12 academic publications;
8 media outlets covering the initiative;
5: Data-Powered Patents | |
Citation patterns in granted patents in the field of biology | |
The analysis of data citation patterns in the field of biology showed how over 8,000 patents were based on publicly available data. While this proves the usefulness of repositories as a whole, it also shows how the evaluation of researchers should consider data citations and alternative sources, too, as these are often key to uncover the broader industrial and societal value of academic research. | |
citations; patents; text mining | |
BIOLOGICAL SCIENCES | |
Efficiency in research and data re-use (e.g., reduce duplication of effort); Methodological impact (e.g., new approaches developed); Socio/Economic impact | |
Impact on economy and business | |
8,000 patents thanks to open data | |
Recent (<5 years) | |
2014 | |
6: Sharing Research Data and Infrastructure to Study Proteins | |
A research group's impact on the study of circular dichroism | |
The DICHROWEB and PCDDB platforms are widely used for the study of proteins. Since their release, hundreds of thousands of users accessed them, from both academia and the private sector. In academia, the platforms fuel research and teaching, while they led to several advances in industry, including the development of 11 patents. | |
protein; repository; infrastructure | |
MEDICAL AND HEALTH SCIENCES | |
Reproducibility; Efficiency in research and data re-use (e.g., reduce duplication of effort); Socio/Economic impact; Methodological impact (e.g., new approaches developed) | |
Impact on health and wellbeing | |
375,000 analyses; 3,600 registered users; over 1,000 citations; | |
Long-standing (5+ years) | |
2001 | |
7: Using Flies to Understand The Human Brain | |
Harvesting published data to power neurobiology research | |
Studying the brain of fruit flies is helping researchers uncover how our brains work at the molecular level. Data repositories such as the Virtual Fly Brain help them curate, share, and re-use data in a structured way. | |
neurobiology; medicine; fly; brain; | |
BIOLOGICAL SCIENCES | |
Reproducibility; Efficiency in research and data re-use (e.g., reduce duplication of effort) | |
Long-standing (5+ years) | |
2012 | |
8: A Data-Based Approach to Preventing Curable Eye Diseases | |
Leveraging data to inform health policies | |
The Vision Loss Expert Group (VLEG) gathered and released data on vision loss all around the world. The data is localised, which means that every country can tackle local issues to reduce the burden of eye loss. The findings of the VLEG are far-reaching and were picked up by large organisations such as PwC, the World Bank, and the World Economic Forum, shaping policies, debates, and educations programmes worldwide. | |
ophthalmology; eye health; VLEG; GBD | |
MEDICAL AND HEALTH SCIENCES | |
Efficiency in research and data re-use (e.g., reduce duplication of effort); Socio/Economic impact; Methodological impact (e.g., new approaches developed) | |
Impact on health and wellbeing; Impact on public services; Impact on politics and governance | |
15,000 articles harvested; $2.2 per capita to eliminate avoidable blindness in developing countries by 2020; collaboration between 79 scientists; | |
Long-standing (5+ years) | |
1990 | |
9: Self Compacting Concrete | |
Advancements in engineering led by data aggregation | |
Data from over 250 academic sources was aggregated in the form of a database and used to inform future design of self-compacting concrete. This large-scale study allowed researchers to precisely describe the differences between self-compacting concrete and "traditional" vibrated concrete. | |
concrete; database; self-compacting | |
ENGINEERING | |
Efficiency in research and data re-use (e.g., reduce duplication of effort) | |
250 articles; 1500 concrete mixtures analysed; | |
Recent (<5 years) | |
2014 | |
10: Preventing Drug Interactions On Your Mobile | |
Novel tools for patients and healthcare professionals | |
The iChart apps developed by the University of Liverpool help clinicians and patients with HIV or hepatitis C better deal with drug interactions. The apps allow clear and ubiquitous access to research data that has been arranged for maximum effectiveness and dissemination, thus, improving patient response and reducing the side effects experienced. In addition, clinicians can save time, as all the information they need is now available directly on their smartphones. | |
hiv; hepatitis; drug interactions | |
MEDICAL AND HEALTH SCIENCES | |
Efficiency in research and data re-use (e.g., reduce duplication of effort); Socio/Economic impact; Methodological impact (e.g., new approaches developed) | |
Impact on health and wellbeing | |
128 countries; 17,000 downloads; | |
Long-standing (5+ years) | |
2010 | |
11: Meeting Sustainability Objectives | |
Reducing carbon emissions from agricultural production | |
Meeting sustainability objectives is becoming increasingly important to reduce the impact of global warming. The field of agriculture has been deemed responsible for a third of our greenhouse emissions, thus, resources such as the Cool Farm Tool are essential to help people in the sector understand how they can reduce their environmental impact. | |
agriculture; carbon footprint; | |
ENVIRONMENTAL SCIENCES | |
Methodological impact (e.g., new approaches developed); Efficiency in research and data re-use (e.g., reduce duplication of effort); Socio/Economic impact | |
Environmental impact | |
800 global datasets for N2O; 100 global datasets for soil carbon sequestrations; | |
Long-standing (5+ years) | |
2011 | |
12: Finding Offshore Hydrocarbons | |
Leveraging satellite data to improve the efficiency of exploration | |
Satellite data has been re-used to produced a more up-to-date and precise dataset helping with offshore exploration. The improved gravity data prepared by the researchers has shown a very high potential and is estimated to be 10% more accurate than previously-available work. The dataset has been used by major oil companies to drive decision-making and improve the safety of their exploration efforts. | |
oil; exploration; gravity | |
EARTH SCIENCES | |
Efficiency in research and data re-use (e.g., reduce duplication of effort); Socio/Economic impact; Methodological impact (e.g., new approaches developed) | |
Impact on economy and business; Environmental impact | |
$2.5 million per project £1.2 million received 10% improvement compared to previous data | |
Long-standing (5+ years) | |
1998 | |
13: Geological Data Made Easy | |
The British Geological Survey and the OpenGeoscience portal | |
Geological data was released by the British Geological Survey to align their resources to the principles of open science. Their efforts took the form of the OpenGeoscience portal, where data is shared through an Open Government License. Users of OpenGeoscience resources are encouraged to reshape the data to develop new products, called mash-ups, and more than 20 of these are available on the BGS website. | |
geology; survey; NERC | |
EARTH SCIENCES | |
Efficiency in research and data re-use (e.g., reduce duplication of effort); Socio/Economic impact | |
Impact on economy and business; Environmental impact | |
Over 20 mash-ups (projects derived from OpenGeoscience data) | |
Long-standing (5+ years) | |
2010 | |
14: Protecting The Oceans By Coordinating Data Sharing Efforts | |
UNESCO’s efforts to preserve marine environments | |
UNESCO's efforts to protect marine environments materialised with the creation of IODE in 1961. The programme aims to improve data management in the field and to guide and coordinate the data gathering work by a large number of countries. Such a high-level initiative allows data to be shared very effectively, as no country could possibly gather so much information on its own. In addition, | |
marine; ocean; coordination; unesco | |
EARTH SCIENCES | |
Efficiency in research and data re-use (e.g., reduce duplication of effort); Socio/Economic impact; Methodological impact (e.g., new approaches developed) | |
Environmental impact; Impact on politics and governance; Impact on economy and business | |
Long-standing (5+ years) | |
1990 | |
15: Corruption in Public Sector Procurement | |
Digital whistleblowing to quantify the cost of corruption | |
The DIGIWHIST project gathered and elaborated information on public procurement and accountability of public officials within the EU and in neighbouring countries. This was picked up by the European Commission, which released a study showing how corruption may cost Europe up to €990 billion per year. | |
corruption; european commission; transparency; public sector | |
STUDIES IN HUMAN SOCIETY | |
Socio/Economic impact; Efficiency in research and data re-use (e.g., reduce duplication of effort) | |
Impact on politics and governance; Impact on public services; Impact on economy and business | |
up to €990 billion lost to corruption yearly | |
Recent (<5 years) | |
2015 | |
16: Drones for Research | |
Using unmanned aerial vehicles to power new approaches to scientific investigations | |
Drones are becoming a constant presence in technology news and media, thus, it is not surprising that they also caught the attention of the research community. Drones allow researchers to capture aerial images easily and at a low cost, however, the data they gather needs to be properly curated to allow any applications. In the field of agriculture, drone-captured datasets are being used to spot plant diseases and help farmers better protect their yields. In addition, drone time-stamped drone image sets have been used to study how to best protect crops and land from floods. | |
agriculture; drones | |
AGRICULTURAL AND VETERINARY SCIENCES | |
Efficiency in research and data re-use (e.g., reduce duplication of effort); Socio/Economic impact; Methodological impact (e.g., new approaches developed) | |
Impact on economy and business; Economic; Environmental | |
Recent (<5 years) | |
2016 | |
17: Data-Enhanced Archaeology | |
Using modern tools to study ancient times | |
In the field of archaeology, data is scarce and difficult to find. This is simply because it usually comes from excavations or physical operations on artefacts, which are normally expensive and can be performed only in certain conditions. The Archaeology Data Service (ADS) aims to fill the gap by freely providing more than 1.3 million metadata records on archaeological data and by driving developments in research data management in the field. The service enables increased efficiency thanks to data reuse and this is valued at at least £13 million per annum. | |
archaeological data; repository | |
HISTORY AND ARCHAEOLOGY | |
Reproducibility; Efficiency in research and data re-use (e.g., reduce duplication of effort); Methodological impact (e.g., new approaches developed) | |
£13 million per annum savings due to increased efficiency; 2-fold to 8-fold return on investment; 44% of interviewed stakeholders could not have carried out their work without the ADS; | |
Long-standing (5+ years) | |
1996 | |
18: Supporting Science and Industry by Sharing Computer Code | |
Sharing software as a form of research data | |
Sharing software is not as common as sharing other types of research data, however, it is sometimes very impactful. The Statistical Parametric Mapping (SPM) software in the field of neuroimaging is an example of how sharing computer code can lead to far-reaching effects. In this case, making the code public allowed the creation of a new field of study and led the software to become the leader in the sector. In addition, thanks to the licensing chosen, some companies were able to exploit the code to create derivative products, which are generating substantial income, while major pharmaceutical companies are using it in the field of drug research. | |
software; code; algorithms | |
MEDICAL AND HEALTH SCIENCES | |
Socio/Economic impact; Methodological impact (e.g., new approaches developed) | |
Economic; Technological; Health | |
64% of users in the field use the software; €5,000 for each license (software derived from sharing); | |
Long-standing (5+ years) | |
1991 | |
19: Citizen Science at Zooniverse | |
Sharing data and efforts via an online platform | |
It is not always easy to deal with large amounts of data. At times, algorithms can help researchers make sense of their large datasets, however, sometimes the human mind cannot be replaced. In these cases, platforms like Zooniverse come to the researchers' help, allowing them to have citizen volunteers analyse scientific data and enable new scientific discoveries. More than 130 articles were published thanks to citizen science, showing how wise research data management can allow the crowd-sourcing of scientific research. | |
crowd-sourced research; citizen science | |
INFORMATION AND COMPUTING SCIENCES | |
Reproducibility; Efficiency in research and data re-use (e.g., reduce duplication of effort); Methodological impact (e.g., new approaches developed) | |
More than 130 articles published; Over 1.5 million registered volunteers; At least 58 web-based citizen science projects; | |
Long-standing (5+ years) | |
