Once Upon a Time Hospitality, Inc.

BACKGROUND

Introduce your business and what you do there.

As the managing director of a hospitality firm and restaurant group, I oversee the company’s marketing, events, partnerships, and promotions.

OPPORTUNITY / CHALLENGE

What challenge were you trying to address with IdeaWork Studios?

The brand personality that we established during our inception was effective, but it became more inaccurate as we evolved in the past 10 years. We wanted to revisit our key messaging from an outside perspective, so we searched for companies that could modify our brand statement, keywords, and imagery. We also needed them to redesign our websites, digital platforms, and physical materials used in our restaurants accordingly.

SOLUTION

What was the scope of their involvement?

IdeaWork’s first task was to refresh the brand positioning and logo for our overarching hospitality brand. Their founder started the process by interviewing eight of our key executives to get a balanced assessment of our company; interviewees included our CFO, our CEO, our head chef, a partner, a few members on the beverage and culinary teams, and myself. They collected notable descriptions that were mentioned by the entire group and pointed out conflicting information that would need to be addressed or considered.

Their second task was to develop a website for the hospitality firm and another for our flagship restaurant. They spent a lot of time at the restaurant to get an authentic experience. To avoid making mistakes post-launch, we asked for a collaborative design process. We gave them examples of elements we wanted to mimic on our new sites, and they created clean designs from our suggestions. They listened to our feedback, but they didn’t hesitate to inform us if our vision wouldn’t translate well. When our ideas were valid, they quickly followed through with edits to meet our expectations.

What is the team composition?

We were assigned two people to the rebranding initiative and two people for the website development.

How did you come to work with IdeaWork Studios?

Among the many recommendations I received through my network, a close friend suggested IdeaWork after having worked with them for years. We interviewed them and decided that they were the best fit in comparison to the others.

How much have you invested with them?

We spent around $60,000 on brand and website development.

What is the status of this engagement?

We first met them in August 2017 and made the partnership official in October 2017. They finished the rebranding efforts in February 2018 and have been working on developing the two websites since then. We plan to have everything completed by the second week of June 2018.

RESULTS & FEEDBACK

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

We scheduled the official debut in June 2018, but people are already paying compliments to the sophisticated updates that have rolled-out so far. We asked them to retain our identity as a hospitality firm, but incorporate an intellectual, business-minded brand personality. They delivered what we wanted without including any odd shock-value or dramatic effects. Their rebranding methods for our overarching brand and flagship restaurant restructured our approach to presenting our other brands as well.

How did IdeaWork Studios perform from a project management standpoint?

Their team adhered to the original timeline and made sure our group did the same. They work with other clients, so there are occasions when their pace of work slows down. Using an in-house team could have cut the time spent on this project in half, but we wanted to take time with this project and get the best possible results.

What did you find most impressive about them?

Their brand positioning and statement deliverables were spot-on during the first attempt, which proved that they understood what we were looking to achieve. They summarized our company in a way that we would never be able to do own, which impressed our CEO tremendously.

Do you have any advice for potential customers?

They are remarkably skilled in brand development, but their web-development isn’t as noteworthy. Consider saving money and building a new website in-house; if that isn’t an option, find a company that has experience creating sites tailored for your industry to make it worthwhile.

BACKGROUND

Introduce your business and what you do there.

We own 14 hospitality and event venues, including restaurants, banquet centers, and heritage attractions. I am the director of marketing and handle advertising and public relations for all of our properties.

OPPORTUNITY / CHALLENGE

What challenge were you trying to address with IdeaWork Studios?

We were developing a new website for a restaurant in one of our heritage properties. We wanted something visually striking to match the décor of the restaurant itself.

SOLUTION

What was the scope of their involvement?

We developed the design together through a series of calls. Once we finalized and approved everything, they developed the site and we launched shortly after. They designed the website from scratch, with some SEO built into the site itself. They built gallery features for us, as well as ways to drive traffic to reservations, two key elements we wanted.

What is the team composition?

We had a team of about three people. They onboarded us through their business development, then we entered the design phase and troubleshot add-ons. About three quarters of the way through, we were assigned a project manager.

How did you come to work with IdeaWork Studios?

We did some online research of comparable venues in our markets that matched our style and aesthetic. We found out who those venues worked with and narrowed our search. We had worked with other designers, but IdeaWork’s client roster was at the caliber we wanted.

