Lift Interactive Inc.

BACKGROUND

Introduce your business and what you do there.

Simplex Mobility develops telecom management software. I am the operations manager of the company.

OPPORTUNITY / CHALLENGE

What challenge were you trying to address with Lift Interactive?

We needed to rebuild our main marketing website.

SOLUTION

What was the scope of their involvement?

Lift Interactive coordinated a very good plan of how to transform our website to a version which conveyed the right vision concerning our software. Our website could be marketed correctly, had a modern design, and worked on a multitude of mobile devices and browsers.

The whole process took a few months, during which Lift Interactive kept us informed about what was going to happen next, and what we needed to do in order to ensure that the process moved along smoothly. We've had around 4-5 websites since we've been in business. Lift Interactive has created the most attractive version that our company has had. We've received tons of good feedback, and it's nice to have a website that we can we can be proud of.

We're now looking to get a fresh coat of paint on a specific customer software. It wasn't mobile optimized, and also lacked some key features. We started that project with Lift Interactive in March 2016. They've re-envisioned each specific page, step-by-step. Lift Interactive has developed a template which our backend people can utilize in a modular way, whenever a new page is developed. We have a strategy/programming guide for the frontend side, given that we don't have dedicated frontend developers. The standardized templates provided by Lift Interactive have made our work a lot easier. Before, many of our pages had varying buttons, forms, and tables. It was a mishmash which was simplified and streamlined by Lift Interactive.

How did you come to work with Lift Interactive?

Lift Interactive approached us, and we had a few chats with their team. We are part of the Edmonton Executives Association, which allows different businesses to market their information directly to key decision-makers. One of our business partners met someone from Lift Interactive at a point when we were looking to put a fresh coat of paint on our website. Lift Interactive told us that that was exactly what they did, so we got started.

How much have you invested with Lift Interactive?

Our main website had a development cost of $17,000, including the design work, mobile optimization, visual content, and setting up our blog.

The redesign of our internal website involved Lift Interactive creating templates and a bootstrap version from scratch. We handled parts of the work. The cost of Lift Interactive's involvement was $10,000, which included a style guide for our developers, letting them know exactly what needed to go where, when creating a new page.

What is the status of this engagement?

We started working with Lift Interactive in 2015.

RESULTS & FEEDBACK

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

Everything that we wanted in terms of design for our main website, was done exactly right by Lift Interactive. They delivered everything that we required, and when the project was done, Lift Interactive was able to handle extra elements which we requested, in a timely manner, without additional cost.

The external feedback from existing and new customers alike has been that we have one of the most attractive and easy-to-use marketing websites, compared to our competitors.

How did Lift Interactive perform from a project management standpoint?

In the programming world, there will be deadlines that will go further than anticipated. We're developers ourselves, so we can understand this. There was nothing out of scope.

What did you find most impressive about Lift Interactive?

I appreciated Lift Interactive's approach to designing our website, compared to other firms we've used. Having round-table discussions was something which we never did with other web designers. This allowed us to not only come up with new ideas, but also allowed Lift Interactive to give us some alternative approaches. Many of those decisions allowed us to change ideas which we thought were great, into ones that were even better. This is a good process, compared to someone simply saying "yes" to everything. The product, in the end, was better than what we'd anticipated. There were certain things which we may not have thought of, but because Lift Interactive is an expert in the field, we had access to good feedback.

Are there any areas Lift Interactive could improve?

The only issue which I've had was that, from a project management standpoint, I had to have follow-ups with Lift Interactive. There were periods of a couple of days when there was dead air, and we had some unanswered questions. A bit more direction from Lift Interactive, and more clarity on what's going on in the background, would be beneficial for us as a client, given that we don't work there, and don't know exactly what's going on. This was my only issue, and it didn't happen often. For most of the time, Lift Interactive is good at doing follow-ups.

BACKGROUND

Introduce your business and what you do there.

StreamOn provides streaming audio solutions for radio broadcasters. At the end of 2015, we merged with a larger company, Futuri Media. I am the founder of the company.