2009 | |
20: History and Data | |
The link between disciplines that seem diametrically opposed | |
Access to ancient books, manuscripts, and artefacts is often limited due to their fragility and importance. In addition, they are spread between several locations, which makes the work of historians difficult. The digitisation of heritage data by the British History Online digital library bridges the gap by making material available to researchers from all over the world. The application of research data management in this field led to changes in the researchers' workflow and earned the library a large number of citations in the academic literature and mentions in the news. | |
British history; digitisation; library | |
HISTORY AND ARCHAEOLOGY | |
Reproducibility; Efficiency in research and data re-use (e.g., reduce duplication of effort); Methodological impact (e.g., new approaches developed) | |
330,000 unique visitors a month; 1,410 Google Scholar results; 9 mentions in news; | |
Long-standing (5+ years) | |
2003 | |
21: Saving the Earth from Mankind | |
How can we preserve Earth and develop sustainably? | |
Our planet needs to be protected, as human development tends to ignore sustainability and the effect business has on the environment and on biodiversity. Luckily, things are slowly changing, and better decisions and policies supported by research data can now be made. The Global Biodiversity Information Facility (GBIF) plays a critical role in enabling sustainable development by hosting evidence on more than 1.6 million species and its data is featured in more than 1,400 research papers. GBIF data is used by scientists, policymakers, and journalists alike. | |
biodiversity; environment; sustainable development | |
ENVIRONMENTAL SCIENCES | |
Reproducibility; Efficiency in research and data re-use (e.g., reduce duplication of effort); Socio/Economic impact; Methodological impact (e.g., new approaches developed) | |
Political; Economic; Environmental | |
Evidence on more than 1.6 million species; 1,400 peer-reviewed articles citing GBIF data; 81 countries; | |
Long-standing (5+ years) | |
1999 | |
22: Understanding Mobile Users and Evaluating Vulnerabilities | |
User data as an investigation tool | |
The Device Analyzer project gathers data on smartphone usage and curates it for re-use by companies, universities, and research institutes. The project's data led to the development of important statistics on the vulnerability of smartphones using the Android operating system. The researchers found that this is related to the slow pace of system updates and only manufacturers have the tools to address the problem. | |
Android; smartphone; mobile phones | |
INFORMATION AND COMPUTING SCIENCES | |
Efficiency in research and data re-use (e.g., reduce duplication of effort); Methodological impact (e.g., new approaches developed) | |
30,978 contributors; 87.7% of Android devices are exposed to at least one of 11 known critical vulnerabilities | |
Long-standing (5+ years) | |
2012 | |
23: Understanding War | |
Data-powered insights into the motives and consequences of war | |
In the world, there are currently 58 ongoing conflicts. These cause tens of thousands of fatalities each year and are related to reasons that are obscure, complex, and often difficult to understand. Researchers and political scientists have been trying to uncover the reasons for war for a long time. Today, they can leverage data to explain conflicts, and geotagged datasets can be organised to build visualisations that greatly facilitate the understanding of contexts and actors in a war. The use of research data management is instrumental in helping us fully grasp the reasons for conflicts and, hopefully, preventing future ones. | |
War; conflicts | |
STUDIES IN HUMAN SOCIETY | |
Reproducibility; Efficiency in research and data re-use (e.g., reduce duplication of effort); Socio/Economic impact | |
Political; Societal | |
4,000 citations: Correlates of War project 3,800 citations: Uppsala Conflict Data Program | |
Long-standing (5+ years) | |
2012 | |
24: Surfing Gravitational Waves | |
Understanding gravity and Einstein’s General Theory of Relativity | |
Since 2002, the LIGO experiment has been running and collecting data in the domain of astrophysics. This very large facility created over 1 petabyte of information, which required management for several years. This effort has allowed researchers to confirm the existence of gravitational waves, ripples in space time hypothesised by Einstein. In addition, data from the experiment is being used to produce peer-reviewed publications and additional information on past detections, such as visuals, audio, and other media. | |
gravitational waves; relativity | |
PHYSICAL SCIENCES | |
Reproducibility; Efficiency in research and data re-use (e.g., reduce duplication of effort) | |
111,000 news mentions; Over 1 petabyte of data | |
Long-standing (5+ years) | |
1994 | |
25: Art From The Comfort Of Your Chair | |
Aggregating arts metadata to power a digital museum | |
Educational institutions, museums, and other organisations hold a wealth of information on paintings, sculpture, and artefacts. This has historically been kept private or indexed locally, however, the Europeana project aims to aggregate metadata in the field of arts and make it publicly accessible. Over 3,000 organisation contribute to the portal, which hosts more than 54 million records from across Europe. The Europeana project has been using its material to promote creative thinking in a number of disciplines and led to the creation of a web exhibition platform for institutions holding art. In addition, Europeana tracks research arising from its data through the Europeana Treasures blogpost series. | |
cultural heritage; digitisation | |
LANGUAGE, COMMUNICATION AND CULTURE | |
Efficiency in research and data re-use (e.g., reduce duplication of effort); Socio/Economic impact | |
Technological; Cultural | |
Collaboration of 3,000 institutions; 54,364,816 artworks, artefacts, books, videos and sounds from across Europe; | |
Long-standing (5+ years) | |
2008 | |
1: A Performance Artwork Based on Datasets and Partnerships | |
music; sound; software | |
EARTH SCIENCES | |
Efficiency in research and data re-use (e.g., reduce duplication of effort); Methodological impact (e.g., new approaches developed) | |
>430GB of data created | |
Recent (<5 years) | |
2014 | |
Top of Short-form Case Studies
2: Open Science Underpins Collaboration: The Structural Genomics Consortium (SGC) | |
protein structure | |
BIOLOGICAL SCIENCES | |
Reproducibility; Efficiency in research and data re-use (e.g., reduce duplication of effort); Socio/Economic impact | |
Economic | |
over 1,500 protein structures and 75 kinase structures shared; Protein Data Bank is worth $12 billion; | |
Long-standing (5+ years) | |
2003 | |
3: Testing Doubts About the Reliability of Science: The Reproducibility Project | |
reproducibility; open science | |
PSYCHOLOGY AND COGNITIVE SCIENCES | |
Reproducibility | |
Only 40% of findings could be replicated | |
Long-standing (5+ years) | |
2011 | |
4: Large Volumes of Data Engage Large Communities: Sloan Digital Sky Survey (SDSS)) | |
space; citizen science | |
EARTH SCIENCES | |
Efficiency in research and data re-use (e.g., reduce duplication of effort); Methodological impact (e.g., new approaches developed) | |
Classification of nearly 900,000 galaxies | |
Long-standing (5+ years) | |
1998 | |
5: Scholarly Communication is About Combining Effort: Polymath Project | |
collaboration; problem solving | |
MATHEMATICAL SCIENCES | |
Efficiency in research and data re-use (e.g., reduce duplication of effort); Methodological impact (e.g., new approaches developed) | |
3 out of 12 mathematical problems solved; 6 published articles; | |
Long-standing (5+ years) | |
2009 | |
6: Is Citizen Generated Data Suitable for Academic Purposes? Volunteered Geographic Information (VGI) | |
maps; volunteered data | |
EARTH SCIENCES | |
Efficiency in research and data re-use (e.g., reduce duplication of effort); Methodological impact (e.g., new approaches developed) | |
Only 12% of photographs considered unusable | |
Long-standing (5+ years) | |
2004 | |
7: A Specialist Research Data Archive: Crawdad | |
wireless; networks | |
INFORMATION AND COMPUTING SCIENCES | |
Reproducibility; Efficiency in research and data re-use (e.g., reduce duplication of effort) | |
2378 papers using CRAWDAD datasets or mentioning CRAWDAD; 1217 downloads for the most popular datasets and 566 citations; | |
Long-standing (5+ years) | |
2004 | |
8: A Large-Scale Research Data Service: The European Bioinformatics Institute | |
genome information | |
BIOLOGICAL SCIENCES | |
Reproducibility; Efficiency in research and data re-use (e.g., reduce duplication of effort); Socio/Economic impact | |
Economic | |
Efficiency gains worth £1 billion per annum; Future research impact worth £335 million annually or £2.5 billion over 30 years | |
Long-standing (5+ years) | |
1992 | |
9: Combining Data & Influencing Government Sustainability Policies | |
travelling; sustainability | |
MEDICAL AND HEALTH SCIENCES | |
Efficiency in research and data re-use (e.g., reduce duplication of effort); Socio/Economic impact | |
Political; Societal | |
Long-standing (5+ years) | |
2008 | |
10: Objective Measures & Self-Reported Data Underpin Policy On Obesity: Health Survey for England (HSE) | |
health survey; obesity | |
MEDICAL AND HEALTH SCIENCES | |
Efficiency in research and data re-use (e.g., reduce duplication of effort); Methodological impact (e.g., new approaches developed) | |
Long-standing (5+ years) | |
1991 | |
11: Archival Acceptance as an "Indicator of Quality": Foot & Mouth Disease (FMD) Testimonial Data | |
crisis; diaries | |
MEDICAL AND HEALTH SCIENCES | |
Efficiency in research and data re-use (e.g., reduce duplication of effort); Socio/Economic impact | |
Societal | |
3,200 weekly diaries leading to the understanding of how people react to abnormal events | |
Long-standing (5+ years) | |
2001 | |
12: Improving Policy by Providing Data: Live Music Exchange (LMX) | |
live music | |
LANGUAGE, COMMUNICATION AND CULTURE | |
Socio/Economic impact | |
Political | |
Recent (<5 years) | |
2015 | |
13: From Hard Copy Primary Sources to An Open Online Resource: Reading Experience Database, (RED) | |
reading | |
LANGUAGE, COMMUNICATION AND CULTURE | |
Efficiency in research and data re-use (e.g., reduce duplication of effort); Methodological impact (e.g., new approaches developed) | |
contributions of >120 volunteers, who created over 6000 entries; >1800 users per month from >135 countries; | |
Long-standing (5+ years) | |
1995 | |
14: Qualitative Data in Many Formats, Archived Online: Tate Encounters | |
qualitative data; museum | |
STUDIES IN HUMAN SOCIETY | |
Socio/Economic impact | |
Societal; Cultural | |
300 student questionnaires; 200 student essays on Tate Modern and Tate Britain; 12 student workshops; 12 in depth student research projects; 5 extended participant family edited ethnographic films; 38 Tate staff interviews and interviews with 72 participants through the Research in Process events at Tate Britain; | |
Long-standing (5+ years) | |
2010 | |
15: Data Combination and Self Re-Use: Understanding Pauper Lives in Georgian London | |
pauper lives; London | |
HISTORY AND ARCHAEOLOGY | |
Efficiency in research and data re-use (e.g., reduce duplication of effort) | |
Over 300,000 records about over 50,000 poor individuals in the West End of London | |
Long-standing (5+ years) | |
2004 | |
16: Ireland-Bristol Trade in the Sixteenth Century | |
trade; Ireland; England | |
HISTORY AND ARCHAEOLOGY | |
Efficiency in research and data re-use (e.g., reduce duplication of effort) | |
Long-standing (5+ years) | |
2006 | |
17: Film and an Ethnographic Approach: Buddhist Cosmology in Food | |
buddhism; food | |
LANGUAGE, COMMUNICATION AND CULTURE | |
Efficiency in research and data re-use (e.g., reduce duplication of effort) | |
6 videos created as a project output | |
Recent (<5 years) | |
2014 | |
18: Data About Data Archiving: ICPSR’s Data Sharing in the Social Sciences | |
meta-analysis | |
STUDIES IN HUMAN SOCIETY | |
Efficiency in research and data re-use (e.g., reduce duplication of effort) | |
Long-standing (5+ years) | |
2010 | |
19: Research Data Supports Restoration: Mackintosh Architecture | |
restoration; building | |
BUILT ENVIRONMENT AND DESIGN | |
Efficiency in research and data re-use (e.g., reduce duplication of effort); Socio/Economic impact | |
Societal; Cultural | |
350 architectural projects shared | |
Recent (<5 years | |
2014 | |
20: Evidencing Value of Artistic, Cultural or Sporting Activities: UK Subjective Well-Being Data (SWB) | |
understanding society; sport; culture | |
STUDIES IN HUMAN SOCIETY | |
Efficiency in research and data re-use (e.g., reduce duplication of effort) | |
Recent (<5 years) | |
2016 | |
Updated about 7 years ago
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Blog Business How to Present a Case Study like a Pro (With Examples)
Written by: Danesh Ramuthi Sep 07, 2023
Okay, let’s get real: case studies can be kinda snooze-worthy. But guess what? They don’t have to be!
