A persuasive case study page tells a short, true story in three parts: the challenge, the approach and the result. It names who the work was for, shows evidence, and states plainly what is real and what is not. The most persuasive element is usually credibility, so a smaller claim you can prove beats a large claim you cannot.
The three-part spine
1. Challenge. Describe the situation the reader will recognise. What was the goal, what was in the way, and what constraints (time, budget, platform, audience) shaped the work? Keep this to a few sentences. Visitors comparing providers are looking for a problem like their own.
2. Approach. Explain the decisions, not just the activity. Why this strategy, this format, this tool? A reader can only judge your thinking if you show the options you rejected and why. Use short steps or a simple timeline rather than a long narrative.
3. Result. State the outcome in the terms you set at the start. If you have measured figures you are entitled to publish, show them with the period and how they were measured. If you do not, describe the deliverable and what it enabled, and say so honestly. Do not fill the gap with adjectives.
A page layout that works
| Section | What it contains | Common mistake |
|---|---|---|
| Header | Project name, type of work, a one-line summary | Vague title with no context |
| At a glance | Who it was for, scope, tools or channels | Hiding the scope |
| Challenge | The problem and constraints | Writing about yourself instead |
| Approach | Key decisions, process, visuals | Listing services instead of decisions |
| Result | Outcomes or deliverables, with evidence | Unsourced numbers |
| Reflection | What you would do differently or what comes next | Pretending nothing was hard |
| Next step | A relevant call to action | A generic “contact us” with no link to the topic |
Place images near the text they illustrate and give them descriptive alt text, which Google describes as the most important image metadata and which also helps screen reader users (Google Search Central, image best practices). Avoid putting key information only inside images.
Be honest about what the work is
Not every piece in a portfolio is paid client work, and there is nothing wrong with showing concept pieces, internal studies or sample workflows. The problem comes when they are presented as something else. Label each page clearly, near the top rather than in a footnote:
- Client project: only with the client’s permission, and only for results you can support.
- Concept demonstration: a speculative piece made to show a capability.
- Internal study: an experiment run on your own materials.
- Sample workflow: an illustration of how a process would run.
Never invent a client, a quote or a metric. Under Australian Consumer Law, businesses must not engage in misleading or deceptive conduct, which is a good reason to treat every claim on a page as something you may need to substantiate. This is general information, not legal advice.
Testimonials deserve the same care. Overseas regulators publish helpful principles on this: the United States Federal Trade Commission’s guidance says endorsements must reflect the endorser’s honest opinion and actual experience, and that claims of unusually strong results need to make clear what people typically achieve (FTC, Endorsement Guides: what people are asking). That is United States guidance, but the underlying logic applies to any honest page: use real quotes with permission, and do not imply typical results from an exceptional one.
Make the evidence checkable
- Name the period and the measurement source for any figure.
- Distinguish your contribution from the client’s other activity, so you do not claim results you did not cause.
- Use real screenshots or deliverables where you can. Show the process, such as sketches, drafts and iterations, to demonstrate thinking.
- Keep a short “what we would change” note. It reads as confidence rather than weakness.
Google’s guidance on creating helpful content also asks whether content shows first-hand experience and whether authorship is clear (Google Search Central, creating helpful content). A case study that explains who did what, and how, serves readers and meets search quality expectations at the same time.
Connect the page to the rest of the site
A case study should not be a dead end. Link it from relevant service pages and from your homepage, and make sure your site structure lets a visitor move from a project to the service behind it. Each page should end with one action that fits the story, a point developed in business website conversion.
Common pitfalls
- Starting with the solution instead of the problem.
- Burying the result below long process descriptions.
- Using jargon the target buyer would not use.
- Publishing a page for every project instead of the few that best show range.
- Leaving old pages unchanged after the services they describe have moved on.
Where to go next
Radiance Impact’s Technology division builds business websites and landing pages at /technology, and the /work page shows how work is labelled as concept demonstration, internal study or sample workflow rather than client work. To discuss a case study or portfolio page, contact the team at /contact.
Sources
- Image SEO best practices, Google Search Central
- Creating helpful, reliable, people-first content, Google Search Central
- FTC’s Endorsement Guides: What People Are Asking, United States Federal Trade Commission
