A case study video is a sales asset that a prospect watches to answer one question: has this worked for someone like me? Everything follows from that. It needs a recognisable situation, one credible number, and enough specificity that the viewer can map it to themselves. Case studies that read as documentaries about a happy customer fail because they never make that mapping possible.
The four beats
1. The situation, in the prospect's language. Company size, category, and the constraint. If a viewer cannot tell within ten seconds whether this is a company like theirs, they leave.
2. What they tried first. Establishes the problem was hard. Case studies that skip straight to the solution read as advertising.
3. What changed, with a number. The load-bearing beat. "Faster" is not a case study; "from eleven days to three" is. One number, stated by the customer, not by you.
4. What it took. Honest implementation effort. Prospects discount case studies that imply effortlessness, because they have all been burned by one.
Getting the number
The number is the entire asset and it is the hardest thing to obtain, because customers are cautious about publishing metrics.
Ask for a relative figure if absolute is impossible. "Cut it by two thirds" is publishable when "from 90 to 30" is not.
Ask early, in the project, not at the end. The moment to agree a case study is when the result is fresh and the relationship is warm.
Offer approval over the final cut. It converts most hesitant customers and costs you a review round.
What to film and what to generate
Film: the customer, their environment, and the product in their hands or on their screen.
Generate: abstract representations of the before-state, transitions, context you cannot film, and the format versions. Canon prices, a credit at $0.01: an 8-second Veo 3.1 Lite clip silent is 33 credits.
Never generate: the customer, their words, or their data. A case study is an evidentiary document, and a generated element inside one is a fabricated claim. Recreating a customer's office because the real one was untidy is the kind of shortcut that ends a reference relationship.
The edit
Lead with the number, not the situation. Prospects scanning a page of case studies decide by result, then read backwards for whether it applies to them. Ninety seconds for a site, thirty for social with one number and one sentence.
FAQ
How long should a case study video be? 90 seconds to two minutes for a site. If you have two strong numbers, make two videos rather than one longer one.
What if the customer will not share a number? Use a relative figure, or a before-and-after description of the process. A case study with no quantified change is a testimonial; label it accordingly and keep expectations right.
Can we script the customer? Give them the questions in advance, never the answers. Scripted customers sound scripted, and it is the fastest way to lose the credibility the format exists to build.
Lead with the number and be honest about the effort. The 8frame canvas is free and unlimited, and generation is paid from $19/month.