In this article, I will cover every element that transforms a mere report into a compelling case study, from selecting the right metrics to using persuasive narrative techniques.
And if you’re feeling a little lost, don’t worry! There are cool tools like Venngage’s Case Study Creator to help you whip up something awesome, even if you’re short on time. Plus, the pre-designed case study templates are like instant polish because let’s be honest, everyone loves a shortcut.
Click to jump ahead:
What is the purpose of presenting a case study, how to structure a case study presentation, how long should a case study presentation be, 5 case study presentation examples with templates, 6 tips for delivering an effective case study presentation, 5 common mistakes to avoid in a case study presentation, how to present a case study faqs.
A case study presentation involves a comprehensive examination of a specific subject, which could range from an individual, group, location, event, organization or phenomenon.
They’re like puzzles you get to solve with the audience, all while making you think outside the box.
Unlike a basic report or whitepaper, the purpose of a case study presentation is to stimulate critical thinking among the viewers.
The primary objective of a case study is to provide an extensive and profound comprehension of the chosen topic. You don’t just throw numbers at your audience. You use examples and real-life cases to make you think and see things from different angles.
The primary purpose of presenting a case study is to offer a comprehensive, evidence-based argument that informs, persuades and engages your audience.
Here’s the juicy part: presenting that case study can be your secret weapon. Whether you’re pitching a groundbreaking idea to a room full of suits or trying to impress your professor with your A-game, a well-crafted case study can be the magic dust that sprinkles brilliance over your words.
Think of it like digging into a puzzle you can’t quite crack . A case study lets you explore every piece, turn it over and see how it fits together. This close-up look helps you understand the whole picture, not just a blurry snapshot.
It’s also your chance to showcase how you analyze things, step by step, until you reach a conclusion. It’s all about being open and honest about how you got there.
Besides, presenting a case study gives you an opportunity to connect data and real-world scenarios in a compelling narrative. It helps to make your argument more relatable and accessible, increasing its impact on your audience.
One of the contexts where case studies can be very helpful is during the job interview. In some job interviews, you as candidates may be asked to present a case study as part of the selection process.
Having a case study presentation prepared allows the candidate to demonstrate their ability to understand complex issues, formulate strategies and communicate their ideas effectively.
The way you present a case study can make all the difference in how it’s received. A well-structured presentation not only holds the attention of your audience but also ensures that your key points are communicated clearly and effectively.
In this section, let’s go through the key steps that’ll help you structure your case study presentation for maximum impact.
Let’s get into it.
Start by introducing the subject of your case study and its relevance. Explain why this case study is important and who would benefit from the insights gained. This is your opportunity to grab your audience’s attention.
Dive into the problem or challenge that the case study focuses on. Provide enough background information for the audience to understand the issue. If possible, quantify the problem using data or metrics to show the magnitude or severity.
After outlining the problem, describe the steps taken to find a solution. This could include the methodology, any experiments or tests performed and the options that were considered. Make sure to elaborate on why the final solution was chosen over the others.
Talk about the individuals, groups or organizations that were directly impacted by or involved in the problem and its solution.
Stakeholders may experience a range of outcomes—some may benefit, while others could face setbacks.
For example, in a business transformation case study, employees could face job relocations or changes in work culture, while shareholders might be looking at potential gains or losses.
Discuss the results of implementing the solution. Use data and metrics to back up your statements. Did the solution meet its objectives? What impact did it have on the stakeholders? Be honest about any setbacks or areas for improvement as well.
Visual aids can be incredibly effective in helping your audience grasp complex issues. Utilize charts, graphs, images or video clips to supplement your points. Make sure to explain each visual and how it contributes to your overall argument.
Pie charts illustrate the proportion of different components within a whole, useful for visualizing market share, budget allocation or user demographics.
This is particularly useful especially if you’re displaying survey results in your case study presentation.
Stacked charts on the other hand are perfect for visualizing composition and trends. This is great for analyzing things like customer demographics, product breakdowns or budget allocation in your case study.
Consider this example of a stacked bar chart template. It provides a straightforward summary of the top-selling cake flavors across various locations, offering a quick and comprehensive view of the data.
Not the chart you’re looking for? Browse Venngage’s gallery of chart templates to find the perfect one that’ll captivate your audience and level up your data storytelling.
Wrap up by providing recommendations based on the case study findings. Outline the next steps that stakeholders should take to either expand on the success of the project or address any remaining challenges.
Thank the people who contributed to the case study and helped in the problem-solving process. Cite any external resources, reports or data sets that contributed to your analysis.
Open the floor for questions and feedback from your audience. This allows for further discussion and can provide additional insights that may not have been considered previously.
Conclude the presentation by summarizing the key points and emphasizing the takeaways. Thank your audience for their time and participation and express your willingness to engage in further discussions or collaborations on the subject.
Well, the length of a case study presentation can vary depending on the complexity of the topic and the needs of your audience. However, a typical business or academic presentation often lasts between 15 to 30 minutes.
This time frame usually allows for a thorough explanation of the case while maintaining audience engagement. However, always consider leaving a few minutes at the end for a Q&A session to address any questions or clarify points made during the presentation.
When it comes to presenting a compelling case study, having a well-structured template can be a game-changer.
It helps you organize your thoughts, data and findings in a coherent and visually pleasing manner.
Not all case studies are created equal and different scenarios require distinct approaches for maximum impact.
To save you time and effort, I have curated a list of 5 versatile case study presentation templates, each designed for specific needs and audiences.
Here are some best case study presentation examples that showcase effective strategies for engaging your audience and conveying complex information clearly.
Ever feel like your research gets lost in a world of endless numbers and jargon? Lab case studies are your way out!
Think of it as building a bridge between your cool experiment and everyone else. It’s more than just reporting results – it’s explaining the “why” and “how” in a way that grabs attention and makes sense.
This lap report template acts as a blueprint for your report, guiding you through each essential section (introduction, methods, results, etc.) in a logical order.
Want to present your research like a pro? Browse our research presentation template gallery for creative inspiration!
It’s time you ditch those boring slideshows and bullet points because I’ve got a better way to win over clients: product case study templates.
Instead of just listing features and benefits, you get to create a clear and concise story that shows potential clients exactly what your product can do for them. It’s like painting a picture they can easily visualize, helping them understand the value your product brings to the table.
Grab the template below, fill in the details, and watch as your product’s impact comes to life!
In digital marketing, showcasing your accomplishments is as vital as achieving them.
A well-crafted case study not only acts as a testament to your successes but can also serve as an instructional tool for others.
With this coral content marketing case study template—a perfect blend of vibrant design and structured documentation, you can narrate your marketing triumphs effectively.
Understanding how people tick is one of psychology’s biggest quests and case studies are like magnifying glasses for the mind. They offer in-depth looks at real-life behaviors, emotions and thought processes, revealing fascinating insights into what makes us human.
Writing a top-notch case study, though, can be a challenge. It requires careful organization, clear presentation and meticulous attention to detail. That’s where a good case study psychology template comes in handy.
Think of it as a helpful guide, taking care of formatting and structure while you focus on the juicy content. No more wrestling with layouts or margins – just pour your research magic into crafting a compelling narrative.
Lead generation can be a real head-scratcher. But here’s a little help: a lead generation case study.
Think of it like a friendly handshake and a confident resume all rolled into one. It’s your chance to showcase your expertise, share real-world successes and offer valuable insights. Potential clients get to see your track record, understand your approach and decide if you’re the right fit.
No need to start from scratch, though. This lead generation case study template guides you step-by-step through crafting a clear, compelling narrative that highlights your wins and offers actionable tips for others. Fill in the gaps with your specific data and strategies, and voilà! You’ve got a powerful tool to attract new customers.
Related: 15+ Professional Case Study Examples [Design Tips + Templates]
So, you’ve spent hours crafting the perfect case study and are now tasked with presenting it. Crafting the case study is only half the battle; delivering it effectively is equally important.
Whether you’re facing a room of executives, academics or potential clients, how you present your findings can make a significant difference in how your work is received.
Forget boring reports and snooze-inducing presentations! Let’s make your case study sing. Here are some key pointers to turn information into an engaging and persuasive performance:
Ditching the dry reports and slide decks? Venngage’s case study templates let you wow customers with your solutions and gain insights to improve your business plan. Pre-built templates, visual magic and customer captivation – all just a click away. Go tell your story and watch them say “wow!”
Nailed your case study, but want to make your presentation even stronger? Avoid these common mistakes to ensure your audience gets the most out of it:
A case study is not an encyclopedia. Overloading your presentation with excessive data, text or jargon can make it cumbersome and difficult for the audience to digest the key points. Stick to what’s essential and impactful. Need help making your data clear and impactful? Our data presentation templates can help! Find clear and engaging visuals to showcase your findings.
Jumping haphazardly between points or topics can confuse your audience. A well-structured presentation, with a logical flow from introduction to conclusion, is crucial for effective communication.
Different audiences have different needs and levels of understanding. Failing to adapt your presentation to your audience can result in a disconnect and a less impactful presentation.
While content is king, poor design or lack of visual elements can make your case study dull or hard to follow. Make sure you use high-quality images, graphs and other visual aids to support your narrative.
A case study aims to showcase a problem and its solution, but what most people care about are the results. Failing to highlight or adequately explain the outcomes can make your presentation fall flat.
Starting a case study presentation effectively involves a few key steps:
Presenting a case study on PowerPoint and Google Slides involves a structured approach for clarity and impact using presentation slides :
The role of analysis in a case study presentation is to interpret the data and findings, providing context and meaning to them.
It helps your audience understand the implications of the case study, connects the dots between the problem and the solution and may offer recommendations for future action.
Yes, including real data and results in a case study presentation is crucial to show experience, credibility and impact. Authentic data lends weight to your findings and conclusions, enabling the audience to trust your analysis and take your recommendations more seriously
To conclude a case study presentation effectively, summarize the key findings, insights and recommendations in a clear and concise manner.
End with a strong call-to-action or a thought-provoking question to leave a lasting impression on your audience.
The best way to showcase data in a case study presentation is through visual aids like charts, graphs and infographics which make complex information easily digestible, engaging and creative.
Don’t just report results, visualize them! This template for example lets you transform your social media case study into a captivating infographic that sparks conversation.
Choose the type of visual that best represents the data you’re showing; for example, use bar charts for comparisons or pie charts for parts of a whole.
Ensure that the visuals are high-quality and clearly labeled, so the audience can quickly grasp the key points.
Keep the design consistent and simple, avoiding clutter or overly complex visuals that could distract from the message.
Choose a template that perfectly suits your case study where you can utilize different visual aids for maximum impact.
Need more inspiration on how to turn numbers into impact with the help of infographics? Our ready-to-use infographic templates take the guesswork out of creating visual impact for your case studies with just a few clicks.
Related: 10+ Case Study Infographic Templates That Convert
Congrats on mastering the art of compelling case study presentations! This guide has equipped you with all the essentials, from structure and nuances to avoiding common pitfalls. You’re ready to impress any audience, whether in the boardroom, the classroom or beyond.
And remember, you’re not alone in this journey. Venngage’s Case Study Creator is your trusty companion, ready to elevate your presentations from ordinary to extraordinary. So, let your confidence shine, leverage your newly acquired skills and prepare to deliver presentations that truly resonate.
Go forth and make a lasting impact!
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The East India Company at Home, 1757-1857 was a 3-year Leverhulme Trust-funded research project based in the Department of History at the University of Warwick (2011-2012) and University College London (2012-2014). The project was funded by the Leverhulme Trust and ended in August 2014. Over three years the core project team and over 300 project associates worked together to examine the British country house in an imperial and global context.
