I’ve done a handful of meditation retreats over the years.
Unplugging for a few days always feels great. It’s a wonderful way to realize all the stuff I worry about daily doesn’t actually matter.
Early this year, I did a silent meditation retreat at the gorgeous Shambhala Mountain Center.
Shambhala Mountain Center outside Boulder.
That’s when I learned about the donothing Leadership Retreat — a five-day meditation retreat for entrepreneurs, CEOs, and business leaders.
I was curious to hear stories from people who had been on the retreat. But they were tough to come by.
The “blog” section on the donothing website has articles on the benefits of meditation and being unplugged… But I couldn’t find a first-hand, in-depth account of what the retreat was like and how it changed a person’s business and life.
There was however something close to that. On the homepage, they have a video montage of people sharing their experiences at the retreat.
It a high-quality video and well done. It has a lot of elements that can inspire people to join the retreat.
Here’s a breakdown of what made their case study montage so great. Plus a few tweaks that could help them generate more sales from their case studies.
What’s great about this case study montage
1) The video is loaded with social proof. In it, you see a bunch of presidents and co-founders of different ages, genders, and ethnicities. They cover a lot of demographics so different people can watch this and see it’s for them.
2) The customers clearly explain what the retreat is. That clarity is big because if people don’t know what they’re buying — they often won’t buy it.
3) The customers share the concerns they had about joining. They talk about how they weren’t sure they could disconnect for so long… and how their friends laughed at them and doubted they could do it. Then they talk about how even though they were worried about disconnecting, they actually loved it. This is great because the viewer likely has those same reservations. Now, they see those concerns are addressed. And they see how business leaders like them who had those same fears actually enjoyed being unplugged.
4) They go on to share what the retreat is like. The customers talk about how beautiful and peaceful the setting is. They even give great visuals as they talk about the mountains and chirping birds. They also talk about their inner experience — how they feel refreshed, present, etc.
Talking about the experience this way gets people to see that even if they don’t get lasting results from the retreat, it can still be worth it due to how enjoyable those 5 days are.
5) The video touches on some of the results people got from the retreat. For example, one guy mentions how he’s been more present and focused during conversations with his family and employees. That part is awesome, but it would be great if there was more detail here.
What does being more present and focused look like? What are the results of that? Do his wife and children feel differently about him? Do his co-workers listen or respect him more? Sharing more detail of what this change looks like in his life can help people see why they need to go to the retreat.
As awesome as this video is, there are a few things they could add that would help them close even more sales.
How to make the case studies even better
Watching this video, it was clear that 4 big things were missing.
Here’s what Rob Dube and his team could do to make these case studies more powerful.
1) Target different avatars
There are different types of people who do this retreat — CEOs, entreprenuers, company presidents, etc.
It would be awesome to have in-depth stories of these different types of people easily available. Stories that dive into the specific struggles these people faced, how that struggle negatively impacted their business/life, why they joined this retreat over other options, a more detailed description of what the retreat was like, and how their business and life improved from the retreat.
Having in-depth stories like this means different people who come to the website could find someone just like them who had the experience and results they want. Seeing that can close more sales than a smattering of quotes from people who, for all you know, didn’t face the same struggle as you.
2) Go deeper into the customer’s pain
In the video, customers say how there are lots of “distraction and noise” in society today. That’s great, but they could dig way deeper into this problem.
What does this “noise and distraction” look like in the life of a busy business professional? And what specific, negative consequences does it lead to?
Does it lead to a lack of productivity? Spending too long at the office? Unable to have quality time with their kids?
Going into detail and digging into this pain helps the story connect more deeply with the reader. It also gets them to feel that pain, which creates more urgency for them to join the retreat.
For example, imagine if one of the customers told a story of how they were so consumed by every little thing in their business that they would be at the office 15 hours a day. They missed family dinners and were stressed because, despite all their work, revenue was dipping. And they were afraid the board of directors might fire them.
Then they talk about how the retreat helped them stay focused on what matters. And now, they’re more productive, able to get home on time for dinner, and make better decisions that have lead to an increase in revenue and job security.
I doubt their customer success stories are that dramatic. But the point is to raises the stakes by going deeper into their struggle, the negative impact of that struggle, and how that struggle was overcome thanks to the retreat.
Doing all that can take the retreat from a “nice to have” to a critical purchase business leaders succeed at work and at home.
3) Paint a picture of the results
One customer mentioned that he and his wife both noticed a difference in him after the retreat. Another man said he felt recharged. And a third said the retreat helped him grow as a person. All that stuff is good… but it’s vague. It would be far more powerful to show what all this looks like in their life.
What difference did that first man’s wife notice? How has that impacted their relationship? What do they experience now that they couldn’t before?
Are they having more romantic dinners? Are they fighting less? Spending more quality time with their kids?
Vague statements like “my wife noticed a difference” aren’t nearly as powerful as showing what that difference was or how it positively impacted their relationship.
They could also share more specific results that show how the retreat solved the initial problem that brought these people here in the first place.
How is there day-to-day at work different?
How has this helped their productivity, sanity, leadership skills, management skills, revenue, etc.?
And why exactly is it so important to disconnect and recharge other than it feels nice? We never get the answer to this. But hearing customers share their take on it could help ramp up sales.
4) Show what makes this different/better than other silent meditation retreats
This retreat is more expensive than the other retreats at the same location. So it would be great if they showed why this retreat is more valuable for business leaders than the other retreats.
For example, they could have the customers talk about what they learned from the discussion sessions… how they were able to make valuable connections… or whatever the benefit is of doing a retreat that’s specifically for business leaders.
How to get awesome case studies done-for-you
There’s a ton more I could say about how to create awesome case studies for the donothing retreat.
A lot of that advice is already in my book, Case Studies That Close Sales, which is available free on my homepage: marketingwithbrian.com
If you want awesome case studies done for you, shoot me an email at [email protected] to get on my waitlist. (Here’s an example of what the case studies I create look like.
The case studies I create include everything we just talked about — plus a bunch of other techniques and strategies that help you stand out and close sales.