Cultivate Brands

BACKGROUND

Introduce your business and what you do there.

I’m the founder of a communications firm that works for a number of nonprofit clients.

OPPORTUNITY / CHALLENGE

What challenge were you trying to address with Cultivate?

We needed help with web development for a small charter school network that serves 2,000 students in Chicago across two high schools, grade 7–12.

We needed a brand refresh to be able to share our vision in a way that was concise and made sense to other people. We also needed to update the structure of our backend system so that our website was easy to maintain and update over time.

SOLUTION

What was the scope of their involvement?

They designed and refreshed our logo. The team took parts of the old logo that we knew we wanted to keep and made it better. They also made it better; the team made another option to have in our back pocket for once COVID-19 is over and we’d want to do a bolder logo swap.  

They also built our new website completely from scratch on WordPress. There’s a ton of images and color that we didn’t have before. It has an easy-to-find update on our response to COVID-19, since this is a public school.

We needed to be able to have that front and center so that families would know that their kids are safe. There are also seven different sections that are pretty deep. Once you happen to learn about a school’s mission and approach and learn about our two different approaches.

They’ve also built interactive forms and ways to express interest that are tailored just for us. That way, if you’re a parent and want more information, there are steps you can take that make it very easy to express their interest.

What is the team composition?

We worked with four people, including two project managers, a backend developer, and  the president of Cultivate. 

How did you come to work with Cultivate?

I’ve worked with them on a bunch of past projects that were really well done. I knew them and trusted. I reached out to them last summer after a proposal.

The examples of their past work were all right and very visually appealing to us and felt in line with the clean and modern approach that we wanted. Their cost also seemed fair and reasonable for the work they were going to do.

How much have you invested with them?

We spent around $48,000 on this project. It was a bargain.

What is the status of this engagement?

We started working together in July 2020, and our work is ongoing with hosting.

RESULTS & FEEDBACK

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

They built us a masterpiece. We went to them having a pretty high need and a relatively short time frame. They offered a lot for what we pay them. We’re a young and growing organization. Because of that, we haven’t put as much attention as we normally would have into tracking the impact of this in the last year or so. 

Anecdotally, we’ve gotten so much unsolicited positive feedback on the website. We have recruited students as we’ve needed to, had new people sign up for our newsletter and an increase in online giving. We also use the site to communicate about our board meetings and announcements. 

We’ve also been able to schedule tours of the school for students to come and shadow other students for visits. It’s also been nice to have the website work for teacher recruitment. On the whole, we’ve had positive feedback about the design and how it encapsulates our brand and culture at the school. It’s useful and efficient; we’ve had no roadblocks.  

How did Cultivate perform from a project management standpoint?

They did really well. We were on an expedited timeline, and they were good about telling us what we needed to do by when. I felt like we were pretty well managed. They had us in a beta website where we could go in and poke around to see what the site would be like live. Otherwise, we used a lot of Google Docs because it’s free and easy. You can also share calendars to manage schedules and editing website language. 

What did you find most impressive about them?

I was excited that they were a fit for this project because their work is so wonderful. It’s very easy to work with them. Cultivate is really good at delivering on the day-to-day of the work. The process was a pleasure and the end result was impressive; it was the perfect combination of things.

Are there any areas they could improve?

I When you do a website or a project like this, the decisions you make impact a cost range they’ve given you. It took me awhile to figure out what the billing was for what aspect of the project was. I had to email them this week to be extra sure that I had the final costs. I want to be clear that this was a very minor thing. 

Do you have any advice for potential customers?

My advice is to think about the pre-work that you can do to identify words or images that describe the brand that you want to communicate as well as the most important aspects of your work. If your timeline is tight, the more thinking you do ahead, it means that you can make the most of the time that you have together. 

BACKGROUND

Introduce your business and what you do there.

I’m the CEO of Albie’s Foods, a frozen calzones and sandwiches manufacturer. We primarily sell our products to school food services in Michigan.

OPPORTUNITY / CHALLENGE

What challenge were you trying to address with Cultivate?

We wanted to expand our customer base, and we wanted to meet the market needs of our current customers, so we brought in Cultivate to help us.

SOLUTION

What was the scope of their involvement?