OPPORTUNITY / CHALLENGE

What challenge were you trying to address with Lift Interactive?

Our initial project involved developing a simple-to-use web application which would allow a radio DJ to quickly drag clips of audio from the show into a playlist which could be pushed onto the podcast. It needed to have a simple interface which didn't require training in order to use, thus allowing us to scale it towards a number of radio stations.

SOLUTION

What was the scope of their involvement?

Lift Interactive built our web application. My team had built a Python-based API, and we had a full backend. We worked with Lift Interactive on creating our frontend elements. They were brought to our office, were given an overview of our goals, and took it from there.

How did you come to work with Lift Interactive?

I was looking for a local partner which could collaborate with our team, and researched a number of companies in Edmonton. Lift Interactive stood out through their background of not just creating pretty websites, but also thinking through the whole user experience. As I interviewed them, I found that Lift Interactive had the talent necessary to create an interface which looked wonderful and worked well on the programming side.

How much have you invested with Lift Interactive?

The cost of our first project with Lift Interactive was around $40,000. Overall, we've spent around $50,000 for Lift Interactive's services.

What is the status of this engagement?

We started working with Lift Interactive 4 years ago, and have had a number of projects during this time. Our most recent one was a hardware project. Lift Interactive helped us.

RESULTS & FEEDBACK

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

I've worked on 4-5 projects with Lift Interactive up to this moment. On every single one, they delivered on time, and as soon as we had the product in our hands and we showed it to our team and to customers, we received raving reviews. Not one project turned out badly.

How did Lift Interactive perform from a project management standpoint?

Lift Interactive kept us in the loop on areas which needed decision-making. For everything else, Lift Interactive's team simply went about their business, building things, providing us a concept to see, and going to the next stage.

What did you find most impressive about Lift Interactive?

Lift Interactive has an ability to understand our messaging and branding, applying it to the user experience side. They have a team of talented programmers. On projects I've done with different companies, the focus was just on building a website. If I asked any of the programmers to go outside of that, things didn't always go so well.

Are there any areas Lift Interactive could improve?

I don't have any real complaints.

BACKGROUND

Introduce your business and what you do there.

We're a destination marketing organization for a national park. I am a Digital Communications Specialist for the company.

OPPORTUNITY / CHALLENGE

What challenge were you trying to address with Lift Interactive?

We'd worked with Lift Interactive on other campaigns in the past, and found their output to be cohesive with the parts that fit in with our upcoming festival.

SOLUTION

What was the scope of their involvement?

We approached Lift Interactive in order to manage our SEO, SEM, and all additional aspects of our advertising campaign, in order to keep things consistent and on-time.

Lift Interactive has taken on a significant chunk of the design for our festival, including generating ideas for stage designs, collateral that would be seen on the ground, as well as some print advertising. Lift Interactive is also working on a 15-second commercial for us.

How did you come to work with Lift Interactive?

We have a retainer with Lift Interactive, and we simply reworked it in order to include campaigns. Our work fell within that.

How much have you invested with Lift Interactive?

The project falls within our retainer with Lift Interactive. We've dedicated 3 months of it to the work, which comes to around $37,000.

What is the status of this engagement?

Overall, our collaboration with Lift Interactive started before I came to work for the company. This particular project was started 2 years ago. We have an ongoing relationship.

RESULTS & FEEDBACK

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

Our campaign was very fast-moving, on an adjusted budget from 2015. We're still in the middle of it, but up to this point, items have been delivered within difficult timelines. The creative aspects are excellent.

How did Lift Interactive perform from a project management standpoint?

We are within budget. Timelines have been adjusted in order to make up for short-notice items. Lift Interactive hasn't been late, but some tasks weren't delivered due to certain circumstances.

What did you find most impressive about Lift Interactive?

I find Lift Interactive to be extremely available, personable, and beyond creative. They have a big team full of people with very imaginative ideas. When we workshop with Lift Interactive, there won't be just one person from their team present, but many resources getting involved with the project. I find this to be very unique.