We started with a very basic call with the company to give them what we were looking for. They provided a proposal and an estimate which we reviewed and approved.

What is the status of this engagement?

We started working with them in March or April 2017 and launched the site in late July or early August of that year.

RESULTS & FEEDBACK

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

We get great feedback from our guests regarding the ease and usage of the site. It’s user-friendly, and the visual presentation and imagery is quite striking. The site highlights that, and the metrics match our goals.

How did IdeaWork Studios perform from a project management standpoint?

They were always very efficient and responsive. They moved very well through the proposed timeline. We communicated primarily through phone and email, with some web conferencing for design presentations. We spoke less while they were working on the design and development, but we initially had weekly talks to give them content to build out.

What did you find most impressive about them?

The quality of the designs and ideas they had were impressive. We had a great experience working with them.

Are there any areas they could improve?

We did have a bit of a challenge with personnel changes throughout the course of the project. They addressed it, and it wasn’t an issue at the end of the project.

Do you have any advice for potential customers?

The more straightforward you can be about your goals will make everyone’s job easier. They’re more likely to provide something you’re happy with if you’re very clear with your expectations.

BACKGROUND

Introduce your business and what you do there.

I am the VP of digital marketing for Two Roads Hospitality.

OPPORTUNITY / CHALLENGE

What challenge were you trying to address with IdeaWork Studios?

We were looking to refresh one of our hotel brands. As part of it, we needed help with the creative design and development of a website. Our measurements of success were conversions to hotel room bookings and increased engagement with the brand’s target customer base.

SOLUTION

What was the scope of their involvement?

IdeaWork initially conducted an online survey of our consumers and brand stakeholders, the operators of our hotels and our marketing team. They made visits to our hotel locations and conducted in-person interviews with the key stakeholders of our brand from different locations. They came back with ideas around the visual language and the information architecture of the future website.

We had a workshop with the broader marketing team, some of the stakeholders, and the company that handled the development of the site. IdeaWork did a series of creative design comps and presented them to us. We started with brand-level assets and evolved those into property-level assets. The project involved a brand website along with individual property sites as part of the overall platform.

As part of the branding, we wanted to highlight the neighborhood and the local environment of the hotels. We also wanted to bring in a lot of social content and showcase the partnerships of each hotel with food and beverage outlets and other local businesses. All of this had to be brought together so that we wouldn’t just have another website about the hotel and its rooms; a connection with the local community had to be brought out as well.

IdeaWork handled all our creative design and development and created all the digital assets, but they didn’t develop the site or provide marketing. It was built using Sitecore.

What is the team composition?

We had an account executive and a project manager. Jay Schwartz [Chief Creative Officer, IdeaWork Studios] handled much of the creative direction. He had different team members helping out during the discovery and analysis phases.

How did you come to work with IdeaWork Studios?

Finding the right vendor took time. We wanted to be thorough and spoke to a number of different agencies. We had worked with other brand design agencies in the past, and someone in our organization had used IdeaWork on some small, one-off creative projects. We went through an RFP and talked to at least three groups. We chose IdeaWork based on their understanding of our brand. They were familiar with our hotels and painted a good story of what they could do with the creative. They also had some references, and we saw their past work. They understood the creative element around the e-commerce side of hospitality.

What is the status of this engagement?

The initial engagement with IdeaWork was in February or March 2017. We kicked the project off around that time and launched the platform in November.

RESULTS & FEEDBACK

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

The site has been live for just over two months. Based on initial reviews, we’ve seen an uptick in conversions, which was our overall goal. When measuring the effectiveness of getting consumers to the shopping cart or the booking engine, we’ve definitely seen an increase. We’ve also heard a lot of positive feedback on the site’s aesthetics. IdeaWork’s design helped us as we’ve evolved and refreshed the brand.

How did IdeaWork Studios perform from a project management standpoint?

They did a good job with project management. We communicated multiple times per week during the main parts of the project. The communication was mostly done through email and phone calls.

What did you find most impressive about them?

We were impressed by their understanding of our brand and what we wanted to do. They stayed true to bringing their vision to life, even when we encouraged them to go down a different path. The conviction in the outcome was impressive.

Are there any areas they could improve?

They could improve their overall communication and project management. Keeping everyone up to speed with where the moving parts are is challenging for any project like ours.

Do you have any advice for future clients of theirs?

Getting the best results requires spending time up front and making the partner understand the business problem. We went deep into surveying and analytics, and I encourage others to do it. It takes time, but it’s well worth it.

