Direct Online Marketing

BACKGROUND

Please describe your company and position.

I am the Sales Director of Lakota Software Solutions Inc

Describe what your company does in a single sentence.

We develop custom biometric solutions.

OPPORTUNITY / CHALLENGE

What specific goals or objectives did you hire Direct Online Marketing to accomplish?

• To manage our SEO project

SOLUTION

How did you find Direct Online Marketing?

I met the owner of the company at an event

Why did you select Direct Online Marketing over others?

• High ratings
• Close to my geographic location
• Pricing fit our budget
• Great culture fit
• Good value for cost
• Company values aligned

How many teammates from Direct Online Marketing were assigned to this project?

6-10 Employees

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

DOM completely implemented and managed our SEO improvement project. They improved website pages, rewrote webpage content, wrote blog posts, and created other relevant content to help us improve our Google search rankings against our competitors' pages.

RESULTS & FEEDBACK

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

We received reports from DOM, using Semrush and Google Analytics, illustrating our webpage ranking improvements against our competitors

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

Their PM held weekly tag-up meetings with me and provided follow-up action items for us. They were very timely and professional in every facet of the project. They continually provided first-class service and always made sure to keep us informed and aligned with the project.

What was your primary form of communication with Direct Online Marketing?

• Virtual Meeting
• Email or Messaging App

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

DOM's entire team provided first-class service throughout the project. They dedicated team members to each aspect of the SEO improvement project, and they all proved to be experts in their respective fields. They always helped answer questions and never hesitated to go above and beyond the scope of work. The team was friendly and easy to work with throughout the entire process!

Are there any areas for improvement or something Direct Online Marketing could have done differently?

No, they did more than what was expected!

BACKGROUND

Please describe your company and your position there.

I am the Marketing Client Account Manager for online programs.

OPPORTUNITY / CHALLENGE

For what projects/services did your company hire Direct Online Marketing, and what were your goals?

We partnered with Direct Online Marketing on an SEO project for our website in hopes of improving our organic search performance.

SOLUTION

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

At the time the decision was made by the Marketing Director based on interviews with both DOM and former clients. Competency was the deciding factor.

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

The experience is what you would want from an agency, professional, effective, and results-focused. We were provided a team who managed us as well as themselves. The content was evaluated and rewritten, key performance indicators tracked, and reports created with our questions in mind.

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

We predominantly work with our project lead who keeps us informed and on track while our technical lead helps us understand what we are seeing and why. Other members of the team are brought in when needed. We feel we have a full team every step of the way. They have been very customer-focused.

RESULTS & FEEDBACK

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

Our organic traffic continues to improve. We have been able to see the impact of our work weekly but the final results have yet to be evaluated. I'm confident the work we have done will continue to impact our site's organic performance.

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

DOM uses a structured approach. We were assigned a team and introduced to them. Our project lead meets with us weekly to ensure we stay on track. Other team members attended our meetings as needed based on the work being done at the time. We maintain a Slack channel where we ask questions of any team member at any time. Custom Google Data Studio reports were created for our project and we receive monthly progress reviews.

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

Above all else, the team has been flexible. They've helped us accomplish unexpected tasks with our website when we have no one else to help us. Noting was out of scope, we simply negotiated around the confines of the contract and DOM made it work.

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

I am unable to think of anything we would have asked to be done differently.

BACKGROUND

Introduce your business and what you do there.

I’m the senior product manager of the advanced robotics manufacturing institute. We’re one of 16 manufacturing institutes set up by the federal government to help US-based manufacturers be more competitive. We do this through the dissemination of technology, which, in our case, is robotics technology, as well as workforce development solutions.

OPPORTUNITY / CHALLENGE

What challenge were you trying to address with Direct Online Marketing?

We’ve created a service that helps individuals connect with education and training opportunities in robotics and in their careers at large. Our institute doesn’t have a large marketing budget, so we needed help raising awareness of our free resources.

SOLUTION

What was the scope of their involvement?

We chose to go with SEO and content marketing to build awareness of our services. Direct Online helps us create blog posts and identify keywords to help Google effectively index our website. They’ve helped write articles about what robotics careers look like, how robotics competitions work, and more. They’ve been very helpful in navigating appropriate keywords to select and focus on through data analysis.

What is the team composition?

We work with around five individuals: a project manager, a senior digital marketing specialist, a senior client success manager, and a number of other specialists.

How did you come to work with Direct Online Marketing?