Professor Finn will continue to blog (and tweet) about developments connected with the project and themes related to colonial material cultures. Have questions? Contact: [email protected]
The case studies featured on this website were written by a range of authors for the Leverhulme Trust-funded East India Company at Home project, which ran from September 2011 to August 2014. Family and local historians, academics, curators, heritage sector professionals, PhD students, undergraduate students and even a retired civil engineer all contributed to research, bringing different expertise and making the project richer and more diverse. Here is an annotated list of the case studies, organised alphabetically by author…
Hannah Armstrong – ‘Josiah Child and the Wanstead Estate’
Josiah Child (no relation to the Child family at Osterley) purchased Wanstead estate in 1673. While his East India Company wealth did not facilitate his purchase of the estate, it did allow him to maintain and refurbish it. In her case study Hannah Armstrong demonstrates how Child focused on developing the gardens at Wanstead and explores what this might have meant within the context of late seventeenth-century country house culture.
Rachael Barnwell – ‘“Chinese” Staircases in North-West Wales’
‘Partly After the Chinese Manner: ‘Chinese’ Staircases in North-West Wales’ examines a group of ‘Chinese’ staircases built within the fabric of three different house interiors in north-west Wales in the 1750s and 1760s. It locates these ‘Chinese’ staircases within both the wider, global context of ‘Asian-inspired’ material culture design, and within more local, contemporary networks of design exchange to assess the degree to which the East India Company’s trade network impacted on interior design in north-Wales in the eighteenth century.
Alison Bennett – ‘Quex Park, Kent’
This study explores the nineteenth-century interiors of Quex Park created by Major Percy Powell-Cotton (1866-1940). More particularly, it examines how the family’s earlier connections to the East India Company in the eighteenth century shaped the aesthetic choices and inclinations of later descendants. Responding both to his family’s earlier connections to Eurasian trade and his own experiences of Kashmir, India, China and Japan, Major Powell Cotton created a series of interiors that were understood by contemporaries as ‘Indian’.
Helen Clifford – ‘The Dundas Property Empire and Nabob Taste’
This case study shows how ascriptions of ‘Nabob’ taste by contemporaries could be applied to people, places and possessions that appeared, on the surface at least, to have had little connection with the East India Company. Sir Lawrence Dundas, unlike the owners of many of the other houses in this project, was never an East India Company servant, nor did he visit India. However, by digging a little deeper, the tentacles of East India Company involvement can be seen to have impacted on Sir Lawrence’s social, political and domestic life.
Helen Clifford – ‘Chinese Wallpaper: An Elusive Element in the British Country House’
‘Chinese Wallpaper: An Elusive Element in the British Country House’ explores an Asian luxury good that while seemingly emblematic of the genteel British country house interior has received little attention from scholars. Helen Clifford’s study examines the relationship between members of the East India Company and the British houses in which Chinese wallpaper was displayed. In writing the study Helen benefited from a close collaboration with Emile de Bruijn and Andrew Bush from the National Trust, who have formed a Chinese wallpaper study group. Members include curators, conservators and country house owners, as well as current manufacturers, and students and scholars. Crossing boundaries of fine and decorative art, fixture and chattel, fact and fantasy, the reading of Chinese wallpaper requires a combined effort and multidisciplinary approach. Working from this research base, this case study highlights the complex relationships that existed between the East India Company and British country house interiors in the eighteenth and nineteenth century.
Brian Crossley – ‘Caned Furniture’
Written by Dr Brian Crossley, a retired Chartered Civil Engineer and a second generation chair caner, ‘Caned Furniture’ focuses on one particular Asian material – rattan – and its relationship to changes in furniture design and production skills. In doing so, it highlights the ways in which one commodity (which was initially treated as a waste product) can illuminate our understanding of the multiple links that existed between the material worlds of Asia, America and Europe from the seventeenth to the nineteenth century.
Francesca D’Antonio – ‘The Willow Pattern: Dunham Massey’
Unlike other ‘object studies’ featured in the East India Company At Home, this case study focuses on a specific ceramic ware pattern rather than a particular item associated with the East India Company. With particular attention to the contents of Dunham Massey, Greater Manchester, Francesca’s study focuses on the Willow Pattern, a type of blue and white ‘Chinese style’ design, which was created in 1790 at the Caughley Factory in Shropshire. To explore and reveal the contradictions and intricacies of Willow Pattern wares, the study asks several questions. First, what did Willow Pattern wares mean in nineteenth-century Britain? Second, did EIC families—who, as a group, enjoyed privileged access to Chinese porcelain—engage with these imitative wares and if so, how, why and what might their interactions reveal about these household objects?
Pauline Davies – ‘East India Company and the Indian Ocean Material World at Osterley, 1700-1800′
By focusing on the Child family and its many links to the East India Company, this case study (co-authored with Yuthika Sharma) provides a different lens through which to see this stately family home. Although Osterley is now primarily read as a Robert Adam house, the many Asian luxury objects it contains have remained hidden in plain sight since the eighteenth century. In this study, a different house comes to light – one which was deeply connected to trade with Asia.
Penelope Farmer – ‘The Career of William Gamul Farmer in India, 1763-1795′
In her case study Penelope Farmer primarily analyses a series of letters written by East India Company civil servant William Gamul Farmer in India to his mother and brother in Britain between 1763 and 1795. The letters, still in the possession of the Farmer family, suggest the ways in which Company families held themselves together despite the vast distances in time and space that separated them. Together they offer insights into the private and social workings that underpinned the imperial and mercantile enterprise of the East India Company.
Ellen Filor – ‘William Rattray of Downie Park’
The Rattrays of Rannagulzion, Drimmie, and Corb were an old Scottish family who supported the Jacobite cause in both 1688 and 1745. They also entered the East India Company in large numbers from the 1770s onwards. This case study focuses on William Rattray (1752-1819), one of the first of the family to travel to India. Almost none of his letters survive. However, Rattray’s will and inventory, his burial records and the house he built can illuminate the life of this man and his wider family. These records reveal Rattray’s strategic use of his domestic interiors to display his Scottish ancestry, Indian career, and Jacobite heritage.
Ellen Filor – ‘Alexander Hall (c. 1731/2-1764) in Scotland and Sumatra’
This case study explores the life of Scot Alexander Hall who entered the East India Company in 1750 and was appointed factor to Fort Marlborough at Sumatra. Hall’s biography offers insight into how material goods, often quotidian, structured imperial service economically and emotionally. These ‘things’ included enslaved and colonised persons.
Margot Finn – ‘Swallowfield Park, Berkshire’
In this case study Margot Finn situates Swallowfield within a broad imperial context by tracing the estate’s acquisition and transformation in the late Georgian and early Victorian periods. Purchased by Sir Henry Russell, first baronet (1751-1836) in the 1820s, Swallowfield was recreated in the following decades by its new proprietor’s eldest son, Henry (later the second baronet; 1783-1852). Both father and son derived their great wealth from fortunes made in India. The Russells’ purchase and refurbishment of Swallowfield attest to the crucial role of Britain’s empire in shaping country house history.
Joanna Goldsworthy – ‘Fanny Parks: Her ‘Grand Moving Diorama of Hindustan’, Her Museum and Her Cabinet of Curiosities’
Studies of collecting as a phenomenon, from the age of the ‘cabinet of curiosity’ to the present, have focused overwhelmingly on male collectors – men whose adventures, professional lives and wealth gave them privileged access to exotic plants, animals, artwork and objects. As a result a much more detailed understanding exists of the Company men whose collecting helped to furnish British country houses and later many British museums. In contrast, by focusing on Fanny Parks and the museum she created, this case study illustrates the way in which one Company woman took advantage of her colonial experiences to collect, describe and display Indian material culture.
Georgina Green – ‘Valentines, the Raymonds and Company Material Culture’
This case study explores the history of a house (Valentines Mansion, Ilford), a ship (the Valentine , in its successive reincarnations) and a network of Georgian maritime investors associated with the East India Company (most notably Sir Charles Raymond and his family). More broadly, the case study examines the ways in which profits from commerce conducted at great risk in Asian outposts and Indian Ocean waters came to be reinvested in Britain, refurbishing homes and gardens and reshaping the neighbourhoods in which they were located.
Diane James – ‘ A Fairy Palace in Devon: Redcliffe Towers, Built by Colonel Robert Smith (1787-1873), Bengal Engineers’
This study examines, Redcliffe Towers, constructed by Colonel Robert Smith in 1852-64 after his retirement from the East India Company and a sojourn in Italy where he married a French heiress. Smith, an engineer and artist, was not a member of the landed gentry, however, he used his talents to rise through the ranks of the Bengal Army in India, from Cadet to Colonel. Smith left the Company with just an army pension, and it is likely he would have been unable to build Redcliffe Towers without the gain of a considerable inheritance upon the death of his wife. This case study records Robert Smith’s journey to India, to Europe and his final days spent in Devon, where he constructed his fairy-tale fortress, Redcliffe Towers. In doing so it contributes to the project by demonstrating the ways in which EIC officials’ engagements with the subcontinent through practices such as drafting, building, painting and drawing, distinctly shaped the British homes they built on their return.
Elisabeth Lenckos – ‘Daylesford’
Elisabeth Lenckos is currently using British and German archives to write a biography of Marian Hastings, wife of Warren Hastings. In her case study she explores some of the myths that surrounded the Hastings’ residence in Britain, Daylesford House, and the role that objects played in creating those ideas.
Sarah Longair – ‘The Attar Casket of Tipu Sultan’
Originating from the palace of Tipu Sultan (c.1750-1799), the casket described in this case study (co-authored by Cam Sharp-Jones) came to Britain after the siege of Seringapatam. Once in Britain it passed through different branches of the Fraser family before joining the British Museum’s collections in the early twentieth century. The study explores the enduring significance of Tipu Sultan, the particular attention paid by family members to transferring the casket between generations both in India and England as well as how material culture represented the legacy of East India Company family histories.
Stephen McDowall – ‘Shugborough: Seat of the Earl of Lichfield’
Written by Stephen McDowall of the Department of History at the University of Edinburgh, this case study focuses on the Anson family and the Chinese and Chinese-style objects that they accumulated and arranged within Shugborough. McDowall reveals the multiple family and national stories associated with the Anson objects, and their highly political meanings.
Alistair Mutch – ‘General Patrick Duff of Carnousie, Banffshire’
Rather than concentrating on his military and political exploits, which are recounted elsewhere, this case study draws on General Patrick Duff’s letters and other estate papers to reveal his home life in both India and Scotland. Mutch also uncovers the important role Duff (1742-1803) played in the Madeira wine trade and the importance of Madeira (as place and product) in allowing him to realise his hopes for a Scottish estate.
Angela Nutting – ‘Bond Family Members in the East India Company’
Written by family historian Angela Nutting, the study explores how generations of the Bond family became connected to global trade and the East India Company. Rope makers and Turkey merchants in the seventeenth century, in the eighteenth and early nineteenth century the Bond family became increasingly involved in the East India Company as captains, writers and seamen. The wealth gained from global trade allowed the family to establish Dytchley House in Essex. Alongside people and houses, Angela’s case study also evokes the material lives of those involved in the Company and reminds us of the important role ship life played in training young men to set up home.
Lowri Ann Rees – ‘Aberglasney, Carmarthenshire’
East India Company man Thomas Philipps (c.1749-1824) purchased Aberglasney at the turn of the nineteenth century. The Aberglasney case study highlights the importance of the process of homecoming and the returning to the familiarity of home. In this instance, a modest estate was purchased to reflect the lifestyle desired of a country gentleman who wished to live the rest of his life in quiet retirement following a large portion of his life spent building his career in India.
Lowri Ann Rees – ‘Middleton Hall, Carmarthenshire’
Towards the end of the eighteenth century (c.1789), the Middleton Hall estate in the parish of Llanarthney, Carmarthenshire, south-west Wales was purchased by a former East India Company man, William Paxton (c.1744-1824). Over the following thirty-five years or so, Paxton went about transforming what was a relatively modest estate, erecting a new country house, developing the surrounding parkland and introducing innovative garden features. ‘Middleton Hall, Carmarthenshire’ highlights not only that Indian fortunes found their way to Wales, but also that men from outside Wales chose to purchase estates there in an attempt to establish themselves in elite society following their return from India.
