Artisan Venture Lab

BACKGROUND

Introduce your business and what you do there.

I’m the founder and owner of God Bless Vodka, a craft cocktail company.

OPPORTUNITY / CHALLENGE

What challenge were you trying to address with Artisan Venture Lab?

We’ve only been in business for less than a year, and we didn’t have any kind of online presence other than our social media channels. We needed a company that could develop our site and help us get the word out about our company.

SOLUTION

What was the scope of their involvement?

Artisan Venture Lab designed and developed our website from scratch. They integrated a location finder and linked our social media channels into the site, handled our SEO efforts, and developed strategies to grow our online presence.

What is the team composition?

I worked with three people from Artisan Venture Lab.

How did you come to work with Artisan Venture Lab?

I found out about Artisan Venture Lab through word of mouth. I decided to reach out to them and found out that they are a local company in the Minneapolis area. Based on our conversation, it seemed like they really have a passion for helping newer and local businesses grow their online presence. I also really enjoyed working with smaller, niche-type companies in the past, so I thought that they aligned well with what we were looking for for this project.

How much have you invested with them?

We spent around $20,000 in total.

What is the status of this engagement?

We worked together from October 2021-February 2022.

RESULTS & FEEDBACK

What evidence can you share that demonstrates the impact of the engagement?

I’ve seen very positive feedback in terms of the website’s look and ease of navigation. We don’t really have any quantitative metrics yet because the site’s only been up for a week, but I feel like it legitimized our business — we now have our information on an actual professional website that people can find through Google. Overall, I have a great feeling that the site metrics will speak for themselves after another month or two.

How did Artisan Venture Lab perform from a project management standpoint?

Artisan Venture Lab performed really well in terms of project management. I’ve honestly gotten used to deadlines not being hit by other vendors because of the pandemic, but that was never the case with Artisan Venture Lab — they were very prompt and attentive to detail. They were always present at meetings and always called when they said they would. Above all, we launched the site according to their timeline estimation.

What did you find most impressive about them?

Artisan Venture Lab really wanted this project to succeed. They were truly invested in the project, and it never felt like we were just another client to add to their numbers. They truly understood and worked really hard towards my goals and mission.

Are there any areas they could improve?

I don’t think there’s anything Artisan Venture Lab could do to improve. I’m incredibly happy with them.

Do you have any advice for potential customers?

Let them know what your vision is, and their creative minds will take it from there and reflect your vision into whatever platform you’re trying to make.

BACKGROUND

Please describe your company and your position there.

I am the CEO of a clothing design company with a diverse range of products & services from custom clothing design to mass market ready to wear

OPPORTUNITY / CHALLENGE

For what projects/services did your company hire Artisan Venture Lab, and what were your goals?

I wanted to create a new website that would serve and showcase all the various areas of my business in a fluid way to combine all the products and services we offer within a harmonious framework so that visitors to the site, whether they came to shop or inquire about services would find easy to navigate and possess an allure that would compel them to explore the entire site

SOLUTION

How did you select this vendor and what were the deciding factors?

Importantly, they were aware that the main challenge in being able to create my site was based on their motivation to have a true understanding of the breadth of my business in order to formulate the site in a congruent way.

Describe the scope of work in detail, including the project steps, key deliverables, and technologies used.

Our initial meetings focused on the key elements I wanted on the site and discussions around what platform would be of most value vis a vis my vision for the site and which platform would best support my requirements to include several individual categories for shopping along with portfolio-like gallery pages for creative services, discussions on how to weave text descriptions into the non shopping pages, adding video components and more.

Following that was to map out the navigation and filtering particulars needed for each element and section and to tailor the pop up CTAs in a less obnoxious way than is seen on most websites. They were with me every step of the way on every item on my list and the time they took to fully understand my business upfront was the one of the major key elements in bringing my vision to life.

How many people from the vendor's team worked with you, and what were their positions?

I worked with the CEO and founders of AVL initially. My main point of contact during the process of site creation was AVL's chief strategy officer.

RESULTS & FEEDBACK

Can you share any measurable outcomes of the project or general feedback about the deliverables?

Within ten minutes of launch announcement, multiple sales began to be realized in addition to feedback from customers who only know my business as a shopping brand telling me in detail how their visit to my site had impressed and excited them, how they'd learned things about my business product offerings and services that they'd never known existed. So my goal of obtaining new and return shoppers in conjunction with the goal of creating a site visitors want to spend time looking at was realized.

Describe their project management style, including communication tools and timeliness.

