Noble Studios

BACKGROUND

Introduce your business and what you do there.

I’m the SVP of sales and marketing for a company that provides air and ground tours from Las Vegas to the Grand Canyon. We’ve had about $100 million in gross sales prior to the COVID-19 pandemic and about 300,000 guests on our services. 

OPPORTUNITY / CHALLENGE

What challenge were you trying to address with Noble Studios?

We needed to increase our visibility online. 

SOLUTION

What was the scope of their involvement?

Noble Studios helps us increase visibility and convert leads to book our services. Around 30% of our business is transacted online, and our goal has been to maintain that and increase it with an appropriate ROI. 

What is the team composition?

We work with one teammate from Noble Studios who serves as the project’s principal. Then, we collaborate with three additional teammates. Throughout our tenure with the team, two principals have stayed with us. In total, we’ve worked with five teammates from them, including William (Senior Digital Marketing Manager). 

How did you come to work with Noble Studios?

Our CEO is a member of an organization, and they met one of Noble Studios’ principals. They gave us their presentation, and we felt they were a good match for us. That was how we started working together. 

How much have you invested with them?

We’re paying them $11,000 per month. Prior to the COVID-19 pandemic, our budget was considerably higher. At that time, we spent about $1 million in paid ads and invested around $20,000 per month on Noble Studios’ services. 

What is the status of this engagement?

The partnership started in January 2016, and it’s ongoing. 

RESULTS & FEEDBACK

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

For 2021–2022 year-over-year metrics, our organic and paid sessions are up by 15%, transactions by 30%, and revenue by 54%. Our revenue is roughly $10 million. We’ve also generated around $4.2 million in international campaigns. 

How did Noble Studios perform from a project management standpoint?

Noble Studios’ project management approach is disciplined. We conduct calls every two weeks; one is 30 minutes, and the other lasts an hour. During these meetings, we usually request to get their presentations ahead of time so we can look more closely at them instead of seeing them for the first during the meeting. This gives us the opportunity to exchange ideas and get better insights. They’ve delivered that consistently. 

Moreover, they manage our content pillars well. We have full-time content writers, and everything is being delivered on time. In fact, we’re the ones who sometimes cause delays just because we’re swamped with tasks. 

William has been spectacular and professional. He’s anchored our account and provided us with enormous information and support. 

What did you find most impressive about them?

The great thing about Noble Studios is their responsiveness whenever we ask for change. 

For example, we’ve had a content turnover on both their and our sides. Our content writer has been giving them many topics they need to write about. He’s felt that there’s a disconnect between workflows; the process hasn’t been as effective as it can be. Given that, Noble Studios has been extremely helpful in getting us back to a base level where everybody understands where they’re at and build from there. 

Overall, they’re happy to help whenever adjustments are needed. They’re extremely responsive to such adjustments. 

Are there any areas they could improve?

No, there aren’t any. 

Do you have any advice for potential customers?

Know that Noble Studios is expensive and strong in terms of hospitality. They’ll give you a lot of resources to support your ecosystem. As a result, if you’re a small company, you should ensure you have enough revenue when engaging them. 

UPDATED REVIEW

This review was published on Sat, 05/06/2023

Irit Langness

VP Sales & Marketing, Papillon Grand Canyon Helicopters

Hospitality & Leisure

201-500 Employees

Las Vegas, Nevada, United States 

Confidential

$200,000 to $999,999

Jan 2016 - Ongoing

Project summary

Noble Studios provides ongoing SEO and digital marketing services for a helicopter tour company. They offer QA services and manage the company's search engine marketing campaigns for optimal performance.

Feedback summary

Noble Studios has helped the client increase their paid & organic transactions. They are reliable, transparent, and committed to delivering quality services. Further, virtual meetings and emails ensure seamless project management. Customers can expect a team that completes tasks on time.

BACKGROUND

Please describe your company and position.

I am the VP Sales & Marketing of Papillon Grand Canyon Helicopters

Describe what your company does in a single sentence.

Operate tours of Grand Canyon by Helicopters and Airplanes

OPPORTUNITY / CHALLENGE

What specific goals or objectives did you hire Noble Studios to accomplish?

• Increase our Direct/online bookings
• Increase organic search
• Manage paid campaigns

SOLUTION

How did you find Noble Studios?