Are there any areas Lift Interactive could improve?

Lift Interactive has switched over its project management system, which seems to be working well for us. Other than this, the only thing I can mention is that Lift Interactive's team dreams big, and we sometimes forget to shut them down. That's what they're getting paid for. Lift Interactive has done everything possible in order to plan ahead overall.

BACKGROUND

Please describe your organization.

We are Da Capo Caffe, in Edmonton, Alberta.

What is your position?

I am the owner.

OPPORTUNITY / CHALLENGE

What business challenge were you trying to address with Lift Interactive?

We wanted to develop a website that would communicate our brand and mission statement to the public.

SOLUTION

Please describe the scope of their involvement in detail.

They initially built our website, and the work extended to revamping our logo and designing a coffee bag model. At this point, their work extends to all our branding.

How did you come to work with Lift Interactive?

Their office was in proximity. We started talking, and I asked for their help.

Could you provide a sense of the size of this initiative in financial terms?

The work is ongoing; however, I couldn't provide an exact number.

What is the status of this engagement?

The first project started two years ago [2013], and we're still working together.

RESULTS & FEEDBACK

Could you share any statistics or metrics from this engagement?

I don't have any specific metrics available. Much of the work hasn't been fully launched. A component of the website isn't yet available because there is still content that needs to be created.

How did Lift Interactive perform from a project management standpoint?

They're really effective. They use Basecamp for project management, through which everyone involved receives an email for every new event and with the general state of the project. This is something new to me, and I quite enjoy always being in the loop with their staff communications for the project.

What distinguishes Lift Interactive from other providers?

They're conscientious in understanding what I'm trying to pervade regarding my brand. They frequent the cafe, actually supporting the business. If they didn't come in as a client, it would be harder for them to understand what we were trying to accomplish.

Is there anything Lift Interactive could have improved or done differently?

I'm very satisfied with how Lift Interactive operates.

BACKGROUND

Please describe your organization.

I used to work with the organization, it is a community building initiative called Make Something Edmonton. Most recently, it was based out of the Edmonton Economic Development Corporation. So, it basically was an initiative of EEDC.

What is your position?

I was the executive director.

OPPORTUNITY / CHALLENGE

What business challenge were you trying to address with Lift Interactive?

I started working with Lift at the birth of the organization, before we even had a name for it. It initiated out of the City of Edmonton, the municipality to be specific. Its role was to find a tangible identity for the City of Edmonton, and to start to get some momentum among citizens around that identity. We did some work initially, with a volunteer task force of citizens, and they kind of validated some of our early research. We wanted to validate it further by activating Edmontonians. So, we began this initiative. Shortly after identifying what our purpose was and what our goals were, we started to work with Lift and developed an online presence for us.

SOLUTION

Please describe the scope of their involvement in greater detail.

It was really soup to nuts. I am by no means a technical person, so I relied on them not only to develop a great, usable, and beautiful site, but also to give me some strategic direction on some of the key functions that I didn’t think about at first. They were essential as a strategic partner for us, right from the start.

How did you come to work with Lift Interactive?

They won a competitive bid. We asked two other Edmonton-based web firms to bid on the business, and Lift was the victor.

Could you provide a sense of the size of this initiative in financial terms?

Their work was pretty affordable for us. I think our initial budget was around $50,000 Canadian dollars.

What is the status of this engagement?

We started working with them back in December of 2012. As far as I know, they’re still working with Make Something Edmonton. I left the organization in April of this year, and Lift had just completed the second update to the website after the initial launch. They did an update for us back in late 2013, and then late 2014-early 2015, they completed the second update to the site.

RESULTS & FEEDBACK

Could you share any statistics or metrics from this engagement?