A+++ on all fronts- they get it done, they follow up, always there to answer my myriad of questions and comments along the way, the entire experience was a pleasure

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

They truly care about the product they are creating. They are not in the business of slapping something together. They take the time to understand your business so they can make an impressive and robust site that aligns with your initial vision, but even better than you envisioned.

They were always available to help and answer any of our questions. They are a very cool, creative and knowledgeable company and extremely easy and fun to work with.

Are there any areas for improvement or something they could have done differently?

Not one. They hit it outta the park.

BACKGROUND

Introduce your business and what you do there.

I’m one of the board of directors at Shine A Ligh7 Foundation, a nonprofit that supports youth mental health awareness and education in Minnesota.

OPPORTUNITY / CHALLENGE

What challenge were you trying to address with Artisan Venture Lab?

We were looking for support in updating our website, specifically in creating our platform’s design and functionalities.

SOLUTION

What was the scope of their involvement?

Once we established our budget and scope, we worked closely with Erica and John. Since our website was old, Artisan Venture Lab started by moving over our platform on Pantheon. We didn’t harvest a lot from the old website so I’d still consider their work as built from scratch. I created a lot of the content on the website, and John (Chief Strategy Officer) helped me on how we should display our content, ensuring that our platform was highly engaging and functional for our users.

What is the team composition?

We worked with Erica (VP of Operations) and John.

How did you come to work with Artisan Venture Lab?

I connected with Artisan Venture Lab because a colleague of mine recommended Kevin (President & Co-Founder). As a result, we reached out to them and had a meeting at their office. They went over some of the other accounts they handled as well as notable web design projects they managed. In the end, we chose them because they were really helpful in working within our budget.

How much have you invested with them?

We spent $15,000.

What is the status of this engagement?

We worked together from July–October 2021.

RESULTS & FEEDBACK

What evidence can you share that demonstrates the impact of the engagement? 

Artisan Venture Lab was able to show us different performance tests to see how our site was running and compared them to how our old site was running. In relation to that, from a performance standpoint, our new site was running much better. We didn’t have the chance to dig into the site’s traffic yet, but we saw upticks in traffic when we were promoting events or other things on the site. In fact, we had a very successful Give to the Max Day, a Minnesota day for nonprofits where we raised much more than we thought we would on that day.

They also gave us a little more support than we paid for. Once the project was completed, I was able to maintain the site on my own, thanks to John’s training. We plan to engage with them again and we’re figuring out the maintenance schedule that we’ll have with them.

How did Artisan Venture Lab perform from a project management standpoint?

They were great at understanding the look and functionalities that we wanted. They were also good at staying within the budget and scope we had identified. The team used Trello and other project management tools, and we primarily used email for communication. We used Google Meet for meetings, and in doing so, we had productive meetings.

Erica was great at being the overall project manager and she enabled things to move forward. She regularly set up our calls and served as a trusted conduit. She was proactive, responsive, and made a point to establish an emotional connection with our team and our project.

What did you find most impressive about them?

They were a boutique company so they understood our business and needs well. They were also trustworthy and extremely brilliant. However, what set Artisan Venture Lab apart was their sincerity, authenticity, and the way they approached the relationship that they had with us.

Are there any areas they could improve?

No, they were great. I highly recommend them and look forward to working with them moving forward.

Do you have any advice for potential customers?

Meet them in person so that you can get a sense of their team and how they work together. Once you start your partnership with them, make sure that you know what you want to get out of the partnership and at the same time, be open to workarounds.

BACKGROUND

Introduce your business and what you do there.

I’m the CEO of Sundial Energy, a commercial solar developer.

OPPORTUNITY / CHALLENGE

What challenge were you trying to address with Artisan Venture Lab?

We needed to transition our outdated platform to an SEO-friendly website.

SOLUTION

What was the scope of their involvement?

Artisan Venture Lab has utilized Java to accommodate our SEO needs into our new website. Apart from handling the transition and website conversion phases, their team has secured our domain name and retained our licenses and registration on our website. As for the site’s UX/UI, Artisan Venture Lab has improved the navigation experience by creating dropdown lists for our services, timelines, and gallery.

What is the team composition?

Our main point of contact is Erica (VP of Operations).

How did you come to work with Artisan Venture Lab?

Our digital marketing coordinator strongly recommended Artisan Venture’s services to us.

How much have you invested with them?

We’ve spent $14,000 on their initial deliverable and pay them a monthly fee that averages to $250.

What is the status of this engagement?

