How to Get Great Testimonial Quotes for Your Case Studies

Getting great testimonial quotes for your case studies can mean the difference between a captivating narrative and a forgettable story.

Picture this: someone you know shares, “I stumbled upon this revolutionary carpet cleaning product. It’s affordable and tackles even the toughest stains.”

That’s a solid story, right there. It addresses the problem (the tough stains) and presents a solution (the new cleaning product).

Now, imagine another scenario: your acquaintance proudly shows off their spotless carpet, once covered by a red wine spill. They rave about how they used a particular cleaner to restore it to its pristine condition. Now, that’s an exceptional story. It not only highlights the problem and solution but also offers a personal example of the solution’s effectiveness from a trusted source.

But what’s even better is when you add a sense of urgency to this story.

Imagine you have a red wine stain emergency with your in-laws due to visit soon. You call a friend, who tells you how they had a similar problem and solved with a particular product.

You would probably rush out and buy the miracle product immediately.

This narrative is compelling because it’s fueled by urgency.

Let’s break this narrative down further. There’s…

• Problem: a stain on the carpet
• Solution: carpet cleaner
• Example: your friend’s carpet with the wine stain
• Urgency: you need to clean up the stain before guests arrive.

Next, let’s apply this same structure to a case study about software:

• Pain point: Company XYZ struggled with its sales platform.
• Solution: Company ABC’s user-friendly sales platform presented a viable alternative.
• Example: Company XYZ’s platform accidentally merged data from third-party vendors, creating a huge headache.
• Urgency: These types of errors were becoming increasingly frequent.

During the interview, the person told some great quotes:

“We lost those records and couldn’t get them back. I lost every communication I’d had with those contacts for the past six years. And I started to wonder what else had gone missing.”

“I was really, incredibly, just wowed with [Company ABC platform]. I love the reporting functions and how user friendly everything is. It’s just easier. And that really got me.”

To extract such potent anecdotes during case study interviews, try asking:

• “Can you think of a time when that really held true?”
• “Tell me a bit about how that happened.”
• “What did that look like?”
• Walk me through that a bit….”

You can also ask for analogies to delve deeper:

• “What would you compare that to?”
• “How would you explain that to [relevant party]?”

While it’s tempting to overlook these types of questions in the rush to get through the challenge/solution/results of your story, the effort is worth it. The responses you’ll get in return will humanize the narrative, evoke empathy, and yield the most memorable quotes and testimonials.