One of the key dynamics that went on initially was that they had a ridiculously short amount of time to get the initial site up and functioning for us. We chose them as the winning web developer, probably just before the Christmas break in 2012. We didn’t have a chance to get to our initial meetings and discovery and all that sort of stuff—that was probably by the third week or so of January. And then, they had a site up and ready to go, launched, by the 21st of March. So, it was really kind of an 8-week project.

Because of the short time frame, they were good about asking very clear questions about our needs, and I had a lot of faith in them. They elicited a lot of faith and respect for their talents, knowledge, and expertise, so I was very confident in giving them a fairly substantial rein, and they delivered. I think it was all because of Micah. Micah Slavens, the principal, and his team just instilled a confidence in me, and I just knew that they would do great work. And they delivered.

Everyone was very pleased about the results. I’ve been in the marketing communications world for almost 30 years now, and I’ve worked with a lot of partners and specialists, and Lift, by far, has been the best experience of working with a supplier that I’ve ever had.

How did Lift Interactive perform from a project management standpoint?

Well, they came in on budget, and again, in my career, I’ve seen a lot of budget and scope creep, and there wasn’t any of that with Lift. I think one of the keys to their success around this tight time frame was really solid project management. I was always clear on the milestones along the way. They were good about keeping me informed on the work that they’d been doing, showing me advances, asking questions, and checking in when they needed some confirmation on things. It was a fantastic experience. I didn’t have any moments of worry or anxiety.

What distinguishes Lift Interactive from other providers?

I just think they’re good people. They want to do good work. They were very generous and very patient with me, especially with my lack of knowledge. I have done some Web projects in the past, but not a lot, and so I was pretty green.

They’re just very kind, generous people that are smart, talented, and likeable. I think, when you’re working with partners in any sort of marketing communications, or any sort of agency relationship, you want to like who you work with, because the respect and all of the things that make a relationship work, just sort of fall into place. They are a terrific team. I just really enjoyed working with them, and I had a ton of confidence in them.

Is there anything Lift Interactive could have improved or done differently?

No, not really. Sometimes I would joke with them because they’d have typos in the mock-up and concept files. I would tease them, because that would be the first thing I’d see. That’s my obsession, but it was only in the mock-ups.

BACKGROUND

Please describe your organization.

Our work specializes in restaurant design, and our restaurants can be found around the world, specifically franchise restaurants. I'm a licensed designer, and my firm of six has operated in Edmonton since 2008.

What is your position?

I'm the principal.

OPPORTUNITY / CHALLENGE

What business challenge were you trying to address with Lift Interactive?

Our challenge was taking our website, which was created in 2008, to something a little more mobile-friendly and very portfolio friendly. We found that some of the larger portfolio heavy websites were difficult to navigate and load onto a mobile device, so we took that as a challenge to them.

SOLUTION

Please describe the scope of their involvement in detail.

The site was 100 percent brand new. They took our challenge and decided to dump the old site, and they rebuilt an entirely new website based on our vision. Being that we are designers, it was quite difficult to get the design right for us because we are constantly evolving. I think the 12-month period might have been longer than they thought. A year later, for the close to $30,000 tab, we're happy.

I would agree that two designers in the same room is difficult, but I think we got what we wanted in the end. It was just a struggle to put that into words or to explain to them the exact feeling of the site we wanted.

How did you come to work with Lift Interactive?

We researched websites that we liked here in the city, specifically the Make Something Edmonton site, which was one of their award-winning sites. We are also both members of the Edmonton Executive Association. The owner of Lift [Micah Slavens] is a member of the EO [Entrepreneurs' Organization] chapter here in Edmonton, of which I am also a member.

What is the status of this engagement?

The project took a year to complete. The site is up and the content is complete, but we are still working with them. We're currently figuring out a monthly plan for SEO [search engine optimization].

RESULTS & FEEDBACK

Could you share any feedback from this engagement?

The verbal response we're getting has been very positive from various clients. Anybody we send it to feels that it's very easy to navigate and shows a very high level of professionalism for interior design in the cities of Edmonton and Calgary, where we have offices.

