Noble Studios

BACKGROUND

Introduce your business and what you do there.

I’m the director of marketing for a southern California tourism organization.

OPPORTUNITY / CHALLENGE

What challenge were you trying to address with Noble Studios?

Our company was going through a complete brand refresh (design, marketing collateral, eventual name change), and Noble redesigned the website.

SOLUTION

What was the scope of their involvement?

They built our new website on WordPress and connected it to our CRM. This allows the CMR feed into certain areas of the website. Since launch, they’ve provided maintenance and become our official digital agency of record. In terms of marketing, they started off by providing only SEO, but, last year, we moved our SEM efforts from a third-party vendor to Noble Studios. This ensured our SEO and SEM campaigns were working in tandem. Tool-wise, they use both BrightEdge and Google Analytics.

What is the team composition?

They staff our team depending on our needs, but the most we’ve had is 8–10 people. There’s currently an account rep and two technical contacts, one of who is working on a different project we’re doing with them. They worked with our marketing team on the wireframes and navigation during the website build.

How much have you invested with them?

We've spent between $250,000–$1,000,000 with them. 

What is the status of this engagement?

We’ve been working together since 2014.

RESULTS & FEEDBACK

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

They were approachable and easy to work with, partnering with us to overcome challenges. Recently, they had some staff changes that affected our account, but they assigned people to pick up where the last team left off.

There’s a lot of factors that go into traffic coming to our website, but Noble is a huge chunk of that success—triple-digit increase in traffic from launch to today. We get referrals from hotel websites as a part of our paid campaigns, and those have tripled if not quadrupled since launch. The site itself is a night and day difference.

How did Noble Studios perform from a project management standpoint?

In the tourism industry, a lot of companies are used to taking lead for clients and fixing problems themselves, but we’re not a client like that. They made an adjustment when they saw that and we built a super collaborative relationship. As with any project, we’ve encountered a lot of deadlines, but they’ve been great at adjusting to our crazy schedule.

What did you find most impressive about them?

It’s their customer service. We’re not a huge client with a huge budget, but what they’ve achieved for us is amazing. We don’t feel like we’re on the bottom rung of a client ladder.

Are there any areas they could improve?

Nothing aside from the normal feedback.

Do you have any advice for potential customers?

They ask the right questions and make you think. Become partners with Noble Creative in the work.

BACKGROUND

Introduce your business and what you do there.

We’re a national telehealth practice focused on genetics and genomics. Our specialists are focused on genetics, and we have genetic counselors and medical geneticists that people can see online.

OPPORTUNITY / CHALLENGE

What challenge were you trying to address with Noble Studios?

We redesigned a website and needed help with direct-to-customer campaigns that conveyed our value to patients who need access to genetic specialists. With our business model shifting toward B2B, we needed a digital presence that reflected the change.

SOLUTION

What was the scope of their involvement?

Sometimes, especially in pediatric cases, patients must wait a very long time to see a professional. With help from Noble Studios, we wanted to communicate our ability to offer support to hospitals in search of overflow services.

To do this, they've been providing content support that gets the word out about our online services. That includes maintaining our website, SEO services, and content creation. We need to make sure we’re writing the kind web and social media copy that people are searching for. They’ve been instrumental in that effort. In addition to providing that content, they run digital ads on Facebook and Google. 

Because we’re a clinical practice, it’s important for us to position ourselves correctly. Typically, we write and design our ads internally because of that. However, they’ve created highly technical landing pages and websites for us that dig into our business model and services.

Now, they’re helping our sales and marketing teams as they begin using HubSpot and Copper. Noble Studios is handling system integration and maintenance. We have a full-service retainer with them on an annual basis.  

What is the team composition?

Meg (Client Success Manager, Noble Studios) is our main point of contact. When I’ve flown out to their headquarters for strategy sessions, I’ve met with their team of about 10 people who’re assisting with our projects. Day-to-day, though, there are probably about five core teammates focused on our account. 

How did you come to work with Noble Studios?

I was initially tasked with vetting them. My team had collaborated with them previously on a similar campaign, but my boss requested that I shop around. After meeting with them, I was really impressed with their technical capabilities and overall honesty.

