I used to work in fundraising for the University of Colorado Foundation.
It was quite boring. And wildly unfulfilling. Because no matter how much money we raised for the school, they kept jacking up tuition. All so kids could get degrees that meant virtually nothing. (At least if they got liberal arts degrees like the one I got.)
So, yay higher education!
Anyway, one day I was sent to a very boring conference on fundraising.
They talked about different strategies that worked. And dove into a specific example of how a Japanese company raised money for hurricane relief.
What did they do?
They just…asked for donations.
Nothing fancy. No trickery. Just a straight-up ask. Something so simple people forget to do it.
If you want to get your happy customers to spread the word of how great you and your product is, you can do the same.
Just ask them to be a case study.
If they had a lot of success with you, they’ll be happy to tell their story.
If they need a little extra nudge, you can let them know that their story can inspire countless people — those who have the same struggle your customer had before joining your program.
People enjoy helping others. It feels good. By asking your customers to be a case study for you, you are giving them a chance to help others and feel good. It’s not a favor — it’s an honor.
And you know what? Your customers are likely PROUD of the change they’ve made. They want to talk all about it — but nobody has given them a chance! You’re giving them permission to talk about themselves and the great things they accomplished. What a wonderful gift!
So your mission, if you choose to accept it, is to send an email to your customers. All of them.
Say you’re gathering case studies. And if they’ve had success, you’d love to hear about it. And you may even share their story with your audience.
Then give them a link to a form they can fill out where they share a bit about themselves and the success they have. That way, you can sort through and find the inspiring stories that will resonate with your prospects.
Then contact the customers with great stories and do a full-on, in-depth, badass case study like the ones I do for my clients.
And once it’s done, you can use it to:
- Attract new customers
- Close sales with people on the fence by showing exactly how your product/service worked for someone in their situation.
So that 1 successful story can inspire to 10+ new customers to come through the door.
Or, you know, you can try some super complicated and expensive marketing strategy. Whatever floats your boat.