Our site got many compliments before because it was a pure white tablet site with a heavy portfolio, but it was difficult to navigate and load. The new site is much more colorful and has the same portfolio, but just a breeze to get through and much easier to use for the user. The compliments are not only for design and for our portfolio, but I think the structure of the site is getting a lot of success and happy clients.

What distinguishes Lift Interactive from other providers?

I think what we, as designers, needed was someone on the other side of the desk who wasn't just a "yes man," and was able to comprehend what we wanted to explain from the site and put that into the technology, into the backdrop of the site. I think that's probably a big part of their success. I know they work with a lot of institutional clientele, so perhaps from that experience they've been able to manage the input. Lift Interactive managed our input very well.

They used a very nice technology format to keep us in tune with the progress of the site. They used Basecamp to keep in touch with us and for us to monitor their progress. I liked how they kept a proper following of our input and feedback for each area. I liked that they weren't just "yes men." They were also able to bring the appropriate flavor to the site. I found it was on target, so when we asked for input, it wasn't random or taken from another site. It was appropriate to what we were doing.

Is there anything Lift Interactive could have improved or done differently?

Generally, the visioning could get better for them. We do visioning, so I can't really force them to do it. The visioning for us is the research into what is an appropriate site in our mind. In my business, we try to get into our client's mind from day one, and try to get out of him what he wants to see in his space. I'd say there has to be a trick to get into our mind quicker, so it doesn't take 12 months. For example, we showed him two sites that we liked; however, maybe there were ten sites we could've used as inspiration and moved quicker.

BACKGROUND

Please describe your organization.

Our company is an employee benefits company, but we do things a little differently. We take traditional benefits and mix them with health spending accounts and/or single components like emergency travel, etcetera. The reason for our name change is that we blend benefits in a different way for small to medium sized businesses, to save on their costs and allow them to control their costs better, versus traditionally insured health benefits.

What is your position?

I’m the chief operating officer within the company.

OPPORTUNITY / CHALLENGE

What business challenge were you trying to address with Lift Interactive?

We are rebranding, and Lift Interactive is assisting us with that process. Because we are a non-traditional benefits company, we wanted to disrupt the benefits industry. We wanted a design and a backend that made it appealing, positive, and easy to use for members when accessing their benefits.

SOLUTION

Please describe the scope of their involvement in greater detail.

We needed a complete backend database and admin system, to allow our members to access their benefits. With a health spending account, employers contribute a set amount on an annual basis, usually through a monthly deposit. Members can then withdraw for eligible medical expenses. We needed to track that activity, plus make it easy for plan administrators to set up a plan, members to access their benefits, and also a platform for advisors.

We don’t have an external sales team, so we set up financial advisors so that they can market our plans with their brand. We needed the system to be able to allow advisors to set up their own profile. We needed to build in automation to get a plan set up and for advisors to download their commission reports.

There are fairly complex relationships between the different client bases we have coming through, but essentially it’s the advisor who sets up the plan administrator and the plan administrator to the members. By allowing advisors to brand themselves rather than use our brand, it gives them access to more of a potential client base than a traditional benefit plan. We make the advisor brand front and center, so that every time a member logs in to do a claim submission, they see the advisor brand instead of us. So it’s a fairly complex relationship in our data sets, and Lift is managing that entire process.

Our development is only a portion of the way through, and we still have a lot of work to do. So although the initial scope of work was the application to manage our benefits system, the next phase is for us to completely rebrand. They’ve worked with us to develop a communications plan. They’ll also be working with us to develop an entirely new visual identity and to implement that, as well.

How did you come to work with Lift Interactive?

We did a request for quotation [RFQ], and they were the successful bidding firm. We received about 25 to 30 submissions, which were shortlisted to five.

Could you provide a sense of the size of this initiative in financial terms?

We’ve spent about $200,000 so far, and it’ll likely be another half to three-quarters of a million over the next three years.

What is the status of this engagement?

The project began in 2013 and is still ongoing.