In order to increase our engagement, grow our customer base, and meet the needs of our clients, Cultivate helped us with a complete brand refresh. They took our branding and messaging to where they needed to be within the marketplace.

First, Cultivate gave us a top-to-bottom pitch with their findings to help us understand what our customers were asking for in the brand, message, and vision of a company like ours. Then, they helped us create a new logo and the branding for our individually wrapped calzones.

Additionally, Cultivate built a new website for us, and they did a complete packaging refresh for our products.

What is the team composition?

I worked with four people from Cultivate. Chris (Co-Founder & Executive Creative Director) was my initial point of contact. Kimberly (Creative Director & Brand Strategist) was my main point of contact. Wally (Design Director) was in charge of the website and all the technology pieces of the branding refresh. Finally, Kristen (Creative Director & Brand Strategist) was in charge of our photography, images, and videos.

How did you come to work with Cultivate?

I’m based in Chicago, and I was looking for someone local whom I could meet with so that they could walk me through the process. I had just come into the company as CEO a few months earlier, so a brand refresh was one of the pillars for changing this company around.

I looked around and got a few recommendations from people. I reached out to 3–4 different brand agencies and listened to their pitches. When I eventually talked to Chris, he was really engaged, and I felt that Cultivate would give us the care that we needed.

After Chris presented his pitch and met our budgetary constraints, he issued a proposal within our budget, and the quality was far better than the other companies.

How much have you invested with them?

We spent around $85,000.

What is the status of this engagement?

We worked from June–November 2020.

RESULTS & FEEDBACK

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

Our sales cycle is really long. Unfortunately, the ultimate metric, revenue growth, won’t be noticeable until the beginning of 2022. However, we’re currently looking at customer acceptance.

As our customers are school districts and the government, they go through a bid process to add our products to their bid. Getting bids on our products is a good initial metric for us. It tells us that we’re providing our customers with something that meets their needs for the following school year.

Cultivate mainly focused on our individually wrapped calzones, creating a subbrand around them. Currently, they’re getting a very high customer acceptance, so we’re really happy about that. Additionally, the customer feedback is nothing but great.

Our new branding has reached across different age groups in schools, from elementary to high school, which is difficult to achieve. Our products are topping the cafeteria line for the kids, engaging them visually no matter their age. Kids want to come back for more, and they tell the cafeteria workers how much they enjoy our product.

In addition to that, our customers think that the new branding and website are useful tools. They no longer need to reach out to us to get nutritional facts or additional information. Now, they can go directly to our website to pull the information and imagery to send them to the parents, which is easy to do and saves them a lot of time.

How did Cultivate perform from a project management standpoint?

Cultivate met all of the deadlines, and the few deadlines that we had to push were because I wanted to change something from what I initially had told them. They were also very flexible, and when I had a change of heart on something, they adapted it and made sure that it was what I wanted.

Cultivate also addressed any challenges and scheduling conflicts immediately, and they were very transparent whenever we ran into bottlenecks throughout the process.

What did you find most impressive about them?

Cultivate strived to understand what our customers were asking for, which was what I ultimately wanted them to do so that they could act upon it. They were really attentive, and although they didn’t have a lot of experience in the school foodservice sector, they wanted to learn, listen, and understand our needs. They did a great job.

Are there any areas they could improve?

If I have to nitpick their work, Cultivate outsourced some of the photography and videography, which caused a delay longer than expected. However, we ultimately met the deadline. Aside from that, there was nothing that needed improvement.

Do you have any advice for potential customers?

Throw all your ideas about your potential needs to them because Cultivate is very creative, and they can connect a lot of your needs and challenges to make them click. I initially didn’t want them to work on a couple of things outside of their scope. However, once we put everything on the table and talked about it, they made it all work together.

If you need them to do anything from the marketing perspective, tell them — they’ll be able to serve you better.

BACKGROUND

Introduce your business and what you do there.

I’m the president of a commercial real estate company. Our main project is redeveloping a 140-acre brownfield site into a 6 million square foot commercial space.

OPPORTUNITY / CHALLENGE

What challenge were you trying to address with Cultivate?

We brought them in to help us raise awareness of our work among members of the community.

SOLUTION

What was the scope of their involvement?

