Copywriting:Writing a Case Study Using the Indirect Approach

The importance of the indirect approach in copywriting cannot be underestimated. I think every copywriter should read Strategy by B H Liddell Hart. The author was a historian who greatly influenced armoured warfare in the twentieth century. In his book Strategy he shows how the indirect approach has led to military victories throughout history. Here is Liddell Hart’s summary of the indirect approach.

In strategy the longest way round is often the shortest way there; a direct approach to the object exhausts the attacker and hardens the resistance by compression, whereas an indirect approach loosens the defender’s hold by upsetting his balance.

This is not to say that your prospect is your enemy, but most people view unfamiliar companies with some scepticism. Everybody has had a bad experience with a company, so if they don’t know your organisation, you need to win the customer over to your side with good copywriting.

How Can The Indirect Approach Be Applied To Writing?

Let’s look at one way the indirect approach is applied to copywriting. Case studies are a great example. These are used mostly in a business to business context. When you use a case study to promote your product or service it’s not what you call a ‘hard sell’. Instead you show your prospect how you solved a problem or met the needs of a company or person.

Writing Tips for Better Case Studies

I’ve seen many bad examples of case studies. These might have been written in house, but they could be from a freelance copywriter who doesn’t understand how they work. The most common problem with many case studies I’ve analysed is that copywriters use a selling approach that is best for writing in other persuasive formats (such as brochures or websites).

You don’t want to keep saying that your company is the best when writing a case study. In a case study, you want to show how your product or service met a customer’s needs or solved their problem.

The basic outline for writing a case study is:

• Background and introduction of the problem
• Solution – how it was chosen and implemented
• Results – how the situation has improved

Writing the Case Study Introduction

In the background to the case study you explain the customer’s problem. It is best to show how the issue was hurting their organisation. Emphasise the pain the problem created for them, but don’t exaggerate.

I wrote a case for an automation equipment provider that helped a dairy products manufacturer reduce waste when packaging yogurt. At the beginning of the case study I wrote that they were wasting 3,000 kilos of yogurt each day because their automation equipment couldn’t accurately fill the yogurt containers.

When writing your case study, you might show how your client tried another product or service that didn’t help them. It’s all right to mention this but it’s best not to give the name of the competitor. Criticising your competitors by name in your copywriting can be counterproductive – it only draws attention to them. Also, you could end up in court if the competitor feels you haven’t covered the case accurately.

When writing your case study, don’t forget to quote staff from the company that was helped . Direct quotes from clients show that your case study is real. It also helps the readers, who may be facing similar problems, relate to the situation.

Writing Your Case Study Solution Section

When writing a case study solution section you want to show how your product or service solved the problem – you explain the rationale for choosing a particular solution, and then how the solution was implemented. This can start at the very beginning when your company first got involved. You can show how you took the time fully understand the client’s challenge. You might write about heroic efforts made to complete the project.

I wrote a case study about an IT company that develops software for the telecommunications industry. When developing and testing the software in Australia, they had to communicate with partners in Europe to test the software. This meant they had to spend many late nights working to get the job done. I mentioned these extraordinary efforts in the case study to show the dedication of the IT company’s personnel.

When writing a case study it’s good to include these human elements, especially if you’re selling a service. This will take time. You’ll need to research and interview the people who worked on the project you want to write about. A copywriter who can uncover interesting stories and information will be more effective at writing a case study than a copywriter who skirts around the edges and doesn’t cover the important details.

Writing Your Case Study Results Section

The results section of your case study is where you tell the readers what the company achieved. Try to be as specific as possible. When writing the yogurt manufacturing case study mentioned earlier, I included details on what the new automation equipment achieved. It reduced spillage by 97 per cent – from 3000 kilos per day to 90 kilos per day.

It’s not always easy to get this amount of detail when writing your case study. Some companies won’t have that type of information to give. Others are reluctant to give away their trade secrets. In these situations you might want to write a case study without specifying the company. You could write about “a major Australian manufacturer of dairy products” without giving out their name. But this won’t be as credible as specifying the company and quoting key personnel.

Other Ways to Use the Indirect Approach When Copywriting

In future copywriting blog posts, I’ll cover other ways to use the indirect approach when copywriting. These include white papers, articles and advertorials.