Make Search Work

BACKGROUND

Please describe your organization.

Our company is N2Surplus, Inc. We buy and sell industrial surplus. We buy from auctions, liquidations and closeouts of businesses. We then sell our products online through a multitude of different channels.

What is your position?

I am the president and owner of the company.

OPPORTUNITY / CHALLENGE

What business challenge were you trying to address with Make Search Work?

Our website was up for about eight months, and we weren't seeing traffic going to it. We wanted to partner with somebody who would help us grow our website sales.

SOLUTION

Please describe the scope of their involvement in detail.

Make Search Work does everything. They're planning and executing SEO [search engine optimization] strategy within our products and categories. They've given us suggestions on how to make that easier and better for us. They've also created email marketing campaigns and a Google Shopping campaign for us.

Make Search Work has also given us guidance on the blog that we publish on our website. They've done one press release, and we're working on getting ready to do another one. They're really taking a whole-hearted look at us and making sure that we're doing all the right things on the web, increase our visibility, and increase our ratings.

How did you come to work with Make Search Work?

They were a referral from one of our business partners. We spent several hours on the phone with Make Search Work, and I started to learn about all the things that we needed to do. They were very insightful, so we partnered with them.

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

To date, the size of the project is less than $10,000.

What is the status of this engagement?

We started working with them on April 16 of this year [2015], and it's an ongoing relationship.

RESULTS & FEEDBACK

Could you share any statistics or metrics from this engagement?

Our monthly sales have increased. Before we worked with Make Search Work, we were averaging 4,800 visitors per month on our website. We are now around 7,500 visitors per month, and it continues to grow every month. A couple weeks ago, our conversion rate was around 4 percent, and it was 1.5 percent before we started working with Make Search Work.

How did Make Search Work perform from a project management standpoint?

We're very satisfied with their work. Make Search Work knows how to prioritize what we need to do, and they get it done. They really keep us on track.

What distinguishes Make Search Work from other providers?

The Make Search Work team is responsive, and very knowledgeable. They help teach us what we're doing and why we're doing it. Make Search Work really goes through the process of what benefit it will give us in the future.

Is there anything Make Search Work could have improved or done differently?

I wish I could have their team working in my office as a part of my team. They are great.

BACKGROUND

Please describe your organization.

We are an e-retailer that specialized in herbal products, botanical products, vitamins, and supplements.

What is your position?

I'm the owner of the company.

OPPORTUNITY / CHALLENGE

What business challenge were you trying to address with Make Search Work?

When we approached them, we had spent four years going through different SEO [search engine optimization] providers. We were trying to create SEO campaign on a small budget, which was a big mistake. We ended up on page 14 of relevant Google searches. We didn't have any online visibility, and we are an online business. We originally approached Make Search Work because we needed an Internet marketing and SEO company to assist us in submitting a reconsideration request to Google. After so many years of bad SEO practice, we needed to fix our domain. We approached Make Search Work to fix it.

SOLUTION

Please describe the scope of their involvement in detail.

Make Search Work was responsible for a large campaign. First, they came up with a disavow list: a list of URLs and links to our site that were harmful and creating a problem for us. Make Search Work went in and came up with a list of links that we needed to disavow and then prioritized on how important they were to remove. They also did a lot of press releases on our products, a pay-per-click ad campaign, a Google Shopping campaign, an email marketing campaign and a social media marketing campaign. Their work was on time, and it was effective.

How did you come to work with Make Search Work?

I did some basic SEO research online and figured that the top hits on Google were companies that were exceptional at SEO strategy and execution. Make Search Work was up there, so I reached out to them, and they showed me what they were capable of. We interviewed six companies, and chose Make Search Work.

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

We had a setup fee of $2,500 and a monthly fee of $1,000 for maintenance. It is worth it. I would have happily paid twice as much for what they did for me.

What is the status of this engagement?

Our partnership is ongoing. The bulk of the work has been done in the last 14 months [as of August 2015].

RESULTS & FEEDBACK

Could you share any statistics or metrics from this engagement?

Before we connected with Make Search Work our yearly revenue was less than $100,000 and last year we did $6 million. It took three to four months, but they were able to repair the links, submit the reconsideration request. Now, instead of being ranked on page 14, we're on page one if not positions one, two, and three for all of our top-selling products.

How did Make Search Work perform from a project management standpoint?

I don't have any complaints. 

What distinguishes Make Search Work from other providers?

Make Search Work is very responsive.

Is there anything Make Search Work could have improved or done differently?

At times, Make Search Work would tell me things that were a little technical, and it was over my head. But, it didn't make any difference because at the end of the day they did what they said they were going to do.