Initially, we brought them in to name our company. Once we settled on a name, they helped us build our brand identity. We had in-depth discussions about what we wanted to communicate to the surrounding community and how we planned to engage with our neighbors. They helped us develop key messaging points, build a website, and create a series of informational videos about our work. These include an overarching design video as well as several brand videos that include members of the community. They’ve also helped us with social media and billboard advertising.

What is the team composition?

My main points of contact are Chris (Co-Founder & Executive Creative Director) and one other member of their team who serves as our video and design specialist. Other members of my team have also worked with other members of their team.

How did you come to work with Cultivate?

I had worked with them in a prior position I held for multiple website design and ad campaign projects. Not only did they deliver high-quality work, but they were easy to work with and helped me articulate difficult-to-understand concepts and ideas. Based on these experiences, I felt comfortable working with them again.

What is the status of this engagement?

We’ve worked together since March 2020.

RESULTS & FEEDBACK

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

Colleagues of mine that I respect have asked for their contact information based on the work they’ve done. To me, that speaks volumes about the quality of their work. Their work has driven a great deal of engagement for us. We’ve been able to set up appointments at our engagement center and start a dialogue with residents in the community.

How did Cultivate perform from a project management standpoint?

When they say they’re going to do something, they get it done. I knew this from my previous work with them and it was a major reason I wanted to bring them in for this project. They’re great with deadlines, with most of our delays coming from our side.

What did you find most impressive about them?

They work diligently to help us communicate the unique aspects of our project. Their practical creativity is really special.

Are there any areas they could improve?

No, I can’t think of anything. We’ve never had to have any uncomfortable performance-related conversations with them. They communicate effectively, so we never have any issues.

Do you have any advice for potential customers?

Go into the process with an open mind. Don’t decide on anything before hearing their creative ideas for your work.

BACKGROUND

Introduce your business and what you do there.

I’m the owner of MJB Restaurant Group. We have restaurants in Miami and LA and are about to open another in Chicago.

OPPORTUNITY / CHALLENGE

What challenge were you trying to address with Cultivate?

We hired Cultivate to help us while we open our newest location in Chicago. The hospitality business can be very one-sided, and there are only a few restaurant groups. I needed help cutting through that noise.

SOLUTION

What was the scope of their involvement?

 I asked Cultivate to build a brand. I needed a younger, more aware crowd to help create a vibe and look for our location in Chicago.

Our first concept is a supper series, and Cultivate’s job was to develop three WordPress websites from scratch.

They took all my jumbled thoughts and created a mission statement that included all things I wanted to accomplish. Being a black- and female-owned restaurant group, we needed a partner that wasn’t afraid to approach those topics and demographics, and Cultivate really helped with that.

I also have another partner that supports my visual identity, and Cultivate went as far as to help her sort out her ideas in order to create a more cohesive logo and branding situation.

What is the team composition?

At the beginning, most of my meetings involved ownership, but then he phased himself out and my team leader took over.

How did you come to work with Cultivate?

I was working with another partner, but, unfortunately, that didn’t work out. I started Googling the best branding company in Chicago who works for restaurant. It took a few weeks to find Cultivate, but after one meeting with their co-owner, I decided that his honesty was really valuable and that’s who I wanted to work with.

How much have you invested with them?

We’ve spent $30,000–$40,000.

What is the status of this engagement?

We started working together in June 2020 and the site went live in September that year.  We’re in a slow period right now, but plan to continue our partnership.

RESULTS & FEEDBACK

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

They created a website that is beautiful, cohesive, and smart. People who came to our first supper series mentioned how much I got from the website. They clearly understood what I was trying to convey and thought the website was beautiful. Through this project, I learned how important it is to work with a quality agency like Cultivate.

How did Cultivate perform from a project management standpoint?

They’re communicative, on-time, and focused. As the owner, it’s easy to be flaky, but they always follow up and keep me in line.

What did you find most impressive about them?

Their reach and ability to get it done when they say they’re going to is what stands out. Also, the cost is great. I was nervous about the price, but they’re efficient and understanding, so they’re completely worth the cost.

Are there any areas they could improve?

No, they’ve done a really good job. I don’t have any complaints.

Do you have any advice for potential customers?

Be prepared to engage with them a lot. Being accessible is really important.

BACKGROUND

Introduce your business and what you do there.