Coming from an agency background, I know that they can sometimes overpromise in order to sell their services. However, when we gave them a few campaigns to run on a provisional basis, they showcased excellent reporting skills and transparency. From there, we decided to hire them as a partner.

How much have you invested with them?

We spent roughly $200,000.

What is the status of this engagement?

We’ve been working with them since 2017 and continue to do so. 

RESULTS & FEEDBACK

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

So far, we’ve seen increases in traffic, especially in organic traffic. That’s resulting in more conversions for our company. It's been nice to see because organic traffic is our greatest source of engagement. I’ve been happy with their digital campaigns. From a CRM and B2B standpoint, they’re very talented. I was pleased to see that when we shifted our strategy.

They’re great at seeing a campaign from boots on the ground all the way to actual conversions. It’s clear that they understand the nuts and bolts of the entire sales process. 

How did Noble Studios perform from a project management standpoint?

They always hit their deadlines, often during fast-paced sprints. We have them on retainer, so we can call upon them when we need additional help. However, this industry can sometimes demand quick turnaround times. If we need something in a day, that might not be possible for them. They’re always very open and honest about what they can accomplish in that time frame. The team never overpromises and is transparent about their capabilities. 

Our account manager is attentive and can anticipate problems before they happen. She’s also responsive and quick to update us on progress. 

What did you find most impressive about them?

Their transparency and honesty were very impressive. Sometimes, it’s difficult to let external resources take over part of your marketing efforts, but we can fully trust them. The entire team is friendly, timely, and sharp. They’re focused and always know what they’re doing. Their leadership team drops us notes to see how we’re doing with our projects. That’s appreciated too.

Are there any areas they could improve?

I can’t say that I would change anything.

Do you have any advice for potential customers?

They might appear to cost a lot upfront, but they truly do account for everything in that initial price. It’s worth the cost, but you might have a little sticker shock in the beginning.

BACKGROUND

Introduce your business and what you do there.

I am the founder and president of a specialty travel company with a focus on expedition cruises and wilderness adventures.

OPPORTUNITY / CHALLENGE

What challenge were you trying to address with Noble Studios?

Our old site was built on a proprietary platform and our previous partners were no longer in the web development space. We needed a new partner to rebuild our entire website. We also wanted a better sales funnel, improved trip listings, and improved mobile formatting and mobile interaction. We were also focused on SEO and conversion tracking.

SOLUTION

What was the scope of their involvement?

They rebuilt our website from scratch using WordPress. It was a complicated endeavor because our site is highly integrated into our sales platform and sales process. We use Salesforce, so all of the forms and some of the data needed to be integrated into that. We wanted to maintain what was good with our current site and then consider the amount of data we had to move over, so migration efficiency was also important.

The website is a foundational tool for our in-house sales staff. We were not only building a site for our users and our clients, but for our in-house sales team as well. Marketing and tracking were also considerations.

What is the team composition?

We had a core team of about six, and others came and went throughout the project, especially toward development and launch.

How did you come to work with Noble Studios?

We reached out to several trusted colleagues in the industry and cast a wide net across North America. We sent an RFP to several firms, including Noble Studios, and they rose to the top during a rigorous interview process.

SEO was foundational in our choice, as Noble Studios had a content-first type approach that lined up well with our content marketing philosophies. We also considered the design, architecture, and content. We believe they are a leader in content marketing.

How much have you invested with them?

We spent $250,000.

What is the status of this engagement?

We worked together from December 2018–August 2019.

RESULTS & FEEDBACK

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

We’re very happy with the site and we achieved all our goals. We’re a leader in our industry and they built a site that reflects that. Our site looks great and we’ve received good feedback since launch. It serves the interests of all of the user groups that we identified—our internal sales team, new clients, and existing clients. They also nailed some added functionalities that we knew we wanted but weren’t sure if we would be able to include. We’re really pleased with the final product.

It was also important for us to maintain our first-place rankings on Google search results. We have seen a slight dip in overall traffic and conversions since the site was launched. I think that's to be expected, and we're within the window where we're hoping that is going to return and even grow down the road.