BACKGROUND

Introduce your business and what you do there.

I’m the director of sales and marketing for Carillon Miami Wellness Resort. We’re located in Miami Beach, Florida.

OPPORTUNITY / CHALLENGE

What challenge were you trying to address with IdeaWork Studios?

The resort was recently taken over by a private equity firm. In most cases, you unplug the previous brand when a hotel or resort is purchased, so we decided to rebrand the company and run as an independent. That meant we had to build everything from the ground up. We needed help with the web design for our new online presence.

SOLUTION

What was the scope of their involvement?

Jay, the principal of IdeaWork, came to our location and stayed in the hotel for a few days. The creative process took about a week. He interviewed most of the managers and line staff to understand how they saw the brand and where they’d like to see it go. We put together a detailed brief of his recommendations and presented them to the principal of the acquiring company. With their approval, IdeaWork started to develop the creative deck for everything.

IdeaWork Studios helped rename the hotel, resort, and spa. They developed a new logo and redesigned all of the collaterals in the guest rooms. They also completely revamped the website and changed our spa, health, and wellness pages. For example, they made online spa bookings available through the booking engine for the guest rooms. There’s also a page for requests for proposals for wedding and events.

IdeaWork also helped us with marketing by putting together digital assets for banner ads and our contextual ads. They put together full-page ads that we’ve run in magazines like The New Yorker and Chicago Magazine.

Right now, I’m working with 3 resources from IdeaWork. The team includes a creative person, a business person, and an account representative who manages the daily tasks.

How did you come to work with IdeaWork Studios?

We put out an RFP and interviewed 5 different firms. IdeaWork was a recommendation from someone in New York. They seemed to understand what we were looking for. Jay is really passionate about wellness, which matches where the resort is going. That helped a lot.

How much have you invested with IdeaWork Studios?

We have spent $250,000–$300,000 over the course of our relationship. They are on retainer, so that amount will continue to go up.

What is the status of this engagement?

We started working with them in June 2016, and the work is ongoing. We have retained them for the same work for our food and beverage outlets.

RESULTS & FEEDBACK

Could you share any evidence that would demonstrate the productivity, quality of work, or the impact of the engagement?

The branding was rolled out in October, so there was a new look and feel for the resort. Most of the people who travel to Miami travel in the first quarter because it’s usually cold where they live. Our first quarter this year brought revenue of over $1 million, and I can attribute most of that to the new brand.

The brand has helped us get on the map for different retreats and incentive programs that are based on wellness. There are a lot of international yoga, fitness, and health communities that have reached out to us, which will result in another $1 million over the course of the year.

How did IdeaWork Studios perform from a project management standpoint?

They hit deadlines 95% of the time. The other 5% was not necessarily their fault. When you’re trying to approve content through numerous layers of corporate America, it can get very difficult.

They’re very responsive to any requests we have. We use a project management tool, and we communicate through phone and email.

What did you find most impressive about IdeaWork Studios?

The level of creativity they showed for a complete rebranding was impressive. We needed to take the resort in a completely different direction, and they did it very quickly. It was impressive what they understood about the brand and what they put forward from a presentation standpoint. We requested very few edits to IdeaWork’s output. The new branding was almost unanimously approved, all the way to the principal of the private equity firm that I work for.

Are there any areas IdeaWork Studios could improve?

No. I’m very happy with them.

BACKGROUND

Introduce your business and what you do there.

We’re a hospitality-specific, real-estate, private equity fund which owns, develops, and redevelops boutique-style hotels throughout the US. I’m one of the managing partners of the company.

OPPORTUNITY / CHALLENGE

What challenge were you trying to address with IdeaWork?

We had acquired an older Double Tree Hotel in Washington, DC that we were going to renovate and reposition into a boutique-style hotel. We hired them to help us create the branding and identity of the property. We wanted to take an old, tired hotel and create a really cool property, and we needed someone like IdeaWork to help us on the branding.

SOLUTION

What was the scope of their involvement?

I worked with a couple different people. Jay Schwartz, the president of IdeaWork, was the principal person involved, and he had other people working on our project. He drove a lot of the creative work, and they were involved from day one. We acquired the property, hired an interior designer, and then we brought on IdeaWork shortly after.

They helped us with a full design of the website and the logo. They were working with some of the other guys on our team for the website, so I wasn’t involved in the details. At the property, we have two restaurant and bar outlets, which are distinctly separate and are operated by other local groups. The branding and the logos for those were also done by IdeaWork.