Referral

Why did you select Noble Studios over others?

• High ratings
• Great culture fit

How many teammates from Noble Studios were assigned to this project?

2-5 Employees

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

• Ongoing Search Engine Optimization Services 
• Continually improving the visibility of Papillon.com 
• Quality assurance
• Ongoing Digital Advertising Strategy and Management of Papillon’s Search Engine Marketing campaigns for optimal performance towards established KPIs 
• Ensure that Papillon receives the best visibility while delivering quality traffic and conversions.

RESULTS & FEEDBACK

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

• Growth in Paid & organic transactions 
• Domestic & Int’l Growth in Paid & Organic sessions 
• Domestic & Int’l ROA’s (conversions/value/cost 
• Domestic & Int’l

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

Projects have ALWAYS been delivered on time. The Noble team is very responsive!

What was your primary form of communication with Noble Studios?

• Virtual Meeting
• Email or Messaging App

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

Reliable, transparent & their expertise in the Travel sector

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

About a year ago we asked the Noble team to share their report in advance of our meetings. That helped us a lot, being more prepared to discuss next steps. If there are any areas of improvement, we feel very comfortable addressing them & Noble Studios is very responsive and committed to doing their very best to address any concerns our concerns.

RATINGS

Overall rating: 5
Quality: 5
Cost: 5
Schedule: 5
Willing to refer: 5

BACKGROUND

Please describe your company and your position there.

Communities In Schools of Nevada (CIS) is part of the nation’s leading evidence-based stay-in-school organization that believes every child has potential – regardless of race, zip code or socioeconomic background – but may lack equal opportunity to succeed. I am the Director of Marketing and Communications for CIS of Nevada.

OPPORTUNITY / CHALLENGE

For what projects/services did your company hire Noble Studios, and what were your goals?

We were awarded the Noble Deeds grant in 2022, enabling our organization to receive the donation of a new website. Our goal was to create a dynamic online space where current and potential stakeholders can learn, connect with the mission and take action to make a difference in equity in education. We needed a hub for our students, school staff, families, community, employees, board members, donors and volunteers could go to quickly access critical information.

SOLUTION

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

I've previously worked with Noble Studios in my last career. When I found out CIS of Nevada was partnering with them to create a website the same time I was applying for my current role, I realized my timing was perfect.

Knowing I was going to get to work with the Noble team was one of the reasons I chose to work for CIS of Nevada. Noble's team are professional and the best in the region for building a website. They gave us the right tools to manage the website, made it user-friendly and delivered a site that is beautiful, inspiring and customizable.

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

It started with Noble creating a strategic brief to outline the goals, audiences, messaging, research, information architecture, design, navigation and technology. We landed on managing our website on WP and adding in some plug-ins such as The Events Calendar, Gutenberg Block Editor, WordPress Multi-Language (WPML) and integrating existing tools we use for donation software and email marketing.

They migrated content as needed as well. The technical audit and keyword search were also components that were included and important to the project.

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

We had a project manager, technical team members (3-4 at a time), content writers (3-4) and a customer satisfaction support to ensure all of our deliverables were getting met. They also had 2 of their leaders join our board of directors meeting to showcase the new website before the public launch. Overall, the support was outstanding.

RESULTS & FEEDBACK

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

Our website is now performing at 99% and we'll be tracking our KPI's in the next 6 months to show our outcomes.

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

The team was excellent at communicating deadlines, deliverables and keeping everything moving along despite any challenges we faced. At one point, we received late feedback and I was very happy with the way our project manager handled it. Nothing phased them and we loved working with them throughout the entire process.

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

I love how Noble Studios gives back through their Noble Deeds program. They know their skillset and how to best give to nonprofits who don't always have the resources to design a professional quality website. They also find solutions to make it user-friendly, customizable and long-term. That's hard to come by.

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

Not at all. We are very happy with our new website and all of the work Noble Studios did for us. We will forever consider them part of our CIS of Nevada family.

BACKGROUND

Introduce your business and what you do there.

I'm the executive director of Visit Morgan Hill, which is the tourism marketing bureau for our city.

OPPORTUNITY / CHALLENGE

What challenge were you trying to address with Noble Studios?

We’re a new organization and we wanted to bring some awareness around our brand identity. We were also looking to drive more hotel bookings in the city, so we hired Noble Studios to help us launch our brand.

