Case study is a designer’s arsenal for overcoming his
unique obstacle. They are narratives that reveal what you are capable of as a designer.
One of the toughest challenges designers face when pitching prospective clients is winning over their trust and confidence. If your prospective clients haven’t worked with you in the past, they’ll likely have hesitations about handing over their hard-earned cash to a stranger.
Not only are case studies a great way to explain the design process of an agency, but they also help esigners and developers to learn from each other. Seeing how designers work, create, build and play is great, and furthermore.
The best case studies move beyond intuition-based explanations and document the rationale behind the design, UX, and visual decisions. They offer a more humanized perspective into the design process that, ultimately, makes a business case for your work. This leaves you in a better position to prove your value and price to even the most skeptical client.
Think of your overview section as the executive summary of your case study. It allows your prospects to quickly understand the highlights of your past work without reading the entire thing. This section should include the core values from all other sections including the main problem and key results.
The core elements of The Challenge are often presented to you in the project Request for Proposal or creative brief. If you are working on a more personal level with your client, however, try capturing this information in conversation. This will become the basis of your brief and, eventually, your case study too.
The purpose of this section is to elaborate on your design process, creative concept, and insight that led to your design decisions. It’s also an opportunity for you to walk your prospective client through the research, workflow, and iterations of your design work.
To really get the most from this section, be sure to include written descriptions about your design work. Take the time to explain in detail your site’s defining features like its UX, navigation structure, content strategy, or unique mobile attributes. Remember, the medium is the message. Don’t limit yourself to screenshots alone. Incorporate interactive elements - animations, video, transitions, or anything else.