Writing Design-Build Project Case Studies For Remodeling Websites
What Design-Build Firms Should Include in a Project Case Study
As a design-build firm, one of your most significant challenges when pitching prospective clients is gaining their confidence and trust. If they are new to your business, they may have some hesitation when it comes to signing a significant contract for their home improvement project. One way to gain their trust and assure them that your design work will meet both their aesthetic needs and family goals is to present them with a case study.
Case studies are not only an exceptional way of encouraging an in-person meeting, along with your content, but they can also add an element to your online presence that can work to build trust and confidence for your visitors.
Let's look at the best approach for writing design-build case studies that can turbo-charge your close rate both in person and on your website.
What Exactly is a Case Study?
A case study is a narrative that can explain what you are capable of as a design-build firm. They can help you to walk a potential client through your process, outlining contextual details of an existing project you've completed. In it, you can outline your creative process from concept through completion, along with showcasing the quality of your workmanship. They are an excellent tool for adding depth to a project bid or proposal and can add a layer of credibility to your website.
The best case study will go beyond simple explanations to offer the rationale behind the design. They can offer a humanized perspective into your design process, ultimately building a credible case for your experience, expertise, and quality of workmanship. They can help you to better prove value and justify your price to even the most skeptical prospect.
Why Case Studies Work
Buyers are not seeking to be “sold,” they're seeking information and a human, personalized approach. Case studies help you, prospective buyers, to learn about customers with similar pain points that they can relate to. They also gain an understanding of how your company solved those issues.
Don't make your case study all talk. Use hard data, customer feedback and show your work regarding a “hard-data” driven approach rather than filling it with platitudes and feel-good claims.
When soliciting customer's for your case studies, make sure to explain that the benefits go both ways. Your case study not only provides your business with benefits, but it's also PR for your clients. Their home or business is featured on your site (especially beneficial when it comes time to sell), you'll pull case studies to fuel PR efforts, and you'll be promoting them on social media channels. If your customer has a website, you can provide them with plenty of traffic through your efforts. So a case study is beneficial not only to your business, but it can help your clients as well.
Crafting the Perfect Design-Build Case Study For Your Website
Asking the right questions of your customers is essential when writing your case study. To be effective, you need to work closely with your customer to develop their story for your readers. Here are some essential questions to create a high-converting case study.
• What is Your Background?
Their backstory is a great way to set the stage, tone, and direction of your case study. Personal stories engage potential buyers who may see themselves in the narrative.
• What Problems Did You Solve?
Every customer is seeking to resolve a problem. Whether it's an out-of-date kitchen or expanding the master bath, your case study should focus on one issue that your customer was addressing. This gives your reader insight into how you work.
• How Was the Problem Affecting The Client?
Ask your customer how their problem was affecting their life or lifestyle. Ask open-ended questions to elicit emotional responses as often as possible. You want readers to relate to and understand your customer's problem to better define your solution.
• Did The Client Have Reservations, Were They Concerned About Risk?
Every decision and every design has an element of risk. Your job is to reassure your client's and earn their trust. By exploring reservations your client may have had, you can set prospective clients mind at rest that your firm is professional, honest about possible risks and effective at providing solutions, and aesthetically pleasing outcomes.
• Why Did The Client Choose Your Design-Build Firm?
Case study readers want to understand your customer's decision-making process. If they can relate, they're more likely to work with your firm. Your case study should tell your customer's side of the buying process, including their specific concerns and your solutions.
• What Benefits Have They Seen From The Work You Did?
This question gives your prospective customer the ability to understand the benefits of working with your design-build firm. It can outline your approach to problem-solving, for example expanding the master suite to include a luxurious spa-like bathroom by moving internal walls. It gives readers a chance to see that your solution was adequate and that your customer feedback is genuine and credible. Make this the last question; praise is more effective when provided after a detailed analysis of the project.
Case studies are an excellent informational tool you can use to better define your brand, ease a potential customer's concerns and provide value. Knowing what questions to ask and how to structure a case study for your design-build firm's website can help you to create a strategic document with a ton of benefits. By structuring your approach, you can approach your previous customers, take very little time, and provide them with benefits as well. Case studies are a must-have element for your portfolio as well as for your website.
About Michael Conway
I'm the owner and strategist at Means-of-Production. My firm builds Squarespace websites, Houzz profiles, and content marketing and advertising solutions for architects, interior designers, design-build contractors and landscape design firms. Our all-in-one marketing tactics attract the right clients with exceptional architectural photography and brand messaging that sets you apart from the competition.