I’m the CEO of Early Autism Services. We provide home clinic and school-based services to young children with autism, so applied behavior analysis with intensive developmental therapy.

OPPORTUNITY / CHALLENGE

What challenge were you trying to address with Cultivate?

Initially, we brought them in to do a brand refresh. We’d been utilizing the same logo and materials for quite a few years, so they felt stale. We enjoyed the way that Cultivate worked and engaged them again to solve a different challenge.

We wanted to develop an internal app for our clinical staff to utilize during their sessions. Our technicians and clinicians had difficulty taking data during their sessions. They take 200–300 data points each session. Previously, our technicians and clinicians used pencil and paper while trying to work with a young child. We also can’t bill for set up, so it was an inefficiency issue too.

SOLUTION

What was the scope of their involvement?

Cultivate refreshed our logo and clarified our messaging. They interviewed key staff to get to the heart of what we wanted to communicate publicly. Their team put together messaging and materials aimed at pediatricians and diagnosticians to explain who we are and what we do in a clear and concise way. They looked at our website and made sure that anything public-facing matched.

We asked them to develop an app for us so that with just a push of a button, the clinician can go about their work and aggregate data. We asked them to take our process and map that onto the iPad. They took a clear look at our clinical process and created a 200–250-page binder with all of our programs and mapped our process. There are a clinical component and an administrative component of the platform. They delivered the first eight versions of the clinical iOS app, but we have a roadmap for the next year to continue to improve and add functionality to the product.

What is the team composition?

There were two people leading the project and other folks in the backend who helped build products. Jenny (Project Manager & UI/UX & Developer) is our main point of contact.

How did you come to work with Cultivate?

They came highly recommended. It came down to them and another firm. We were impressed with both companies, but the personal referral put Cultivate over the top.

How much have you invested with them?

Between the two projects, we’ve spent about $300,000.

What is the status of this engagement?

We initially engaged Cultivate in 2018 and the engagement’s ongoing.

RESULTS & FEEDBACK

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

What they delivered to us is so much cleaner than anything else in the market. We’ve gained about 7% efficiency from the app on every single session that we run. The impact of that financially has been incredible. It was obviously a big spend upfront, but it’s already paid for itself.

Our marketing director’s happy with the messaging and branding that Cultivate created. Their tweaks made everything feel fresher and more relevant. Our team has been impressed with the dedication that the Cultivate team showed to understanding who we are and what we wanted to accomplish.

How did Cultivate perform from a project management standpoint?

They created timelines for the projects. Their team is easy to reach by phone or e-mail. With the initial project launches, we had bugs or glitches that made clinicians in the field frantic. As soon as Cultivate heard about an issue, they’d get on the issue and fixed it fast. They’re responsive and personable, so it’s easy to work closely with them.

What did you find most impressive about them?

They took the time to understand the project from a clinician’s perspective. Their team made sure that the app felt immediately natural to an end user.

Are there any areas they could improve?

They’re not a huge operation. On the first day, we had 450 people utilizing the platform. Users were supposed to push suggestions right over to the Cultivate team. When there were suddenly people pushing through comments or fixes, they got overwhelmed.

Do you have any advice for potential customers?

Get Jenny on your team. She’s wonderful. It’s always good to interview a few firms. Cultivate’s a great firm to work with if you’re looking for a personal, close experience.

BACKGROUND

Introduce your business and what you do there.

I’m the president of a concrete construction company.

OPPORTUNITY / CHALLENGE

What challenge were you trying to address with Cultivate?

We wanted to become more visible both in our sector of the market and for developers upstream from us. We typically work for general contractors directly and name recognition has been a challenge for us in the past. We needed to be recognizable for the developers, owners, the community and real estate market.

SOLUTION

What was the scope of their involvement?

We did a full rebrand, which involved refreshing our logo. They modernized it and streamlines it so we could use it for social media and online advertising. We also revised our name so the services we offer would be clear to potential customers. Again, all of this was centered around trying to be more visible and clearer to our client base.

Later on, we focused on social media and general marketing. Then, they helped refresh our site’s look. Although it was pretty structurally sound, it just needed some aesthetic updates. Finally, they supplemented the site and our social media with photography and new videos. They created several short videos that lasted from 30 seconds to two minutes.