We signed a maintenance agreement with Noble Studios, so they’re going to continue taking care of the site and optimizing it. We’re also considering a contract for SEO, CRO, and further marketing so we can use some of that expertise that we hired them to tighten up the traffic numbers and the conversion numbers.

How did Noble Studios perform from a project management standpoint?

Like any complicated web and marketing project, it was a challenge. There was a point when the project had to be re-scoped, and at that point, the scope and timing were changed. Within the confines of that, they did fairly well and adhered to the new schedule.

What did you find most impressive about them?

Their technical expertise stood out to me. They were really intuitive about our needs and did a great job with some complicated integrations with our automated marketing and our sales database. They weaved everything together into a full package so it wasn’t just a website but a functional tool to grow our business.

Are there any areas they could improve?

Sometimes it felt like we were more focused on project management and tracking than the actual project itself. The process could be cumbersome and overdone.

Do you have any advice for potential customers?

I would highly recommend them. Insist on a lot of details in the scope or statement of work so you know exactly what discovery and development will look like and there will be no surprised down the road.

BACKGROUND

Introduce your business and what you do there.

We are an integrated strategic and creative agency. I'm the president.

OPPORTUNITY / CHALLENGE

What challenge were you trying to address with Noble Studios?

Our primary reason for hiring them was to rethink our website and create an architecture and content strategy that was friendly to new businesses. We also contracted them for SEM and SEO services.

SOLUTION

What was the scope of their involvement?

They did all our information architecture, navigation design, and asset production. They incorporated video, visual design, and all our programming. We provided the content, but they helped us optimize everything. They created our blog and a dynamic, searchable case history area in the site. After that, they helped with keyword optimization, SEO, and AdWords.

The site is built in WordPress, and they found a template that streamlined the process and saved us money. They helped us with both front- and backend development, and it is very easy for us to get in and change content.

What is the team composition?

We worked with a team of at least five or six on our first website redesign. That team included visual designers and WordPress coders who chose the modules that would facilitate the functionality we wanted on the site. As we moved into ongoing SEM and SEO, the team shrank to about three people.

How did you come to work with Noble Studios?

We've known them for a while, and we always looked for opportunities to bring them into client assignments. When we wanted to improve our own site, they were an obvious choice.

How much have you invested with them?

We spend about $70,000 a year, and the original website cost about $35,000. All told, we've spent around $245,000 for their services.

What is the status of this engagement?

We started working together in 2015, and we continue to work with them on an ongoing basis.

RESULTS & FEEDBACK

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

They established performance indicators for incoming new business inquiries, which we track on a monthly basis. We see increases in referral traffic and lead conversion, and the percentage of qualified leads has gone up dramatically.

How did Noble Studios perform from a project management standpoint?

They're excellent project managers. They listen, stay on top of things, and are consistent and easy to work with. We always know what they require from us, and I have no complaints about their project management at all.

What did you find most impressive about them?

We haven't worked with a lot of providers, but Noble Studios really knows what they're doing. They understand the tools and the algorithms, and they convey their knowledge through plain language. They're very organized, and they're always clear about their roles and their capabilities. They hold themselves to a high standard, and they're always prepared and pleasant to work with.

Are there any areas they could improve?

In the past, they could have responded more positively to what we wanted to accomplish. We brought that to their attention, and they made corrections. At the moment, I can't think of anything they should do differently. They always rise to the occasion.

Do you have any advice for potential customers?

Let them go through their process to analyze the opportunity, needs, and requirements. Listen to their recommendations, and trust them. All of their suggestions to us resulted in dramatic improvements. They really know what they're talking about.

BACKGROUND

Introduce your business and what you do there.

I work for the Lake Tahoe Visitors Authority. We’re a destination marketing organization with the sole purpose of promoting overnight stays and tourism spend in the southern half of the Lake Tahoe region.

OPPORTUNITY / CHALLENGE

What challenge were you trying to address with Noble Studios?

We needed a partner to keep us up to date with technology trends related to attracting visitors to the region. We wanted website visitors to access information that would inspire them to take a trip to South Lake Tahoe in the future.

SOLUTION

What was the scope of their involvement?

