Art & Science

BACKGROUND

Introduce your business and what you do there.

Danier Leather sold apparel leather goods and other products. I was the head of marketing for the company.

OPPORTUNITY / CHALLENGE

What challenge were you trying to address with Art & Science?

The biggest issue for us was awareness. Regular customers of the store had stopped shopping there, so we needed to get them to think about our business again and re-explore what we had to offer.

SOLUTION

What was the scope of their involvement?

Art & Science was our digital agency. They managed all of our display and search advertising, working with us during our "winter warmth" campaign. The object was to make people associate Danier with warm winter coats since we had traditionally been known for leather jackets.

Art & Science focused on SEO [search engine optimization], ensuring Danier appeared prominently in all searches for winter coats. Art & Science's recommendations were around completing the path to purchase for someone going online in the morning and getting the idea to buy a new coat. We wanted to keep our business top of mind and make people consider coming to our store.

How did you come to work with Art & Science?

One of the people working on our digital team had known Art & Science from a previous job. It was very much a positive referral. Art & Science also presented their services along with a few other agencies. We felt that they had the best vision for what we were looking for, plus we preferred working with a smaller agency. That would bring more investment in our own business, as we weren't such a big company ourselves.

How much have you invested with Art & Science?

The yearly cost was between $600,000 and $700,000. We had a monthly retainer with Art & Science, which fluctuated depending on our focus at each point. The business was seasonal from a weather perspective, with peaks during specific times of the year.

What is the status of this engagement?

Art & Science worked with Danier for around three years. I was involved with them for a year of that period.

RESULTS & FEEDBACK

Could you share any evidence that would demonstrate the productivity, quality of work, or the impact of the engagement?

I don't remember our actual stats, but we definitely saw a lift while running our awareness campaigns for warm winter coats. Art & Science was very invested in the success of our business. I appreciated their ability to take action if we had a plan in place. If we weren't getting the results we had determined, they went back and rethought our strategy, determining which areas were working best and where we needed to shift our dollars. Art & Science was very reactive and understood the retail business. A bigger agency wouldn't have given us the same level of attention and care. They had an analytical ability to show us tangible results, making information clear for people who didn't understand the digital field very well. There were many people on the executive team who weren't as familiar with the metrics, but Art & Science did a great job of giving a base level for them.

How did Art & Science perform from a project management standpoint?

I've never worked with a better agency, from a project management capacity. We had weekly status calls, and Art & Science always kept to our timings. More than that, they were proactive in bringing solutions and suggestions to us, based on their work with other clients or their analysis of the business.

What did you find most impressive about Art & Science?

At the time, it was Art & Science's ability to analyze a business and provide proactive solutions while staying within budget. I know that Art & Science has expanded to include experiential marketing to their portfolio, but I still find that one of their biggest strengths is the ability to analyze a business and provide tangible solutions for driving sales and traffic to the website.

Are there any areas Art & Science could improve?

As a fashion retailer, it was important to have a global understanding of competitors in the fashion world. There was a bit of a learning curve in getting Art & Science up to speed with key fashion websites and brands, but they did a good job of learning who the leaders in the e-commerce space were once they immersed themselves in the business. 

BACKGROUND

Introduce your business and what you do there.

The Gay Men's Sexual Health Alliance of Ontario is a network organization funded by the Ministry of Health. We work with 30 other groups around the province to develop social marketing campaigns, generally related to sexual health. We develop programs and services, participate in research projects, and do a lot of training around the province on topics relevant to gay men's health. I am the acting director of the organization.

OPPORTUNITY / CHALLENGE

What challenge were you trying to address with Art & Science?

The project involved a website which had been launched in 2011. We needed to reinvent it. The page was old, outdated, and not user-friendly or adaptable.

SOLUTION

What was the scope of their involvement?

Art & Science redeveloped our campaign, including all aspects of production, marketing, and creative assets. Working with 30 organizations and trying to reach a consensus can be difficult. There were many moving pieces in our project, but Art & Science was very accommodating and put up with a lot from us.

How did you come to work with Art & Science?

We put forth an RFP [request for proposal], interviewed three agencies, and went with Art & Science. They came in with a good understanding of who we were and what we were looking for, which resonated with our group. We were impressed with the work examples from Art & Science, and they were able to sell us on what was being offered. At the end of the day, it was a combination of things which led to our decision. Art & Science laid out a proposal of how they would be working and what our involvement would be in the process, which didn't leave us with many questions. We've been happy with the decision.

What is the status of this engagement?

We started working with Art & Science in the spring of 2015. The campaign launched on January 23rd. We continue building out our campaign with Art & Science. We develop a new one every two years, so I anticipate that we will continue to work with Art & Science in the foreseeable future.

RESULTS & FEEDBACK

Could you share any evidence that would demonstrate the productivity, quality of work, or the impact of the engagement?

The quality of Art & Science's work was top-notch. Their group gets it right the first time in most cases, and they've done an incredible amount of research on their own. They became informed about the various topics they were speaking to and designing assets for. I feel that this is not typical when working with agencies like Art & Science. Their work is innovative and unlike anything else produced in Canada, not just in Ontario. I don't have enough good things to say about Art & Science.

How did Art & Science perform from a project management standpoint?

