In the promotional products industry, case studies are a vital bullet in a salesperson's arsenal. A strong case study can show a company's creativity, it's project management capabilities, and most importantly it's solution-based initiative. Case studies also show how important promotional products can be in an overall marketing strategy, and by clearly defining the ROI, gives the salesperson a competitive advantage against the typical "mom and pop" shop.
However, in today's socially-generated ratings world, the case study may be losing it's lustre. The key knocks are that a case study has a limited shelf life, especially in the Millenial "what have you done for me in the last minute" mindset. More importantly, a case study is primarily company-driven - i.e. it is designed to show the company in the best light possible. That's all well and good - but can sometimes come off as disingenuous, not a good look for most salespeople...
With the trend towards buying online in the promo products industry, the testimonial has the preferred vehicle of establishing brand trust - look at my website and you'll see the same! I am as guilty as the next guy when it comes to not showing Case studies, I'd rather have a client speak to our reliability than it come from my mouth.
With Yelp and other review-based methods of 3rd party recommendations, the problem becomes that of control - you piss one person off and it can ruin a good Yelp day... So, what to do as a promotional marketer?
The answer may be a solid blend of both, I know for me I will be including case studies going forward as a means of differentiation and control of my own brand.
Please read more on this trend Here
No comments:
Post a Comment