SOLUTION

What was the scope of their involvement?

I provided Noble Studios with our strategic plan and existing brand style guide. We had developed a brand prior to the engagement, but we had yet to launch it through a campaign. Their team helped us create visual assets, photographs, videos that aligned with our branding identity. They also assisted us in putting together a digital marketing campaign that entailed various social media ads and search displays. 

For the campaign, we targeted channels such as Google Display Network, Instagram, and Facebook. We worked together to identify a good target audience and established a Geotarget as well as some interest groups.  

Noble Studios also provided us with some PR support, writing press releases that we could pitch to travel media to augment the campaign. 

What is the team composition?

Lauren (Client Success Manager) was our project coordinator. She was the one who kept everything on schedule and presented any decisions that I needed to make for the team. I worked mainly with Gabbi (Associate Creative Director of Content) for the creative assets, videos, and photography. I also collaborated with Danni (Associate Director of Performance Marketing) for the advertising efforts. 

They brought in more people as needed, and Ledoux (CCO & Managing Director) also popped in from time to time. 

How did you come to work with Noble Studios?

I met them a few years back through an industry golf tournament. The previous tourism council I had worked for selected them through an RFP process, so I decided to include them in the RFP for the Visit Morgan Hill campaign as well. They came out as the winning team. 

How much have you invested with them?

We’ve spent around $50,000–$60,000.

What is the status of this engagement?

We started creating assets in May 2021, but the campaign kicked off by the end of June 2021. Our partnership is ongoing. 

RESULTS & FEEDBACK

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

Our preliminary results have revealed that most of our standard digital performance metrics are above the average industry standard, which is really cool. Ever since we kicked off the campaign, we've also seen an increase in traffic not just on our website but through our other digital channels as well. We've seen people come from our ads, but we’ve also noticed an increase in organic traffic.

On a more qualitative note, we’ve been very pleased that Noble Studios has helped us go from having zero assets to now having a well-defined brand, pillars, and key targets. It’s been a big step forward for us. Even our followers on social media have expressed their surprise at discovering so many attractions in the city, and all this commentary was made possible by the assets that Noble Studios created for us.

How did Noble Studios perform from a project management standpoint?

They’re excellent on this front. Noble Studios is a well-oiled machine. Their internal and external communications are really good, and they're very concise with what they need from me in order to make a decision or a call. 

What did you find most impressive about them?

Noble Studios is a team of creative problem-solvers. They're able to take on any issue, do research around it, and present us with options, especially when we're working with a pretty small budget. A lot of really cool things have come out of their creativity.

Are there any areas they could improve?

No, I can't take of anything.

Do you have any advice for potential customers?

To make the most out of your engagement with Noble Studios, you have to do a little bit of work yourself. You can either run down the clock doing wishy-washy things or maximize the team that you’ve hired and really get a lot from them by being decisive and well-informed. Different clients may have different levels of marketing knowledge, but bringing your best research and strategy to the table can help the team deliver the best solutions for you.

BACKGROUND

Please describe your company and your position there.

I am the Head of Demand Generation at my company and am responsible for the development and implementation of demand gen and lead gen programs that create revenue opportunities among our target audiences, both new prospects and existing clients.

OPPORTUNITY / CHALLENGE

For what projects/services did your company hire Noble Studios?

We were looking to uplevel our current web experience and deliver more meaningful engagement through our web properties to help drive awareness, interest and conversion through our web based experiences. This included optimizing our UI/UX, Google page ranking, keyword authority and search results for our website through SEO, paid search and display advertising.

SOLUTION

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

Having worked with Noble Studios for some time at my previous employer, I knew they would be a strong contender in a broader RFP process we conducted as part of our agency search. After the vetting process was complete, we ended up choosing Noble Studios as the AOR as they had provided us with a detailed job scope and project expectations along with a reasonable budget to achieve stated goals and performance metrics.

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

With an eye on developing a scalable digital marketing program, using quality lead generation, efficiency and ultimately ROI as our cornerstones for success, Noble engaged in a discovery and planning project to launch a number of digital initiatives to capitalize on immediate opportunities through 2020 that will put Addepar in a good position for growth heading into 2021.

In order to truly understand the digital landscape, competition, strengths, weaknesses and growth opportunities for Addepar, Noble Studios undertook an extensive period of discovery and planning, including facilitating a client kickoff meeting to discuss scope, timeline, and expectations.