Our ongoing collaboration with Artisan Venture Lab commenced in December 2020.

RESULTS & FEEDBACK

What evidence can you share that demonstrates the impact of the engagement?

We appreciate the smooth website transition made possible by their diligence, expertise, and timeliness. Artisan Venture Lab proactively addresses any issues we encounter, allowing us to move forward from one phase to another. We also appreciate how they respond to our feedback and make valuable suggestions to help optimize our product.

How did Artisan Venture Lab perform from a project management standpoint?

We communicate via email and Zoom meetings. Artisan Venture Lab has on-point project management skills — they respect our timelines, opinions, and budget.

What did you find most impressive about them?

We’re most impressed with their communication skills and ability to deliver results that meet our requirements.

Are there any areas they could improve?

I can’t think of anything that needs improvement. We’ve had a seamless experience so far.

Do you have any advice for potential customers?

Be upfront in setting your expectations and ensure that everyone from your team is on the same page throughout the process.

BACKGROUND

Introduce your business and what you do there.

I’m the executive director of a nonprofit organization. We assist tribes with training and education purposes related to self-governance.

OPPORTUNITY / CHALLENGE

What challenge were you trying to address with Artisan Venture Lab?

We wanted a complete revamp of our website.

SOLUTION

What was the scope of their involvement?

Artisan Venture Lab redesigned and developed our website on WordPress, which included looking at our needs and identifying solutions for important pinpoints that we wanted to implement.

What is the team composition?

We worked with two people from their team, including a project manager and a web developer.

How did you come to work with Artisan Venture Lab?

Someone referred them to me.

How much have you invested with them?

We’ve spent around $50,000 with them so far.

What is the status of this engagement?

We started working together in February 2021, and the engagement is ongoing.

RESULTS & FEEDBACK

What evidence can you share that demonstrates the impact of the engagement?

We’re pleased with the quality of their work. They’ve been on top of the project and take the time to understand what we want. Their proposals and the implementation of them are great.

How did Artisan Venture Lab perform from a project management standpoint?

They meet deadlines and budget ranges. We use Trello, Slack, weekly check-in calls, video conferencing, and emails in terms of communication — they’re very responsive. 

What did you find most impressive about them?

Their vision and ability to understand our needs and develop solutions for us are unique. They worked with us to identify what was the best approach moving forward with our business.

Are there any areas they could improve?

I don’t think there’s anything they can improve on.

Any advice for potential customers?

 Be open to their expertise and communicate with them, so they know what your needs are.

BACKGROUND

Please describe your company and your position there.

I am the Founder + CEO of NUNA Consulting Group, a strategic communications agency specializing in public affairs driven by quantifiable communications strategy. Born and raised in the Los Angeles Beach Cities, she spent over 10 years in Washington, DC serving policy-based organizations at the national level. Founded in 2015, NUNA Consulting Group, LLC is a minority, woman-owned small business headquartered in Los Angeles, California with offices in Washington, D.C. specializing in public affairs driven by quantifiable communications strategy.

OPPORTUNITY / CHALLENGE

For what projects/services did your company hire Artisan Venture Lab, and what were your goals?

We had an initial expedited turn around project to retrofit an outdated governmental website with new security protocols, set up a functional UX and UI experience, as well as ensuring the website had simple editing controls that allowed the end client to update content internally.

SOLUTION

How did you select this vendor and what were the deciding factors?

NUNA leadership have been long-time partners with the founding members of the AVL Team. Not only do we have a similar philosophy to approaching our work, but I knew without a doubt the technical skill, innovation, flexibility in ideation, and ultimate honesty in what will and will not work for your end user is why we continue to come back to the AVL team and execute on projects with our clients. NUNA views AVL as our true web and app development preferred partner and trust them with our business.

Describe the scope of work in detail, including the project steps, key deliverables, and technologies used.

The scope of work entries a complete retrofit on content for governmental website built on WordPress. The AVL team not only met internally with the NUNA team, but also served as part of our client-facing seem, working seamlessly across our project to ensure deliverables and timelines were driving forward throughout the project. We were able to find a hybrid model of a WordPress design with features to ensure ease of use of a membership portal that requires limited techno skill to navigate.

How many people from the vendor's team worked with you, and what were their positions?

We had initial conversations with AVL leadership team before we transitioned to the project team of one project manager and a senior developer we worked closely with throughout the project.

RESULTS & FEEDBACK

Can you share any measurable outcomes of the project or general feedback about the deliverables?