RESULTS & FEEDBACK

Could you share any statistics or metrics from this engagement?

Since we started, we’ve sold 500 plans. We have about 2,200 members at the time. The platform they developed has been very effective for us to be able to manage that data. There’s a lot still left to do, and we run into little tweaks that need to be made all the time, but they did a great job without a whole lot of direction.

The initial implementation has done a great job of allowing us to keep our data in a central repository that both we and our members can have access to. It was a really complex set of requirements that we gave them, which included sub-domains for every advisor, for multiple plans and multiple members of each plan. They continue to do a great job without a lot of direction. Since we’re growing rather rapidly, and our resources are always catching up, they end up having to work in sort of vacuum. They don’t get enough of my time, but they’ve still done a phenomenal job.

What distinguishes Lift Interactive from other providers?

Their collaborative approach to the project is phenomenal, as is their flexibility. We’re continually redefining our business, and they end up having to keep up with that. They’ve done that very well and have become very familiar with our complex business. We’ve got a set team, from both the programming and design perspectives, and the strategist that we work with keeps it all together. I just like the way they approach the work they’re doing with us.

Is there anything Lift Interactive could have improved or done differently?

There are lots of things that could be improved, but they kind of hinge on me. They’re really responsive, and they follow through, and sometimes I don’t. They’re left waiting, which is a credit to their flexibility. There are some things that have taken longer to be done, but it’s mostly because they’ve had to schedule things while they’re waiting for me.

BACKGROUND

Please describe your organization.

We are a food manufacturing company based in Vancouver, Canada. We also have another location in Toronto where we do a lot of our production. This way we can serve the whole country.

What is your position?

I’m a junior marketing manager in the company.

OPPORTUNITY / CHALLENGE

What business challenge were you trying to address with Lift Interactive?

The website that we had was very outdated, and functionality was not very good. It was a website that had existed before my time, and it needed a whole overhaul from every angle possible.

SOLUTION

Please describe the scope of their involvement in greater detail.

They did the design and development of our website. They helped us do updates to the site, as well as different web campaigns that are tied into our site. We also work with them doing ongoing Google Ads and such.

How did you come to work with Lift Interactive?

Lift is out of Edmonton, Alberta, and I used to live there. I had interviewed for them once, so that’s how I first heard of them. When we were thinking about different vendors to use, I remembered their work and the guys that interviewed me. I approached them and we talked, and soon they gave their response to the proposal.

Could you provide a sense of the size of this initiative in financial terms?

We spent between $50,000 and $80,000 for the initial website, and between $10,000 and $20,000 annually for the ongoing work.

What is the status of this engagement?

Our relationship started in 2013, and the new site launched in 2014. We are still working with them.

RESULTS & FEEDBACK

Could you share any statistics or metrics from this engagement?

From launch all the way up to now, we have at least doubled our visitors. Because it’s not a transactional site, Lift and I discussed how we wanted to define measurement. The different factors we’ve measured are things like time on our site, where people close the page, etc. With regards to our goals, people are spending at least three times longer on our site than they did when we started.

How did Lift Interactive perform from a project management standpoint?

They are very good at being flexible to our changing deadlines and at being able to hit hard deadlines. They’re pretty good at communicating ahead of time if they’re not going to be able to reach a certain goal. They are relatively good at staying on budget as well. We have had one or two instances where estimations weren’t accurate, but they are very transparent, which is something I love about them. If we are over budget, we see how we can work it out for future invoices and how we can make up for the overtime that we spend.

What distinguishes Lift Interactive from other providers?

They are really good at making the client feel like their only client. They want to understand the brand before they jump into design or development. The team they have there is not only a good combination of designers and developers; they also have a good strategy team. They can talk marketing language to me, so it’s more than just executing on a creative brief. They’re really good at putting ideas out on the table and having those conversations.

Is there anything Lift Interactive could have improved or done differently?

