should you include case studies in your freelance portfolio?
There are a lot of things to learn about the world of freelancing. Even if you’re an expert in your field, you might struggle to start and grow a freelance business.
Not because you’re bad at your craft, but because there are a million aspects of being a freelancer that no one prepares you for — from marketing yourself and streamlining your client experience to bookkeeping and tax preparation.
One of the biggest sources of frustration I see for freelancers right now is how to showcase your freelance work in a way that’s fresh, representative of your skill level, and attractive to potential clients.
You could just throw links up on a portfolio page for clients to click through. Or you could create a few case studies highlighting your past projects. One is easier, but the other is more effective.
Here’s the way I like to think about it.
Consider how you can reduce uncertainty and unpredictability for potential clients who want to hire you. Why? Because “it’s not just the uncertainty … that causes discomfort: we’re also reluctant to place ourselves in potentially profitable situations if they involve an element of unpredictability.”
Clients are hesitant to make investments if they don’t know exactly what they’re getting or whether the way you approach a project is what they need. To establish your credibility and gain their trust, include case studies in your freelance portfolio!
The difference between a portfolio of work and a case study
The standard way to showcase past projects is to create a page on your website called a portfolio. For freelance writers, I have seen a few different formats:
A list of links to published online work — websites, blogs, landing pages, social media posts, emails, white papers, case studies, etc.
A screenshot of the article or logo of the brand they worked with (I use the GoFullPage chrome extension).
A brief blurb about the client, the goal, the process, and the results.
Personally, I started out with just a list of links under section headers like “Websites that wow” and “Noteworthy newsletters.”
Recently, I added short blurbs and included a link to each project. Now, I am working on a set of case studies to add to my website. Why? Let’s get into it.
How case studies can help you grow your freelance business
Case studies are a powerful way to grow your freelance business (if done the right way!). They allow you to highlight a diverse or industry-specific portfolio and give potential clients a peek into the way you think.
All of this information reduces uncertainty.
That’s why potential clients are eager to clearly see a breakdown of your workflow, your approach to specific challenges, and past clients’ results — it reduces the sense of unpredictability that prevents them from hiring you.
Let’s dive a bit more into three specific benefits I’ve seen from writing case studies for my clients.
They set realistic expectations for the results clients can expect
According to Wharton professor Maurice Schweitzer, “We prefer direct causality, and predictable outcomes. We want to open Door #1 when we know what’s behind it. When we don’t know, we tend to undervalue things quite severely.”
Don’t give potential clients the opportunity to think your services aren’t worth what you’re charging. If you can successfully showcase measurable outcomes and results, you can get hired.
That’s where case studies come in!
A case study allows you to share specifics about a project to demonstrate the impact your work had. Quantifiable results build trust with potential clients, so the more details or analytics you include to help them understand how your process produces outcomes, the better!
They allow you to showcase diverse projects or subject matter expertise
Case studies help you highlight past project outcomes that set clear expectations for potential clients, but they also showcase the range of projects you've worked on.
If you want to be known as the expert in your chosen field, share case studies that demonstrate your expertise in specific niches or industries. Many organizations are looking for freelancers with a background and samples related to their industry, so showcasing that in your case studies will be key.
However, just as many organizations want to hire freelancers who can adapt to different audiences and markets. To open yourself up to more diverse opportunities, include case studies in your portfolio that show you are versatile and able to handle different types of projects within a variety of industries.
There isn’t one right way to approach case studies. Get clear on your goals and how you want to be seen in the freelance landscape, then get to writing.
They help you build trust and credibility
Whether you’re a subject matter expert or an adaptable freelancer who loves a good challenge, your case studies serve as social proof, clearly laying out your capabilities and highlighting past success stories.
Social proof aids decision-making, especially when the choices are widespread or complex. Testimonials and client feedback reinforce the credibility of your message and show potential clients that you’re a trusted freelancer who has a proven process that gets results.
Because seeing is believing. And trust is a key component of that.
4 elements of an effective case study
Now that you have a more clear idea of why featuring case studies in your portfolio is beneficial to you as a freelancer, let’s get into how to format a case study.
This includes practical tips about the use of visuals, storytelling, and how to adapt the language to suit your audience.
1. It’s properly formatted
Here’s the basic rundown of the fundamentals to include in each case study:
Name of the client
Team members who worked on the project (if applicable)
Goal of the project
A headline that summarises the key result achieved
Introduction to the background/challenge
Discussion about the solution/what you did to achieve the outcomes
Talk about the results
Include client testimonials
End with a relevant CTA
After it’s written, you should optimize your case study for SEO. You want the case study page to be indexed by Google so potential clients can find you without having a direct link.
You also want to include screenshots, highlight exceptional analytics, and make sure the most important details are bolded, underlined, or formatted as headers.
Each section is important to include, but how in-depth you go will depend on a few other details that I’ll share when we discuss the 3rd and 4th elements.
2. It includes relevant details
This is pretty obvious, but extraneous details that don’t add to your core message shouldn’t be included in your case studies.