Noble Studios is our digital agency of records. Their team manages anything within the digital realm. They were our first main web services provider. Now, their team directs all services related to our website. They’ve directed a couple of redesigns of the platform. As proponents of responsive technology, their team rebuilt a responsive website based in WordPress. This year, they’ve executed our SEO and SEM services. Each month, their team provides topics that would perform well on the platform based on our BrightEdge information. Noble Studios will create content, provide images, and write articles, which their team will place within our site to support SEO efforts. As Google-trusted business partners, they direct keywords and Google Ads strategies that adapt to algorithm changes. Currently, their team is working on a new CRM initiative with MailChimp.

What is the team composition?

We’ve always worked with a senior account manager who looks after all aspects of any project. Depending on the initiative, our team will collaborate with certain pods within Noble Studios. Senior search analysts and lead developers have supported our platform. With our current project, we’re working with CRM specialists.

How did you come to work with Noble Studios?

Noble Studios become our digital agency of records before my time. When we brought on a new brand agency, we sent our RFP with key features including the  new TahoeSouth brand and associated URL. We chose Noble Studios because they were a local agency and had experience within the tourism industry in our region.

How much have you invested with them?

We started working together in September 2010, and continue to do so. 

What is the status of this engagement?

Generally, the retainer would be about $150,000 a year. We also pay them for ad hoc projects such as our new CRM initiative.

RESULTS & FEEDBACK

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

They're absolutely superb with website optimization. We’ve always experienced growth with Noble Studios. We passed the 2-million unique visitors mark. In July of this year, we had 350,000 visitors to our website, which was the highest number of visitors. 

How did Noble Studios perform from a project management standpoint?

Noble Studios has used project management tools to assign tasks. We have a digital team in our organization, which consists of three staff members. We meet at least every week if not every two weeks to review any digital progress, meaning a lot of the work Noble Studios has done. We’ve always felt very confident in their project management. They’ve followed timelines consistently. While we’ve faced unexpected curveballs—especially with new platform integration—Noble Studios has been on time with any tasks.

What did you find most impressive about them?

We’re blessed to have a cutting edge and innovative agency in our region. The fact that their staff works, plays, and advocates for our area gives them better insight into what our visitors' interests. We’ve been most impressed with their knowledge. Their understanding of West Coast and mountain tourism certainly plays well for us. Also, their personal approach and the responsive nature of their account managers have been valuable assets. To any of our requests, they’ve never said no. They've always found a way around any challenges.

Are there any areas they could improve?

Nothing has ever come up in our meetings. The digital realm is constantly evolving; we trust them to be at the forefront of any new technologies. We only have good things to say about Noble Studios.

Do you have any advice for potential customers?

Go through a thorough RFP process. Look at what competitors are doing. Make sure the account manager has a good summarization of the business needs and forward strategy over the years. Make sure to budget accordingly. Noble Studios produces high-level work, which comes at a cost.

BACKGROUND

Introduce your business and what you do there.

I am the executive vice-president of the Reno Sparks Convention and Visitors Authority.

OPPORTUNITY / CHALLENGE

What challenge were you trying to address with Noble Studios?

We wanted to increase visitors and tourism to our destination. We needed them to help redo our existing website, working completely from scratch. 

SOLUTION

What was the scope of their involvement?

We work closely with them to promote special events at our destination. They’re very involved in our convention and group sales operations. They support the salespeople with website tools. They came to us with a lot of recommendations, and wireframes. Eventually, we had a document that practically stretched the length of our office with the wireframe and what it was going to look like. They were very involved in every step along the way with that and took our input throughout.

They've redone our entire WordPress website. There are also some different widget addons. We had an old website than in excess of 12,000 pages and it was on a proprietary platform. We scrapped that and started fresh which was a huge project.

We have several online forms (subscription, RFP, and general contracts) and have also utilized CAPTCHA. On our visitor planner requests form, we have the opportunity for people to request a hard copy of our visitor planner, but they can also subscribe to our emails. By doing that, it's automatically integrated with Campaign Monitor—our email marketing service. It automatically adds information to that database. This has streamlined everything and reduced manual work.