Andrew Renton – ‘ The Gold Cup given to the Parish Church of St Mary, Welshpool, by Thomas Davies (d. 1667) ’
Written by Andrew Renton, Head of Applied Art at Amgueddfa Cymru – National Museum Wales, this case study examines a remarkable gold communion cup belonging to St Mary’s church, Welshpool. The communion cup was the gift of Thomas Davies, a native of the parish and a servant of the East India Company. It bears the date 1662 and a lengthy explanatory inscription which, in conjunction with archival records of the period, sheds light on a brief but fascinating West African (and Caribbean) episode in the history of the East India Company.
Yuthika Sharma – ‘East India Company and the Indian Ocean Material World at Osterley, 1700-1800′
By focusing on the Child family and its many links to the East India Company, this case study (co-authored with Pauline Davies) provides a different lens through which to see this stately family home. Although Osterley is now primarily read as a Robert Adam house, the many Asian luxury objects it contains have remained hidden in plain sight since the eighteenth century. In this study, a different house comes to light – one which was deeply connected to trade with Asia.
Cam Sharp Jones – ‘The Attar Casket of Tipu Sultan’
Originating from the palace of Tipu Sultan (c.1750-1799), the casket assessed in this case study (co-authored with Sarah Longair) came to Britain after the siege of Seringapatam. Once here it passed through different branches of the Fraser family before joining the British Museum’s collections in the early twentieth century. The study explores the enduring significance of Tipu Sultan, the particular attention paid by family members to transferring the casket between generations both in India and England as well as how material culture represented the legacy of East India Company family histories.
Jan Sibthorpe – ‘Sezincote, Gloucestershire’
Written by project associate Jan Sibthorpe, ‘Sezincote, Gloucestershire’ tracks the development of Sezincote house during the nineteenth, twentieth and twenty-first centuries. The study begins with the Cockerell family and explores the influences and connections that inspired Charles Cockerell to work with his brother, architect Samuel Pepys Cockerell and artist Thomas Daniell to create a distinctive vision of India in the English countryside. It then goes on to examine the legacies of this house and estate and considers the house and gardens as they are enjoyed by visitors today.
Doreen Skala – ‘The Scarth Family of London and Ilford’
The Scarths left no surviving grand country house or any other trinkets or treasures. In fact, they appear to have left no material evidence of their lives or their connections with the East India Company, but both the family and its East India Company connections can be traced through historical documents. This case study shows the economic, social, and domestic history of the family and how three generations were affected by the family’s connection with the East India Company. One generation bought goods from the East India Company and traded them westward across the Atlantic, and the next engaged in trade for the East India Company in the East. Partly as a result of his connections with the Company, the elder Jonathan amassed a family fortune, including a country house in Ilford, Essex, now gone. His son Jonathan’s deeper connection with the East India Company disrupted his family life so that at the age of forty-one he left his daughter an orphan after being away on Company voyages for years at a time. With risk can come great reward, but also calamity. This family experienced both as a result of their connection with the East India Company.
Kate Smith – ‘ Englefield House, Berkshire : Processes and Practices ’
This study tracks the East India Company people, objects and wealth that shaped Englefield House, Berkshire in the eighteenth and early nineteenth century. Residents connected to the Company such as the former Governor of Fort St George Richard Benyon (1698-1774), Robert Clive’s widow Lady Margaret Clive (1735-1817) and Sir Francis Sykes’s daughter Elizabeth Sykes (1775-1822) all occupied the house in different ways during the period. At the same time the movement of Chinese, India and Japanese objects into and out of the house also worked to situate Englefield within the world of the East India Company.
Kate Smith – ‘ Warfield Park, Berkshire : Longing, Belonging and the Country House ’
Warfield was home to John Walsh of the Company’s civil service and then the Benn-Walsh family in the late eighteenth and early nineteenth century. This case study explores how the family’s longings for home while in India shaped the country house they later reconstructed and consolidated.
Kate Smith – ‘ A Collaborative Endeavour: Building House, Home and Family at Montreal Park in Kent ’
This case study focuses on the Amherst family during their return to Britain and examines the important role house-building projects played in re-establishing their sense of familial belonging once home from empire. Playing essential roles in the governance of early nineteenth-century India, Amherst and his family deployed their Indian fortunes to domestic ends upon return to Britain.
Kate Smith – ‘ The Afterlife of Objects: Anglo-Indian Ivory Furniture in Britain ’
‘The Afterlife of Objects: Anglo-Indian Ivory Furniture in Britain’ examines ivory furniture, made by skilled craftsmen in the subcontinent during the eighteenth century. In the study, Kate uses ivory furniture as a lens through which to examine how individuals in the modern period related to objects from the subcontinent. More particularly, she asks whether objects purchased by East India Company (EIC) families were understood as distinct from those traded more generally by the EIC? If so, how? The study demonstrates that, like the families who bought, collected and retained them, Company objects experienced complicated and global biographies, which shaped British material cultures long after the initial point of exchange.
Kate Smith – ‘Manly Objects?:Gendering Armorial Porcelain Wares ’
Chinese porcelain services specially commissioned by individuals and families to include their coats of arms within the decorative scheme were distinctly fashionable and popular in eighteenth-century Britain, particularly among those with East India Company connections. Armorial porcelain services feature in various East India Company at Home case studies, including Osterley Park and House , Valentines Mansion and Gardens and the Shugborough Estate . This case study focuses on the armorial service purchased by Francis Sykes of Basildon Park in Berkshire to explore the identity politics embedded in porcelain pieces decorated with coats of arms.
Blair Southerden – ‘Ships, Steam & Innovation: An East India Company Family Story, c.1700-1877′
This contribution originates from a meeting between Helen Clifford and Blair Southerden at the Upper Dales Family History Group in July 2013. Blair’s case study reveals how through his association with the East India Company Ardaseer Cursetjee (1808-1877), Blair’s great great grandfather came not only to visit Britain several times, but also to set up home here in 1859. Ardaseer Cursetjee’s story reverses the usual tale of a white male East India Company servant travelling out to India, and coming home to England, and in so doing casts a different light on what ‘The East India Company at Home’ means.
John Sykes – ‘The Indian Seal of Sir Francis Sykes’
In this case study project associate Sir John Sykes situates the Indian seal of his ancestor, Sir Francis Sykes, first baronet (1730-1804) within the context of both East India Company and family history in England and on the subcontinent. It illuminates the intertwined histories of English and Indian families who made their fortunes in the Company era, but remain connected in the twenty-first century.
David Williams – ‘The Melvill Family and India’
This study explores the intergenerational commitment that members of the Melvill family made to the East India Company in the subcontinent and the UK in the eighteenth, nineteenth and twentieth centuries. The Melvill family is a good example of those Scots who after the Act of Union took their opportunities within the British army and in the overseas empire to make their careers. By virtue of their EIC service, this Scottish family became increasingly English by marrying into established English families and settling in England. David Williams’s case study underlines the different ways in which connections to the East India Company shaped what families were and did in modern Britain.
Copyright © 2024 East India Company at Home, 1757-1857
Written by: Christopher Jan Benitez
They allow you to make your business more appealing to your target audience, resulting in more leads and customers moving forward.
By definition, you should create more of these studies to show your business’s effectiveness to people, right?
But before you do, you must learn how to outline them first.
This post discusses how you can develop a case study outline, which templates to use, and best practices to follow.
Here’s a short selection of 8 easy-to-edit case study templates you can edit, share and download with Visme. View more templates below:
What is a case study, what is a case study outline, how do you write a case study outline, 15 case study outline examples, design tips for your case study outline, create your case study with visme.
A case study is a real-life success story of a customer who faced challenges and managed to overcome them by using your products or services. It's like a narrative that tells the tale of how someone benefited from what you have to offer. It's a way to showcase the practical application of your solutions in a specific situation and demonstrate the value they bring. So, it's not just a theoretical explanation but an engaging story that highlights the positive outcomes achieved by your customer.
Beyond business, case studies are commonly used in other settings, like academics, social sciences, medicine, psychology, and education. A case study is an in-depth examination and analysis of a specific individual, group, organization, event, or situation. It involves gathering detailed information and data to gain an extensive understanding of the subject being studied.
A case study outline is a roadmap for creating a solid case study report. It helps you organize and present all the important elements in a structured way. Think of it as a blueprint that guides you through the process. Of course, the specific outline can vary depending on why you're doing the case study and the specific situation you're studying. So, it's adaptable to fit your needs and make sure you cover everything necessary.
Made with Visme Infographic Maker
Below are the main parts of a typical case study outline:
If you want a head start with your case studies, use any of Visme's templates below.
Most of these templates contain the main parts mentioned above. Once you’ve chosen a case study template , simply edit it to best explain your case to prospects.
Choose from built-in graphics ranging from video backgrounds to fonts and place them in the presentation using Visme's drag-and-drop builder.
You can also collaborate with team members when editing the case study online template to finish the presentation ahead of time.
This blue-themed outline template is for you if you're in the medical field and doing a case study on a patient. It contains a table of laboratory findings and clinical manifestations, which lead to your diagnosis and conclusions.
This simple light-red template is perfect for tech companies looking to quickly present their case study with an overview of its background, goals, and strategy. It ends the presentation by going through the study’s figures and data.
This zesty template tackles how a change in a site or app's user interface generated massive results in conversions. It lays down the site's problem and approach to solving it before dealing with the results.
For marketers looking to track campaign results launched across various marketing channels, this template is for them. It briefly explains the background and goal of the case in the first place and the obstacles and results in the next.
This orange and blue magenta template is heavy on text as it explains how your brand achieved positive results for a client campaign. Show this to similar prospects whom you're looking to turn into clients.
Marketing agencies looking for print businesses or similar to turn into clients won't go wrong with this blue three-page template. It details the case study background, goals, and achievements before concluding with its key results.
Marketers with a great track record of helping educational institutions will have great use for this red and blue-magenta template. From here, they can convert similar prospects into clients by showing your case study’s achievements and goals.
A marketing strategy that works is what turns business owners into your clients. With this pink and medium blue template, your agency can showcase your expertise by featuring the results of your strategy with a previous client.
This blue-themed template shows how a marketing agency could integrate mobile technology to generate sales in a client’s retail stores. It uses a fair share of images and text to communicate its solution and results.
This red-on-blue template features the transformative power of social media when used correctly in a marketing campaign. Companies that offer social media marketing can use this to showcase their own successful campaigns.
This template uses waves in the layout to add texture to your case study presentation . It's also short enough to help you share your marketing achievements with prospects looking to grow their ROI.
Accounting firms looking to leverage case studies to bolster their leads will find this cyan-themed template useful. This text-heavy template shows prospects how they helped clients manage their receipts and expenditures.
Lots of businesses were hit hard during COVID-19, but not all. If you find yourself in the latter and wish to share with potential clients the progress your clients during this period have made with your help, this theme template is for you.
This dynamic case study template benefits from its healthy balance of text and image and orange and cyan-blue theme. It allows marketing companies to make their case to prospects looking to promote their new line of products.
B2B companies benefit the most from case studies due to their complex pricing structure. Therefore, this template is the best for such companies, as it breaks down the entire process to help justify their costs and enable prospects to make informed decisions.
RELATED: 15 Real-Life Case Study Examples & Best Practices
Below are design tips you must keep in mind when outlining your case study:
Great attention to detail in a case study allows you to show off your initiative or campaign to your audience.
However, information becomes detrimental if you overload your audience with too much exposition page after page.
The best way to design your case study or any presentation is to utilize white space as much as possible.
It may sound counterintuitive to leave certain sections of your case study blank as if you’re wasting valuable real estate.
On the contrary, white space is simply a good design principle that enables information on your case study to breathe, giving your audience ample time to digest the information before hopping onto the next section properly.
