How to use case studies in PR to secure media coverage 

At High-Rise we know that telling compelling stories that show the real-world impact of what our clients do is vital for PR success. We also know that there is no way better way to illustrate a client’s work than by evidencing it through cases studies with real first-hand lived experience of a service. 

Case studies are essential to attracting media attention and securing coverage as it’s people’s stories that capture, engage, inspire and resonate with audiences and make a topic or service newsworthy. Human focused stories dominate the news agenda as they add life, colour and relatability. 

Why are case studies important in PR? 

Case studies have the unique ability to humanise a service and bring it to life by showing how it has personally helped them. Case studies are also great for building trust with an audience as they can vouch for a client’s service in an authentic way. 

The strongest case study stories have the ability to inspire an audience or capture their imagination by demonstrating how they have overcome the odds or adversity thanks to a client/their service. A strong case study also needs to have a unique human-interest story that can cut through the countless press releases and pitches journalists receive in their inbox on a daily basis.  

At High-Rise we regularly use case studies to raise brand awareness and visibility for our clients including charities. We recently shared the stories of fundraisers Lucy Evans and Rob Northfield who both defied the odds and overcame personal health struggles to take part in epic physical challenges for our client Henshaws. 

Their inspiring stories received widespread media coverage both regionally and nationally. Lucy’s story was covered by a range of media outlets including ITV, The Mirror and OK! magazine, and Rob’s story was picked up by both the BBC and ITV.  

Strong headline worthy quotes and photos that can easily translate to a finished news story are also key for time-strapped journalists working to deadline. It’s also vital to offer interviews so journalists can add their own angle and get exclusive quotes. This means case studies will need to consent to being named and pictured in articles and be happy to share their age and the area where they live.  

Ideally the case study’s story will also have a strong news hook and be topical, timely and relevant and therefore fit into the current news agenda. The case study’s story may for instance tap into a wider national conversation or be featured alongside new statistics, original research or exclusive data that offer a fresh angle to stories already covered in the press.  

What is a PR case study?

A case study is someone who has first-hand experience of using a client’s service and is happy to speak to journalists about their experience. 

Case studies are not directly affiliated with the client (they’re not the founder, CEO or an employee) meaning they can advocate for the client or service in an honest and authentic way.  

It is unlikely a journalist will want to interview an employee about the service they are paid to provide as this would read like an advert and would not be considered a news article unless the interviewee has a particularly unique and inspiring personal story. Separately, a journalist may want to interview an employee to get an expert’s insight or new angle on a certain topic in the news agenda.  

What makes a good PR case study? 

A unique story 

• There needs to be something unique about a case study’s story to catch the attention or imagination of a journalist and their audience. For example, is there a particularly emotive or personal reason why the case study turned to the service that will resonate with a wider audience?  

• Journalists are looking for stories that people will click on/read/ watch/listen to, so angles need to be fresh and interesting.  

A news hook 

• Journalists are interested in case studies that are relevant, topical and newsworthy, for example someone who has been affected by a national crisis like the cost-of-living crisis.  

Eye-catching photos 

• Photos are key as they are needed for any news story and can also be used on media outlets’ social media channels. A journalist will never run a news story without a photo and is unlikely to run a story without strong high-quality photos that grab readers’ attention and will stand out on a website or page.  

How to find PR case studies 

• There are several ways to find cases studies. Clients can survey their users to identify people who’d be happy to be involved in PR activity and speak to journalists.  

• Clients can also offer incentives to users (e.g. vouchers) to thank them for taking the time to be involved in PR and sharing their story. 

• Employees that work directly with users can also approach them about taking part in PR and being a case study. 

How to brief a PR case study 

• It’s vital that case studies understand that their story will be sent to journalists often including both online and broadcast press (including radio, TV, magazine articles, newspapers and internet publications) and they will likely be interviewed, named and pictured in a news story. 

• It’s worth checking whether there any publications that a case study would not want their story to appear in and letting them know what media outlets you will be pitching. 

• To give them an idea of how their story may appear in the press you can send them examples of previous coverage landed for other case studies. 

• It’s also important to make sure case studies understand that everything they say to a journalist can be used as a quote and be printed/broadcast.  It will be up to them to tell the journalist if there is something they say that they want to be ‘off record’ and not included in the final story.  

If you would like to learn more about how we can help you build brand awareness and land media coverage through case studies, call us on 0161 706 1618, email [email protected] or fill in our contact form here.