madison/miles media

BACKGROUND

Introduce your business and what you do there.

I’m the executive director of ALOA Security Professionals Association, a membership organization that’s been around for over 60 years.

OPPORTUNITY / CHALLENGE

What challenge were you trying to address with madison/miles media?

We publish two monthly magazines that we used to do in-house. We decided to have them handle our publishing because of their expertise.

SOLUTION

What was the scope of their involvement?

We work with three resources from Madison/miles media. They find all the writers for the articles that are in the publication. They also handle all the advertising, printing, billing, and mailing. We provide some content as the executive team, but they help us with editing, etc. We put on three events each year and madison/miles media takes care of the collateral for those. We supply the content for these and they take care of developing, designing, and printing the materials.

How did you come to work with madison/miles media?

They were already hired before I joined the company. They were working with the company that we had used previously. When the person that was working with us through that company left, we decided to switch to madison/miles media.

How much have you invested with madison/miles media?

We spend between $10,000 and $50,000 per month on their services.

What is the status of this engagement?

We began working with them in May 2006 and the work is ongoing.

RESULTS & FEEDBACK

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

Our advertising and sales have increased 60% to 70% and the magazine has won a lot of awards since they started producing it. We’re trying to recruit more members which they’ve volunteered to help us with. We’re a small company with a low budget and they’ve been very helpful in volunteering with a lot of things. We trust them because they do professional work. They do an excellent job and I’d recommend them to anyone.

How did madison/miles media perform from a project management standpoint?

They’re always on time, making sure the content we provide is on schedule. We communicate using email.

What did you find most impressive about madison/miles media?

We worked with a similar company and they charged us for every little change; madison/miles media doesn’t do that. We have to send things out for approval and while there usually are changes needed, they don’t charge us for those. If they’ve made any mistakes, they take responsibility and correct it at no cost.

Are there any areas madison/miles media could improve?

I have no complaints.

BACKGROUND

Introduce your business and what you do there. 

I am a healthcare marketing communications consultant with a long career at the executive level for healthcare organizations. I provide consultation for the business side of health and hospital systems, specifically for their various communication needs.

OPPORTUNITY / CHALLENGE

What challenge were you trying to address with madison/miles media?

I had two different clients. One of them was a large academic pediatric medical center in Dallas. The other was a 501 (c) (3) business owned by that center, operating in the form of 100 community-based cross-sector agencies. 

SOLUTION

What was the scope of their involvement?

madison/miles media provided presentations, including multimedia, PowerPoint and white paper design, and marketing. I have worked on written content personally, while madison/miles media provided strategic content development. They have produced print pieces and built beautiful, sophisticated websites for one of my clients. madison/miles media is particularly adept in the digital space. They have built and maintained social media channels, as well as running analytics for them. That has been extremely impressive.

In one case, madison/miles media created a multimedia 25-minute presentation for an executive of the medical center. It told a story using patient testimonies, so its arc was quite complex. We were trying to cover the different components of a very innovative and transformative business model for hospitals. While there was a bit of business complexity to consider, we also had to come up with the emotional side of it. We very much wanted to humanize it given that, at the end of the day, the transformational business model was aimed at providing better care for sick people. It was a tall order to condense into 25 minutes.

The client had invested in me at a strategic level, so that was the extent of my involvement in this particular project, aside from editing. I came to madison/miles media with a blank slate. They did a fantastic job of providing strategic planning, probing for what it was that I and my clients on the hospital side were trying to achieve. madison/miles media helped us isolate key messages and translate them into what visual and graphic technology could achieve. The marriage between everything we wanted to achieve in words and pictures and the technical portion was a consideration. There was a significant overlay of technical expertise and real audiovisual understanding of how something can be projected. madison/miles media undertook a 3-month A-to-Z exercise involving a lot of editing and writing. In this particular case, madison/miles media also handled the writing and storyboarding. They needed to go through many archival videos from the hospital. The work involved significant curation of what was already available, making sure that it was integrated at the highest possible level. In the process, they also shot new material. I initially worked with three people from madison/miles media's team and reduced the size to two during the editing portion.

How did you come to work with madison/miles media?

One of madison/miles media's principals used to work for me, so I had a level of understanding around who they were. When I left my full-time executive position and became an independent consultant, it was an easy decision to call madison/miles media. I had a deep understanding of their skills and talent, so I trusted them.

How much have you invested with madison/miles media?

The cost of madison/miles media's work was between $10,000 and $50,000.

What is the status of this engagement?