My manager engaged them initially, and we’ve been working with them ever since. It was based on previous relationships that we signed with them.

What is the status of this engagement?

We’ve been working together since August 2020.

RESULTS & FEEDBACK

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

Our website is structured so that we have over 15,000 programs that are searchable to users, and it’s built in such a way that it’s easy to find those that are closest to you. Direct Online had the suggestion that we make them searchable by geography, and that has been very valuable.

The volume of traffic coming to our site has steadily grown, as we can see through google analytics. In terms of visits, the site has grown; we’re now getting coverage in all 50 states. This is vitally important to us as a manufacturing institute, as we serve all parts of the US. We’ve also seen an increase in our rankings as we get more and more first-page placements.

How did Direct Online Marketing perform from a project management standpoint?

They have a very structured weekly format with calls, emails, and more. We’re never in doubt as to what the current tasks are that they’re working on. We take a monthly look at the performance of the website as well. We also communicate over Zoom.

What did you find most impressive about them?

Their project management approach is very systematic and proactive. Their understanding and knowledge of search engine behavior and approaches stand out. They also have a deep understanding of how to create the kind of content that will resonate with readers. They’ve gained this by staying on top of trends. Their expertise is highly specialized.

Are there any areas they could improve?

No, not that I can think of.

Do you have any advice for potential customers?

It’s important to regularly share your plan with Direct Online to help them understand who you are. Giving them information on product and marketing initiatives will help make the relationship a success.

BACKGROUND

Please describe your company and your position there.

Single-facility private mental health care rehab. I lead the in-house website management and SEO plan.

OPPORTUNITY / CHALLENGE

For what projects/services did your company hire Direct Online Marketing, and what were your goals?

While we are confident of our in-house abilities, there simply are not enough hours in the day. We have quite a bit of historical optimization needed and want to be kept informed on the newest strategies and be able to consult with experts for upcoming projects/expansions.

SOLUTION

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

After speaking with many SEO companies we were becoming frustrated with the number of sales we were being pitched - every one of them seemed only interested in getting a hold of our PPC and didn't offer any innovative ideas or be offering the 'in-the-weeds' SEO work we were looking for.

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

DirectOM created a plan for weekly metrics, including a number of historical optimizations completed each week, schema mark-up completed, manual backlink outreach, and more. This plan has shifted based on the website's needs and our requests for them to focus on upcoming/emerging topics. Part of the scope has also been that they make themselves available for consultation on general and specific updates to the site.

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

We've worked with a handful of people from DirectOM and have gotten to know our dedicated team quite well. I personally meet weekly with Carla and Jordyn. I also worked with Robbie for quite some time and regularly consulted with Jonathan (Bentz) for higher-level SEO strategy. Justin - The president also has been in regular contact.

RESULTS & FEEDBACK

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

We've been working with them for a little over 2 years. Comparing a month this year to last year, our organic traffic has increased by over 150%, and, more importantly, our conversions have increased nearly at the same pace.

I can't think of a time that the weekly deliverables haven't been met, and we've been chugging along on this very large site's historical optimization for quite some time, making vast improvements to the site. We've also certainly met our expectations in trying new strategies/technology - implementing many new features I would have never considered.

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

I meet with 2 of the people dedicated to our account each week and feel very comfortable asking for help from any of the experts in their company. I've never felt nickel-and-dimed by them. Their services are easily scalable and very professional.

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

One of the most important aspects to us has been that we have a segmented team at our disposal to do some of the heavy liftings without constantly needing to fend off their attempts to 'take over' the whole SEO operation. This is a struggle I've found myself in with just about every SEO company, but from the beginning, our relationship with DirectOM was much different.

We were clear on what we wanted - they immediately understood and came alongside us to get the work done. They've never been pushy about their services and because of that, we are very comfortable coming to them asking for their honest opinion on what will work and expanding our services with them.

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

Nothing comes to mind, they're a very responsive team to our needs.

BACKGROUND

Please describe your company and your position there.

I am the CEO of Voiply. We are a leading telecommunications provider based out of Pittsburgh, PA. We offer Residential and Business VOIP services to customers nationwide.

OPPORTUNITY / CHALLENGE

For what projects/services did your company hire Direct Online Marketing, and what were your goals?

We partnered with Direct Online Marketing to assist with lower our Cost Per Acquisition in Google Ads.

SOLUTION

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

We got referred to Direct Online Marketing by another company. From the first interview call to DOM demonstrated their expertise in Google. Made an easy decision for us to partner with DOM.

