Here’s my case against most marketing case studies. 

Readers are often pushed to look at case studies through the wrong lens. 

Case studies often try to show you the final outcome – high downloads, registrations, subscriptions, conversions, and revenue. 

While that’s absolutely important, there are so many other factors at play. 

If a case study is an attempt to evaluate a marketer or agency, consider digging deep into the process. 

1. Would the brand’s positive reputation have carried the project well anyway?
2. How did their experience/inexperience in that particular industry play out?
3. Was there a big budget to experiment with?
4. What was their response when things didn’t go to plan?
5. Was a poorly performing campaign turned around?

A 20% conversion rate across 1,000 leads is overall more beneficial than a 60% conversion rate across 40 clients. 

The end result matters but so do the numbers, details, and process in between.