With personalization, they have a few different iterations on the site with VWO. Some are based on location. The newer personalization efforts concern users' behavior on the website. If they are returning, their experience is personalized based on the type of pages that they visited previously so they get tailored content. We also used personalization for our PPC. For example, if someone clicks on a banner ad, the content is in line with what they have seen on the banner ad. If they were to visit that page organically navigating to it through the site, it might be a little bit different. Overall, the content is the same, but we want to make sure that the user experience is aligned, and see what they are expecting to see.

Additionally, they've taken care of SEO and search engine marketing (SEM). This helps us with digital advertising. We are constantly doing page optimizations to improve our SEO which is something we work really closely with them on. We've also expanded that into our video channels so that people using YouTube can also find our content, so we have expanded beyond the website.

We work with a media buying agency that handles all of our paid banner ads. In conjunction with them, we work very closely with Noble Studios to make sure that the content is aligned and that pages are delivering the experience that the user is expecting. They really are a partner in our marketing efforts. 

What is the team composition?

We primarily work with Shyla (Client Success Manager, Noble Studios). We meet with three to four team members on a monthly basis, but I know there are several others behind the scenes. The staff depends on what the project is and if it is more of a design or development project. Jarrod (CEO/Co-Founder, Noble Studios) and Kimberly (VP of Client Services, Noble Studios) are always available. 

How did you come to work with Noble Studios?

We sent out an RFP and had quite a few companies submit proposals. Their work was very polished and sophisticated and they really understood the market. One of the principals had actually worked at the Convention Authority, so they were very familiar with what our goals were and what we were trying to do. They were really able to reflect that attitude and personality of the destination. Ultimately, we chose them because of their work history, and I was familiar with the principals in their company. 

What is the status of this engagement?

We began working with them in July 2016, and the work is still ongoing.

RESULTS & FEEDBACK

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

I consider them to be a leader in the digital arena and website development. When they first switched over our website, our website visits from one of our key markets went up significantly. We saw a lot of good traffic. Once we got the branding out there, we changed our strategy to more engagement and referrals.

We weren’t looking for huge website numbers. We wanted to double referrals and engagement and that happened. Our referrals to our partners have continued to grow from the time we launched the new site. We've also seen great improvements in our organic search ranking. 

How did Noble Studios perform from a project management standpoint?

They're really great to work with and very responsive—we reach out to them via email and Slack and meet with them monthly. There's always an open line of communication. If anything comes up, they are just a phone call away. Regardless of the day of the week, they're accessible, available to us immediately. They're always ready to give us good feedback in terms of their workload. We view them as an extension of our marketing team.

What did you find most impressive about them?

One of their strengths is their reporting and data collection. The reports they provide us with are clean, concise and easy to understand. I really like they are always available and willing to do a presentation in front of a board or stakeholders. I have interacted with them with four organizations including this one, and it has been consistent amongst all four organizations. Their performance is consistently strong, and their reporting is consistently accurate. They're really good at getting maximum value. 

I really like that all of our decisions are data-driven. When we develop ideas, we can make those decisions based on numbers, not just on hunches or what we might think is best. When we look back at the decisions we have made, we can look back with confidence that everything came from a place of thoughtfulness and that what the numbers showed was going to work for us.

Are there any areas they could improve?

In this line of work, there are always issues and problems that happen with the website or things that we're working on in the marketing world. Whether or not it is directly with Noble—it could be a marketing challenge on our end—they're always willing to dive in and help figure out a solution. They look at things very strategically. We appreciate that perspective and their willingness to work with our partners.  

Do you have any advice for potential customers?

Enjoy it. The people that work there are incredibly bright, and they have such talented employees. Some are extremely creative, and some are extremely numbers-driven. They really compliment each other and are able to give us the best product possible.

Really leverage the amount of knowledge they have on their team. Ask questions, share ideas, because they really are very forward-thinking and knowledgeable.

BACKGROUND

Introduce your business and what you do there. 

I'm the executive director of Crisis Support Services of Nevada. We’re a crisis intervention call center and one of six National Lifeline call centers. Our region is the whole state of Nevada. We do all of the child abuse reporting for the rural counties in Nevada. We’re also sexual assault advocates for northern Nevada. Last year we helped over 67,000 people get through the crisis and we helped 450 survivors of sexual assault. 