How did you come to work with IdeaWork?

We used our experience and word-of-mouth to find them. We saw things they had done in other hotels and restaurants. It was really high-end, good quality work. We had previously come across them on another project. We didn’t end up working with them but always wanted to. It was a bit of a search, but they came to us with a stellar reputation. We interviewed four or five groups and ultimately landed with IdeaWork.

How much have you invested with IdeaWork?

We’ve invested around $200,000.

What is the status of this engagement?

The project started in July or August of 2016 and finished in April of 2017.

RESULTS & FEEDBACK

Could you share any evidence that would demonstrate the productivity, quality of work, or the impact of the engagement?

It’s too early for specific metrics at this point. We’ve gotten some decent initial press. There was an article recently in the Insiders Travel Guide to DC, in which our property was prominently featured. The restaurant has gotten good initial reviews from the main food writer. So far, it seems to be well-received, but it’s still very early.

How did IdeaWork perform from a project management standpoint?

They were on top of things. We had certain deadlines based on our opening date, and they managed the project and hit the deadlines. They were responsive to everything we needed. We initially met in person, and then we mostly communicated through email and conference calls.

What did you find most impressive about IdeaWork?

It’s the quality of the creativity. Every step of the way, Jay and the team were very thoughtful. They had strong opinions but were also very tuned-in to what we were trying to do. They challenged us when we needed to be challenged, which is what I want to see and the reason to hire a company like this in the first place. They were appropriately challenging, and we ended up in a better place than if we had gone forward with our own ideas.

Are there any areas IdeaWork could improve?

Overall, it was a really good working relationship. We ended up with a good product that was done on time. I had a very good experience with them.

Do you have any advice or recommendations for someone who’s looking to work with IdeaWork?

Hiring a firm like them really helps to get you focused. People who don’t do it for a living might not be able to do that. IdeaWork brought perspective based on work they’ve done for other clients in the same or a related industry. As real-estate development people, we wouldn’t be able to do that on our own.

BACKGROUND

Introduce your business and what you do there.

I’m the MD of Metrovest Equities, a real estate development and investment firm. We own a resort property in the Hamptons called Gurneys and Montauk. It is a 10-acre oceanfront resort with 146 rooms and 5 food and beverage outlets.

OPPORTUNITY / CHALLENGE

What challenge were you trying to address with IdeaWork Studios?

We were selling residential units on the property. We needed to do a rebrand of our asset, including website development and marketing collateral. 

SOLUTION

What was the scope of their involvement?

Initially, we engaged them on 2 aspects on the resort side. We asked them to review all of our collateral from our key cards to our colors to the business cards that our employees have. Then we engaged them separately for a new website, which they worked on and rebranded. It was a brand-new website as well as different booking engines. Given our need, we spent more time with them on the website.

IdeaWork also helped us with the Residences at Gurneys, an asset that we acquired last December. That was the same thing; a branding exercise on the resident portion and then a website that tied into our existing resort website. We spent a tremendous amount of time with them this spring as we got ready to launch our residential sales campaign. We are still working with IdeaWork. They review our e-blasts [emails], guest communication, and collaterals. We also work on new ideas together so that we stay fresh. They're always giving us insight on what's going on in the market.

How did you come to work with IdeaWork Studios?

We initially found them through a web search. We looked around and we probably bid out to 5 or 6 firms. We were impressed by some of IdeaWork's sample work and we thought they were good enough to consider. Meeting with the principals, we've worked very closely with Jay and David Rayner. We were highly impressed with their commitment. One of their principals spent a lot of time in Montauk and was familiar with our concept. They just seemed like the type of guys that understood our demographic versus these boilerplate marketing firms that just put us in a box. We thought we'd get more specialized attention with IdeaWork. A lot of thought was put into this that I thought exceeded their proposal. It became much more of a personal project for them, so we were highly impressed working with them.

How much have you invested with IdeaWork Studios?

We paid close to $500,000 for their services.

What is the status of this engagement?

We engaged them in the first week of October 2015, so it's actually been a year. They currently work with us on a monthly retainer. 

RESULTS & FEEDBACK

Could you share any evidence that would demonstrate the productivity, quality of work, or the impact of the engagement?