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

During our first call. We laid out our goals, and got DOM up to speed on Voiply’s service offering. We went through new keyword research and ad creatives. From there we launched new campaigns with new bidding strategies. We’ve since optimized, and after a couple months of optimization we’ve hit our CPA goals month over month.

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

I’ve worked with 6 different individuals at DOM. My account has a Project Manager, Campaign Manager, and Campaign Strategies. Very professional and experienced individuals.

RESULTS & FEEDBACK

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

Since engaging with DOM we’ve seen a 20% decrease in our cost per acquisitions.

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

They do a great job at communicating and being very transparent. We hold a weekly meeting to discuss the previous weeks performance. Allowing us to make decision on what is working and not. Sharing weekly and monthly reports.

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

Everyone at Direct Online Marketing has been great at putting in the time to ensure Voiply's goals are met. Each meeting you can tell they care about their clients’ goals, and that impresses me the most.

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

We engaged with DOM to lower our CPA, and they did that above and beyond our expectations. I can’t pick anything to improve on.

BACKGROUND

Please describe your company and your position there.

Morehouse College is a historically black college dedicated to developing and educating Black men in a liberal arts pedagogy. I am Vice President of Marketing Communications and Admissions.

OPPORTUNITY / CHALLENGE

For what projects/services did your company hire Direct Online Marketing, and what were your goals?

We hired DOM for paid search as well as to provide on-page SEO work on our new website. They also provide off-page SEO consultation to my marketing and admissions teams.

SOLUTION

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

I've worked with DOM with great success in another university and they've since grown their expertise into other areas such as digital design and organic search so selecting them for Morehouse was a no brainer. Their relationship as a preferred partner of Google's is a major benefit for us.

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

Started with keyword research, that then lead to analysis of our competitive set (other colleges), development of ads and ad copy, then the development of a landing page. We did branded, non-branded, competitive and regional campaigns. Occasionally we did campaigns specific to a service offering but modulated that.

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

About 4 people. An account manager plus paid media specialist, organic search specialist and occasionally one other person.

RESULTS & FEEDBACK

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

Our pilot campaign worked really well to inform us of what worked and didn't work and the general volume of traffic we were addressing. But the PPC campaign garnered over 250 applications that yielded net new admitted students that we would not have received otherwise. They've also helped significantly in improving our SERPS and rankings of key pages of our website.

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

DOM is hands-on and consultative. It's ideal for this kind of demand generation work and works well in concert with my organization that doesn't have their skill sets and relationships.

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

Their team lives and breathes search marketing. There is almost nothing they don't already know or have deep expertise in. Of all the marketing agencies I have worked with in my 30 years of PR/marketing DOM is more expert at its area of focus than any other firm I've worked with over my career.

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

I'd be very open to hearing blue sky ideas beyond my scope of work and budget from the DOM team.

BACKGROUND

Please describe your company and your position there.

I'm the Director of Biz Dev for a full-service Amazon Seller-focused Marketing and Advertising agency. We help brands make more money on Amazon...without breaking the rules.

OPPORTUNITY / CHALLENGE

For what projects/services did your company hire Direct Online Marketing?

We provide services in a very niche market, so we needed somebody who understands that to undertake the behemoth task of advertising and marketing our skills on Google.

SOLUTION

How did you select this vendor?

We researched and looked at online reviews for 15 advertising agencies, then narrowed it down to 6 for initial strategy/discovery calls. After those 6 calls, we quickly narrowed it down to our top 3, then invited those three to meet with our Leadership team to make their pitch based on the proposals they'd sent prior to.

Describe the scope of their work in detail.

After beginning with a series of discovery meetings, they focused on where we could make the biggest impact, as well as the benchmarks provided for our industry and the expectations set forth by our Executive team. They met with our Leadership team, went through the scope in detail, and then came up with an advertising plan that included everything we were looking for + their own expert recommendations for ranking on Google and maximizing our ad spend on Google Adwords.

What was the team composition?

During the discovery phase, I worked closely with their digital marketing strategist and CEO to scope the project appropriately. I now have 5 subject matter experts assigned to my account, with a designated point person bridging the gap between them and us.

RESULTS & FEEDBACK

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

In 60 days, they have quadrupled our qualified inbound leads, minimized the chaff, maximized our ad spend, and provided expert guidance that helped us identify a leak in our ad spend that was unnecessarily bleeding $700 monthly.