OPPORTUNITY / CHALLENGE

What challenge were you trying to address with Noble Studios? 

Our organization is 53 years old. We started back in 1966 when there was only one phone line in everyone's house. Our business has changed drastically but our name was still Crisis Call Center. We called ourselves the best-kept secret in Nevada because no one knew what we did. They thought that the sexual assault work and all the other programming was done by someone else. We needed to rebrand and rename our organization.

SOLUTION

What was the scope of their involvement?

Noble Studios did a complete rebranding and name change. They led strategic planning to update our mission statement, vision statement, and purpose. Obviously we were very active in all of it, but they led the charge. At the beginning, they brought a whole team over to my office. Probably 10 of their people came over to discuss what they were working on for us. Then they went and listened to the crisis calls that come in order to get a clear idea of what we do every day. 

They developed a new website for us. It allowed people to go on the website and click one button to get to us directly. They can call in or get to our texting line right from the website. They also created a video that tells people what we do. Noble Studios did our digital marketing as well. They gave us the words and tools we needed to talk about what we do and the services we offer. 

What is the team composition?

I dealt with many members of their team, including Season (COO, Noble Studios). Teva (Senior Creative Designer, Noble Studios) was usually our main point of contact and made sure we were all talking. 

How did you come to work with Noble Studios? 

Noble studios does a philanthropic event every year for nonprofits in Nevada called Noble Deeds. I applied and they chose us. 

How much have you invested with them?

We did not invest anything financially because they provided their services pro bono. It was the equivalent of $120,000 worth of work. 

What is the status of this engagement? 

Work started in June 2018, and the website went live in the middle of December.

RESULTS & FEEDBACK

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

The quality of Noble Studio’s work was phenomenal. Our website is beautiful. It features the new video right on the front page. The video still gives me goosebumps every time I watch it. We used it at our annual breakfast event last year and it got a great reception. The website is so easy to use because all the information and resources are accessible. We were already taking child abuse reports but now those calls have gone through the roof because people can get our help using those tools. 

As soon as they implemented the new website, I was able to bring in $800,000 worth of new grants and programs with all of the materials that they gave us. That's an 80% increase in program funding. That's why I will be using them again this year to do additional marketing work for which they will be paid through new state grants. I hope to use Noble Studio at every opportunity that I can in the future. 

How did Noble Studios perform from a project management standpoint?

Their team was excellent. They got all of the done within a six month period. Nonprofits aren’t used to working that fast. We like to mull over decisions, but Noble Studios came up with a timeline and they kept us to it. They let us contribute every step of the way through frequent communication.

What did you find most impressive about them? 

Everyone at Noble Studios is so kind and fun to work with. I adored working with every single one of them. They listened and responded well. They truly felt like part of our team. I've been at nonprofits for 25 years and I've never worked with another company that I enjoyed as much as them. 

Are there any areas they could improve? 

No. 

Do you have any advice for potential customers?

Consider the end game. Nonprofits might think that digital marketing or a new website is too expensive. However, the return on investment is tenfold. 

BACKGROUND

Introduce your business and what you do there.

I’m the manager of web analytics and optimization at Zovio. We are an online education company that helps universities and colleges with their online programs. I analyze data coming into the website, and then we set up tests to improve the user experience. 

OPPORTUNITY / CHALLENGE

What challenge were you trying to address with Noble Studios?

We were trying to generate leads. Noble Studios provides reporting, testing, ideation, and website features. They also offer strategy and web development.

SOLUTION

What was the scope of their involvement?

It’s been a partnership from the beginning. Noble Studios was integral in the design of a Drupal website we launched in November of 2016. 

The content was primarily created on our end, but they help with the look-and-feel of it. They currently maintain the site and take care of any updates that need to go out.

They did the development to auto-populate the state field of our online form based on a reverse IP-lookup. This saves the person one step on the form.

They’ve also built out a multi-step process for the form instead of leaving all the information on one page. 

Also, based on where users are in the funnel, the CTA button on our site’s header will change its wording and link. For example, if you’ve already filled out the form, the button will take you to the next step in the process.