Since we have a much better website, online bookings have gone up. They've done a rebrand and they helped us launch a sales campaign which has been very successful. I don't know how much is due to their work but they have given us everything we've asked for. They've introduced us to people who we buy our collateral from and they have always come through on time.

We are one of the highest performing resorts in the country right now. I think IdeaWork’s success is based on our success. We see them as partners; we don't really see them as separate consultants that we want to trade out every few years. They really are partners in what we do and help us drive business. They're very cognizant of our brand so they are not too over the top with it. It really comes down to them understanding our guests and demographic.

How did IdeaWork Studios perform from a project management standpoint?

The project management has been great. They have been consistent. On a project level, we have a gentleman, David Rayner, who we work with all the time. Meanwhile, we communicate mainly with Jay, the principal. We had one other person on the account, a junior person that has changed a couple of times, but we don't really interface with them. Ever since we've engaged them, we speak to them on a weekly basis through a conference call.

IdeaWork didn't have that much experience in the residential game. Our project was a first for them but we were very confident in what they did with us. We were thorough with them, so I think it was more project-oriented. We've had times when we've seen them 3 times a week, and we've had times when we haven't seen them in 2 months, but we do have a set weekly call.

What did you find most impressive about IdeaWork Studios?

IdeaWork is very responsive. Their team is very thoughtful and very honest. If you put those together, that's exactly what we're looking for. One of the things that sets them apart from our previous firm is they don't get stagnant. They're always thinking of something new. A lot of times, firms give you a lot in the beginning and then they coast on a retainer. It's important that IdeaWork is always trying to create or suggest new ideas to help the brand, especially in the offseason. Again, I think it's because the principals are great consumers in our business. They're the type of people that would come out to our resort in the winter and understand what they would need to get out there. They're always thinking in a way that is consistent with how we think.

Are there any areas IdeaWork Studios could improve?

None. They charge more, but that’s probably it.

BACKGROUND

Introduce your business and what you do there.

I am the founder of Sidework Creative, a marketing consultancy for hotel companies.

OPPORTUNITY / CHALLENGE

What challenge were you trying to address with IdeaWork Studios?

I have worked with them on developing two websites for two of my clients.

SOLUTION

What was the scope of their involvement?

For both projects, IdeaWork Studios designed and built the websites from the start. We gave them a brief and the brand book, then they developed and designed everything from there. They are still doing all of the maintenance and hosting for one of the websites. I don't know about the developers, but I had one designer, one account manager, and one of the principals overseeing our site.

How did you come to work with IdeaWork Studios?

I had worked with them in my past job many, many years ago. I had enjoyed working with IdeaWork and thought they were creative and responsible. They were also within our budget. I went back to them after many years and asked them to help me with these two projects.

How much have you invested with IdeaWork Studios?

We paid $30,000 to $50,000 for each website.

What is the status of this engagement?

I've worked with them for the past 3 years. One website was completed about 6 months ago. The other one is in the midst of launching, today and tomorrow.

RESULTS & FEEDBACK

Could you share any evidence that would demonstrate the productivity, quality of work, or the impact of the engagement?

The design was unique to each of the hotels. I don't know if the design was necessarily groundbreaking, but it was very simple and easy to use. Our goal was to have the least clicks to get to bookings for the hotels, which they accomplished. We had calendars and we had neighborhood attractions, so I don't think it was anything that was totally new. It was just very well-designed and simple, which is what we had asked for.

I know that we've had a ton of compliments on the design of the completed website. The owners have been very happy with its simplicity. It is not overdesigned or overcomplicated so that a user that's unfamiliar with a hotel website will find it extremely easy to navigate. Again, we had asked for 2 to 4 clicks to making a reservation and they delivered that. IdeaWork Studios was just very easy to work with. They stayed within budget and were creative. Overall, we've been very happy.

How did IdeaWork Studios perform from a project management standpoint?

It was great. We communicated using emails and phone calls. They were very responsible and very responsive. They remained on target and on schedule for all the deliverables. When they didn't have what they needed, they reached out and got everything that they needed.

What did you find most impressive about IdeaWork Studios?

They understand the hotel and restaurant market very well. There are a lot of things they're helping you get through and you don't have to start from scratch. I think they bring a lot of best practices to the table.

Are there any areas IdeaWork Studios could improve?

No, I was really pleased with everything. I didn't really have any complaints. 

BACKGROUND

Introduce your business and what you do there.

I’m the director of sales and marketing for a luxury hotel.

OPPORTUNITY / CHALLENGE

What challenge were you trying to address with IdeaWork Studios?

