Compete Now

BACKGROUND

Please describe your company and your position there.

The EBC, a nonprofit organization, was established in 1990 by environmental and energy company executives who began meeting on a regular basis to exchange ideas and share experiences. The EBC was the first organization in the United States established to support and foster the development of the environmental industry. Our goal is to enhance business and job growth of both established and emerging environmental and energy businesses. I work as the Director of Programs and Membership for the EBC.

OPPORTUNITY / CHALLENGE

For what projects/services did your company hire Compete Now, and what were your goals?

The EBC website was roughly 7-8 years old, and a lot of the widgets, plug-ins, etc., were not functioning correctly. Also, the website itself was due for a complete revamp. The goal was to have a new website that still had the same purpose, but that was easier to navigate, looked fresher, and was purposeful in achieving EBC's mission.

SOLUTION

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

EBC had submitted an RFP and Compete Now had responded. The deciding factor was the quality of care they had put into the proposal, along with the referrals and reviews they provided.

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

CompeteNow was tasked with taking our old website and completely redeveloping it into a fresher, more functioning one. They had to take a ton of information and merge it into the new website, style it, edit the links, and make it match our intended look. First step was modeling the new website. Second step was selecting the new color scheme. Third step was designing the site itself. Fourth step was merging the information. Fifth step was troubleshooting the merge. Sixth step was tweaking the designs. Seventh step was going live. Eighth step was maintenance. We used Zoom for our meetings, and kept on track with email invites.

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

EBC worked with Donato, a founder, his brother, Garrett, a founder and developer, and Adam, the creative designer.

RESULTS & FEEDBACK

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

The deliverables were fantastic. Any tweak needed was made, any little nuisance preference was welcome. The website looked fantastic and our membership was very satisfied. The calendar of events works much better than before. The membership join page functions more effectively. The membership directory is now connected to our member database. The list goes on and on.

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

EBC used Zoom and Basecamp. CompeteNow set us up with Basecamp, but it was easy enough to complete tasks with weekly meeting. Their project management style was client-oriented. They really listened to our needs and mission.

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

The most impressive trait about CompeteNow is their industry knowledge of website development, as well as their ability to take what we imagined and bring it to life. They were also very patient with us.

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

I honestly don't think so. We are set up now and it was really a breeze. I don't even have to think about it!

BACKGROUND

Please describe your company and your position there.

I am the CEO and Founder of Ultimate Assistant Training & Consulting Inc.

OPPORTUNITY / CHALLENGE

For what projects/services did your company hire Compete Now, and what were your goals?

I needed a new website for my business which is training and speaking. My last website was created in 2016 and I was in great need of an updated look and feel.

SOLUTION

How did you select Compete Now and what were the deciding factors?

Compete Now was strongly recommended to me by our Marketing Strategist Shelly Berman-Rubera. Once we had a meeting with Donato Dandreo, it was clear he knew what he was doing and that my new website would be in good hands. He asked great questions and really listened to my answers. Our decision was based less on price than on competence and skills. The price was very competitive.

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

We used a Wordpress theme and began from scratch. We used Zoom to meet weekly and email to keep one another updated on our progress.

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

Donato Dandreo was the Project Manager and Garrett Dandreo was the Production Manager. Communication was seamless and timely.

RESULTS & FEEDBACK

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

We launched the website on Aug 26, 2020 and I posted the news on LinkedIn. We are over 6,000 views for that post and the engagement/feedback on the site has been overwhelmingly positive. We are experiencing an increase in traffic to the site.

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

All meetings for the 14-week project were booked on Zoom ahead of time. We used email to communicate between Zoom meetings and it worked very well. They were extremely organized and responsive to questions and concerns.

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

Creating a new website with 34 pages and lots of images and animations can be a stressful endeavor. Donato and Garrett both have low key and calm demeanors. They were determined to solve any issue that came along and they did!

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

No. They did what they said they would do and I am delighted with their skills, talents, and customer service.

BACKGROUND

Please describe your company and your position there.

Operations Manager at the Greater Lynn Chamber of Commerce.

OPPORTUNITY / CHALLENGE

For what projects/services did your company hire Compete Now, and what were your goals?

Our website was outdated and certain aspects were no longer functional. We needed a complete overhaul with brand new, interactive features and an updated look.

SOLUTION

How did you select Compete Now and what were the deciding factors?

Compete Now is a longstanding member of the Greater Lynn Chamber of Commerce and has created great websites for some of our members prior to developing our new site.

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

We started with discussing what we wanted the overall look and feel of the site to be. The Compete Now team put together wire-frames, examples of other sites who were had a similar look and other helpful visuals.

This was our first time working with a team to build a site from scratch, so it was a bit overwhelming at first. Donato and Garrett took time to simplify things and made the process easy.

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

We worked mainly with Donato, president of Compete Now, and Garrett, web designer and client manager.

RESULTS & FEEDBACK

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

Our new site has tons of interactive features that were lacking before. Our members are now able to control the content they include on our site, which is great.

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

The team was very organized, using Basecamp to keep track of all our notes and tasks.

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

This was the first time our team had gone through the process of creating a new site. The Compete Now team made everything simple and gave us exactly what we were looking for.

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

No, we felt everything went smoothly.

BACKGROUND

Please describe your company and your position there.

We are a nonprofit community health center that serves about 22,000 patients a year. We operate in the Dorchester neighborhood of Boston.