Their estimation of budget could be improved and they could adopt a more holistic view. If I give them a budget, they try their best to fit what I want in that. Although, they could be better at estimating hours and looking at the realistic scope of things from their end, and being able to communicate that as well.

BACKGROUND

Please describe your organization.

We have a company called Canada Golf Card, which has a phone app and interactive website. It offers 50 percent off green fees at more than 600 golf courses across Canada. We're starting to go into the southern states, and adding courses as well for our members. 

OPPORTUNITY / CHALLENGE

What business challenge were you trying to address with Lift Interactive?

We needed to create an application from scratch.

SOLUTION

Please describe the scope of their involvement in detail.

We had an idea, which was originally a lot different. Working with their team, we modified the idea a bit and designed our new plan. We then moved forward to develop an app to complement our program. For this project, the scope of work was primarily application development.

How did you come to work with Lift Interactive?

They've been known in Alberta for a lot of their work. They originally did some work with the professional soccer team here. We've been in contact with them for a number of years, and then approached them for this project.

Could you provide a sense of the size of this initiative in financial terms?

That information is confidential.

What is the status of this engagement?

We've been working with Lift for more than a few years, but this particular project started about three and a half years ago. We absolutely still work with them on a weekly basis.

RESULTS & FEEDBACK

Could you share any statistics or metrics from this engagement?

The way it's been designed, and the way it works, has really exploded who we are in the golfing market across Canada. We consider ours as the number one golf discount program in Canada right now. We're coming into our fourth year, and we're making some huge strides and picking up some big retailers on the program. From my customers' standpoint, everybody loves the app that Lift has developed.

We're a membership-based company, and we judge ourselves on renewals. Our renewals are very strong. Our customers love the program. The biggest thing that I would say is that our website and app are very high end in tracking and a lot of the back-end stuff that you don't see, but it works. That was a big thing. We're very reliable.

As when you're launching anything, there were some challenges in the beginning. Lift has implemented programs along with us and worked with us to overcome these. It has springboarded us across the golfing market in Canada.

How did Lift Interactive perform from a project management standpoint?

They're very good with project management. We run all of our projects on Basecamp so, at any given time, I know what's being done and what has been done on the back-end.

What distinguishes Lift Interactive from other providers?

They're there with us, dealing with any technology. No matter what program you use, you're always going to have the odd glitch or downtime. They're like our business partner. They handle all of our web and app back-end stuff and coding. They work very closely with us.

Is there anything Lift Interactive could have improved or done differently?

No. It's very straightforward. They're very easy to deal with and very professional. Lift Interactive meets all their deadlines. I'm an idea guy, so I have many ideas about things that I want to do to the program, and they never say no. There's always a way to get around something, and they're willing to work with you to achieve what you want.

BACKGROUND

Please describe your organization.

I work for the Natan Fund, and I work on a program called Amplifier. We call it the Jewish Giving Circle Movement, and we help people start and sustain Jewish giving circles. A giving circle is just a group of people who come together, pool their charitable contributions, and then decide together where to give it away. It's a community building effort, and it's a model for philanthropy and a way to engage with your community while doing philanthropy. It's a whole new initiative to help people start new giving circles, help sustain giving circles, and gather research and resources that are out there to be really in one central place.

What is your position?

I am the community manager for Amplifier at the Natan Fund.

OPPORTUNITY / CHALLENGE

What business challenge were you trying to address with Lift Interactive?

The initiative started early 2013 and, soon after that, we realized that we needed a website.

SOLUTION

Please describe the scope of their involvement in detail.

The scope of the work was primarily website design and development. We had a whole design process where they came down to New York with their team to think through the design of the site. We had already done some branding with a different firm, so we showed them that. They developed it a little bit further, just so that it would work with the site they were designing. They also worked out the functionality, and thinking through user experience, and all that important, defining work upfront.

We did all that with them, and then the implementation. We did a beta and then a live site, which went live just about a year ago. Since then, we've been working with them on a retainer basis, to continue to make updates, changes, and additions to functionality and design. They're great because we have many ideas, and they work with us to take those ideas and turn them into something real.