On the flip side, include information about your process or results that gives potential clients a better understanding of not only what you do for them but how you help them achieve their goals. This is where you will tell a story about your time working with a client, with the end result being the growth they saw in their business.
Say you want potential clients to know that you are a strategist, not just a writer. Share details beyond how many newsletters you wrote for a past client — outline the exact process behind how you helped clarify your client’s goals so the strategy you brought to life was a more streamlined and effective use of their limited budget.
This will do wonders to position you as the go-to freelancer for business owners who want a writer and strategist that doesn’t break the bank. Adapt this example to suit how you format and word your case studies!
3. It’s the right length for the audience
Details are important, but they can also be the death of writers.
Your case studies need to appeal to your audience, so do your research to see what information they need to see before hiring.
Many organizations in the business, tech, SaaS, or medical industry want to read longer, more complex case studies while personal brands might prefer shorter, more simplified case studies.
It all depends on your audience.
What kind of information do they need?
What format is most familiar to your audience?
How much detail do you need to go into for your audience to be persuaded to take action?
Take all of this into account when deciding on the length of your case study.
4. The tone and writing style is appropriate for the industry
The last element of an effective case study is an appropriate tone/style of writing.
The tone and style need to be tailored to your target audience and their specific industry.
One way you can identify the right tone/style is by visiting the website or social media profile of potential clients you want to work with. They are already communicating how they want to be communicated with.
The key to this is not forgetting to personalize the case studies by infusing your own voice into it. You don’t want to copy, you want to mimic. This will make the case studies much more engaging to read.
Common case study challenges
Writing a case study isn’t hard. Getting all of the necessary information from clients so you can write it? That can be a bit challenging.
Let’s discuss how you can overcome clients who ghost you or don’t share analytics.
The client is too busy for a call
Clients are busy. Sometimes they don’t have time to get on a call to discuss how you helped them so you can create a case study. Work around this by doing the research yourself.
You can find a lot of information about your client’s goals, the challenges they had prior to working with you, and how you helped them if you comb through:
Call notes
Emails
Brand documents
Feedback, testimonials, or reviews
Audience/market research
Still don’t have everything you need to write the case study? Send them an email with just 1-2 questions to fill in the gaps. They’re much more likely to have time for a quick email versus an hour-long call.
You don’t have any analytics or measurable outcomes
Many freelancers, especially writers, don’t get analytics from their clients.
There are a few reasons for this:
The client is too busy with other business tasks to prioritize sending you their analytics.
They don’t collect the data themselves.
Your point of contact is too low on the totem pole to have access to the platforms the organization uses to pull analytics.
The client doesn’t see why a freelancer who isn’t part of their team (like an employee is) needs this data.
If you have a busy client, suggest 1-2 specific data points for them to pull for you.
If they don’t typically pay attention to their analytics, create a short Loom video to show them where to find data to pull for you.
If your point of contact doesn’t have access, ask if you can be connected to someone who does.
If your client doesn’t understand why you need analytics, explain that you want to make it clear what outcomes and results future clients can expect from hiring you.
3 ways to use case studies to land clients
When you write a case study, make sure you’re being transparent and honest when it comes to your work, process, and results.
The specific way you approach a project is going to resonate with the right client. Focus on catering to the needs of your target audience vs impressing a client who needs someone with more qualifications or a different background.
The last thing you want is to overinflate your experience and underdeliver.
1. Link to a case study when a potential client asks for sample pieces
Case studies are evergreen marketing materials. Use this to your advantage!
When you respond to a job post asking for sample pieces, link to a case study instead. This will help you stand out from the crowd.
2. Share elements of a case study as a part of your marketing strategy
It’s common to see freelancers sharing client testimonials on social media as part of their marketing strategy.
And why wouldn’t you? Social proof is a huge factor for business owners because it makes decisions easier. But there is a more powerful way to do this than posting a block of text.
Consider how you can drip elements of a case study you wrote to your audience as part of a larger series on what it’s like to work with you. The case study should already include a testimonial, but the added details make it more persuasive.
3. Include a relevant case study in a proposal to better explain your value
Proposals are notoriously time-consuming. Now, imagine if you had case studies to pull wording from that explains how you’ve helped past clients with the exact challenges they’re struggling with. How much quicker would you be able to write one up and send it off?
This is the power of case studies.
They help to strengthen your position and stand out from the dozens of other proposals touting similar promises. Because while anyone can say they produce results, case studies show potential clients how you’ve done it in the past for organizations like theirs.
Should you include case studies in your portfolio?
Case studies are not required to land clients, but they’re highly recommended if you want to stand out and attract clients who value you and your work as a freelancer.
They help to set clear expectations for what the client can expect, build trust and credibility, and allow you to position yourself in the market. And when clients have 73 million freelancers to choose from, case studies help narrow down their options and reduce uncertainty about what they’re getting.
Just remember to back up your claims with statistics and real-life examples to make your case studies both informative and convincing!
Ready to include case studies as a part of your marketing strategy? Let’s work together to show potential clients what they can achieve by working with you.