After that, we engaged in defining and establishing key stakeholders and started to perform an audit to identify opportunities for improvement which included keyword discovery, identifying top organic keywords to expand our audience and total addressable market, SEO/SEM audit, Google Tag Manager recommendations, competitive analysis, technical analysis, and traffic and keyword ranking analysis. Secondary phases included activities focused at boosting search SEO and SEM performance.

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

We worked with a dedicated team at Noble Studios including account managers, digital design and strategy managers, copywriters, designers, web developers and many other supporting services.

RESULTS & FEEDBACK

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

With the support of Noble Studios, we've been able to jump start our website and improve our presence and site authority through innovative SEO/SEM strategies. This includes doubling our web sessions and visitors in 6-months vs. all of last year and allowing us to achieve #1 position in keyword ranking (vs competition) for our major audiences. We have also significantly lower our CPC vs. industry average and reduce spend while increasing efficiency on our website and related digital ads and paid social.

How effective was the workflow between your team and theirs?

We have regular weekly and bi-weekly meetings with our team at Noble and also arrange special meetings for key projects and deliverables that might be on a timeline. Overall, we have a strong working relationship with Noble and consider them a part of our marketing team.

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

The entire team at Noble Studios has been highly receptive, engaged and motivated to move our business to the next level. They provide action oriented recommendation and follow-up on all activities which makes the process very integrated between our teams. We feel we have a real partner in growing our business, not just their own because of their digital expertise

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

Having worked with Noble Studios for some time, I can't think of anything different they could have done to make the process more seamless and relevant.

BACKGROUND

Please describe your company and your position there.

I am a Senior Director at a business consulting firm based in San Francisco. We work with middle market business owners who are looking to sell their business or drive growth through acquisitions.

OPPORTUNITY / CHALLENGE

For what projects/services did your company hire Noble Studios?

Our website was created by one of our founders and was very basic. It served the initial needs but was no longer sufficient as our team and services grew. We were impressed with Noble's web design and development work so we hired them to lead us through a branding exercise and to develop the site for our new brand.

SOLUTION

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

Noble Studios was a client of ours so we knew the team previously. Due to this relationship, we were aware of their high standards and quality of work so they were our first pick as we began our rebranding process.

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

After a series of discovery meetings and brand strategy work, we receive 3 initial design themes for our site. Once we chose a theme, they built out several types of pages and we provided feedback through InDesign. As we finalized the page designs they also sourced an illustrator since we wanted to develop illustrations for our main landing pages. We also wanted photography for our secondary images further down on the page.

The team sourced 3 illustrators and 3 photographers and we chose the ones that felt like the best fit. They managed the process of illustration development and feedback, and we ended up with illustrations that we love. The illustrations were then beautifully incorporated into the site design.

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

In total we worked with 5 people, initially, we did our brand work with the head of the brand strategy. For the website project, we worked with the customer service manager, the project manager, the digital marketing manager, and the web designer.

RESULTS & FEEDBACK

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

Their presentations were all very thorough and professional, throughout the process we were impressed with the high quality of work and communication. We have received continual positive feedback on our beautiful and well-designed site. At this point, it has only increased traffic slightly because lead generation wasn’t a priority when we developed the site. But since the pandemic hit we now need the site to be a lead generation tool since we can no longer able to have in-person meetings. So we are now working on updating the content so we can improve our SEO rankings while still protecting the integrity of the site.

How effective was the workflow between your team and theirs?

The project manager was easy to communicate with and provided regular updates, revising the timeline as needed. All our correspondence was via zoom calls and e-mail since we are in different states. All deliverables were on time unless something came up that cause a delay and in those cases, it was communicated in a timely manner.

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

We were very impressed with the quality of the design and the team collaboration. Our site is the perfect combination of our brand style and color. Their creative team developed multiple logos for us to consider in our branding process and it was a very difficult decision because they were all amazing. We landed on one that we love and is a terrific representation of our brand.

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

We could have used more upfront support on making our copy SEO friendly, even though SEO wasn’t a priority in the initial development of the site, if it had been part of the design conversation it would have been less work for us in the back end. We are now having to rewrite content while protecting the design integrity which is a tricky task.

BACKGROUND

Introduce your business and what you do there.