To help create white space in your case study, limit your paragraphs to two s hort sentences each. Using graphics also enables you to create more white space due to their size.
Case studies require lots of words so you can adequately present your exposition and explain how you achieved the positive results with your process.
But when designing your case study online, you should consider using visuals to explain things much easier for your audience.
Since a picture is worth a thousand words, as the saying goes, using images correctly allows you to use fewer words in your case study.
And because people process images much faster than words, they can comprehend the details in your presentation much easier.
The most common example of visuals in case studies is graphs and charts when presenting figures.
From Visme’s editor, click on the Data button from the side menu on the left to see templates of charts, tables, and radials you can drag and drop onto your presentation.
But using icons and graphics helps you communicate your message more effectively than just plain text.
From the editor again, click on Graphics to choose from over 500,000 stock photos and icons.
You can also upload your images to make your case study even more unique.
Throughout the case study, you want people to know the role your company played for the positive results your clients experienced with their business.
And it’s just not slapping your logo on the cover of the case study. You must also use the color , font , and other elements that are part of your brand guidelines in your case study outline.
Doing so enables you to remain consistent with your visual identity , which makes associating your company with the case study much easier for people.
If you’re constantly designing visual content for presentations and reports, Visme’s Brand Wizard lets you build your brand kit on the platform by importing your website URL.
To do this, log in to your dashboard and click the “My Brand” button on the left.
Once the page loads, you’ll find the Brand Wizard link. Click on it so you can enter the URL of your domain.
From here, Visme will take the logo, colors, and fonts you used on your site and include them in your brand kit.
Aside from your visual brand, you should maintain your brand’s tone and voice in the case study’s copy. For example, how you write the background, solutions, and achievements should reflect how your website’s copy reads like.
Most case studies are factual presentations of work done for a specific client. Unfortunately, this lends to a certain dullness in which the audience has nothing to do but sit down and listen to them.
But there’s a way to make your case study engaging so that your audience can be part of it instead of just bystanders.
For example, you can have your highlighted customer share a screen recording or audio file about how your company helped this person improve their business. From here, you can embed the files into your case study, which your audience can play anytime they want.
With Visme, you can make these interactive content show as popups in your presentation.
Select the element that people will click on to trigger the popup. Then, choose Actions > Hotspot from the floating bar before linking the video uploaded onto the cloud to the case study.
Here’s a video on how to create popups with your interactive content:
You can also add a voiceover in your presentation to help people with reading disabilities understand the contents of your case study.
If you want to close your audience to clients or customers of your brand, you must present your case study in the best way possible.
Following the design tips above is a great place to start. But you probably won’t be able to implement them properly unless you possess the necessary design skills.
With Visme, however, you don’t have to be a professional designer to produce professional-looking case studies that will wow your audience.
Just choose from our case study outline templates and edit each using the platform’s built-in features.
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Christopher Jan Benitez is a freelance writer who specializes in digital marketing. His work has been published on SEO and affiliate marketing-specific niches like Monitor Backlinks, Niche Pursuits, Nichehacks, Web Hosting Secret Revealed, and others.
A case study title is not clickbait.
Updated August 2024: Potential customers won’t click on case studies with clever or click-bait titles. Prospects and leads will click on a story with a case study title that is results-oriented and believable.
Even if your prospect is on your website and interested in how your solution has helped others, you still need to convince them to click to read a case study.
Your case study title has to grab your prospect’s or lead’s attention and draw them into reading the entire case study. In fact, 80% of people will read a headline when they come across it, but only 20% will read the content that comes with it.
What does this mean for you? Your case study title needs to resonate. Do this by providing results-oriented information your audience cares about.
Here’s what we’re going to cover in this post:
This is the second post in a 9-part series on how to write a B2B case study .
1. name of the customer.
Who is the case study about? An anonymous case study will not inspire trust in your organization—there are just too many fake or invented case studies out there. Use the customer’s name in the case study title or, if they’re not well-known, indicate what industry they’re in and make sure the business name is right at the top of the main write-up.
Let readers know if the case study is relevant for them. Does the case study discuss a challenge they’re facing or a use case that is top of mind? Is this the service they’re looking for, too?
Use a hard number if possible. If you don’t have a killer case study metric to put in the title, describe a specific result. Show off! Make an impression.
Here are 2 examples of simple, straightforward and effective case study titles:
In both cases, the title includes all 3 elements—the name of the customer, the service used and the key result backed by statistics—with no wasted words.
Sometimes, a good title-subhead combo is the way to go:
The case study title tells you what happened—fashion revolution. The subhead lays out the details of what main benefit was achieved and how. In this example, the subhead is stronger than the title because of the metric.
Of course, not everyone gets it right. Take a look at this title:
The title is essentially the customer name—that’s not enough information to grab a reader.
The title does, however, link to a PDF with another, much improved, title:
Even that could be improved by using a specific benefit or result in place of the vague phrase “new heights.”
If your title doesn’t work, you’ll lose your readers (and potential customers). Take time to craft a title with both impact and key information, though, and you’ll be well on the way to a successful conversion.
Get further inspiration for your case studies by checking out our critique of 3 case study samples from GitLab, Sendoso and Front.
Case studies are not typically an SEO play, but it never hurts to lightly optimize your case studies for keywords that naturally come up in the stories.
While incorporating keywords is important for SEO, it’s crucial to maintain readability. This applies to case study titles as well. If you do include keywords in your case study title, the title needs to remain clear, concise and easily understood by your target audience.
Incorporating specific metrics in your case study titles can significantly increase their impact. For instance, instead of saying “Company X Improved Efficiency”, you could say “Company X Reduced Processing Time by 40%”. By presenting quantifiable results in your titles, you’re helping potential clients see the concrete benefits of your solution.
When crafting case study titles, avoid being vague or using jargon that your audience might not understand. The titles you use should clearly communicate the value and results companies can expect to achieve.
B2b case study title examples.
When crafting B2B case study titles, focus on specific, measurable outcomes. For example: “Company X Increases Lead Generation by 150% with Company Y Solution” or “How Firm Y Reduced Operational Costs by 30% Using Company Y Platform”.
For SaaS case studies, emphasize scalability and efficiency. Consider titles like: “Startup Z Scales Customer Support 5x Without Increasing Headcount” or “Company A Automates 70% of Workflow with Company B SaaS Solution”.
E-commerce case study titles should highlight revenue growth or improved customer experience. Examples include: “Online Retailer B Boosts Conversion Rates by 40% with Our AI-Powered Recommendations” or “How Fashion Brand C Reduced Cart Abandonment by 25% Using Our Checkout Optimization Tool”.
To ensure your case study titles are effective, consider A/B testing different versions. Track metrics such as click-through rates, time spent on page and conversion rates. Treating your case study titles as valuable assets can lead to better performance and engagement.
We’ve got you covered. We write done-for-you case studies for leading B2B SaaS companies like Okta, LeanData and WalkMe. Check out our case study writing service .
As the founder of Uplift Content, Emily leads her team in creating done-for-you case studies, ebooks and blog posts for high-growth SaaS companies like ClickUp, Calendly and WalkMe. Connect with Emily on Linkedin
Learn from Emily’s 17 years of aha moments, mistakes, observations, and insights—and find out how you can apply these lessons to your own marketing efforts.
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What do you study in your college? If you are a psychology, sociology, or anthropology student, we bet you might be familiar with what a case study is. This research method is used to study a certain person, group, or situation. In this guide from our dissertation writing service , you will learn how to write a case study professionally, from researching to citing sources properly. Also, we will explore different types of case studies and show you examples — so that you won’t have any other questions left.
A case study is a subcategory of research design which investigates problems and offers solutions. Case studies can range from academic research studies to corporate promotional tools trying to sell an idea—their scope is quite vast.
While research papers turn the reader’s attention to a certain problem, case studies go even further. Case study guidelines require students to pay attention to details, examining issues closely and in-depth using different research methods. For example, case studies may be used to examine court cases if you study Law, or a patient's health history if you study Medicine. Case studies are also used in Marketing, which are thorough, empirically supported analysis of a good or service's performance. Well-designed case studies can be valuable for prospective customers as they can identify and solve the potential customers pain point.
Case studies involve a lot of storytelling – they usually examine particular cases for a person or a group of people. This method of research is very helpful, as it is very practical and can give a lot of hands-on information. Most commonly, the length of the case study is about 500-900 words, which is much less than the length of an average research paper.
The structure of a case study is very similar to storytelling. It has a protagonist or main character, which in your case is actually a problem you are trying to solve. You can use the system of 3 Acts to make it a compelling story. It should have an introduction, rising action, a climax where transformation occurs, falling action, and a solution.
Here is a rough formula for you to use in your case study:
Problem (Act I): > Solution (Act II) > Result (Act III) > Conclusion.
The purpose of a case study is to provide detailed reports on an event, an institution, a place, future customers, or pretty much anything. There are a few common types of case study, but the type depends on the topic. The following are the most common domains where case studies are needed:
Need a compelling case study? EssayPro has got you covered. Our experts are ready to provide you with detailed, insightful case studies that capture the essence of real-world scenarios. Elevate your academic work with our professional assistance.
The case study format is typically made up of eight parts:
Let's discover how to write a case study.
When writing a case study, remember that research should always come first. Reading many different sources and analyzing other points of view will help you come up with more creative solutions. You can also conduct an actual interview to thoroughly investigate the customer story that you'll need for your case study. Including all of the necessary research, writing a case study may take some time. The research process involves doing the following:
Read Also: ' WHAT IS A CREDIBLE SOURCES ?'
Although your instructor might be looking at slightly different criteria, every case study rubric essentially has the same standards. Your professor will want you to exhibit 8 different outcomes:
Pick a topic, tell us your requirements and get your paper on time.
Let's look at the structure of an outline based on the issue of the alcoholic addiction of 30 people.
Introduction
After you’ve done your case study research and written the outline, it’s time to focus on the draft. In a draft, you have to develop and write your case study by using: the data which you collected throughout the research, interviews, and the analysis processes that were undertaken. Follow these rules for the draft:
📝 Step | 📌 Description |
---|---|
1. Draft Structure | 🖋️ Your draft should contain at least 4 sections: an introduction; a body where you should include background information, an explanation of why you decided to do this case study, and a presentation of your main findings; a conclusion where you present data; and references. |
2. Introduction | 📚 In the introduction, you should set the pace very clearly. You can even raise a question or quote someone you interviewed in the research phase. It must provide adequate background information on the topic. The background may include analyses of previous studies on your topic. Include the aim of your case here as well. Think of it as a thesis statement. The aim must describe the purpose of your work—presenting the issues that you want to tackle. Include background information, such as photos or videos you used when doing the research. |
3. Research Process | 🔍 Describe your unique research process, whether it was through interviews, observations, academic journals, etc. The next point includes providing the results of your research. Tell the audience what you found out. Why is this important, and what could be learned from it? Discuss the real implications of the problem and its significance in the world. |
4. Quotes and Data | 💬 Include quotes and data (such as findings, percentages, and awards). This will add a personal touch and better credibility to the case you present. Explain what results you find during your interviews in regards to the problem and how it developed. Also, write about solutions which have already been proposed by other people who have already written about this case. |
5. Offer Solutions | 💡 At the end of your case study, you should offer possible solutions, but don’t worry about solving them yourself. |
Even though your case study is a story, it should be based on evidence. Use as much data as possible to illustrate your point. Without the right data, your case study may appear weak and the readers may not be able to relate to your issue as much as they should. Let's see the examples from essay writing service :
With data: Alcoholism is affecting more than 14 million people in the USA, which makes it the third most common mental illness there. Without data: A lot of people suffer from alcoholism in the United States.
Try to include as many credible sources as possible. You may have terms or sources that could be hard for other cultures to understand. If this is the case, you should include them in the appendix or Notes for the Instructor or Professor.
After you finish drafting your case study, polish it up by answering these ‘ask yourself’ questions and think about how to end your case study:
Problems to avoid:
Let's see how to create an awesome title page.
