Merge Studio

BACKGROUND

Please describe your company and position.

I am the musician coach of Martha Caplin

Describe what your company does in a single sentence.

I coach musicians who are taking auditions and performing music. 

OPPORTUNITY / CHALLENGE

What specific goals or objectives did you hire Merge Studio to accomplish?

• to build a website that would give musicians confidence in my work with them.

SOLUTION

How did you find Merge Studio?

Referral

Why did you select Merge Studio over others?

Referred to me

How many teammates from Merge Studio were assigned to this project?

1 Employee

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

I consulted with Michelle Dodd of Merge Studio with a rather loose plan to create a website that would transition me from being a performing violinist to being a musician who coaches up and coming performers. Her work began with educating me as I knew absolutely nothing about how websites are designed. She set up the various links and came up with a basic design that I immediately liked. It's as if she understood who I was, giving the site a classical, simple, yet warm and inviting look. We chose photos from hundreds that I had. Once the initial planning and application was done, there continues to be ongoing work as I add more of my music to the site. 

RESULTS & FEEDBACK

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

I posted the website link on Facebook with a short description of what I am now doing. Immediately I received a request to give a professional violinst three coaching sessions. 

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

MIchelle Dodd was pristine in being timely and in responding to my needs. For example, she showed me how to post blogs and when I would sometimes have trouble she would help right away. 

What was your primary form of communication with Merge Studio?

Virtual Meeting

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

Michelle is an impressive and unique individual whose talent as a web designer comes out of who she is. In the intitial meetings she understood right away that this website was a legacy for me as much as it was a way to target musicians who would come to be coached. She impressed me by her ability to see others and to know how to translate who they are into a form that is technical. 

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

Nope. 

BACKGROUND

Introduce your business and what you do there.

I’m a self-employed writer.

OPPORTUNITY / CHALLENGE

What challenge were you trying to address with Merge Studio?

I needed a couple of websites for a new project. I had done a book and a film connected to that book, so I needed to build a website entirely from scratch.

SOLUTION

What was the scope of their involvement?

Merge Studio designed and developed a WordPress website because that was the interface I used to update the website. They optimized the site for mobile users, whether on a phone or tablet. The functionality included a lot of scrolling instead of being menu-driven, which was a structure I hadn’t worked with before. However, we discussed it, and Merge Studio persuaded me that it was a good way to go for this website because the idea was to provide users with short snippets of information. The site included a video, so they had good arguments to go with that functionality.

What is the team composition?

Michelle (Co-Founder & CEO) was my primary point of contact.

How did you come to work with Merge Studio?

We had a preexisting relationship because Merge Studio developed my personal website for my business as a writer. They did it a while ago and had a different name then, so this was the second website I did with them.

How much have you invested with them?

I haven’t seen the final invoice, but I spent less than $10,000.

What is the status of this engagement?

We started talking about the website last year, but the actual timeline began in March 2024, when I was able to get the content. We didn’t start on the construction until the content was available.

We had a hard deadline because the short film was embedded in the website, and the premiere for the film was scheduled for mid-May 2024. This was also the deadline for getting the site up and running.

RESULTS & FEEDBACK

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

I have seen some positive impact through the website and social media, but I don’t have any numbers on that. The website has been running for only two weeks, so it’s pretty new.

Since I don’t consider myself someone with design skills, I looked up to Merge Studio to create the look and structure of the website. They came up with excellent ideas for creating a unified visual identity that worked very well.

How did Merge Studio perform from a project management standpoint?

We had a hard deadline due to the film premiere, and they met it. In general, Merge Studio did a better job meeting deadlines than I did on my end to get the content finalized. Overall, I was pleased; they delivered what was promised.

We used Google Docs to go over the content and emails for regular communication. We also had 2–3 Zoom meetings to talk more directly and used screen sharing to look at the screen and the film together.

What did you find most impressive about them?

As someone whose strong suit isn’t designing or envisioning websites, it was very helpful to work with a team that could take my ideas and grasp the content well. I wanted to get my content out to the world, but I didn’t necessarily grasp how to structure it in the technological or aesthetic environment. Merge Studio did an excellent job listening to what I wanted and figuring out the right tools to make it happen, whether through the structure or the website's visual design.