They also help us with strategies to improve our lead conversion rate. (Leads are online form respondents that our enrollment advisors can contact). We meet every week to go over tests and suggestions.

Beyond lead conversions, they’ve helped us develop a strategy for micro-conversions. We’re thinking about it tactically — breaking up the website into smaller chunks. We’re trying to optimize those chunks to improve the overall process.

What is the team composition?

There are 5–6 people in total. Our main point of contact is Shyla Lindner (Client Success Manager, Noble Studios). 

The two main people on the team I work with are Tom Van Ruiten (Digital Marketing Manager, Noble Studios) and Mason Furr (Web Analyst & Conversion Rate Optimizer, Noble Studios).

We also work with two developers: Clara Waite (Project Manager, Noble Studios) and one other.

How did you come to work with Noble Studios?

My boss found them right before I started. The main reason he chose them was that he felt they were very collaborative. Beyond that, I think he was impressed with their work as well. 

How much have you invested with them?

We spend $200,000 a year on them.

What is the status of this engagement?

We started working with Noble Studios in the summer of 2016, and it’s an ongoing engagement.

RESULTS & FEEDBACK

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

We’ve done a few qualitative user surveys. Compared to the old site, the new site is so much cleaner, faster, and easier to use. It’s easier for people to find the information they want.

Using the new CTA button, we’ve cut down on a lot of bad, duplicate leads. The multi-step design of the online form has been very successful as well.

We’ve seen a 55% increase in our conversion rate since working with Noble Studios, launching that new site, and doing the conversion rate optimization test. Our conversion rate is almost 5%. Before, it was under 3%. 

How did Noble Studios perform from a project management standpoint?
 
They performed really well. They are good about following the process in Jira. There are sprint cycles, and it’s always very clear where the project is in the queue. They’re good about following as well.

It really feels like a partnership. It seems like they are a part of the company and a part of the team. A big part of that is because if we ever need them, we can just message them on Slack.

What did you find most impressive about them?

I’m most impressed by their responsiveness. They also have a high level of commitment. Other agencies tend to become complacent — but we don’t see that with Noble Studios.

Are there any areas they could improve?

I can't think of anything.

Do you have any advice for potential customers?

The clearer your vision is at first, the more helpful your work with them will be.

BACKGROUND

Introduce your business and what you do there.

I am a project manager at an internet marketing company.

OPPORTUNITY / CHALLENGE

What challenge were you trying to address with Noble Studios?

We work with Noble Studios for consulting, web marketing, and web development projects with third-party clients.

SOLUTION

What was the scope of their involvement?

While working with various clients, we rely on Noble Studios to provide a spectrum of digital solutions—including SEO, consulting, web development, and link building among others. Clients can sometimes be quite vague regarding what they need, but Noble Studios has been reliable in identifying those needs and creating a sound action plan.

What is the team composition?

I work primarily with the VP of performance marketing.

How did you come to work with Noble Studios?

We met them at a trade show as we searched for potential vendors and partners. Relatively speaking, they’re not a giant agency. We wanted to work with them because we didn't want to be put into a mold—we instead wanted to receive individualized attention.

How much have you invested with them?

We’ve spent between $40,000–$60,000 with them so far.

What is the status of this engagement?

Our engagement began in September 2017 and is ongoing.

RESULTS & FEEDBACK

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

I contractually can’t talk too much about our current ongoing project, but the website we’re working with has experienced a 19% year-over-year increase in organic traffic since we started the campaign. The site had already received a lot of views before Noble Studios' involvement, so that 19% is actually pretty substantial.

How did Noble Studios perform from a project management standpoint?

They’ve proven to be very responsive. Their team communicates with me outside of normal business hours if necessary.

What did you find most impressive about them?

Their communication and attention to detail stand out. Noble Studios works to explain their processes to each client. Also, it’s impressive that they are unafraid to take a strategic risk if they believe it will ultimately pay off for the client.

Are there any areas they could improve?

The work they perform is high quality, but we have had some minor contractual and billing issues with their back office staff.

Any advice for potential customers?

Come to the table with a solid goal, but be ready to have expectations curbed or changed. It’s important to trust Noble Studios. They’re going to work to facilitate your end goal, but the process may not match your expectations.