Your title page depends on the prescribed citation format. The title page should include:
Here is a template for the APA and MLA format title page:
There are some cases when you need to cite someone else's study in your own one – therefore, you need to master how to cite a case study. A case study is like a research paper when it comes to citations. You can cite it like you cite a book, depending on what style you need.
Citation Example in MLA Hill, Linda, Tarun Khanna, and Emily A. Stecker. HCL Technologies. Boston: Harvard Business Publishing, 2008. Print.
Citation Example in APA Hill, L., Khanna, T., & Stecker, E. A. (2008). HCL Technologies. Boston: Harvard Business Publishing.
Citation Example in Chicago Hill, Linda, Tarun Khanna, and Emily A. Stecker. HCL Technologies.
To give you an idea of a professional case study example, we gathered and linked some below.
Eastman Kodak Case Study
Case Study Example: Audi Trains Mexican Autoworkers in Germany
To conclude, a case study is one of the best methods of getting an overview of what happened to a person, a group, or a situation in practice. It allows you to have an in-depth glance at the real-life problems that businesses, healthcare industry, criminal justice, etc. may face. This insight helps us look at such situations in a different light. This is because we see scenarios that we otherwise would not, without necessarily being there. If you need custom essays , try our research paper writing services .
Crafting a case study is not easy. You might want to write one of high quality, but you don’t have the time or expertise. If you’re having trouble with your case study, help with essay request - we'll help. EssayPro writers have read and written countless case studies and are experts in endless disciplines. Request essay writing, editing, or proofreading assistance from our custom case study writing service , and all of your worries will be gone.
Crafting a case study is not easy. You might want to write one of high quality, but you don’t have the time or expertise. Request ' write my case study ' assistance from our service.
How to cite a case study in apa, how to write a case study.
Daniel Parker
is a seasoned educational writer focusing on scholarship guidance, research papers, and various forms of academic essays including reflective and narrative essays. His expertise also extends to detailed case studies. A scholar with a background in English Literature and Education, Daniel’s work on EssayPro blog aims to support students in achieving academic excellence and securing scholarships. His hobbies include reading classic literature and participating in academic forums.
is an expert in nursing and healthcare, with a strong background in history, law, and literature. Holding advanced degrees in nursing and public health, his analytical approach and comprehensive knowledge help students navigate complex topics. On EssayPro blog, Adam provides insightful articles on everything from historical analysis to the intricacies of healthcare policies. In his downtime, he enjoys historical documentaries and volunteering at local clinics.
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It would be great if we could wave a magic wand to convince prospects to buy your product or service… But we can’t. So, a case study is your next best option.
They’re a powerful sales and marketing tool for those prospects that are sitting on the fence. The problem is, they’re often dry, bland, and anything but magical. Never fear, though, as we’ve done some in-depth case study analysis.
We’re here to show you how to write a case study that will convince customers to choose you over your competitors. To create something so compelling they’ll have no doubt about your ability to deliver results.
Whether this is your first or 100th stab at it, we’ve got you covered with tips and best practices, real-world examples, and ideas for how to format a case study.
In this post, we’ll look at:
Essential prep for creating a case study.
🔍 Are you looking for some case study examples? This compilation of case study data and leadership input from just a few RingCentral SMB customers will show you exactly how they have modernized their business communication processes.
A case study is basically a document— or it can be a video—that outlines how a customer used your product to overcome a problem. It’s real-world proof that your product works and gets results.
If your product or service has helped customers get great results, a case study will help you showcase those results to your future customers. They’re an excellent way to attract more business, and can mean the difference between a lost opportunity and a really good end-of-quarter.
Case studies present a living, breathing witness to how effective your product or service is. In other words, they represent the ultimate in social proof. While customer reviews can also be valuable in influencing a potential client’s decision to buy from your company, they don’t pack the punch that case studies do.
That’s because with case studies, you can curate a story that highlights how well your product or service solved a real-life problem, and back it up with solid data. It demonstrates the value of your offering, while showing off your hard work in achieving success for a customer.
Because you’re using real-world examples, rather than abstract concepts of what your product or service represents, case studies are fully relatable to potential new customers.
They can put themselves in the shoes of the subject and empathize with their pain points—and realize that there’s a way to get similar results for themselves.
Whereas a landing page or product page can be purely self-promotional, a case study comes across as more authentic and unbiased. Instead of you saying how awesome your product is, the subject is saying it, and that counts for a lot.
If they’ve switched to you from a competitor, that’s even better as it positions your product as superior without you having to spell it out.
Case studies also demonstrate your ability to solve problems for your customers, positioning you as experts in your industry and building trust. The more case studies you have, the more established you’ll look. As in: “Wow, they have so many happy clients—they must be doing something right!”
A narrative that’s engaging to read will get people interested in your company and inspire them to take a look around your website. And case studies give readers variety alongside other content formats such as product pages and blogs. They’re also an extra opportunity to add a CTA and nudge readers toward taking an action.
Case studies are versatile. You can publish and promote them in various places alongside your website—give a taster in social media posts with a link to the full article, add the video to your YouTube channel, share the stories in sales presentations. You can also extract elements like quotes from featured customers and repurpose them in other content, such as infographics.
In most cases it’s best to have case studies easily available on your website, not as downloadable gated content, but you do have this option for lead generation. You could write a blog post with a short version of the story, and offer the full version to readers in return for giving you their contact details.
When you ask an existing customer to be the subject of a case study, it not only makes them feel special but it also reminds them of the benefits of your solution—which helps to reaffirm their loyalty. Plus, they’re getting extra brand exposure and a backlink to their own website, which boosts both their traffic and their authority online.
In fact, there’s nothing to stop you reaching out to former customers who achieved good results with you before moving on (it happens). You never know, a reminder of you might even bring them back!
First, it’s helpful to highlight what makes a lot of case studies bad: most are painfully boring. What they have is research and detail, but what they lack is a cohesive, consumable story.
They list numbers and contain data, but the reader isn’t sure what it all means or why it’s relevant to their problem. They end up existing as technical documents that do little to persuade or excite anyone. That’s unfortunate because they have the potential to be a powerful sales tool that can help you close big deals in the decision-making phase.
So how do you write a case study that’s actually effective, then? Here are three characteristics every good case study should have:
There’s no hard and fast rule on how long a case study should be. But it’s always a good idea to ask “how short can we make it?”
A good case study avoids the unnecessary minutiae, knows what it’s trying to say, and communicates it quickly and without ambiguity. With a few exceptions, effective case studies are concise and clear.
On the other side of the length equation, being thorough is also important. Case study writing is all about making impressive claims about how a product helped someone achieve a certain result. However, it also needs to explain how it happened.
Good case studies include key details that show how the customer got from A to B using the product—something you don’t get with customer reviews . Don’t make your reader work too hard to visualize the story. If you can use images and videos, use them.
Yes, case studies are sales tools. But the ones really worth reading tell a compelling story with a beginning, middle, and end. They beg to be read all the way through. Often, they present a problem that creates tension and demands a solution. And remember, in this story, the customer is the hero—not you.
Caveat: There is no one-size-fits-all approach for what to include in a case study. But, in general, there is a recognized case study format with certain sections you should feature to make it clearer and more impactful. This format typically includes:
There isn’t a definitive answer to this question, as the length of a case study can vary depending on factors such as the size of the project you’re talking about. It also depends on the type of case study—for example, if it’s in the form of a video then a couple of minutes is enough. (We’ll explore the different types a little later on in this post.)
Balance is the key here. You’ll need to to include enough information to convey the story properly and hook the reader in, but not so much that they get overwhelmed or the message of the story gets lost amid the detail. The last thing you want them to think is “TL;DR”.
It’s about being concise, and not allowing yourself to get carried away with the story. Only include what needs to be included, so that readers can clearly understand the subject’s pain point, the reason your solution was a good fit, and the success it achieved.
Remember that not every part of the case study has to be in narrative form. You can pull out stats and display them as graphics, highlight direct quotes or other key information, or add a photo of the subject. If your case study is on the longer side, break up the text with subheadings, bullet points, and white space.
Before you start actually writing, there’s a bit of prep work you’ll need to do to make sure your case study is amazing.
You may have many customers who’ve seen great results using your product (let’s hope!). But you can’t just pick a name out of a hat and showcase their results. So, what’s the best way of selecting a client for a case study?
Steer clear of customers who may not be the right fit for your audience or whose results may not be typical.
For example, don’t feature an enterprise company when most of your customers are small businesses. Or a business achieving a 90% customer retention rate when most of them see 70% on average (still impressive, though).
When considering which customer to use, start by creating a list of customers that meet these criteria:
The numbers are what really matter. So choose customers that have seen strong results using your product (like Conair did with RingCentral). But be careful about showcasing exceptionally good results if they’re not likely to be repeated by most.
Strong brands give your product instant social proof. They prove that you’re established and trustworthy. That alone can make you a front-runner in the decision-making process. After all, if Big Brand X trusts you, so can a prospect.
Good results don’t carry as much weight when they’re achieved by companies in other industries or verticals. Identify current customers that are similar to your target audience. A client who has faced similar challenges and pain points will evoke empathy and stir up interest in the mind of your prospective clients.
So, if you sell enterprise software, choose enterprise customers. If you’re a consultant in the healthcare industry, choose a customer that works in healthcare.
With your list in hand, you can start reaching out. Picking up the phone can be a lot more effective than sending an email. It’s more personal, lets you build rapport, and is harder to ignore.
Try to get in touch with customers who use or are very familiar with your product or service—someone who can speak to results. Tell them you’re interested in writing a case study and you’d love to hear more about the results they’ve achieved. Be clear about what the process involves on their part—whether it’s a list of questions in an email, a phone call, or if it involves a camera and crew.
If you’ve provided value, your customer is more likely to see you as a partner rather than a vendor and, hopefully, will be happy to participate. Remember, you’re also shining a spotlight on their own success. So it’s a win-win.
That said, you may hear “no” a few times, too. Don’t get discouraged. Some customers will decline for different reasons, regardless of the results they’ve achieved with your product.
RingCentral: W2O
Start collecting information about your customer. This is easier if you work as a team. From sales to content marketing to customer service, everyone who’s been in touch with customers will have insight about their experience.
They can help you understand what your customers do and sell, and what challenges they’re facing. Identify the stakeholders you need to speak with—anyone in the company who uses your product—from the CEO to the marketing intern. Collect stats, even ones you don’t think are relevant—they may be later.
Smart questions get insightful answers. Here are some examples of great questions to start with:
But don’t stop there. Use these questions to segue into deeper, more targeted questions that underscore the real-world benefits of your product. Let the conversation flow naturally—this is the magic of interviews. You can’t always plan for what interesting topics come up next.
Beyond your customer’s industry, consider who the target audience of the case study is. Who will see it? What group of people does it need to influence?
While it’s often high-level executives who make large purchase decisions, employees at all levels can act as a champion for your product or brand. Your case study may have to persuade an IT worker that your product or service is going to make their job easier. Meanwhile, it may also need to convince the CFO that they’ll see a real return on investment.
During the initial research phase, you’ve likely uncovered a lot of interesting information about your customer and their experiences with your product.
While it might be tempting to use it all, when you write a case study, you should quickly and clearly communicate the value of your product. Go through this information and identify the three most important business results you want to feature, like we did in the Barx Parx example shown below.
So, what does a case study look like visually? It doesn’t have to exist only as a PDF attachment in a late-stage deal email (although there’s nothing wrong with that). Consider the format. Think about who’s going to read it (or watch it).
Do you want to turn this into fancy interactive content? Does your prospect have the time and interest to dig into the details? Or do they just want the facts? Choose the format that you think best engages the audience that you’re selling to.
Here are some options:
This long-form document has been the gold standard for B2B case studies for many years. It’s effective when the subject matter is complex and demands detail.
Here’s how Zendesk presented their case study with IDC as a report .