We’re the tourism organization for the Carson Valley, representing the communities of Genoa, Minden, Gardnerville, and Topaz. We’re in the Nevada side of Douglas County, and I’m the executive director.

OPPORTUNITY / CHALLENGE

What challenge were you trying to address with Noble Studios?

After the initial impact of the COVID-19 pandemic, we were moving towards recovery for the tourism industry, which was significantly impacted. We received money distributed to the state of Nevada and individual counties through the CARES Act Coronavirus Relief Fund (CRF). 

As a result, we did a partnership with the Tahoe South tourism bureau and requested funding to put a campaign together to reinforce and communicate safe and open travel within our region (Douglas Country Nevada).

Overall, we wanted people to consider our area for their future planning (partly because, in many cases, it wasn’t the best time to travel immediately).

SOLUTION

What was the scope of their involvement?

Our work with Noble Studios was a combination of brand messaging and communication, website development, advertising content, and more. Their initial work focused on the preparation and selection of the messages we have for our Sierra Safely campaign. We desired to communicate a message of responsible travel, and we wanted our target audience to dream about their ideal travel in the future.

As part of that, they created paid social media ads, YouTube videos, and digital display ads. Some of our ads were posted on platforms such as Expedia. On top of that, the team did some traditional outdoor billboard and radio campaigns, and we launched the campaigns in early October. After the project ended, they sent wrap-up final reports.

What is the team composition?

We primarily collaborated with six people, including Jarrod (CEO & Founder), Kimberly (VP of Client Services), B.C. (Managing Director), Danielle (Associate Director for Performance Marketing), Gabbi (Associate Creative Director), and Jodie (Director of Project Management). Many others behind the scenes deserve equal recognition for their key contributions.

How did you come to work with Noble Studios?

The project was approved by the county in late August 2020, and we signed a contract for creative design and campaign placement with Noble Studio on September 15, 2020. We did an RFP for this project because it involved funding at the federal level.

We selected Noble Studio, in part, because they presented a comprehensive campaign before we had even signed an agreement with them. 

How much have you invested with them?

The campaign investment was $360,000, but we paid a proportionate share of that money to Noble Studios because of the website development and ad placement work.

What is the status of this engagement?

We worked together from September–December 2020.

RESULTS & FEEDBACK

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

As an example of the measurable results, there were 31 million impressions created through the campaign. For the market we were trying to reach, we had 3,600 website clicks, 15,800 social media ad clicks, and 5,600 online ad clicks. In addition, we had over 30,000 website visits and 77,600 video views. We also collected 130 email addresses of people who wanted to continue to hear from us. 

As additional valued input, many consulting firms and tourism leaders recognized our campaign with Tahoe because we did a joint collaboration project on behalf of the whole community (instead of an older paradigm by competing with each other or initiating separate projects). 

How did Noble Studios perform from a project management standpoint?

Noble Studios performed notably because they were all working from remote locations. Their ability to morph and effectively communicate and work with our internal teams was impressive — they never skipped a beat. They were all engaged in every single meeting that we had. On top of that, they always knew what was going on and were always capable of helping us with our needs.

Their team was committed to our project, and we met on a weekly basis as we developed and launched the campaign through Zoom. They helped to ensure we remained on point and followed the right strategy.

What did you find most impressive about them?

Their adaptability and speed allowed them to come up with a highly creative and integrated campaign. Above all, their excellent service to their customers was also notable.

Are there any areas they could improve?

No, I don’t have any specific feedback to share.

Do you have any advice for potential customers?

Noble Studios applies a great deal of creativity and thought to the campaigns they develop. Know that you have a capable team that can understand your circumstances and apply dynamic solutions. Let them do what they should do best, and exercise caution when you're tempted to follow a more familiar path. The ultimate collaboration should lead to much more than you can initially imagine. Trust and communicate with them.

BACKGROUND

Please describe your company and your position there.

I am the Marketing Manager of a fitness and training equipment manufacturer. We design and deploy custom fitness equipment, tactical and operational simulation tools, and turnkey training facilities specific to the military services to improve overall human performance and readiness.

OPPORTUNITY / CHALLENGE

For what projects/services did your company hire Noble Studios, and what were your goals?