Are there any areas they could improve?

Nothing really comes to mind. Overall, I had a good experience, and they completed the project in a timely fashion.

Do you have any advice for potential customers?

It’s essential to have a clear sense of the website’s purpose, whether it’s to sell a service, sell products, or convey a particular set of information. In my case, I didn’t really know how to build a website to make it work, but I had a clear idea of the audience I had in mind and what I wanted them to get from the experience. That enabled Merge Studio to put together a good technical background and aesthetic for the site.

BACKGROUND

Please describe your company and position.

I am the Managing Director of Live By Living

Describe what your company does in a single sentence.

Live By Living connects cancer survivors and their caregivers to nature and one another through walks, hikes and retreats.

OPPORTUNITY / CHALLENGE

What specific goals or objectives did you hire Merge Studio to accomplish?

• Harness the website and digital marketing to increase all constituents and expand reach
• Leverage Google Ad grant for nonprofits; understand and monitor analytics
• Scale the organization- growth and development

SOLUTION

How did you find Merge Studio?

Chamber

Why did you select Merge Studio over others?

• Pricing fit our budget
• Great culture fit
• Good value for cost
• Company values aligned

How many teammates from Merge Studio were assigned to this project?

2-5 Employees

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

Scale organization to include:

1. Harness website and digital marketing to increase constituents and overall reach
2. Leverage Google Ad Grant

Deliverables: 

1. Set up and use Google Ad Grant- intsall code for Google Tag Manager, Analytics and Search etc.
2. Wrote targeted ads for donations
3. Rebuilt website in WP; embedded Bloomerang forms as needed
4. Added email sign-up
5. Embedded calendars and link to event platform (Duplie)
6. Reworked homepage content
7. Hosting, maintenance and support

RESULTS & FEEDBACK

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

• Increased constituent base- participants, volunteers, donors and collaborators
• Increased engagement with digital strategy
• Seamless integration with other platforms as needed 
• Increased operational efficiencies

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

Yes, the project plan was developed with agreed upon deliverables. Merge listened attentively to understand our needs, adapted to our emerging organizational requirements and consistently executed tactical milestones on time and within budget.

What was your primary form of communication with Merge Studio?

• Virtual Meeting
• Email or Messaging App

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

Live By Living partnered with Merge after an extensive vendor search and interview process. With stated goals in mind, Merge proved to be the most skilled and talented partner, and brought tremendous expertise regarding the nonprofit space. Most impressive was not only their techincal skills and passion for their craft, but also their exceptional soft skills.

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

We're pleased with our continued collaboration and partnership with Merge Studio.

BACKGROUND

Please describe your company and position.

I am the Administrative Officer of Society for Health Psychology

Describe what your company does in a single sentence.

Independent contractors providing Administrative support for a division of the American Psychological Association

OPPORTUNITY / CHALLENGE

What specific goals or objectives did you hire Merge Studio to accomplish?

• Evaluate style and function of website
• Offer recommended upgrades to site and management
• Integrate website into overall communications goals and services

SOLUTION

How did you find Merge Studio?

Referral

Why did you select Merge Studio over others?

• Pricing fits our budget
• Great culture fit
• Referred to me
• Company values aligned

How many teammates from Merge Studio were assigned to this project?

2-5 Employees

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

Merge was recommended for their focus on non-profit organizations.  They began by interviewing key members of the association's leadership to determine goals and obstacles, in relation to the previous site and industry standards.  A complete review of the previous site provided insights into areas for improvement.  In addition to building a more flexible structure for ongoing development, the Merge team guided association volunteers in evaluating previous content.  
They also made recommendations for coordinating communications tools to create internal consistency and optimal effectiveness.  Volunteer training and collaborative planning now allows the association to maintain established functions and access Merge expertise for additional improvements.  

