, and a captivating video.
At first glance, you’d notice impressive data and outcomes that make you interested in knowing more.
Then they went further to visit one of their clients, Thinx, to interview the employees who use their product.
And as you see, they were able to get bold quotes from employees verifying Thinx’s testimony.
- Gong
There’s a rich overview of Drift, the client company, that includes their industry, location, company size, and website.
The case study also outlines Drift’s challenges before employing Gong’s service.
Next, of course, was the outcome, which also featured a quote by the VP of Sales as seen below.
One remarkable thing about this SaaS case study is how it places a keen focus on the customer alone, highlighting Gong’s only input where necessary.
How to Create a Buyer Persona for Your SaaS Case Study in 3 Steps
Buyer Personas are vital in B2B SaaS marketing because they identify your prospective customers through data collection and research.
A good buyer persona helps you streamline focus to relevant customer prospects, and guide your product development to satisfy those customers.
Since buyer personas are important, you should learn how to make one.
You can create a superb buyer persona in these steps:
Step 1: Gather Important Persona Information
Scan your contacts database to find patterns that show how customers locate your product or service. Ensure you use form fields that reveal relevant persona information when making forms for your website.
Customer interviews and the sales team’s feedback are great tools for building accurate persona information.
Step 2: Identify Patterns and Common Grounds
Once you’re done with the primary research, organize your research findings so you can study them. Then, filter through the raw data by identifying patterns and common grounds.
These similarities will help you develop your primary persona and understand your potential customers.
Step 3: Develop Messaging for your Persona
Train your sales team on how to relate to your persona by developing the language for communication with them. Your team should know how to convey information about your product/service in a way that your persona understands totally.
Additionally, make sure everyone on your team is speaking the same way with your persona, so they can establish a level of familiarity and trust with you and your product.
How to Conduct a SaaS Case Study Interview
Now that you’re done building your buyer’s persona and you have the ideal client, you can reach out for your SaaS case study interview. Since it may be your first time, don’t expect to be perfect.
Here’s a small guide to help you conduct your SaaS case study interview.
- Begin with Friendly Introductions
Introduce yourself and confirm that your client has sufficient time to spend on the interview. Make a small chat and allow yourself to be at ease. Then, start with the basic questions that provide more insight into your client’s background.
- Uncover Your Client’s Initial Status
Ask questions that reveal your client’s initial situation before reaching out to you. Find out when they realized it was time to change things and what solutions they tried before you. Keep the questions simple.
- Problems or Challenges Your Client Faced
Now you’re getting somewhere. Let your client describe the problems or challenges they experienced during this time. Understand how critical these problems were, and how they affected the business.
- What Solutions Did You Provide?
Here, your client can give you insight into what products/services they got from your company, how the solutions were applied, and if it was effective.
- Results After Using the SaaS Solution
Your client must tell you what improvements they observed, how the solution helped, and the measures of success and efficiency record. This is where the numbers come into play.
- Why Your Client Chose You
Your client should tell you why they selected you and your service to provide solutions to them, despite your competitors.
This includes stating how they found you, the process for purchase, what phase of the process they enjoyed, and what could be improved.
- Room for Improvement
A good B2B SaaS case study interview should include honest feedback concerning any part of the process, so your company can get better, too. If your client noticed any faults or substandard operations, it’s a good time to find out. It’s best to remain calm and allow your client to speak freely.
Sample Questions for Your B2B SaaS Case Study
There are a ton of B2B SaaS case study questions you can use, but make sure you’re only asking questions that are critical to developing your case studies.
Some important sample questions include:
- Can you provide a quick overview of your company’s goals and objectives?
- How many staff are employed at your company?
- Describe your company’s initial situation before reaching out to us.
- What solutions did you choose before us?
- What problems or challenges were you facing before now?
- How did the challenges affect your business?
- What solutions/services did you purchase from us?
- How did you apply those solutions? Did they work as you’d expected?
- What results did you notice?
- How has our solution improved your output?
- Can you quote specific success rates or statistics that show how things improved?
- How did you first hear about our company?
- What made you choose our company/product?
- How can we improve our product/service for you?
Essential Components of a SaaS Case Study
Every case study must contain essential elements to give the desired results. Put these in and watch your SaaS case study shine.
- Compelling title
The title is usually bold and eye-catching because it’s the first thing readers see. Your title should include your customer’s company name, the product or service used, and the results achieved.
