modern8

BACKGROUND

Introduce your business and what you do there.

I am one of the managing directors of a venture capital firm.

OPPORTUNITY / CHALLENGE

What challenge were you trying to address with modern8?

We wanted to develop a new brand and website around our name. We wanted something more updated and contemporary to give a better representation of our business.

SOLUTION

What was the scope of their involvement?

They helped develop our logo and provided overall guidance on website content and messaging. They worked in conjunction with a web developer to help us pull it all together.

What is the team composition?

We primarily interacted with Alysha Smith [Manager, modern8] and Randall Smith [Designer & Brand Strategist, modern8].

How did you come to work with modern8?

We talked to a few different firms, and liked what they had to offer. We spoke with other clients they worked with and felt they would be a good fit.

How much have you invested with them?

We spent around $50,000.

What is the status of this engagement?

We started working on the project early in 2014, probably around May. It took about four or five months, and we finished later that same year.

RESULTS & FEEDBACK

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

We haven’t measured growth related to the change, but we do get a lot of compliments on our site, and we’re very happy with it.

How did modern8 perform from a project management standpoint?

We were also very happy on that front. They responded very well and were helpful in keeping the process moving. We interacted mostly through phone conversations and face-to-face meetings.

What did you find most impressive about them?

They’re innovative and have a good aesthetic and style, especially when helping with content. They do thorough research on who we work with, and talk with them to get a sense of how we’re perceived. They put that together with our goals to come up with the overall messaging, branding, and content that we settled on.

Are there any areas they could improve?

Nothing comes to mind.

Do you have any advice for potential customers?

Take full advantage of their talent and the opportunities they provide. They do a lot of customer research and come up with market-driven content. I would certainly recommend them to others and have already done so.

BACKGROUND

Introduce your business and what you do there.

My name is Dave Taylor and I'm the chief marketing officer at Impartner. We provide Software-as-a-service solutions for partner relationship management.

OPPORTUNITY / CHALLENGE

What challenge were you trying to address with modern8?

We purchased Impartner a few years ago when it was under a different name and brand. It needed a total repositioning in the market: a new identity that would launch us as a very fresh, contemporary brand.

SOLUTION

What was the scope of their involvement?

They helped us come up with the company’s new name, logo, and website. They looked through the list of competitors to make sure the new brand identity stands out in the market. We wanted a name that reflected partnership since our work is with indirect sales partners, and they helped us come up with Impartner. Additional deliverables included messaging and brand strategy.

We’ve also used modern8 for several video products. For example, they created a bumper video for us to use at our annual customer conference.

What is the team composition?

Our main point of contact is a senior project manager and a team of 2-3 designers that work on our account.

How did you come to work with modern8?

I asked colleagues for suggestions of local agencies in Salt Lake City and put together a list of 10-12 to consider. I eliminated half of the list based on phone calls and invited 5-6 agencies to pitch us in person.

The owner of modern8 came to that initial meeting, which was very impressive. One of the reasons that we liked modern8 was they were big enough to handle our business but small enough to have their top executive involved.

The decision came down to modern8 and one other agency. When I called the other agency, I couldn’t get a hold of anyone. modern8 got back to me right away, even ducking out of a conference to return my call. That level of responsiveness made the decision easy.

How much have you invested with them?

We’ve spent between $60,000-$80,000.

What is the status of this engagement?

Work began in April of 2015 and is ongoing. They're producing another video for us right now.

RESULTS & FEEDBACK

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

We’ve had 10x growth over the last 2.5 years. While it's impossible to say exactly how much of the growth is due to the new logo and rebranding, I can say for sure that we would not have had 10x growth if we hadn't worked with modern8.

I'm extremely happy with their work. Web and design work normally has a short lifespan, but we’re still using 90% of what they created. The rebrand really established the identity of the company. The messaging they created is more professional than a lot of the smaller companies in the market.

How did modern8 perform from a project management standpoint?

They are always responsive and get back to us very quickly. We have a good relationship with our project manager; everything has been spot on.

What did you find most impressive about them?

They have a really fundamentally sound process for their creative and design work. The work we get from them is very high quality, but also really targeted at our core business.

Having them be super responsive is the icing on the cake. We asked them at the very last minute to create the video for our annual customer conference. It wasn’t in the work plan or budget, but they took it on and completed the video in time to go live at the event.

Are there any areas they could improve?

I hope they continue to grow the business. It could be an issue for us if they stay as small as they are now. Our business is growing; we've already outgrown our PR agency and an ad agency. We're still working with modern8 because so far they've been able to keep up with us.

Do you have any advice for potential customers?

If you’re considering various agencies, make sure to ask modern8 for a proposal because they will win you over through their designs and creative work.

BACKGROUND

Introduce your business and what you do there.

I am one of the principals at a Software-as-a-Service (SaaS) company.

OPPORTUNITY / CHALLENGE

What challenge were you trying to address with modern8?

We were looking for a partner to help us undertake a complete rebranding effort. Our challenge was getting other people to understand what is special about the company, and to do so in an authentic way. In terms of a logo, we wanted something iconic and memorable.

SOLUTION

What was the scope of their involvement?

They began by speaking to our customers, vendors, and other stakeholders in order to get a sense of the company. They paid attention not just to what we do, but the feelings and emotions associated with our work.

modern8 asked us to consider changing the name of the company. While I was opposed to the idea, I agreed to take a look at what they found. They came back and said the data didn’t support changing the name because it resonated very strongly in their interviews.

They designed a new mark (logo), a new color palette, an email template, and a brand brief that included fonts, words, and imagery to convey the new brand.

What is the team composition?

My main point of contact was the owner, but I worked with several people over the course of the project.

How did you come to work with modern8?

We interviewed a lot of branding companies and their presentation resonated most strongly. What we liked about modern8 was the in-depth process to understand their clients. Unlike other companies that just focused on the design aspect, they're thinking about the business side. They understand that design has to follow function.

How much have you invested with them?

We spent between $30,000-$50,000.

What is the status of this engagement?

We started this project about 10 years ago. They spent nine months working on the rebranding, and then we worked together for another year and a half on various iterations of the new brand.

RESULTS & FEEDBACK

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

One of the logo design concepts immediately resonated with us, and we knew it would evoke emotion in the marketplace. The logo is now iconic in our industry. People see it, they know it, understand it, and love it. modern8 submitted the logo in several design competitions and won a number of awards.

How did modern8 perform from a project management standpoint?

They were great. I met with them every couple of weeks, and my marketing director was in constant contact with them as well. They came to our office frequently, so there was a lot of face time.

What did you find most impressive about them?

I’m very impressed with their five-step process to understand your business and what you're trying to accomplish. They were the only company who suggested doing interviews with our customers, partners, and employees. That deep dive allows them to understand what your brand represents.

Are there any areas they could improve?

We needed work done on our website as part of the overall rebranding effort, and it would have been nice if modern8 could have handled that as well. We ended up taking their designs to a software development shop for the web piece.

Do you have any advice for potential customers?

Don't try to control the process too much. Allow them to do the research. Be open to whatever they need to do in order to truly understand the voice of your customers and stakeholders.