Like this article? PLEASE +1 it! Evan Signature
Evan Carmichael Top Header
Share for a Cause









How to Gain Online Recognition by Writing about Your Customers

Written by: Claudiu Geanta

Article Overview: You can gain tons of business recognition along with web traffic if you get in the habit of collecting Case Studies, Testimonials and Press Releases from some of your happier clients. In order to have fresh and news-worthy material, you'll need to collect pertinent information from your clients (stories, testimonials, impressions, stories, etc,). Use your creativity and talent to transform them into tangible and interesting marketing materials.

Free Download - How to Recover from Blog Hijacking By Claudiu Geanta
Name: Email:

How to Gain Online Recognition by Writing about Your Customers

There are several steps when designing and creating materials for creating good Case Studies and Press Releases. Simply follow them closely and you’ll have awesome promotional material for your web site as well as other marketing materials you plan on displaying on your marketing panoply (i.e. brochures, newsletters, etc.).

Case Studies & Press Releases These 2 types of materials are not only the most powerful in your marketing panoply but they are also the most time consuming. This is, in part, due to the fact that the customer is involved in the process and believe it or not you’ll have to sync with his schedule. Nevertheless the end result can and will deliver very high returns for your website rank, company prestige and ultimately for your bank account.

Steps in Producing Case Studies & Press Releases Select a Happy Customer Go over your list of clients and select the easy going ones; the ones you know you won’t waste your time. Select the client that has a good story, an experience that needs to be shared. Just selecting the first ones that agrees to your interview doesn’t necessarily mean that’s also the best choice.

Once you selected the client ask yourself these 3 simple questions:

  1. Will this client sign off on the final draft of your material and be willing to put his name on it?
  2. Does the story carry an interesting streak or the reader will be bored to death with yet another off the wall example of corporate robot behavior?
  3. Is this the story you need or maybe there is someone else out there you’d rather buy coffee for and write theirs instead?

    If you answered “yes” to all 3 – then you got yourself a winner.
Conducting the Interview For this section here are the rules of engagement. Follow them closely and you’ll have a good interview and plenty of material to write from.

Produce the Content Gather all the materials and design the structure of your material. Best route in creating the bulk of the copy is hiring a professional who does this for a living. Assist him/her with all the necessary materials. Communicate clearly what your intent is with the material and what key marketing targets should be hit.

For Case Studies use at least 2500 to 3500 words. Press Releases are less than that – somewhere around 500 words. The Press Release should target media’s interest and it should contain plenty of facts, numbers and other details.

Seek Client’s Approval When the material is completed, contact the client and present it; ask for their approval. Please use a clean material and not some flimsy piece of paper even it’s only a draft. You still need to show the client you are serious about this and most of all appreciate the time he/she spent with you to produce the material.

Before showing up, contact the client and make sure the interviewee still works there. In this “dynamic” economy, it’s not rare to find out that one might not be there a couple of weeks past the interview. Hopefully he is still there… Now – make sure they agree with the accuracy of the quotes they provided. Same for the statistics, certain details about the business, etc.

Once the client approves you are good for publishing (either print or online). If it’s online (your website or blog) make sure the text has plenty of links to your site or blog, wikis, etc. If you put all the work into this and the whole purpose of a case study is to promote yourself as well as the client, then take advantage and produce a link rich material that can give you plenty of brownie points with Google.

Next step – Testimonials Now that you wrote about the client and she/he is very content with the outcome, ask for a testimonial from them and emphasize the fact that you’ll publish it on your website, on brochures even. In fact you are advertising for free and that should make them very happy.

A testimonial usually will come in the form of an email (at least that’s what I ask my clients to do so I don’t have to sit there and retype it all over again. Cut & paste is a wonderful thing). Just make sure that your request for a testimonial follows the below rules:

Indicate where and when the testimonials provided by the client will appear (type of publication, what exactly will the copy include, etc.).

