Blogging Case Studies: Unique People, Unique Solutions
Last month we talked about using your day-to-day activities as a foundation for creating great content marketing (e.g. blog posts, videos, etc.) This month I’ve got three real-life blogging case studies to show the possibilities.
Chris Davis, Farmers Insurance
Chris has secured families and businesses since 1999. His in-person approach is flawless. It’s well informed and without pressure.
His industry is dripping with marketing messages. He cuts through the competition’s fancy commercials and taglines with honest and easy to understand facts.
Chris’ goal is to get potential clients on the phone or in the office for a free consultation. He uses direct mail and cold calls to fill his pipeline, but the process requires a lot of one-on-one time to educate, inform and build trust. One-on-one is important to Chris, that’s not going away, but it’s hard to scale without adding people.
Video is ideal for education. It’s widely available, on demand, and very shareable. If executed well it establishes credibility and builds trust. Using video Chris can educate and inform a larger audience, while extending his reach by addressing specific issues and specific needs.
Leads generated from his videos would be well qualified as they’ve already been informed and educated with his process, approach and style.
Sophia Gorke, Tootsie’s Boutique
Sophia had a dream to start her own retail boutique so she did. Tootsie’s Boutique sells one-of-a-kind clothing, accessories, jewelry and gifts. Sophia and her daughters are passionate about their business. They have the knowledge and the context that’s hard to find but desperately needed.
While visiting her store Sophia asked me about blogging. “Everyone says I should be doing it” she said. “But I don’t know what to write about.” It’s a hard question for anyone to answer. Fortunately her daughter provided a timely answer.
She was helping a customer with a scarf. They had asked “What do I do with this?” Without hesitation she went through more than five ways the scarf could compliment any outfit. The detailed explanation lasted no more than 2 minutes and ended with a sale.
I turned to Sophia and said “thats what you write about.” I’m sure she could do something similar for nearly every item in their store.
The format she chooses depends on who she wants to reach and how to best communicate the message. Like Chris she could try video, or she could keep it simple and create how-to blog posts with lots of detail and great pictures.
Mike Rowland, John’s Refrigeration
Mike created his profession. He and his family moved here from San Diego. They bought a home, and soon discovered issues with their air conditioning.
His electric bills were out of control, and the dust was unbearable. He made it his personal mission to fix the problem. He became certified as an energy auditor. He fixed his house and began helping others.
His job is crawling around in attics (yes attics in Phoenix). He finds and fixes issues that are oftentimes common and can significantly improve energy efficiency and air quality.
Mike takes pictures and videos of his findings to help educate his clients. It’s part of his normal process. These pictures and videos offer an invaluable opportunity to educate others and, in the process, generate new business.
With little or no effort Mike can share his pictures on Instagram or Pinterest and his videos on Vine or YouTube. Each platform can include a comment about what it is, what it does and what fixing it means in terms of energy or air quality.