Remember, a CTO who’s evaluating large-scale business communications platforms for a multi-year deal is going to want more information than a marketing manager who’s evaluating a new social media ad platform.
Keeping things short and sweet is often the best way to get your message heard. By focusing on the key points, you can highlight the biggest wins at just a glance.
Most report format case studies can be easily condensed into a one-page document. This is ideal for prospects (and salespeople) who are short on time and prefer something they can quickly scan.
Few things can tell a story the way that video can, and case studies are no exception. They give you an unmatched level of creative freedom and storytelling using music, lighting, pacing, and voice that can evoke emotions and persuade someone using more than just numbers and facts.
And at just a couple of minutes long, they can do a lot of heavy lifting in not a lot of time.
Dropbox: Expedia
If you’re wondering how to make a case study more memorable, it’s worth noting that people love infographics. They’re an excellent way to convey important data in a simple, eye-pleasing way.
If your case study requires you to use a lot of data to prove a point—or if visualizing data can make the results more clear—building an infographic case study can be a great investment.
Congrats. You’ve done the research. You’ve made the calls. You’ve pored over all the details. Now, all you have to do is write.
Here are five simple steps that’ll help you better understand how to create a case study that champions your customer and clearly showcases the real-world value of your products or services.
Set the stage for your case study with an introduction. Briefly explain who your customer is with a bit of background information that can include their industry, product, company size, and location.
You don’t have to dig into the nuts and bolts of their business, but you do want the reader to understand who they are and what they do. The more color you can provide here, the more impactful it’ll be when you show the awesome results this customer saw because they chose you.
Every product or service is a possible solution to a problem. Explain the problem (or problems) that you helped your customer overcome. Describe the larger impact of the issue. Maybe it was customers leaving. Perhaps it was bad leads—or good leads that were never followed up on.
Use this as an opportunity to clearly show what was at stake, and make sure you leave the jargon out of it. Frame the problem in simple terms that any reader can understand.
This is where you begin solving the problem. Briefly introduce your proposed solution and what it does.
Start on a general level, then apply it to the challenge the customer was experiencing. Talk about which teams or individuals used your product and how they used it. Be sure to make the connection between the customer’s problem and your solution crystal clear.
The big reveal. What kind of results was your customer able to achieve using your product or service? Speak to how they solved the problem descriptively, but also with cold, hard numbers.
Not everything can be measured in numbers (sometimes, peace of mind is a powerful benefit all on its own), but whenever you can, back up your story with the stats. At the very least, this will make it easy for a CFO—or a prospective customer who wants to buy—to justify buying your product.
For example:
The customer saw a 33% increase in web traffic, a large influx of social media activity, and a 10% boost in revenue over the duration of the campaign.
Don’t forget to show your math. How you get the results is just as important as the results themselves. What specific steps were taken to get those results? Not only will this help validate your claims, it makes it easier to envision how the reader may be able to achieve them, too.
That’s how to write a case study in broad strokes, but you might be wondering how to write a business case study that stands out from the crowd? Here are some top tips:
As a subject matter expert in your line of work, it can be tempting to go into as much jargony detail as possible. This is normal as it’s often the language we use at work every day.
Remember, though, that your customer probably doesn’t speak that language. When in doubt, try to put yourself in the shoes of someone who doesn’t live and breathe your product or industry..
It’s tempting to use the case study’s most interesting or impressive KPI as your title. But that also gives away the ending before the story begins, and skips details that are important for context in the process. Try writing a title that piques interest without being a spoiler.
Once you’ve got your first draft completed (and the jargon removed), edit the case study. When writing case studies, one proofread is never enough. A few best practices here:
And then do it all over again until you can’t edit it down anymore without losing the essence of the story.
Well-designed charts, graphs, images, or infographics can do the heavy lifting of several pages of text in just seconds.
They can also help break up large pieces of text, making the case study easier to read—and nicer to look at. After all, the end goal is to have these read all the way through.
Here’s an example of a graphic from a longer CPA Canada infographic (that includes a short case study embedded inside it):
Hard data and results are good. But a customer quote is a great piece of social proof and adds a human element to your case study. And that makes your results more believable.
Here’s an example of what that looks like, from a RingCentral case study :
Some people will take the time to read your case study front to back and absorb every detail. Some won’t give it more than a single glance. And sometimes, that person is the decision-maker.
Make the most important results easy to spot, read, and retain at a glance. Write headings that are descriptive—if someone just scanned them, would they be able to get the gist of the story? Consider putting a summary at the very beginning of the study, or call out impressive results in a larger font size.
Ditch the pen and paper. If you’re conducting one-on-one interviews over the phone, you can save yourself a lot of time and energy by recording the conversation (with your customer’s consent, of course).
There are tools that can make this easier too—you might find one or two in your marketing stack. For example, you could use RingSense AI for automatic note taking, summarizing, and transcribing.
Your prospect is excited because your case study has done an excellent job of showing how your product or service can help drive results for customers. Now, how do they get in touch with you to learn more?
Whether it’s a button that links to your website, an email address, or a phone number, make sure there’s an easy way of getting in touch with you in the case study.
So, that’s the theory covered, but what do great case studies look like in practice? We’ve included a few elements from RingCentral customer stories as examples above, but let’s dig a little deeper into two more of our case studies:
This case study is about Ryder Systems, a Fortune 500 transportation company who modernized their IT communications infrastructure with RingCentral.
We start off with a subheading that sums up the story, plus the key stats at a glance. There’s another stats panel farther down the page to help break up the wall of text. Pull quotes also achieve this, but that’s not the only reason why we like to use quotes.
When the quote comes directly from a senior manager at the company we’ve helped, they’re telling an important part of the story in their own words. In this case, there’s a reference to the amount of money Ryder has saved with RingCentral, and a mention of the platform’s all-in-one cloud capabilities.
The content introduces Ryder and makes it clear that they are a big name in transportation (the single largest truck supplier in the US) and a noteworthy firm in general, as evidenced by membership of the Fortune 500 and Forbes’ Most Admired Companies.
If a big player like this is happy to trust RingCentral with their business, that says a lot about our credentials too.
We mentioned earlier that customers are attracted to testimonials from companies similar to themselves. But RingCentral caters to businesses of all sizes—so if SMBs are reading this case study, we think they’ll see our association with a large company as “social proof” and a sign of our trustworthiness across the board.
The story goes on to explore Ryder’s pain points and how RingCentral solved them, inspiring other companies with similar problems to take action (i.e. to replace legacy systems that are slow and expensive). For further encouragement, it details how Ryder were so happy with the initial success that they also went on to implement RingCentral’s contact center solution.
Just to illustrate our point about RingCentral serving all sizes of business, here’s a case study for a much smaller company—consumer advocacy organization Dispute Nation, which has 10 employees.
Again, the story begins with stats and a pull quote from a company representative. In keeping with Dispute Nation’s values, it focuses less on the financial savings or efficiency brought by RingCentral tools but on how our solution helps this company to help others.
Drawing empathy from other startups and fast-growing small businesses, we mention how demand for the company’s services grew very quickly. This makes it obvious why they needed a unified communications system to reach all their clients by phone, SMS, and fax.
The case study highlights how digital fax in particular helps Dispute Nation to get client cases resolved sooner. Another pull quote mentions some of the other benefits of RingCentral, like automation and integrations with other tools.
There are nods to mobility and flexibility, plus security and data privacy which will resonate with other highly-regulated industries.
The tale finishes strongly with the company founder’s assertion that “RingCentral is helping Dispute Nation improve more lives”. Readers who’ve been inspired to learn more can easily navigate from this page to explore products, resources, and get in touch.
RingCentral is far from the only company to have recognized the importance of this kind of content.
Here are some more real-life case studies from other businesses you might just recognize:
RingCentral iswe’re far from the only company to have recognized the importance of this kind of content.
What we like about it: The title doesn’t give everything away all at once, and the case study tells a story with a beginning, middle, and end. The sections are clearly titled and organized, and the results are easy to find. As a bonus: the video adds a believable human element.
What we like about it: It’s detailed without being a novella. It understands and speaks to the enterprise customer. The key points are in bullet format and easy to read. The important wins are highlighted. And the video makes the content easy to engage with.
What we like about it: The title makes you want to read the whole customer story. They’ve embedded a well-produced video high on the page, so you can choose to watch it before you read on. The design and layout of the page makes the content and images easy to consume, and the results can’t be missed. Also, they weren’t shy about adding CTAs.
What we like about it: This case study follows the tried and true format of customer, problem, solution, and results. It uses humor and relatable characters throughout to support the story and keep your attention. And it’s only two minutes long so it gets the point across quickly.
What we like about it: This case study tackles the otherwise complex and technical topic, and simplifies it as an infographic using images to make the results clear. It’s concise and easy to follow because you can see the math without actually doing any math.
Starting from scratch can be time-consuming. To help you, we’ve drawn together a few templates:
Generic doesn’t mean boring! Canva’s templates are great if you need something concise and simple that still looks professional . A free account will give you access to several well-designed templates, including this one :
The layout is provided for you, so it’s quick and easy to customize with your branding and content. Don’t be afraid to use this as a foundation, then add in visual elements like infographics and videos.
If your key messages revolve around numbers, start with a template structure that lets you highlight these. HubSpot has a data-focused template where you can pack in graphs, charts, and other visuals to drive your message home:
Not every template suits every company. Visme offers different templates created for different industries, including real estate, financial services, and healthcare.
This format takes a graphical rather than narrative approach, which helps readers to visualize the events and looks colorful and appealing on the page. The template is available as a free download from Smartsheet:
The idea of this is to present the story in a logical and sequential way. It starts with the challenge faced by the subject of the case study, looks at the solution your company provided, and shows what the outcome was.
Of course, you could choose to combine this with other elements like text content, stats, and quotes—making the “problem-solution-impact” graphic the main focus of the case study.
You can choose to focus your case study on a particular product, highlighting key features and the practical applications in the real world.
It leans into the experience that the customer has had with the product—i.e., what it feels like to use it—and the specific benefits. This one is a good choice if the customer hasn’t been using the product for very long, and you haven’t yet gathered a lot of metrics.
HubSpot has a template for this purpose :
Using the style of an in-depth report can be useful when you’ve worked with the customer on a complex project and you need to include a lot of detail.
This template —another free one from Smartsheet—includes elements like decision criteria, data analysis, and the implementation plan:
Just be careful with this one as you don’t want readers to be put off by a lot of text. Make sure the style is conversational and engaging, not dry and formal.
Okay, stick with us here—this one’s a little different. As well as asking customers to tell their stories, how about getting employees to share what it’s like to work for your company, or their experience of working on a particular project?
Employee stories or testimonials are often used for recruitment purposes, but they’re also a valuable form of marketing for potential customers. That’s because happy, engaged employees represent a company that cares about its people, which all helps you to build trust.
This example from Vanguard isn’t a template as such, but you can use it to inspire your own version. (It doesn’t have to be a video—you could still use a written narrative with direct quotes, photos, and stats on employee satisfaction.)
Earlier in this post, we briefly covered some of the questions you’ll need to ask your customers when putting together case studies. But it’s always helpful to have a visual guide, so we’re including this template from Vitally , which provides a framework for collaborating with customers and collecting the relevant data.
You can adapt this to your own needs by adding further questions.
Sure, an ad or boosted social media post can make someone aware of your brand or that your product exists, and a landing page can tell them how your product can solve their problem.
But there’s nothing quite as powerful as someone else singing your praises.
And that’s exactly what a case study does. Spend the time to do it right and it has the potential to deliver huge ROI no matter how big or small your company is. And not just once—but over and over again.
Originally published Jun 15, 2024, updated Aug 15, 2024
Updated June 2024 Even for small businesses, free messaging apps like WhatsApp and Facebook Messenger can quickly become inadequate. Tasks and responsibilities can spiral out of control, security features can be lacking, and if you need to integrate it with your other business apps, good luck. Free consumer-facing apps aren’t designed for the level of ...
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