How did you come to work with Lift Interactive?

We did an RFP [request for proposal] process and looked at a couple different firms. I think what was most appealing about them was that they seemed to get it. The concept behind the website was that we wanted to have an online home. Beyond that, there's a lot of awesome functionality that makes it easier to run your own giving circle. The logistical side of things is simpler because you have the website to manage the application process, and it's a place to find great organizations.

Lift Interactive understood where we were coming from and the movement goals, beyond the website goals, and that's been something that's been consistent throughout our collaboration. They even pushed us to change different things that we asked because they understand the overall goal. We'll come to a point where we request something, and they'll say, "Actually, it seems like this might be a better solve," and it is. The only reason they're able to think that strategically is because they really get our strategic goals as an organization.

Could you provide a sense of the size of this initiative in financial terms?

Right now, we're on a $10,000 a month retainer, and that's so that we can get a lot done. We have quite a bit of work ongoing. The cost for the initial build wasn't crazy for that first year of work with them. It was in the medium range of what we got back from people. We got back a couple estimates that were way out of our price range, and then a couple of them seemed in our price range, but not so great. Lift was in our price range, and seemed to get it. One of the good things about working with them is that you get a lot for what you pay. It's very reasonable as far as the fees go.

What is the status of this engagement?

The work with them remains ongoing.

RESULTS & FEEDBACK

Could you share any statistics or metrics from this engagement?

Everyone who visits our website, the first thing they say is, "Wow, it's so beautiful." That's pretty exciting because I think in our field there are a lot of ugly sites, so they are more likely to stick around if it's a beautiful site. I always say, it's beautiful on the outside, but it's also beautiful on the inside.

The functionality is very sophisticated and complex. We have multiple different processes running. There's a common application system, which is rare for the philanthropy field. It's a big thing to be able to contribute to the field, to have organizations fill out an application for a grant once, and then be able to use that same application to apply for multiple different grants from Giving Circles. That's a huge piece of functionality that just didn't exist in the field before, and it's getting a lot of great use.

We have more than 1,200 users on the site, and that's all in the course of one year. We're tracking analytics. We have yet to do that deep dive into the analytics, just because we have been so focused on other updates. That is something that Lift has been working with us on, doing the meta descriptions and making sure we get our SEO [search engine optimization] in shape, and all that good stuff. I know I'm in good hands with that, too. It's just a matter of time.

How did Lift Interactive perform from a project management standpoint?

They were definitely great at staying on budget. The deadline are kind of in flux sometimes because there are so many things happening at once, but I will say that they're great at communicating the changes in the deadlines, if there are any. If there's anything that's super time sensitive, and we tell them, "This is really urgent and needs to be done by Friday," then it is definitely always done by Friday.

I'm really the manager of the project of the website as far as this whole initiative goes, and I work really closely with Jean [Butcher], who is our project manager over at Lift. We have a great working relationship; really good communication, and we have a regular check-in every two weeks to make sure everything is running smoothly and that we're all on the same page. We also use Basecamp for managing the project on both sides.

What distinguishes Lift Interactive from other providers?

I've never worked with other agencies that do website stuff. I will say we had a disappointing experience with our branding firm, which was a completely different firm. I think one of the things that sets Lift apart from that experience is their responsiveness, and they really care. The branding firm did not care about our mission or what we're trying to accomplish and didn't take the time to understand the impact we were trying to have.

We're really trying to build a philanthropic movement and encourage new philanthropists to take ownership of their giving, which is a powerful goal and it's a big goal. Lift is on board for that goal, and they take the time to understand the way that the website can help us accomplish that goal. I see them as partners in accomplishing that goal of our mission, of changing philanthropy. We talk about our website as the third staff member. We're a small team, but at least we have our website.

Is there anything Lift Interactive could have improved or done differently?

They've been pretty responsive on Basecamp. Email is a little less quick, but usually if I nudge them I get a good response, and that's not a huge thing.