With respect to the printing industry, there’s no shortage of talent, equipment or capabilities. It’s the visibility, reliability and steady stream of leads that print shops struggle with. Well-known for producing high-quality work for corporate clients, local businesses, event planners, schools and brands, many print shops don’t effectively tell the story of their success in their marketing.
This is where case study marketing comes into play, and has the ability to be one of the most effective growth tools for print shops, by reworking finished projects into knock-out sales tools. You could say that instead of just claiming to deliver top-notch printing, a case study shows it. They’re also an excellent way to display your expertise, show you’re reliable and reveal the results of what you’ve done, which makes people more likely to trust you and use your services.
Agencies such as VDvibe, know the value of case study marketing in propelling print businesses towards a brighter financial future. Combining case studies with SEO for print shops, social media marketing for print shops, and well-planned content strategies gives print shops a comprehensive marketing network that generates a lot of incoming leads.
What Is Case Study Marketing for Print Shops?
A print shop shows real-life examples of projects they’ve completed, laying out the challenges, the solutions they provided, and the final result, when using case study marketing. Gone are the days of boastful claims, here, the focus is on the execution and the concrete impact of their work.
Coming from a print shop, case studies could cover anything from a massive bulk packaging order for a brand-new startup, to meeting the impossible deadlines for wedding invitations, whipping up corporate branding materials, or printing gigantic banners for events, and each one is basically a badge of honour for the company’s capabilities.
Unlike run-of-the-mill advertising, case studies zero in on problem-solving. They explain how the print shop got to know the client’s requirements, picked the right materials or printing techniques, scheduled everything perfectly and hit their marks, all of which are the things that matter most in B2B printing, where reliability and trust are more important than price.
Why Case Study Marketing Works So Well for Print Businesses
It’s no secret that potential clients can easily compare and choose the best service, when print shops are competing in a local market. Coming running over from one print shop to the next, people want to know what to expect. The quality, turnaround time, customisation capabilities and level of professionalism.
Case studies are basically the best way to eliminate any doubt.
It’s a concrete and visual way to show clients exactly what they can expect, and in the printing industry, which is all about visuals, nothing else can cut through the noise. When case studies are combined with social media marketing for print shops, they really get attention, and make a company seem more trustworthy too.
Well-known search engines also love case studies. When they’re done right, they help websites rank for keywords such as custom printing services, packaging printing solutions, and SEO for print shop, and search engines have a preference for content that shows expertise and originality, which case studies, naturally provide.
How Case Studies Turn Past Print Work into Sales
Assessing the marketing strategy for a print shop, one of the best ways to stand out and get past potential clients who are hesitant to make a decision is by using case studies.
Most print shops have a wealth of completed work but until now this work has been unable to be digitised and shown to potential clients.
When a client visits a print shop’s website or social media page, they don’t just see a laundry list of services, they see the evidence.
In many cases years of work to show how a particular type of print service is handled, tight deadlines met and specific client requirements sorted,, and this takes the edge off hesitation and knocks down the time it takes for a sales lead to turn into a sale.
In face-to-face sales and marketing, showing examples of previous projects is far more effective than just explaining the print shop’s capabilities, and helps to build an instant air of confidence with the client, and sends conversion rates soaring,
At VDvibe, we have found that print shops see a marked increase in phone calls and messages coming in when we create detailed case studies and then use those to get them noticed on search engines and social media platforms by targeting the keywords most frequently used in the print shop community.
Key Elements of a High-Converting Print Shop Case Study
When it comes to creating a print shop case study, the best place to start is with the problem. Be it a client’s inconsistent branding, a poor experience with a previous vendor, or a need for bulk printing on a tight schedule. When the reader can see themselves in the problem, they are far more invested in the story.
The solution is the meat of the case study and has a very different tone.
The print shop explains its unique approach, and how it selects the best materials, employs state-of-the-art printing technology and presents all finishing options available. This sort of confidence in capabilities can really put the print shop in the driver’s seat. The third segment, the result highlights delivery timelines, customer satisfaction and repeat orders, and gives an insight into the real value which can be provided by the print shop.
When we work on case studies for print businesses we also incorporate buzzwords such as digital marketing, local SEO for printers and content marketing for printing businesses to increase the businesses online profile.