Now we’re working on something for our company’s 90th anniversary celebrations. They’re helping us with the marketing materials, a tag line, and a graphic logo for the celebration.

What is the team composition?

Chris (Chief Creative Officer & Co-Founder, Cultivate) is the project lead, but we’ve also worked closely with Mark (President & CO-Founder, Cultivate). We also met with their lead in charge of branding.

How did you come to work with Cultivate?

Our ready-mix supplier worked with Cultivate before. So, we had seen some of the work they’ve done, and in a parallel industry to ours. We knew that they could handle the construction industry well.

What is the status of this engagement?

We began working together in January 2019 and our work is ongoing.

RESULTS & FEEDBACK

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

We've seen an increase in our employee engagements, which was a bit of a surprise. Specifically, tradesmen are looking at different pictures and are engaging with our updates.

We’ve also gained a huge following on social media. In particular, LinkedIn has been a huge resource for the construction and architecture community. It’s easy for us to target our ads towards developers.

How did Cultivate perform from a project management standpoint?

We communicate by phone, email, or text. I appreciate that they’re able to act on things quickly. They’re flexible and don’t require a formalized process. This really is a compliment to them. I can just shoot them a text, and they’ll act. They’re easy to work with and we have a great working relationship.

What did you find most impressive about them?

They're very good people. From a culture standpoint, you can tell that they're very well managed and they have just they work with a level of integrity.

They definitely gravitate towards doing a higher-end and very high-quality stuff. They want to do everything to the very best. That's a really good thing because their production value is very high.

Are there any areas they could improve?

Sometimes we struggle to communicate the size of the project we’re looking for. If we want to do something very small with a strict budget, they sometimes propose something more grand and larger in scale than what we’re looking for. They just need to have realistic expectations for the work we do and stay within the constraints we outline.

BACKGROUND

Introduce your business and what you do there.

I’m the president of a building material supplier. We're a family business mainly operating in the Midwest.

OPPORTUNITY / CHALLENGE

What challenge were you trying to address with Cultivate?

We've worked with Cultivate since the beginning of their company. They have helped us communicate our story and our values, and they've helped connect us with them through different digital mediums. Their work included video content and help with branding.

SOLUTION

What was the scope of their involvement?

Their main projects for us have been brand campaigns. They developed an understanding of us and our story, and then they distilled that into tools to communicate with our customers, our co-workers, and the broader communities that we touch.

Their deliverables have been a mix of video content, online digital content including website design, and some print collateral. In addition, a lot of our branding efforts and communication of our story and values have been assisted by their deliverables, including color, brand, videography, and photography.

What is the team composition?

It’s a smaller shop and my main points of contact are Mark (President and Co-Founder, Cultivate) and Chris (Chief Creative Officer). I appreciate that aspect.

How did you come to work with Cultivate?

We had a relationship with the founders that went way back.

How much have you invested with them?

We’ve spent over $1 million.

What is the status of this engagement?

We started working with them in 2010 and the engagement is ongoing.

RESULTS & FEEDBACK

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

We’ve seen significant improvement in brand awareness. That has led to the attraction of people to come to work for us. And it’s also opened doors with prospective clients. I would say it led to doors opening with government officials and other people with whom we're trying to work in the community.

How did Cultivate perform from a project management standpoint?

We always have a point of contact on their side. A lot of our communication is done in person because their office is not too far from ours. We can otherwise get in touch by phone or email. They’re very responsive.

What did you find most impressive about them?

Their product is a cut above the rest. From what I see in the marketplace, they have a very strong eye for the look of things. They offer high-quality content. When it comes to brand management, they're able to find the unique characteristics of the organization in a way that others are not able to.

Are there any areas they could improve?

They have very strong convictions about their work. They could do a better job negotiating the customer’s preferences against their strong convictions.

Do you have any advice for potential customers?

I think it's good to communicate well and be very honest and candid about what the expectations are. I think that people should be pleased.

BACKGROUND

Introduce your business and what you do there.

I am a pastor and the executive director of Roseland Christian Ministries, a nonprofit on the South Side of Chicago. We operate several entities, including a church, a women and children’s shelter, a thrift store, and a daily program which helps to feed the homeless.

OPPORTUNITY / CHALLENGE

What challenge were you trying to address with Cultivate?