RESULTS & FEEDBACK

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

• PHASE 1: Discovery, Content Inventory, & Wireframes (including applying for Google for Nonprofits)
• PHASE 2: Design, Development, Page Building, Launch
• ONGOING:  Hosting, Training & Documentation, Technical Site Maintenance & Troubleshooting, Prioritizing Next Steps

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

Merge has done an outstanding job of: 

1. learning about the culture and functions of the association; 
2. actively collaborating with volunteer leaders; 
3. identifying opportunities for improving processes, which the volunteer leaders did not have the expertise to request; and 
4. offering solutions to previously un-addressed obstacles.  They set a reasonable timetable, and worked efficiently within it.  

The team was especially helpful in explaining the costs/benefits of technical decisions.  Merge's recommendations provided a framework for future growth as well as immediate functionality.  As unexpected requests emerged, they were able to accommodate (or schedule for future integration) most changes - or provide interim solutions.  The project came in on budget - which is absolutely critical for a non-profit organization.

What was your primary form of communication with Merge Studio?

Virtual Meeting

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

Our organization has contracted with at least half a dozen designers, web management companies, or other contractors over the past twenty years.  Before Merge, none demonstrated the commitment to learn enough about the organization and field to accurately reflect the culture and provide the needed services to members and site visitors.  
In addition, many created sites that ensured ongoing dependence on the vendor for site maintenance and future development, while Merge trained and guided our volunteer leaders to manage routine updates while the specialists at Merge addressed technical challenges beyond the expertise of volunteers.  
The level of collaborative support from Merge Studio is unmatched.  Also, their focus on the unique needs of non-profit organizations put them ahead of other vendors in being prepared to suggest approaches for site development which other vendors did not grasp.

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

The responses from organizational leaders, volunteers, members and visitors to our new site have been overwhelmingly positive.  Since this was a long process, it might have have been helpful to receive periodic "progress reports" from Merge to share with the volunteer leaders who were not directly involved in the project - though the leaders who were involved were happy to report on the excellent collaboration.

BACKGROUND

Please describe your company and position.

I am the Chief Operating Officer of an IT services company

Describe what your company does in a single sentence.

We provide insight that empowers game-changing Managed Service Providers and Independent Software Vendors. Our core strategic engagements in analyzing systems, system stabilization, on-going management and custom automation consistently drive innovation and improve operational maturity.

OPPORTUNITY / CHALLENGE

What specific goals or objectives did you hire Merge Studio to accomplish?

• Rework content for SEO and conversion optimization
• Designe and develope a new website for our rebranded SaaS product (https://ezdeploy.io)

SOLUTION

How did you find Merge Studio?

• Referral

Why did you select Merge Studio over others?

• High ratings
• Pricing fit our budget
• Great culture fit
• Good value for cost
• Referred to me
• Company values aligned

How many teammates from Merge Studio were assigned to this project?

2-5 Employees

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

We worked with Merge on two major project phases. The first was to rework content on our website for ease of consumption and SEO as well as conversion optimization. The second phase of our project with Merge was a complete rebrand of our SaaS product, ezdeploy. Merge helped us to create a rebrand strategy and developed the new website for the rebranded product, resulting in https://ezdeploy.io.

RESULTS & FEEDBACK

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

• SEO optimization and ratings
• Creation of a new, modern, and fully functional rebranded website

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

Merge has a great project management process. The team communicates regularly, is easy to get a hold of, holds regular meetings, and tracks all work in an easy to understand format. All work products were delivered on time and in a quality manner.

What was your primary form of communication with Merge Studio?

• Virtual Meeting
• Email or Messaging App

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

The people at Merge really impress me. They are easy to work with and extremely knowledgeable and experienced. They provide insight and suggestions without "telling" and they were a great culture fit for our organization. I trusted them fully to do the work they set out to do and they delivered beautifully.

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

Not that I can think of - I have truly enjoyed working with Merge Studio!

BACKGROUND

Please describe your company and position.

I am the Director of Communications of Rio Grande Return

Describe what your company does in a single sentence.

Rio Grande Return restores riverscapes and ecosystems unique to the arid Southwest using low-tech and process-based methods to foster resilience, adaptive capacity and stewardship in these important land and water resources.

OPPORTUNITY / CHALLENGE

What specific goals or objectives did you hire Merge Studio to accomplish?