Using Case Studies for SEO for Print Shops
Speaking of SEO for print shops, case studies are grossly underutilised. They can be highly targeted to specific services, locations or even industries. For example, a case study on packaging printing would rank for packaging printing services in your city.
Coming fast through the search engine optimisation checklist, optimised headings, internal linking, image alt text and geo-targeted keywords tell search engines what a case study is about, and over time lots of case studies build a strong reputation for the site, making those top-tier keywords.
Like SEO for print shop and commercial printing services, a lot easier to rank for.
Well-known search engines love unique content and because case studies are based on real-life projects, they’re basically one-of-a-kind, and impossible for competitors to replicate. This gives a print shop a massive leg-up over generic service pages.
Case Studies and Social Media for Print Shops
For marketing for print shops, social media is best utilised when it’s all about the story.
Case studies are essentially a done deal for platforms such as Instagram, Facebook, LinkedIn and WhatsApp marketing, they’re the ultimate content goldmine. One single case study can be broken down into a series of posts, showcasing before-and-after pictures, the inner workings of the printing process and feedback from the clients. This will not only send engagement through the roof, but it also shows the world that you’re professional, reliable and have a good eye for the job.
Coming from the corporate world, LinkedIn is an absolute must for B2B print shops. Printing and branding materials for businesses, bulk orders and so on are right up the alley of decision-makers who frequent this platform, and VDvibe advises case study reels and carousel posts to really get your message out there.
How VDvibe Helps Print Shops with Case Study Marketing
When discussing marketing for print shops, VDvibe knows that the owners and staff are masters of the production side of the business, not the marketing side. That’s why we use our expertise in creating and marketing compelling case studies to help printers tell their story, shine in the search engines, build a brand, and grow on social media.
Our team reviews the print shop’s past projects, organizes and crafts compelling case studies and makes them more easily found in search engines for print shops. We’re also skilled at creating visuals, persuasive copy, and distributing print shop marketing content to social media platforms, and we combine case study marketing with content marketing, local SEO and outcome-driven digital campaigns to get print shops to steady streams of inbound leads and long-term customers.
Turning Case Studies into a Long-Term Growth Strategy
When a print shop embarks on a case study marketing project, it’s just the beginning. Regular and consistent execution can turn it into a powerful long-term growth strategy, and each completed project can be leveraged to generate new content, catapult SEO rankings, and bring in a steady stream of similar clients.
As a print shop builds a substantial digital portfolio, its marketing becomes a 24/7 sales representative and reduces the dependency on being undercut by competitors or relying on word-of-mouth. The name of a reliable and skilled print shop becomes synonymous with the area’s branding services, clients then go to these shops for competence and peace of mind, and don’t care so much about who’s the cheapest anymore.
Guidance and mentorship from a marketing agency such as VDvibe can, with time, turn the print shop’s marketing routine into a top-class engine.
FAQs
What is case study marketing for print shops?
Presenting real, completed projects is one of the best ways to demonstrate expertise, quality and the positive results that a potential client can expect, when marketing a print shop. Coming running over into the world of print, a case study is essentially a testimonial, but instead of relying on claims, it shows tangible examples of the print shop’s problem-solving abilities and builds trust with the client.
How does case study marketing help generate leads?
When combined with SEO marketing for print shops and social media marketing, the real work showcased in a case study attracts qualified leads who are already confident in the print shop’s capabilities.
Are case studies useful for small or local print shops?
As for local print shops, case studies are the secret to improving SEO, building trust and beating out larger competition, through the very personalized service and verifiable results they present.
How often should a print shop publish case studies?
Coming out with a brand-new case study every one to two months, consistent publishing is the way to go, sending SEO rankings soaring, injecting new life into social media, and putting your print shop firmly on the map.
Can case studies be used on social media platforms?
In relation to social media, case studies are a fantastic way for print shops to show off their work and attract new clients, and can be presented as reels, carousel posts or LinkedIn articles.
Why should print shops work with a marketing agency like VDvibe?
VDvibe knows the printing industry and digital marketing like the back of its hand, creating SEO-optimised case studies, handling social media for print shops, and devising plans that convert previous successes into a regular flow of new business and long-term expansion.