Point out other similar testimonials so the client will not think you are starting with them first. For some reason no one is willing to take that place.

Once you publish the Testimonial, send an email to the client thanking him/her again. Provide the link if the published material is online or send a snail mail letter with a copy of the offline material (brochure, newsletter, etc.). Clients love to see their names in print.

Conclusion:

All the elements described above can bring superb value to your company’s website. You are in fact promoting your brand while writing a happy story about one of your client’s experiences with…you. What can be better than that?

In the same time you are giving comfort to new web visitors showing them you are appreciated and looked after by other business owners just like them. The end result – more traffic to your site, more clients for your business and finally more money in your coffers.

Related Articles
  Article Writing to Optimize Your Online Visibility
  Four Ways to Waste Your Employee Recognition Budget
  The Easiest Way To Do Blogging From Your Computer
  3 Simple ways to skyrocket your online visibility
  What You Need To Get Paid To Write Articles Online

Home > Home-Based-Business > Claudiu Geanta > How to Gain Online Recognition by Writing about Your Customers
Article Tags: amp, best choice, brochures, case studies, creating materials, end result, final draft, happy customer, li li, marketing materials, panoply, press releases, prestige, promotional material, robot behavior, rules of engagement, several steps, simple questions, waste your time, website rank
Referred by: http://jaykubassek.com

About the Author: Claudiu Geanta
RSS for Claudiu's articles - Visit Claudiu's website

Claudiu Geanta is a successful online business owner and founder of Design by Satori & ProIncome Marketing, LLC. He teaches every day people how to build an optimum online business, SEO and SEM. Claudiu lives with his wife Andreea in Southern California.

Click here to visit Claudiu's website
Dashed Line

More from Claudiu Geanta
Green Realestate CSS Template
Red Realestate CSS Template
FREE Realestate CSS Template
FREE Twitter Background in PSD


Related Forum Posts
Re: Two Useful Books To Help You Focus On The CLIENT Re: Two Useful Books To Help You Focus On The CLIENT - Hi David, To add to your thread, I'd like to recommend Jonathan Tisch's "Chocolates On The Pillow Aren't Enough: Reinventing The Customer Experience". Tisch's book includes content on "Welcoming Customers", "The New Art of Customization", "The Challenges of Customer Diversity" and "Offering Something Extra to Your Customers" to name a few.
How to Do Great Marketing with (Amost) No Money How to Do Great Marketing with (Amost) No Money - I've given this presentation to CEOs many times. Now i can share it with you. But I cannot because I do not yet have 20 posts. Jeff Ogden, President Find New Customers
Re: What is your Business? Re: What is your Business? - We are running a Online Marketing Firm and we have some good clients to which we are offering a complete Digital Marketing strategy like Search, Mobile Marketing, Branding and Design. I think in Online Marketing company online presence can be a wining factor for the success of the company.
Re: What Do You Outsource Mostly? Re: What Do You Outsource Mostly? - Writing, Article Spinning, Backlinking.
Re: Will 2009 be the year you write your book? Re: Will 2009 be the year you write your book? - Writing a book takes time but its sure rewarding! Thanks for the info.


Share this article with your friends. Fund someone's dream.

Leave a comment below or share on the left and you'll help support entrepreneurs in Africa through our partnership with Kiva. Over $50,000 raised and counting - Please keep sharing! Learn more.



Featured Article


Bottom Footer
Share for a Cause












Newsletter

Get advice & tips from famous business
owners, new articles by entrepreneur
experts, my latest website updates, &
special sneak peaks at what's to come!
Name:
Email:
Popular Articles

RULE YOUR BUSINESS LIKE A SHINE STAR

Common Sense Stress Management

Fear Factors in Small Business: Sales & Marketing

Suggestions

Email us your ideas on how to make our
website more valuable! Thank you Sharon
from Toronto Salsa Lessons / Classes for
your suggestions to make the newsletter
look like the website and profile younger
entrepreneurs like Jennifer Lopez.