We were launching a new portfolio of products specific to the recently released Army Fitness test and needed the strategy and execution of a digital team that could tackle this uncharted territory. Our goal was to increase/improve brand awareness and engagement while introducing these new solutions to a new market.

SOLUTION

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

We were impressed with their B2B experience and pod approach to creating the best team for us.

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

As an initial collaboration, there was the discovery phase, brand audit, and exploration to create a closer understanding of our company, brand, and goals for this digital campaign.
 

Then there was persona development so we knew who to target and how to target each audience differently.

Ultimately content and text were developed and then shared across our company's appropriate social platforms.

Leads, conversions, hits, bounces, and overall audience engagement were tracked as our campaigns launched.

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

We worked with a Sr. Performance Marketing Manager, Client Success Manager, and an Associate Director of Performance Marketing for the majority of our team.

RESULTS & FEEDBACK

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

It was a very successful campaign for our brand engagement within a new market - 628 Total Leads and 382 Leads from ads.

How effective was the workflow between your team and theirs?

Extremely effective reporting meetings each month, and meetings as needed when campaigns were adjusted. They were very articulate, patient and thorough within each meeting so there was never time wasted or underutilized.

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

They were always solution-oriented and willing to try new techniques while still staying on track.

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

Nothing, we were very satisfied with the effective strategies, their patience, professionalism and willingness to adapt as needed.

BACKGROUND

Introduce your business and what you do there.

I’m the CEO of an educational nonprofit. We train teachers on how to use gardens and hydroponic systems to teach STEM in schools across America.

OPPORTUNITY / CHALLENGE

What challenge were you trying to address with Noble Studios?

We needed help rebranding our company and redesigning our website.

SOLUTION

What was the scope of their involvement?

First, we did a rebranding. We had several brainstorming discussions around our story and where we want to take the company. Afterward, we worked with their design team to redesign our WordPress website. In parallel with our web redesign, we worked with a third team to redesign our logo. They also worked on the SEO for our site.

What is the team composition?

We worked with a team of sixteen people, including BC (CCO), Somer (Solution Architect), Erin (Client Success Manager), Gabe (Project Manager), Jill (VP of Strategy), Christine (Senior Creative Designer), Razib (Creative Designer), Cody (Creative Designer), Stephanie (Creative Designer), Gabbi (Associate Creative Director), Will (Web Developer), and Stephen (Web Developer).

How did you come to work with Noble Studios?

We found them via a word-of-mouth referral. They’re based in Nevada and they seemed awesome.

How much have you invested with them?

We spent $116,000–$120,000.

What is the status of this engagement?

We started in April 2020, and we finished in December 2020.

RESULTS & FEEDBACK

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

They did an excellent job reflecting our branding and where we’re going. We’re confident we can grow into the brand they’ve created for us. We got very good feedback from our sponsors and our schools, too.

Initially, we weren’t crazy about the logo but they went back and re-did it till we were satisfied.

We have an area on our site where teachers go to show their students videos, which looks much better than before; teachers really like it.

How did Noble Studios perform from a project management standpoint?

They’re really great. We had a project manager and he always kept in touch with us. We met all the team members regularly. We communicated via Zoom.

What did you find most impressive about them?

Their passion to really understand our story was remarkable.

Are there any areas they could improve?

No, their process was very streamlined.

Do you have any advice for potential customers?

My advice is to hire them! It was a fun process. Re-branding can be a nerve-wracking experience. They didn’t shy away from it at all.

BACKGROUND

Please describe your company and your position there.

I'm the University Relations/Marcom Director at USAC, a nonprofit study abroad organization with programs in over 50+ cities around the world.

OPPORTUNITY / CHALLENGE

For what projects/services did your company hire Noble Studios?

Project included: Sitemap, Wireframes, Design, Component library, Front-end integration.

What were your goals for this project?

1. Improve conversion rate on applications and leads;
2. Improve content and flow of information;
3. Address common questions and reduce general email FAQs;
4. Visually align with brand and a young (college-age) audience;
5. Mobile-first design

SOLUTION

How did you select Noble Studios?

We sent an RFP to three well-known and reputable firms in the Reno area. We ultimately chose Noble Studios due to their reputation, skill/expertise, prior working experience, and the fact that the owners and multiple other employees had studied abroad with our organization during their college years.

Our business is complicated and we felt that their study abroad experience would help in the process.

Describe the project in detail.