• Website Analysis
• Improvement Road Map and Execution
• On going site maintenance, support, and training

SOLUTION

How did you find Merge Studio?

Worked with Merge at a previous position with another organization

Why did you select Merge Studio over others?

• High ratings
• Good value for cost
• Professional, wonderful to work with and they are excellent at their job

How many teammates from Merge Studio were assigned to this project?

2-5 Employees

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

The scope of the work provided by Merge was to provide a basic site analysis and improvement road map, website maintenance, and ongoing support and training. Merge's basic website analysis and actionable list of improvements covered the following:

• Usability issues • Accessibility issues
• Opportunities for better user engagement
• Opportunities to improve staff management of site
• Opportunities for improving basic SEO
• Functionality that would add to your users’ experience and/or improve staff process

Basic website maintenance includes:

• Daily database & weekly full website backups, stored securely in the cloud
• Daily security and malware scans
• Twice monthly WordPress core updates
• Twice monthly plugin updates
• Free restoration if your site is ever hacked or an issue arises
• Regular visual and functionality checks of site
• Up to 30 minutes per month to resolve WordPress/Plugin conflicts from updates

The ongoing support and training we received from Merge covered working through the suggested list of website improvements, training in WordPress which is ongoing, and ongoing troubleshooting support with Mailchimp, WordPress and other website maintenance.

RESULTS & FEEDBACK

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

Our website was updated to a version that allows us to build upon our new design/layout and functionality down the road. It is now much easier to quickly find what you're looking for on the website making it more user friendly and professional looking. We're now set up to send regular email communications to our constituents and overall feel more confident about how we're represented through our website.

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

Michelle and Dina worked quickly and seamlessly from start to finish. They're always quick to respond and resolve any issues that come up during the overhaul of our website, which was the largest piece to the project. Their patience, communication and understanding during the whole process was wonderful and I couldn't be more appreciative.

What was your primary form of communication with Merge Studio?

• Virtual Meeting
• Email or Messaging App

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

I love that Merge was founded by a female and continues to be led by incredibly talented and intelligent women in a traditionally male dominated industry.

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

I don't think we could've received better or more qualified help in the rebuilding of our website than we did from Merge. They were able to fulfill all of our requests and needs throughout the process while taking the time and care needed to explain things every step of the way.

BACKGROUND

Please describe your company and position.

I am the Development and Communications Director of Laboratory to Combat Human Trafficking

Describe what your company does in a single sentence.

The Laboratory to Combat Human Trafficking (LCHT) is a Denver-based nonprofit that works to end human exploitation in Colorado.

OPPORTUNITY / CHALLENGE

What specific goals or objectives did you hire Merge Studio to accomplish?

• Website SEO
• Website Online Resource Directory Build and Customization
• Website page revisions and redesign
• Website Hosting and Maintenance

SOLUTION

How did you find Merge Studio?

Online Search

Why did you select Merge Studio over others?

• High ratings
• Great culture fit
• Company values aligned

What was the size of Merge Studio’s team?

2-5 Employees

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

• Website redesign including modernizing the design of the LCHT website to reflect a more open and flexible approach to storytelling and communication
  • Continuing and finishing the process of content revisions and in-page SEO adjustments
  • Increasing the page load speed and other technical SEO aspects
  • Streamlining plugins and content by starting fresh with a clean, new WordPress install
  • Site build with Divi – a visual, drag-and-drop page builder that is easy and intuitive to use – with page templates and library items that will save time when adding new sections or pages in the future
  • Incorporating the updated Resource Directory templates and content from current site
  • Optimizing the site so it scores well with GTMetrix, a site speed evaluation tool
  • Adding to and improving the SEO page scores
• Additional LCHT website content updates including ongoing program page updates, resource directory updates, volunteer portal updates
• Integration between Wordpress resource directory and Salesforce CRM

RESULTS & FEEDBACK

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

• Website stability
• Launch and updates of pages and core content
• Website traffic, digital audience growth, conversions (e-subscribers, donors, etc.

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

The Merge team was very organized in their project management and on time with deliverables outlined in the scope of work. They were always responsive to our needs, taking time to learn the mission and goals of our organization in order to integrate them into our web presence.