The client was extremely happy with the end product and the easily navigable retrofitted version of the website with clean lines and updated technology that responded faster with low broadband accessibility.

Describe their project management style, including communication tools and timeliness.

Utilizing Slack and weekly check in calls, Trello boards, and round up client emails we were able to work seamlessly across our teams and the clients.

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

AVL has an incredible reputation for being trustworthy and honest with our team. We trust them with some of our most sensitive clients and believe that they deliver superior work product because they are passionate about what they do and believe in doing the right thing.

Are there any areas for improvement or something they could have done differently?

If anything, I believe the timelines were at moments challenging, but could not be helped.

BACKGROUND

Please describe your company and your position there.

I am the founder of the non-profit, SWYFT. SWYFT, which stands for Say What You Feel, Speak What You Think, is a charitable organization that raises awareness and conversations around mental health. Aiming to end the stigma around mental health, along with raising funds through product proceeds and charitable donations.

OPPORTUNITY / CHALLENGE

For what projects/services did your company hire Artisan Venture Lab, and what were your goals?

Our goal was to have AVL Complete a website for our organization. Building our landscape from the ground up. Building a website that would engage and attract customers.

SOLUTION

How did you select Artisan Venture Lab and what were the deciding factors?

AVL was recommended by a mutual acquaintance who had them perform a similar task. AVL also gave a charitable donation to us, decreasing the cost of the overall build.

Describe the scope of work in detail, including the project steps, key deliverables, and technologies used.

We had a kickoff meeting to discuss goals, objectives, and outcomes. We pretty much gave them a blank slate on what we wanted with some website designs that we liked. We wanted them to showcase that our organization was dedicated to giving back to mental health while showcasing our products and mission. We used Slack, Trello, and e-mail to communicate and streamline the communication process.

How many people from the Artisan Venture Lab team worked with you, and what were their positions?

We worked with Erica, the project manager. John, the main developer. Kevin, the president of AVL on the build. Our main communication was through Erica and john during our weekly meetings.

RESULTS & FEEDBACK

Can you share any measurable outcomes of the project or general feedback about the deliverables?

The entirety of our sales after launching the site is thanks to AVL. Without our site, we wouldn’t have our platform to sell our products. When our site launched, that was when we were able to start building our brand.

Describe their project management style, including communication tools and timeliness.

We had weekly meeting with Erica and John where they would update us on where they were at on the site. They would ask our opinions on certain elements of the site and gathered any recommendations we had. We would discuss possibilities over Trello and slack where we could see ongoing tasks, then moving them to the “done” section when completed.

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

How great they were at communicating. They made everything as easy as possible while communicating freely throughout the entire process. Any questions we had they answered. And anything we wanted done I felt they were able to do it. Erica and John are super personable and created an environment where we felt we could complete a website that was fully Functionable that would draw in many customers.

Are there any areas for improvement or something they could have done differently?

This was my first experience with a company like AVL and I don’t believe there is a company that could’ve guided me through the process as good as they did. Everyone was super relatable and personable and guiding throughout the entire experience. I highly recommend them and wouldn’t change a thing about the process.

With the technology and resources they used it made it streamlined and completely attainable to build a website from scratch.

BACKGROUND

Please describe your company and your position there.

We have a consumer product in the outdoor home furnishing space.

OPPORTUNITY / CHALLENGE

For what projects/services did your company hire Artisan Venture Lab, and what were your goals?

We needed a strategic partner to help with company setup, legal, infrastructure setup, full-cycle e-commerce setup, and fulfillment. 

SOLUTION

How did you select this vendor and what were the deciding factors?

This team is the best — both on the service and product development side. They’re smart, buttoned-up, fun, and professional, and good business people focused on growth opportunity and long-term success.

Describe the scope of work in detail, including the project steps, key deliverables, and technologies used.

The AVL team has contributed on the service and product development side.

How many people from the vendor's team worked with you, and what were their positions?

We've worked with the full team at AVL.

RESULTS & FEEDBACK

Can you share any measurable outcomes of the project or general feedback about the deliverables?

We're still in development but excited about the projections we've all looked at and the strategy the AVL team has helped us map.

Describe their project management style, including communication tools and timeliness.

The AVL team is easy to reach, responsive, and great at managing expectations. They deliver all they promise and more.

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

The Artisan Venture Lab's team's experience is impressive and the personal connection and service are great -- they're smart and make work fun.

Are there any areas for improvement or something they could have done differently?

We couldn't ask for a better partner so nothing we'd change or do differently at this point.