How effective was the workflow between your team and theirs?

I have weekly meetings with my account manager, and strategists to go over progress, address any outstanding needs from me, and plan upcoming week(s). We communicate regularly via Slack and email, and I have direct access to phone the CEO.

What did you find most impressive about this company?

They always show up prepared, having sent the agenda and weekly insights beforehand. Jill's note-taking is comprehensive and precise, which allows me to listen, engage, and focus on the meeting itself rather than hoping I didn't forget to write something down that I would need later. Receiving those notes in a timely manner after each meeting helps me manage my time and tasks more efficiently, as well.

Matt's knowledge about the data and trends relevant to us is mind-boggling and so very helpful. He breaks complicated advertising strategies down into layman terms, is patient with my questions, and kind in his responses. When my anxiety is up over things I do not comprehend, they are collectively (and consistently) the calm voice of reason. The team has made recommendations that will save us money across the board and that alone is worthy of applause and praise.

DOM is truly the most transparent advertising team I've worked with in this industry, and I am so grateful. I know we made the right decision.

Is there any area for improvement or anything that could have been done differently?

I realize nobody and no company is perfect, but I am truly happy with the services provided. They have gone above and beyond, respond quickly, and do exactly that for which we've contracted with them. I have no complaints.

BACKGROUND

Introduce your business and what you do there.

I’m the VP of sales and marketing for a company aligned with a solutions provider. We market a cloud suite industrial solution.

OPPORTUNITY / CHALLENGE

What challenge were you trying to address with C-Leveled?

We needed to update our social media strategy and marketing technologies to ultimately increase leads. We needed assistance with our website management too. 

SOLUTION

What was the scope of their involvement?

In general, we contract them for social media management, campaign research, and campaign facilitation. A lot of their work involves LinkedIn. Their team manages our marketing and advertising campaigns, which includes direct mail and digital initiatives. Based on our prospective buyers, they create and market content too.

C-Leveled also recreated our website, modernizing the platform. Their team still manages it. They’ll also do periodic design work, such as creating new business cards or adding to the website.

What is the team composition?

We have a project manager, Abby (Social Media & Digital Engagement Manager), and periodically deal with Denise (Chairman).

How did you come to work with C-Leveled?

We found them through our local network. We reached out to folks who we respect, and they recommended Denise’s company. She visited our office and explained what her team had to offer. We were impressed with the presentation.

How much have you invested with them?

On an annual basis, we budget around $40,000 for their services.

What is the status of this engagement?

We started our relationship around 4–5 years ago, and it’s ongoing. We recently had our yearly planning session.

RESULTS & FEEDBACK

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

We periodically receive updates concerning our LinkedIn activities. Their team tracks social media and website engagement. Since hiring C-Leveled, our social media engagement has significantly increased. We also receive statistics on website hits, which have also increased.

How did C-Leveled perform from a project management standpoint?

We establish a plan for the year and then, we have quarterly reviews and update campaigns. My marketing director has routine calls with Abby. If we have any questions, we get great responses from her. The communication between our companies has been good.

What did you find most impressive about them?

C-Leveled wanted to understand us and our goals to address in their marketing campaigns. They research new technologies for social media and bring them to us as opportunities. They keep us focused in the right direction, moving us forward with the marketplace.

Are there any areas they could improve?

An important part of our relationship is reaching prospective buyers. Last year was difficult because of the COVID-19 pandemic. We have to work even more on attracting more prospective buyers to our platform and move them to the point where they’re looking for our solution.

Do you have any advice for potential customers?

Ensure that you communicate exactly what you want to C-Leveled. Tell them your challenges and goals for the relationship. If they fully understand those factors, they’ll be able to support you.

BACKGROUND

Introduce your business and what you do there.

I’m the executive director and part-owner of JV Manufacturing. We’re a tool and die shop. We make high-quality cookie cutters for the industries of consumer goods, fuels, energy products, and just about anything that can be stamped out of metal and plastic at a high-volume rate. We make different tooling and components for companies such as 3D printing shops and things of that nature.

OPPORTUNITY / CHALLENGE

What challenge were you trying to address with C-Leveled?

Primarily, all of our business has come through word of mouth. A lot of people — both locally and nationally — only knew of us if they had some sort of direct connection. We decided to take the opportunity to grow the company and wanted to start marketing ourselves.