My presentation project with madison/miles media started in August 2015. The first presentation was made in the fall of that year, after a 6-month period. We continued to refine the material until April 2016

RESULTS & FEEDBACK

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

We ended up with a product which exceeded our expectations. The client presented it to think-tanks in Washington, D.C. and has received speaking engagements on the strength of the presentation. The client has mentioned that madison/miles media's material has given him the ability to share the information with others in a way which he didn't think was possible. Every time he gives the presentation, people think that it is one of the best of its kind. He has received kudos from his group, which is at the very top of the multibillion-dollar health and hospital business. When the executive was asked to speak at the Aspen Institute in Washington DC—which is a very prestigious organization—he used the presentation made by madison/miles media. The presentation has pushed the client's organization as a thought leader and innovator within the population-health category of the healthcare sector. He has become a leading expert on this particular system transformation.

How did madison/miles media perform from a project management standpoint?

madison/miles media always exceeds expectations and always delivers on time and within budget. We communicated over the phone, by email, and in person. My client is old-school, and healthcare in general is not a very virtual field. As such, much of the work was done in person, even though madison/miles media's designer worked remotely. He participated in meetings over Skype, which worked flawlessly.

What did you find most impressive about madison/miles media?

madison/miles media had an emotional investment in the work but in a very appropriate way. There was a degree of passion and interest. madison/miles media learned how to think like the client, learning a lot about healthcare in the process. As a consultant brokering the work and using madison/miles media as an extension of my firm, I have found their team to be a complementation to my work. I found madison/miles media to be extremely interested in delivering the best possible product, in the best possible way. They're not interested in the politics and are more than willing to let me take the leading role with the client when I need to. I also try to step back and let them take the lead when necessary. madison/miles media takes a very thoughtful, humble approach to the work, which makes them a pleasure to collaborate with. Most importantly, madison/miles media has the talent and integrity required.

Are there any areas madison/miles media could improve?

madison/miles media always delivered, and I don't have a complaint. One of their principals had worked for me in the past, which simplified the process. She also understood the client well, which decreased our margin for error quite a bit.

BACKGROUND

Introduce your business and what you do there.

We are a non-profit organization that has the largest peer-to-peer heart patient network in the world. We’re organized into 300 community-based chapters in the US and Canada. Our membership is comprised of heart patients as well as their caregivers and families. Our mission is to provide emotional support and education to heart patients and their families, including families of children born with heart defects. I’m the director of corporate development and programs.

OPPORTUNITY / CHALLENGE

What challenge were you trying to address with madison/miles media?

We have a bi-monthly magazine that gets sent to 20,000 members around the country. We were looking for new writers, editors, etc. to upgrade the magazine.

SOLUTION

What was the scope of their involvement?

We have an editorial theme meeting with our staff and managing editor from madison/miles media. Together, we determine what the theme will be. Then, madison/miles media has contract writers that interview our patient members about their story as a heart patient. They also speak to healthcare professionals. The complete layout is done by madison/miles and they also did a survey recently to find out what our members are interested in. Currently, they are helping us solicit advertising for the magazine and website. We’re getting ready to launch a new website and they created the web interface between our website and member database.

How did you come to work with madison/miles media?

We were using another firm but decided to replace them to bring in new ideas. Our former executive director knew of the company and knew the founding members of madison/miles media before the company started. We met several times and had confidence in what they could do. One thing we liked about madison/miles was their expertise and experience with non-profit organizations. They had a great understanding of our organization and offered solutions for us to implement.

How much have you invested with madison/miles media?

We’ve spent between $100,000 to $200,000 on their services.

What is the status of this engagement?

The work is ongoing. We’ve really been pleased with our great partnership.

RESULTS & FEEDBACK

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

Heart patients and families have responded very positively to the changes we’ve made in the magazine. They suggest story ideas for our team to work on in the future. We’re now moving into hospital waiting rooms and cardiology offices. We’ve been very pleased with the work done by madison/miles media.

How did madison/miles media perform from a project management standpoint?

They’ve been able to meet deadlines for the magazine. The website launch is happening now and they’re helping us stay on the timeline. Our field communication services manager, is the primary point of contact on our staff team. We communicate by email and have team phone calls every 2 months with the whole staff. Because of this relationship with madison/miles, we’ve reduced the time that our staff needs to edit—when we get the stories, there are very few edits we have to make.

What did you find most impressive about madison/miles media?

It’s a private family-owned company and the staff is very friendly and professional. They understand marketing and research marketing, freely communicating their knowledge with us. We’ve met together as teams so we know them personally as well. It’s been a joy to work with them. They’re very trustworthy and if there are any issues, they make we know about them.

Are there any areas madison/miles media could improve?

None. We’ve worked together very well.