We recognized that we needed a better way to communicate our objectives to our donors and members of our organization. We engaged Cultivate initially thinking about a new website, but the engagement grew to include a new brand strategy and marketing materials.

SOLUTION

What was the scope of their involvement?

We started with a four-hour discovery session with their team and several members of our organization and people in the community. After a few weeks, Cultivate presented us with their findings and interpretations of our identity. Together, we refined our visual presence and overall brand strategy with our identity in mind. Cultivate’s branding work made its way into our marketing collateral, a new logo, and an overhauled website, which also featured some beautiful photography.

What is the team composition?

Nathan (Strategist, Cultivate) and Chris (Co-Founder/Chief Creative Officer, Cultivate) were our primary contacts, but Wally (Web Lead, Cultivate) and Melissa (Photographer, Cultivate) were also prominent during our project.

How did you come to work with Cultivate?

I know the Cultivate founders from college, so I’ve been familiar with their work for a long time. We had worked with Cultivate about 15 years ago, as well, and I think we were one of their first clients then. We had changed a lot in that time, but we were confident in choosing them because they knew a little about us already.

How much have you invested with them?

We spent about $50,000.

What is the status of this engagement?

Our project spanned September–December 2018.

RESULTS & FEEDBACK

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

Thanks to Cultivate’s work, we can tell our story better. We can now project a clearer sense of who we are and what our objectives are. We go into meetings with donors and potential sponsorship partners, and we have a lot of confidence in how we talk about ourselves. That’s turned into support for the ministry, which has allowed us to have more of an impact in the community. 

How did Cultivate perform from a project management standpoint?

Cultivate worked quickly and efficiently. There was never any time when we were anxious about the project because we couldn’t reach them. They provided concise and consistent communication.

What did you find most impressive about them?

This was a significant amount of money for us to spend, but it has paid off almost immediately in terms of how we communicate with our donors. Because we have been so successful with some of our older donors, we plan to engage Cultivate to help us devise a communication strategy for people who are 15–25 years old. Cultivate has our full confidence and excitement moving forward. 

Are there any areas they could improve?

The only time we experienced any tension during the project was when some members of our team were unsure if their input on the new logo was being heard. I could understand if Cultivate believed that too many voices would compromise the process, however. In the end, we’re still very happy with the finished product.

Do you have any advice for potential customers?

Part of the creative process is to push their team so that you have the best outcome, so don’t be afraid to do that. However, it’s also important to trust their professional abilities and instincts.

BACKGROUND

Introduce your business and what you do there.

We are the oldest commercial general contractor in Chicago metropolitan area. We specialize in commercial interiors. I am the COO.

OPPORTUNITY / CHALLENGE

What challenge were you trying to address with Cultivate?

We decided to do a brand and message refresh in our marketplace. We’ve been around since 1879 and have built up a tremendous identity, but wanted to appeal to our changing industry and keep up with societal shifts.

SOLUTION

What was the scope of their involvement?

We didn’t want to wipe the slate clean and start from scratch. We wanted to maintain the continuity of our image but refresh and modernize it. They made subtle but important changes our logo, emblem, and marketing materials. The new materials are still grounded in our company’s history but look phenomenal and fresh.

They completely rebuilt our website, with tremendous consideration to our brand. They met with us several times to go over drafts and ideas for the format and structure of our proposals, our stationary, and our staff clothing and uniforms.

What is the team composition?

We had a main point of contact, Nate (Strategist, Cultivate), and six or seven other team members. We had one wordsmith who came up with all the language we used and the whole team worked on the creative side and on the website.

How did you come to work with Cultivate?

Our marketing director had some experience working with Cultivate at a previous employer. She set up the initial meeting with them where we discussed our goals. We liked what they had to offer and kicked off what became an eight-month process.

How much have you invested with them?

We spent around $50,000–$65,000 on the whole project, including their fees and some ancillary costs for associated materials.

What is the status of this engagement?

We started in late January or early February 2018. We wrapped up the site refresh in August 2018 and just finished some marketing strategy sessions in September 2018.

RESULTS & FEEDBACK

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

We just introduced all their work into the marketplace, so we don’t have any metrics yet. Our marketing director has analytics software built into the site, so we’ll have a better idea of the impact after a few months of monitoring our visitors and pageviews.

