How Case Studies Can Up Your Reputation Management Game

How Case Studies Can Up Your Reputation Management Game

Case studies are underleveraged, yet very effective. In fact, case studies are more effective than brochures and traditional, expensive marketing collateral. The reason? Because people love to read stories. This is what case studies allow you to do – tell remarkable stories about your practice, staff and products. And the patient stories that you share can evoke emotions, paint pictures and give your practice a sticky power.

Most people connect with stories, and there is no better method of storytelling in healthcare than sharing your patients’ experience in a data-backed case study.

Essentials of a Case Study

While there is no set format for creating an effective case study, most of the successful case studies contain similar elements. In general, there are three parts to a case study.

The Problem: Give a brief of the problem.

The Solution: Outline the different solutions or courses of treatment available.

Results: This is where you showcase your products and services as the best solution to the problem.

When you build a case study on these basics, the end product will be an informative, shareable and engaging piece of content. In order to improve the quality of your case study, do not get too caught up with finding and fixing the format.

An original story cannot be locked into a formula. You do not have to restrict your content into specific modules like business plans. The most engaging and compelling stories take a creative approach and then play with perspective. At any cost, avoid writing your case study from your own perspective. This would be like writing testimonials for your own staff and services. Simply put, a successful case study highlights “What is in it for me?” from the target audience’s perspective.

How Case Studies Can Up Your Reputation Management Game

Importance of Case Studies

We all understand the importance of social proof – telling our website visitors and potential patients that others have tried your products and are satisfied with your services. The different types of social proof include online reviews, social shares, patient testimonials and case studies.

Case studies are a building block of healthcare marketing for improved lead generation and a healthier bottom line. The main purpose of case studies is to attract new patients by demonstrating the satisfaction that existing patients have already experienced. This the reason case studies are also known as patient experiences or patient success stories.
A case study lets you show off how your staff and services are better than your competitors, and all of the other aspects that your existing patients love about your practice. In addition, case study content will improve credibility and provide authoritative content, which will work wonders for both SEO and online reputation perspectives.

Another great thing about case studies is that they are targeted and specialty-specific. In other words, if a case study if properly developed, it will never appear vague to readers. There is very little risk that your case studies will miss the relevance mark. You can rest assured your case studies will resonate with the needs of your target audience.

Creating Impactful Case Studies

Before you start writing a case study, make sure you understand your target audience and their pain points. Having detailed and in-depth personas will help you write patient stories that can answer most of your target audience’s questions. You can collect information about pain points of your target audience by:

  • Checking with your staff and patient engagement team for common questions.
  • Noticing what patients ask you after they have come to your practice or used your products.
  • Monitoring social media networks and online forums.

Monitoring and tracking some common online platforms will help you assess what pain points you need to address when creating case studies.

Finding Ideal Candidates for Case Studies

Your next step is to find patients who will be happy to explain how using your products or visiting your practice has addressed their health issues. However, do not choose just anyone. The ideal patients for creating case studies must:

  • Match one of your ideal patient personas.
  • Be a loyal patient who is satisfied with your services.
  • Be happy to be interviewed.

Important tip: Make sure the patients you are interviewing for your case study are able to articulate the value that your products add to their well-being. If you are doing a video case study, then avoid people who get tongue-tied when faced with a camera. However, when doing a video case study, be very careful of HIPAA regulations and seek all permissions before you begin recording.

Take the first step to protect your online reputation and request your Online Reputation Assessment.