OPPORTUNITY / CHALLENGE

For what projects/services did your company hire Compete Now?

We hired Compete now to completely create our website and Intranet.

What were your goals for this project?

We wanted a website and intranet that was easy to navigate, was search engine optimized, and would attract new patients as well as serve as a great resource for our current patients.

SOLUTION

How did you select this vendor?

We sought three bids. Compete Now came in lowest price and were easy to work with during the bid process.

Describe the project and the services they provided in detail.

We told them what we needed on our website, and they created a plan and built it. They also migrated everything from our old site over. In addition, they created our intranet.

What was the team composition?

Donato, who runs the company, and Adam, who is the visual designer. Donato's colleague, Garret, joined for a meeting or two about our intranet.

RESULTS & FEEDBACK

Can you share any information that demonstrates the impact that this project has had on your business?

One of the features we put on our website was "request an appointment." We got 45 requests within the first two days of launching the site!

How was project management arranged and how effective was it?

During our kick-off meeting, Donato scheduled every meeting we would hold, what each meeting would cover, and what was required for each meeting all the way out until launch day. This was incredibly helpful because it held them and us accountable to a specific schedule. It was also helpful in November to be able to say to colleagues "the new website will launch on or about March 14." He also has project management software so that we could all keep up with tasks.

What did you find most impressive about this company?

What I found most impressive was how good they were at the scheduling and project management aspect of the project. They were a few minutes early to every meeting. They always said at the end of each weekly meeting what they would complete and what we would need to complete for the next weeks and upcoming weeks. They are also very knowledgeable about the web platform we are using (Word Press), and truly know it inside and out. They have an understanding of the various plug-ins, and could make suggestions. In addition, Donato and company showed a genuine interest and curiosity about our business, which was very helpful in getting the best product, as well as feeling like we had a true partner in the project.

Are there any areas for improvement?

It would be good to get faster turnaround for questions. Sometimes, I felt like we were limited to only speaking during our weekly calls. Not all the time, but sometimes.

BACKGROUND

Introduce your business and what you do there.

I’m the chief relationship officer for AEI Speakers Bureau, a lecture agency that works with different types of speakers to bring them to different organizations.

OPPORTUNITY / CHALLENGE

What challenge were you trying to address with Compete Now?

We needed a partner to revamp our website, rebrand our company, and also manage our SEO.

SOLUTION

What was the scope of their involvement?

Compete Now created a new logo and developed an entirely new WordPress website, pulling in source material from our original one so we didn’t have to redo all of the content, such as our speakers’ bios, photos, and other information. The new homepage now allows us to toggle between speakers more easily, and the site has a live chat feature. Compete Now also helped with videos, enabling us to both upload them to our site and embed them from our YouTube channel. Before, we could only have one video per speaker, but now they can have up to five.

Beyond that, they’ve also made the site more functional. For example, they built a digital signature feature so that our clients can open, view, and sign contracts through the site. They also added two other forms to the site for clients to fill out. The SEO work is ongoing, and Compete Now mainly focuses on Google Ads and AdRoll. They currently provide quarterly maintenance to make sure everything is running smoothly.

What is the team composition?

The company founder is our main point of contact, and we work with about five others.

How did you come to work with Compete Now?

Our IT company referred them. We wanted someone local, and we liked their work, so we hired them.

How much have you invested with them?

We’ve spent over $20,000.

What is the status of this engagement?

We partnered in September 2016, and the work is ongoing.

RESULTS & FEEDBACK

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

We’ve gotten more leads that are better quality, and site traffic has also increased.

How did Compete Now perform from a project management standpoint?

They typically hit deadlines and resolve any delays in a timely manner. If we ever have a problem, they’re quick to respond—we don’t have to wait until our next scheduled call or meeting. They have regular check-ins and status updates, letting us make any necessary adjustments.

What did you find most impressive about them?

We tried redoing the website with a different provider, but they never delivered anything substantive. Compete Now, on the other hand, delivered a great-looking website that functions well. They’re highly communicative and offer lots of great suggestions when we aren’t sure what to do.

Are there any areas they could improve?

I can’t think of any ways they could improve. They're doing pretty great.

Do you have any advice for future clients of theirs?

Compare them to other vendors and you’ll see how great they are. Invest in the relationship because they’re friendly and helpful.

BACKGROUND

Please describe your company and your position there.

Business Development Manager at Insurance Agency

OPPORTUNITY / CHALLENGE

For what projects/services did your company hire Compete Now?

Design/create entire new website

What were your goals for this project?

Improve internet driven business, seo search, google results, etc..

SOLUTION

How did you select this vendor?

Saw him present at a Chamber of Commerce event, he also was highly referred.

Describe the project and the services they provided in detail.

Helped us create a beautiful and effective new website. The new business and online leads we receive have increased significantly. He also maintains the website for us and helps with our analytics.

What was the team composition?

Donato ran the show and was our main contact, but there was also a few other very helpful people on his team that assisted with day to day task, they were all a pleasure to work with.

RESULTS & FEEDBACK

Can you share any information that demonstrates the impact that this project has had on your business?

Our online business has significantly grown, as well as were we rank in all online/search analytics.

How was project management arranged and how effective was it?

Comprehensive meetings in person and over the phone, very effective.

What did you find most impressive about this company?

Donato! The customer service, expertise, everything. He took the time to understand our business and created something that worked for us.

Are there any areas for improvement?

Can't think of any.