BACKGROUND

Introduce your business and what you do there.

Prestige Maintenance USA is a nationwide janitorial and facility maintenance company. I’m CEO.

OPPORTUNITY / CHALLENGE

What challenge were you trying to address with madison/miles media?

We wanted to ramp up our marketing efforts, and we wanted to be seen within our industry as an expert in the retail space.

SOLUTION

What was the scope of their involvement? 

At the beginning of our relationship, they came up with a strategy for our marketing efforts. They came with a lot of ideas and researched our industry to find ways to differentiate ourselves. They revamped our website as part of that. They’ve come up with a way for us to have better communication internally with our newsletter to our employees. They developed a marketing campaign for us. They developed the design, content, and everything that was involved in creating a website. We’ve also done videos with them. I typically work with 1 person, but there have been times we’ve had as many as 3 resources.

How did you come to work with madison/miles media?

We found them through a mutual connection that we have. We interviewed some other firms, but we thought madison/miles understood where we wanted to go. They are great people to work with, and their team has some great talent.

What is the status of this engagement?

We began working together in April of 2013, and the work is ongoing.

RESULTS & FEEDBACK

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

I don’t have specific numbers, but our website and social media traffic is up. We have a pretty good open rate for our content marketing. 

How did madison/miles media perform from a project management standpoint?

They’re a super responsive team.

What did you find most impressive about madison/miles media?

I don’t have anybody to compare them to, but they stayed on schedule. They’re really turn-key. Madison/miles media requires very little from me which is what I love.

Are there any areas madison/miles media could improve?

I’ve worked with a few different people assigned to our account, and all of them have been really good. I hope that I’ll be able to have that person on my account for an extended period.

BACKGROUND

Introduce your business and what you do there.

Aventa Systems is a value-added reseller of IT hardware, software, and services. I’m a marketing specialist. I’m in charge of the top of the funnel pillars including social media, content marketing, events, and public relations.

OPPORTUNITY / CHALLENGE

What challenge were you trying to address with madison/miles media?

We partnered with madison/miles on social media management. We were looking for an over-arching digital agency to replace a former agency that we were working with. The former agency managed social media along with SEO [search engine optimization] and PPC [pay-per-click] but they didn’t meet our expectations in terms of account management or performance.

SOLUTION

What was the scope of their involvement?

Our relationship so far has been social media management create posts, create an editorial calendar of those posts, and schedule them. We have had projects where we’ve asked for their consultation on best practices for case studies. They’ve researched forums for different verticals and different social media strategies for different verticals. For the most part, the standard work for us is the channel management.

At the beginning of the relationship, I was impressed with their ability to look through the existing content that we had on our e-commerce website and promote through social media. As the year progressed, we had specific projects and initiatives where I would tell them what to post but I would get their thoughts on the strategy behind that. They manage our primary and secondary social media platforms. Our primary channels are Facebook, LinkedIn, and Twitter and the secondary ones would be Instagram and Pinterest. They currently are not managing our Google Plus because that’s tied more closely to SEO.

How did you come to work with madison/miles media?

I researched different companies and put out an RFP [request for proposal]. We ended up hiring two firms: one for SEO and PPC and one for social media management. We weren’t sure of madison/miles’ capabilities in terms of SEO and PPC so we hired them for social media management. The overall quality of their proposal showed they have an expertise in content creation. Other proposals we got had grammar mistakes which we obviously didn’t want.

How much have you invested with madison/miles media?

We spend around $30,000 with them during the course of a year.

What is the status of this engagement?

We are currently working with them.

RESULTS & FEEDBACK

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

The quality of the posts, as well as the frequency and ownership of that, is far superior to two different agencies that we’ve worked with in the past for social media. For example, we had a former agency tell us to decrease how much we were posting on Facebook, but they didn’t have any way to explain that. Our channels have grown since working with madison/miles. We have aggressive goals in terms of how much growth and engagement we want to see. They have exceeded our goals for the number of website visitors that are driven to our e-commerce site from social media. Our growth goal is 20% per quarter and they are near that number but a little below it.

How did madison/miles media perform from a project management standpoint?

It’s a great improvement over partners we’ve had in the past even though there are a few things they could improve on.

What did you find most impressive about madison/miles media?

The quality of the content, whether it be social media posts, images, or white papers, is far above projects I’ve seen from other agencies. They create lush, pretty, and engaging content even though it is difficult to create that in our industry.

Are there any areas madison/miles media could improve?

There are occasional billing errors we’ve had to address and there’s been a little lapse in communication recently. I would advise them to hire personnel that excels at accounting to revamp their accounting system.