We wanted to have a sales department because we had never had one before. We recognized the fact that we should brand ourselves, work on our website, and establish our digital presence. That’s why we engaged with C-Leveled to get that ball rolling.

SOLUTION

What was the scope of their involvement?

First, C-Leveled collected data and information of where we were at in terms of our social media and website. They looked into how many viewers we had and other things of that nature so we had a baseline to start with. Their team sat down with us and described where we were at in the digital realm and against our competitors.

At that particular part, C-Leveled developed a year plan to see the different marketing goals we needed to meet. The first objective was to establish a new brand. We didn’t really need a logo and everything was mismatched otherwise. Our teams worked on that and got a brand that we agreed upon. Next, we did a soft launch with the brand so specific VIP customers and employees could get a firsthand introduction.

As they were doing that, C-Leveled was doing behind-the-scenes work with our website and social media. Our social media accounts were a bit of a mess so they cleaned those up for us. They worked with us to get one site taken down and initiate a new one. Their team also brought photographers to take pictures of equipment, employees, and anything they could utilize in both social media and the website.

Once they compiled all that together, there were several meetings where we got to view the demo of the website. We critiqued and tweaked it as needed, providing background and content. The website grew from there and we were able to fully launch it.

C-Leveled also helped us with our sales department. They suggested Hubspot and worked with us to initiate it. Their team provided training to our staff to show how to utilize the Hubspot technology along with the new website.

By October 2020, we fully launched the new brand, sent out welcome emails, conducted introductions through Hubspot to our customer base, introduced our new website, and built our content on social media.

What is the team composition?

I work with Denise (President & CEO) and Janice (Client Services Director).

How did you come to work with C-Leveled?

I had heard great things about their organization. I’ve met Denise on more than one occasion from conferences to personal settings. After diving into what they do and hearing from other companies they’ve worked with, it was a no-brainer. I reached out to see if they’d be interested and available. We held a little meeting and things moved forward from there.

How much have you invested with them?

We’ve invested between $50,000–$80,000.

What is the status of this engagement?

Our ongoing engagement started around July 2019.

RESULTS & FEEDBACK

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

C-Leveled has performed beautifully. They’re incredibly impressive. I’m not tech-savvy, and they were able to work with us. We didn’t have the marketing background or finesse to provide them with the content. Their team was able to take all of our rough data and information and really present it in a professional and organized way. I absolutely love it. They understood us as a company and showed that on our website and social media. Their team is amazing at taking an idea and turning it into something living.

The website traffic has increased. Our social media has been the biggest impact. We’re trending slightly under our competitors but 2020 was more about getting it out there; 2021 is about ramping it up. We have campaigns in place that we’re working on with C-Leveled to ramp up. Those will help us get more followers and traffic.

It’s easy to track the customer base information we pull from the website. That’s extremely helpful for our sales department to reach out and learn about new customers, partnerships, and suppliers. Overall, there’s great community awareness. Recruiting has been easier too. We were previously kept a secret in our area, and now we’re starting to get more of a presence in our own community.

How did C-Leveled perform from a project management standpoint?

Their communication is excellent. C-Leveled keeps the client informed as to where they are in the process. Every step of the way, I’ve known where they’re at. I know if they have setbacks or are moving slightly ahead than expected. If anything, we’ve caused them to miss deadlines because we haven’t been able to get the information to them. They’ve been more than helpful in trying to find ways to support us in gathering that information.

Management-wise, I couldn’t find a single complaint. C-Leveled has been incredibly professional and wonderful to work with. When I have my update meetings with Janice, I always tell her I want to come work for them. They’re just awesome to work with.

What did you find most impressive about them?

The quality of their work. Not only are they an incredibly pleasurable team to work with, but they also produce an outstanding quality of work. C-Leveled takes an idea or thought and gets to know the heart of the company as well as their vision and values. They were able to see that and display it in a way to our customers and candidates. Our website really shows who we are and what we’re about.

Are there any areas they could improve?

Providing additional examples of their past work with clients would be beneficial. I understand that sometimes clients aren’t willing to share that information. I was very green and didn’t fully understand some of the steps we went through along the process. Having examples of a past campaign or project might have been helpful early on so I'd have my head wrapped around what their expectations and needs are.

Do you have any advice for potential customers?

Prioritize and schedule things ahead for yourself so you have that available time to work with the company and ensure you’re providing what they need. Looking back, I wish had set chunks of time throughout the year to dedicate to working on the project with them and not get caught up on the day-to-day things.