Your case study’s title should pique interest in the story. If there’s a striking statistic that could capture your readers, find a way to fit it in. Remember, keep the title short, exact, and compelling.
- Executive Summary
Your SaaS case study should contain an executive summary that is short, clear, and meaningful. It’s usually a few sentences that introduce your customers, the challenges they faced before using your company’s solution, and the results achieved.
Sometimes, your executive summary might be all potential clients would ever read. So keep it strong, compelling, and informative.
- Use Multimedia
Knowing when and how to use multimedia in your SaaS case study is also key. Imagery reinforces your text, brings words to life, and helps your readers connect more with the case study.
You can include graphs, charts, photographs, and video content. Using these features will help improve the credibility of your case study.
Add Relevant Quotes
If your customer said something striking during the interview for your case study, you can leverage that, just like Gong did in theirs as you can see below.
Direct quotes or paraphrasing your customer’s words are a subtle way of singing your praises and telling your readers that you’re being honest enough.
Remember that quotes should be specific and related to the purpose of the case study; otherwise, they will have no impact.
Make the quotes stand apart from your text, and ensure they’re quite personal to the customer.
B2B SaaS Case Study Templates
If you’re not sure how to get started, looking over a couple of SaaS case study templates can inspire you.
Examine your competitors’ case studies, too. Doing so, you will see what they did well that you can model and how they could’ve done better.
Take a close look at how they inserted images, videos, and statistics, then create your case study using your informed knowledge.
Problem- Solution – Result
A SaaS case study should display the challenges the customers faced that moved them to procure your SaaS strategy. Help your readers understand how you solved the problem and the results you earned for your customers.
It’s essential to clearly outline results using powerful statistics and relevant data that show things have changed for good!
Add an Irresistible CTA
A Compelling Call to Action should be around the end of your case study and should state what exactly you’d like your readers to do.
Don’t try to be overtly salesy; just simply show readers their next move after reading.
It’s possible to have more than one CTA, so you can insert them throughout your case study for better understanding.
How to Promote B2B SaaS Case Studies
Now that you’re done with writing your B2B SaaS case study, how do you promote this best-selling marketing tool?
It’s important to give your case studies enough visibility so your company can ride on its full potential.
Create a section on your company’s website for your case studies and begin promotion from your home page.
Here is an example from Klaviyo’s home page.
You could also add them as your website footer just like Monday did below.
Website visitors should spot your case study from the home page as well as other critical landing pages.
Another way to promote the SaaS case study is to create content in various formats, such as video, and promote these formats on social media and in your email broadcasts. You can also use case studies at marketing presentations or conferences that you’ll attend.
Which platforms should you share your case studies on?
Create a series of tweets that highlight your client’s problems, what services you offered, and what results they got in return. You can add pictures, statistics, and links to the case studies for more information and ask company employees to retweet.
Quora
Use Quora to tell a good story of how your company helped your client to obtain fantastic results from using your service. Focus on your customer and ensure your story is natural and not promotional.
Facebook Community
Share your customer’s success story with their permission, and let others make comments about it. You can place Facebook ads using your case studies and reach a larger audience, too.
Slideshare
Make a good Slideshare Presentation that provides bullet points on the challenges your client encountered, how you stepped in, what product/service you offered, and the results obtained. Be sure to include a lead generation form in the Slideshare.
Webinars
To promote your case study, you can also host webinars with your client and discuss how their company benefited from your product. Place ads for the webinar before time or share the recorded video afterward.
Email Marketing
You can email your case studies to prospective clients or craft emails for your newsletter that point readers to your case studies. This can be very effective, especially when you have a good number of subscribers.
How to Post Case Studies on LinkedIn
LinkedIn is a perfect place to generate leads for your B2B SaaS, especially when you’ve got a powerful case study. It’s just the right tool!
You can use LinkedIn Publisher to widen your reach at the top of the B2B social chain.
Rewrite your case study as fresh material before you post, so Google doesn’t flag it as duplicate content.
Share your B2B SaaS case study on your company’s LinkedIn page, and ask some of your employees to update their status with the case study. Highlight your case study in LinkedIn groups where your target audience exists.
Conclusion
Writing a B2B SaaS case study might seem like a lot of work, but it is a rewarding effort. There may be no easier way to achieve outstanding B2B marketing success, but using case studies will get you there.
This guide should help you get started – and even finish because you now have all you need to generate leads for your business.
And just in case you need someone to help you write your next case study, send us an email: toby@contentcolumn.com.