Once we selected the vendor, we had a series of discovery meetings. We were in the middle of updating our brand colors, fonts, etc, and they helped us refine that. As a matter of fact, they designed a colorwash feature that we ended up using in other marketing materials.

Prior to the RFP, we had completed user research and evaluated/edited our content so we produced a sitemap internally; however, we asked Noble Studios to review and validate it, as well as offer any suggestions for improvement.

Because we offer over 50 programs, the work focused on creating the framework of layouts, templates, and components that could later be used to build out individual program pages. We also requested a more robust, “mad-lib” search function.

What was the team composition?

Noble’s team comprised Client Success Manager, Project Manager, UI/UX Designer, Web Developer, Digital Marketing Manager, Digital Marketing Specialist and others behind the scenes.

RESULTS & FEEDBACK

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

Post-launch customer surveys demonstrated that we met the goals for the project. Overall, the users like the more modern design and user experience.

How effective was the workflow between your team and theirs?

We had weekly client meetings early on and then as indicated on the project timeline. They are pros with project management, and were flexible when we had to extend a few deadlines due to our very small internal team.

We also mutually agreed to extend the final handoff as we worked through bug fixes. Somer Athari, Client Success Manager, and Jarrod Lopiccolo, CEO, were available and open-minded when issues needed to be escalated.

What did you find most impressive about this company?

They are a well-oiled machine with honed project management skills. They are willing to listen and work through complications. Their design ideas matched our younger demo.

Are there any areas for improvement?

As with any complex project, inevitably there will be bumps in the road. My advice is to refine and tighten the scope of work so expectations are met on both sides, as well as ask clarifying questions along the way.

As an example, we should have been more specific on our criteria for responsiveness of the site. Our internal team also felt that the fixes for the final QC took longer than expected.

BACKGROUND

Introduce your business and what you do there.

I’m the VP of sales and marketing at Ventura Visitors. We operate in the region between LA and San Francisco, along the coast of California. A lot of smaller DMOs, hotels, and attractions work together to market the region as a whole.

OPPORTUNITY / CHALLENGE

What challenge were you trying to address with Noble Studios?

We realized that, as members of the Central Coast Tourism Council, we weren’t effectively marketing to the east coast. Our mission was to increase our exposure and generate some sway in that region. We hired Noble Studios to serve as our marketing agency to fulfill it.

SOLUTION

What was the scope of their involvement?

Noble Studios created a new brand identity for us. They did some research and realized that our tagline and logo weren’t resonating with the east coast market. They then generated creative content and assets for us to utilize on our digital platforms. These included landing pages and banner ads that target different audiences. They helped manage the backend of our website.

What is the team composition?

We had around 3 contacts.

How did you come to work with Noble Studios?

We put forward an RFP, and the members of the Central Coast Tourism Council all did their due diligence in increasing its exposure. There was a small committee that filtered through the responding vendors who shortlisted three companies. Noble Studios was among them, and upon interviewing them, we got a great impression. They were creative and enthusiastic, so we decided to go with them.

How much have you invested with them?

I believe we spent around $175,000 for their media buys, as well as their management.

What is the status of this engagement?

We selected them in early 2019 and launched in October of that year.

RESULTS & FEEDBACK

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

We were ecstatic with the results they drove. We saw a surge in digital traffic, with New York being the number one source. Thanks to their work, web traffic from the east coast exceeded regional and instate traffic.

Additionally, in most check-ins, Noble Studios delivered above and beyond what we thought we would be receiving from them.

How did Noble Studios perform from a project management standpoint?

They were excellent. They were always clear about a timeline and next steps. The team always made themselves available and responded quickly to questions or issues.

What did you find most impressive about them?

Having worked with a handful of agencies in my career, I felt that Noble Studios never came across as a typical agency. They were very available, responsive, and thorough in their deliverables. They expressed a real commitment to our success and were always looking out for our best interests.

Are there any areas they could improve?

No, not really. They presented a wide array of ideas to us, which we appreciated because it indicated how creative they were getting to increase our brand exposure. While this isn’t something we can fault them for, it felt frustrating at times because we didn’t have the additional funds to execute all their ideas.

Do you have any advice for potential customers?

Just be very clear about how much money you’re willing to spend. Set those expectations, because otherwise, they might come up with excellent ideas that are too expensive to execute.