What was your primary form of communication with Merge Studio?

Virtual Meeting

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

Their technical expertise and their experience working with mission-based organizations and nonprofits are unique. That combination made the distance between our vision and the delivery of various project deliverables shorter and more thoughtful.

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

No

BACKGROUND

Please describe your company and your position there.

Healthy Child Care Colorado is a statewide nonprofit organization with a mission to build safe, supportive, and healthy early childhood settings and systems where children and professionals learn and grow.

OPPORTUNITY / CHALLENGE

For what projects/services did your company hire Merge Studio, and what were your goals?

Our organization shifted its focus and needed significant changes to the website so we took the opportunity to go through rebranding and the development of a new WordPress site. We worked with Merge Studio on website design, artwork, functionality, and backend data reports. They were incredibly helpful and took the time to understand our goals and came up with the best ways for us to achieve them through the use of technology, plug-ins, and our website.

SOLUTION

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

We have and continue to work with Merge Studio because their friendly and knowledgeable staff know our work and needs and have taken the time to co-develop a plan alongside us.

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

The team pulled together a meeting for us to discuss our needs, ideas, and timeline. They presented us with a detailed scope of work and budget that met our limitations. Merge developed a WordPress website, added some plug-ins to allow us to have a training/event calendar, discussion forum, membership levels, and more.

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

There were 3 people that we worked with intermittently throughout the project to provide feedback, answer questions, and conduct testing. We primarily worked with Michelle and Dina and they have been incredibly helpful to us and have a team of talented folks they can bring into the process.

RESULTS & FEEDBACK

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

We have received very positive feedback from the users of our website. When we identify an issue or something that could work better, we simply discuss with Merge Studio and come up with a solution.

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

At the beginning of the project we discussed the best ways for us to manage the project and stay on top of things as they come up. For us, we decided to have monthly meetings and additional conversations/emails as needed. We also collaborated on documents, discussed content, edits, and the user-experience was always top of mind for the team at Merge.

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

The Merge team has done a great job teaching us to use the website so we can make day-to-day edits and content changes. They are interested in the work of our nonprofit and aim to make our work more efficient and meaningful.

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

None.

BACKGROUND

Please describe your company and your position there.

I am part of the Communications team for an environmental nonprofit that operates across the west.

OPPORTUNITY / CHALLENGE

For what projects/services did your company hire Merge Studio?

When I joined the team in late 2017, we were using a non-responsive website that housed over 300 pages of content. We wanted a way to engage our supporters in the work and give them a modern experience that they could easily interact with on desktop and mobile.

SOLUTION

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

Merge was brought in to help overhaul the website in 2018. They helped us shift from our old platform to WordPress, which was a game changer for our organization. Merge met with us to understand our goals for the organization and helped us to bring that vision to life online.

Describe the project in detail and walk through the stages of the project.

They created custom layouts and modules for our pages, resulting in a cohesive and visually-driven experience on the site. They also trained several staff members to work in WordPress so that we were able to make changes or additions to the site when needed.

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

We've worked with several members of the team at Merge over the years, most notably Michelle and Dina. They offer us support that ranges from web development to content additions to reports from Google Analytics, and the work is always done with care and precision to make sure we're putting our best foot forward.

RESULTS & FEEDBACK

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

Since the changeover to WordPress, our site traffic has grown, especially on mobile, which now makes up nearly a third of site visitors. Being on a user-friendly platform has also made it easier to present new content and various types of content for potential supporters to get to know our organization. As a result, we've seen more supporters signing up for email on our website and it's now one of our top-performing channels for organic signups.

How effective was the workflow between your team and theirs?

The team at Merge continues to support our organization. When we need help, I reach out via email and receive a quick response from Michelle and/or Dina. They ask questions to understand what we're trying to do, give an estimated timeline, and keep in touch as they're working so we know where things stand. We're very pleased with the level of communication and how timely the work gets done.

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

The team at Merge Studio was responsive, attentive to detail, and genuinely cared about our success.

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

Overall we're happy with the services we're provided by Merge.