Cultivate is very talented and was absolutely spectacular throughout this big undertaking. They were patient with us, understanding, and great to work with. We were impressed by their approach; they let us take the lead and share our vision.

How did Cultivate perform from a project management standpoint?

They do a fantastic job and I give them top marks for their work. Most of our communication was through phone, email, and in meetings. They brought great talent and the right skillset to the process. Their fees were very fair and they presented all their costs upfront in a detailed list. I was very pleased with the financial component.

What did you find most impressive about them?

Their temperament makes them very easy to work with. They always put our interests first and they were fantastic listeners. We had a big team on our side and they heard all of us. They responded to all our requests, gave good ideas, and made appropriate suggestions. We got exactly what we wanted and couldn’t be happier with the results.

Are there any areas they could improve?

Based on our experience, I can’t think of anything they should change. They put a lot of time and effort into the project, met with us often, and fielded a lot of our ideas. They handled the whole process tremendously well.

BACKGROUND

Introduce your business and what you do there.

I’m the executive director for an art and design school. We have about 3,600 students on our campus, which includes undergrad and graduate programs relating to fine arts, design, architecture, fashion, film, and sound.

OPPORTUNITY / CHALLENGE

What challenge were you trying to address with Cultivate?

I needed help with a fundraising campaign. The specific challenge was our 150th-anniversary gala. We had about two minutes to announce a campaign and to emotionally connect all of these people who are in this first-ever gala for the school. We needed help to create a video to help attendees understand that we had a campaign and a need and that they were connected to that need and could help solve it.

SOLUTION

What was the scope of their involvement?

They created a brief, and we discussed different styles and format. They presented us with concepts, and we reviewed them and moved forward with the project. They helped us with three separate videos throughout the campaign. Two of them were shown at galas.

How did you come to work with Cultivate?

At my first employer, one of my colleagues found Cultivate. They helped us with some fundraising-related videos, and we traveled with them to international locations to capture these incredible stories related to the work we were doing. They approached subjects who were critical to us with great respect. We had strong and important relationships, and they were sensitive to them and helped to amplify and build the relationships through the video development. I knew that they would be good working in any environment.

I moved on to another organization, and I worked with them there as well on some advertising and videos. Then, I brought them here to the school. I’ve adored working with them over the years.

What is the status of this engagement?

We started working together in 2010 and the work is ongoing.

RESULTS & FEEDBACK

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

We exceeded our goal. We had an extremely successful campaign. We raised more than $1 million from the first gala. Their video was a part of that. We raised over $600,000 from our closing party, and they were part of that.

People who saw the first video that featured one of our students still talk about her and the story that they told. Cultivate encouraged us to focus on one individual and they helped us land on a great story. It was extremely effective.

How did Cultivate perform from a project management standpoint?

They’re transparent about the process. They articulate immediately at the onset of a project what the timeline looks like, what the budget constraints are going to be, and how they’ll work within them. They’ve always met their deliverables.

On a couple of projects, we had some artistic differences on editing style at the very end. Nonprofit organizations tend to have a layer of collaborative review, which means many people give their feedback, resulting in more rounds of edits. It can be challenging for third-party vendors to go through that process. Cultivate has always taken it in great stride and communicated clearly what the impacts will be on deadlines. They’ve worked hard to make sure that we’re able to deliver what we need to deliver. I appreciate that.

What did you find most impressive about them?

I enjoy their openness to take direction and to modify designs or ideas. For the most part, they present fantastic thinking. I’m always impressed by what they present as initial concepts. When we make changes, they’re normally just tonality issues to make sure that we get our audience exactly where they need to be and meet them where they’re at.

They bring a unique perspective. They understand the mission, identity, core tonality, and sensibility of an institution quickly. That’s something you can’t get easily from a lot of vendors. In nonprofit worlds, it’s especially important when you’re working on fundraising.

When they interact with important people and deal with the sensitive matter of those personal stories, they work with our people in a way that helps me build the relationships with those individuals long after the video is completed or our work is done.

Are there any areas they could improve?

They’ve been expanding their focus to not just do video production. The direct impact is they’re professionalizing their work which involves having more people on site and on shoots, which expands their costs. Working with them to work with our budgets so that we don’t need so many people on every shoot would be helpful.