BACKGROUND

Introduce your business and what you do there.

I’m the communications and new media director for Renown Health. We’re a large not-for-profit health system that serves all of northern Nevada and we offer a wide array of patient services.

OPPORTUNITY / CHALLENGE

What challenge were you trying to address with Noble Studios?

When we initially hired them in 2010, we were still building our internal digital team, so we needed help with a website redesign and mobile development. They currently work with us on marketing strategy and development support.

SOLUTION

What was the scope of their involvement?

Their first project with us involved redesigning our website and launching us on mobile. Since then, they’ve continued to help us with backend maintenance on the site if a need exceeds the expertise of our developers. More recently, they’ve enhanced visibility for our site and the blog associated with it.

In recent years, Noble’s primarily supplied us with strategic marketing services, which include SEO, search engine marketing (SEM), and digital media buys. In addition to working with me and my team on a regular basis, they also join us for quarterly executive meetings to discuss our communications and assess the results of current projects and initiatives.

As an example of our strategic initiatives, in 2016, Noble partnered with us to market a first-of-its-kind genetics study on population health. They provided social media strategy to boost the study’s visibility, UX consulting for the web sign-up process, and helped us launch the project on our site. They’ve also accompanied us as a presentation partner at a national conference on healthcare internet.

What is the team composition?

I currently interface with their chief marketing officer, and then we have a project manager, an account manager, and a digital strategist who all work with our web team.

How did you come to work with Noble Studios?

They were an up-and-coming regional agency that was on our radar because they were entirely focused on digital communications at a time when many other companies were only beginning that transition. They’d also hired someone with a great reputation that our leadership team had worked with previously, so we reached out to see if they’d work with us.

What is the status of this engagement?

We began working with Noble in 2010, and our relationship is ongoing.

RESULTS & FEEDBACK

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

Healthcare usually lags a bit behind other industries when it comes to digital presence and consumer interaction, so for us to get into mobile development in 2010 was unusual. We received national recognition because of the work Noble did on that project, and we exceeded our expectations on every measure. Similarly, we’ve seen great growth in our blog year over year as a result of their SEO work.

In the case of our 2016 genetics study, the marketing results were very effective: we saw 10,000 participants sign up within the first 48 hours, which is extremely rare. Noble was vital to our project’s success and yet again helped us gain both regional and national recognition for our work.

One other interesting result is that our partnership with them has also shifted our internal culture due to the constant need for testing and iteration that comes with digital marketing and design. We’d done A/B testing with our traditional advertising, but they helped us implement it for digital audiences in order to optimize our site. It’s really exciting for us to see constant improvement and to introduce new features or services to our end-users.

How did Noble Studios perform from a project management standpoint?

I have high expectations of our business partners and I’d give them top marks across the board. They’re eager to collaborate, honest, and willing to listen to critical feedback. Their team has grown and evolved alongside our own and I’ve been so impressed with how well they maintain the relationship even when we give difficult feedback. If we ask for something new, or something different than they expected, they take that to heart and evolve to meet our needs.

What did you find most impressive about them?

We’ve distinguished ourselves regionally as innovators, and we like to work with partners that bring innovative, nimble solutions to the table. That’s Noble’s strength, especially in comparison to other vendors. We also partner with national companies that have thousands of clients, and sometimes it feels like they propose canned, scalable solutions that they can roll out to everyone. Noble, on the other hand, treats you like your needs are unique, and I feel like their solutions are tailored to our market and our region.

Do you have any advice for potential customers?

I’ve shared this before with other hospital systems across the U.S., but I think that we as a client base often don’t demand enough from our partners. It’s important to hold partners to the commitments they make and to expect them to display flexibility as our needs evolve.

When you enter a relationship with a vendor, it should be one that will help you achieve your goals, so you need to be clear on what those goals are and willing to treat your partner as a close advisor. Have open conversations about strategy, maximize what you can get from the relationship.

I think that’s why our relationship with Noble has been so successful. We know our industry best, but they bring in a new perspective on it that pushes us to innovate. And I think everyone should demand that kind of collaboration from their vendors.