Art & Science's performance was not outstanding, but they certainly handled project management well. Considering what we were asking for, and the number of moving parts, the project was handled well. There are things which could have been done better to have a smoother process. Any time an element was served off base, all it required was an additional conversation to get it fixed.

What did you find most impressive about Art & Science?

Art & Science is a creative group. They not only come up with good ideas but also provide the execution for those elements. Art & Science can deliver big-picture thinking, and they also got us to think outside of the box, which resulted in a more impactful campaign which generated attention all over the world.

Are there any areas Art & Science could improve?

Apart from a couple of project management pieces, Art & Science has been a solid, open and easy-to-work-with company. They always kept in mind the goals and scope of the project, bringing us back into that space as well, whenever we deviated into places which we weren't able to achieve. We wouldn't hesitate to work with Art & Science again and have referred other people to Art & Science.

BACKGROUND

Introduce your business and what you do there.

We are a producer of luxury goods and jewelry. The company is a family-owned business started over two centuries ago, and I am the e-commerce director of the company.

OPPORTUNITY / CHALLENGE

What challenge were you trying to address with Art & Science?

We needed to improve our traffic and conversions through search engine marketing [SEM].

SOLUTION

What was the scope of their involvement?

Art & Science is our agency of record for digital media work. They've also provided social aggregation and search engine marketing work. Art & Science has run an analysis of our SEM performance, providing recommendations as a component of that. This is a typical part of the process.

How did you come to work with Art & Science?

I have worked with Art & Science for three consecutive companies in total, the first one being a Canadian retailer for which I was the digital marketing manager. Followed by that was a company where I was the director of digital marketing. There was a request for proposal process for my first two employers, but not for the current one.

How much have you invested with Art & Science?

This is confidential. [The cost of Art & Science's work will be between $250,000 and $300,000 in 2017.]

What is the status of this engagement?

My current company started working with Art & Science six months ago. The relationship is ongoing.

RESULTS & FEEDBACK

Could you share any evidence that would demonstrate the productivity, quality of work, or the impact of the engagement?

We have been very pleased with Art & Science's work. Since they took over, Art & Science has turned our paid marketing channel into the highest source of traffic for the website. Our conversions are up, and sales are healthy through that channel. We've grown substantially during the six months in which Art & Science has worked with us, and I attribute this to the attention they've paid to our account.

How did Art & Science perform from a project management standpoint?

Art & Science is always on time. They go above and beyond when we make requests for additional insights or analyses for a particular month.

What did you find most impressive about Art & Science?

Art & Science pays a lot of attention to the accounts, becoming invested in the business. This is the reason we continue to hire them. In addition, Art & Science's team is good at what they do. Previously, we've worked with larger agencies and became lost in the shuffle. For a company of our size, Art & Science is a fantastic option. They give us all the attention we need.

Are there any areas Art & Science could improve?

No. I've been pleased with what Art & Science has done. They're always proactive in suggesting new things that we can do to grow our business.

BACKGROUND

Please describe your company and position.

I am the VP Marketing of The Fertility Partners

Describe what your company does in a single sentence.

The Fertility Partners owns and operates fertility and IVF clinics across Canada coast-to-coast plus the northeastern USA.

OPPORTUNITY / CHALLENGE

What specific goals or objectives did you hire Art & Science to accomplish?

• Customer lifetime value
• Digital advertising strategy and execution
• New patient acquisition

SOLUTION

How did you find Art & Science?

Agency direct outreach

Why did you select Art & Science over others?

• Close to my geographic location
• Great culture fit
• Good value for cost
• Company values aligned

How many teammates from Art & Science were assigned to this project?

6-10 Employees

Describe the scope of work in detail. Please include a summary of key deliverables.

Management and optimization of digital performance campaigns - Google and Meta - for 8 Canadian fertility clinic brands including:

• campaign strategy development
• campaign set-up
• creative development
• performance monitoring and optimization
• reporting and analysis

RESULTS & FEEDBACK

What were the measurable outcomes from the project that demonstrate progress or success?

• Lead volumes
• Lead value/conversion to customers/patients

Describe their project management. Did they deliver items on time? How did they respond to your needs?

Highly responsive

What was your primary form of communication with Art & Science?

• Virtual Meeting
• Email or Messaging App

What did you find most impressive or unique about this company?

I appreciate their agility in continuously evolving smart digital campaigns that expertly target our audiences and deliver results even as competitive dynamics shift.

BACKGROUND

Introduce your business and what you do there.

I’m the owner of a wholesale distributor of home decor items in Ontario, Canada. My company services customers in the design trade. 

OPPORTUNITY / CHALLENGE

For what reason(s) did your company hire Art & Science Digital Experience Design Inc.?

At the time, our customers had to call to determine which items were in stock, and our old system made finding canceled SKUs difficult due to the big sample libraries and massive showrooms. 

SOLUTION

Describe the project in detail.

They created a mobile app in 3 months to allow our customers to access stock information, pricing, and current and canceled SKU information quickly. This gave our customers more confidence in quoting prices and suggesting products to their end customers and let us keep our libraries up to date.

What was the team composition?

The process was collaborative and seamless. They mostly managed the project, but our programmers did some of the API development. 

RESULTS & FEEDBACK

Can you share any outcomes from the project that demonstrate progress or success?

The app has just launched on time and within budget, and we are pleased with the results so far.