No one ever said starting a business was easy, and when it comes to taking on your biggest competitor, things can get downright tricky. If you’re looking to make a case study about your product’s top competitor, there are a few important things to remember. Here are ten tips that will help you craft an effective case study while still staying true to your brand.
#1: Case Studies Find The Right Angle
Not every case study about a competitor is going to be positive, and that’s okay. In fact, it can be even more effective if you approach your case study from a unique angle. There are several angles you could take here: acknowledge their product’s benefits but highlight its limitations; put yourself in the shoes of a customer who has tried their competitor before and explain why they will love your product instead; or talk about how both products can work together to offer an even better solution. There are also some negative angles you may want to avoid including disparaging remarks, biased comparisons between your products, or anything else that could come across as vindictive or petty.
#2: Keep It Objective
First and foremost, you need to remember that you’re writing a case study, not an ad. This means it should be objective and get the facts across without coming off as biased or overly promotional. Let’s say you want to talk about how your product is more affordable than your competitor’s. Avoid including something like, “overall, our product is cheaper”. Instead, you could mention, “our customers tell us they save up to 20% when they switch over to XYZ products.”
#3: A Case-Control Study Can Keep It Concise
Nobody wants to read through several pages of text when all they really need are the highlights. A good case study will always make sure to highlight all of the most important features but keep in mind brevity will allow for better reach. Just because you have room for more words doesn’t mean that you always need to use them.
#4: Don’t Trash Talk
Keep in mind that just because your case study is about a competitor does not give you carte blanche to talk smack on their product or business practices. You might think it’s an easy way of “winning” but anything like this will make customers think twice before buying from you, and could even put your company at risk for legal action (real names and statistics should never be used). Even if all the details aren’t 100% accurate, everything in your case study needs to feel real enough that people can identify with it, which means adding personal touches like specific experiences with how they work directly with your product.
#5: Be Creative By Comparing It With Other Case Study Examples
Did you know that most people don’t look at case studies unless they’re specifically searching for them? If someone is looking to make a buying decision and your competitor’s name comes up, what can you do to make yours stand out? How about creating an infographic comparing the two products side-by-side or starting off your case study with a story that really grabs attention or includes some kind of unique incentive like a discount code (or even free stuff) if they sign up right away. There are plenty of creative ways you can get more eyes on your case study.
#6: Keep It Professional
While we’ve already established that there’s nothing wrong with having a little fun when you’re writing a case study, it’s important to remember that even if your product is geared towards the younger generation you still want to make sure everything comes across as professional. This includes everything from how you word things to what kind of photos are included in your case study. Don’t make any disparaging comments about your competitor’s appearance or anything else that could be seen as inappropriate or offensive.
#7: Include A Link To Their Site
This might seem obvious but just having a link to their site at the end of yours isn’t enough. Not only should you have it somewhere easily accessible, don’t just copy-and-paste their URL into yours! It doesn’t look very professional and could get clicked on by mistake more often than not. Instead, use a different link shortening service to create custom URLs that are more eye-catching and ensure they don’t link to anything else.
#8: Test And Re-Test Before Publishing
If you’re using any of the suggestions above make sure you test them out first before publishing your case study. Not only will this make it easier to tweak anything if needed but it’s also important for legal reasons. You want everything in your case study to be accurate before people see it because any mistakes could end up being seen as evidence that you were trying to mislead readers about your product or competitor.
#9: Include A SWOT Analysis Of Both Products
One of the best ways to see what will help your case study stand out is to look at other examples and analyze why these are so good. The first thing you should look at is how they compare with one another. Highlight all of the areas where XYZ product comes up short against your own before expressing why it’s still a better purchase. The same goes for their strengths, only this time you need to show how each benefit works together instead of separately. Last but not least, make sure there’s also a SWOT analysis included in your case study that details all four parameters for both products side-by-side (strengths, weaknesses, opportunities, threats).
#10 Ask For Feedback
Even if your case study is perfect in every way that counts people are still going to be able to spot places where it could be improved upon. There’s always room for improvement so consider asking around for feedback. This could be the perfect opportunity to ask your customers what they liked best or where you can make improvements in future updates. You may get some unexpected ideas that lead to even more success for your case study down the road!
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