It wasn't actually a business challenge. We hired IdeaWork on a retainer basis to manage our e-commerce and website.

SOLUTION

What was the scope of their involvement?

IdeaWork Studios makes all front-end and back-end changes to our website. They manage the back-end of our website but another company developed the front end. They facilitate our web hosting, as well as all of our search and paid marketing. They deal with any booking engine issues when they're associated with the website. All of our creatives for ad creation and email creation come from IdeaWork.

How did you come to work with IdeaWork Studios?

I had worked with IdeaWork at a previous job. I considered other providers but I was happy with what they had done in the past. They were amenable to working the way we wanted to work.

How much have you invested with IdeaWork Studios?

We have probably spent over $125,000 on their services.

What is the status of this engagement?

We started working with them in 2012. Our relationship has worked out for the last 5 years.

RESULTS & FEEDBACK

Could you share any evidence that would demonstrate the productivity, quality of work, or the impact of the engagement?

Their work is not based on success. The success of the work is based on how quickly they give me things, how well it's done according to what I've requested. It's not tied to an ROI.

How did IdeaWork Studios perform from a project management standpoint?

They manage projects very well. We communicate primarily with one person who handles the project management. Email is the tool for communication, mostly.

What did you find most impressive about IdeaWork Studios?

They're very well versed in understanding the hospitality industry. They are very quick on the turnaround. They get what we need on usually the first attempt and they're pretty creative.

Are there any areas IdeaWork Studios could improve?

They have a lot of customers now, so I’d like the turnaround time to be a little faster.

BACKGROUND

Introduce your business and what you do there.

We’re a hospitality company with 14 restaurants and 3 hotels around the country. I’m the vice president of marketing. I handle all channels of marketing, such as media relations, digital marketing, and brand management.

OPPORTUNITY / CHALLENGE

What challenge were you trying to address with IdeaWork?

I wouldn’t say it was a challenge per se. My team is pretty busy. We are lean and we have a lot going on, this is why we use an agency. 

SOLUTION

What was the scope of their involvement?

 IdeaWork manages most of our digital content. They have developed several of our websites and also handle monthly maintenance. At the moment, they’re responsible for CharliePalmer.com, HarvestInn.com, Harvest Table’s website, and Crimson & Rye’s website. They also managed some of our digital marketing campaigns, particularly for our hotel. They conceptualized all of the brand ID for the Harvest Inn by Charlie Palmer, our hotel in the Napa Valley. This brand ID was executed across all print and digital channels. We’ve shifted the hotel campaigns to a more specialized national marketing company, but IdeaWork still handles the campaigns for our restaurants.

How did you come to work with IdeaWork?

We had liked the work that IdeaWork had done for a similar restaurant group. After we discovered who had created the site, we reached out to IdeaWork.

How much have you invested with IdeaWork?

We pay monthly retainer fees as well as bigger project fees. I would say we’ve spent more than $100,000 on IdeaWork’s services.

What is the status of this engagement?

IdeaWork started working with us in 2013. We’ve had a continued and ongoing relationship with them for over 3 years now.

RESULTS & FEEDBACK

Could you share any evidence that would demonstrate the productivity, quality of work, or the impact of the engagement?

We have metrics attached to the campaigns for restaurants. From a website perspective, we can always look at the analytics. We can see what visitor numbers look like and how they have changed over time. From a creative standpoint, that’s a little more difficult to assess, of course. I would say we’re generally happy with the work that IdeaWork provided.

How did IdeaWork perform from a project management standpoint?

I would say that this has been one of our challenges in recent months, maybe even going back a little further. There have been some personnel shifts in their project management team. As a result, projects will often fall by the wayside and we’ll have to follow up. We’ll give ample lead time for major project deadlines and then IdeaWork would still miss them. That is disappointing because I really like working with them and it hasn’t seemed to get much better. If we open up the lines of communication for a new project and send it to IdeaWork, we often have to follow up with them before work can begin. I take responsibility for that too, but this is business for them and we want them to take the lead. Project management is definitely one of the challenges. We work with a number of different agencies on the creative side, on the campaign side, and then also on the PR side, and you always have to follow up. It’s part of working with agencies, unfortunately.

What did you find most impressive about IdeaWork?

Jay, David and I have a great relationship. Most of my communication is directly with them, apart from the daily project management stuff. When we have new projects, I can go directly to them. We are friends as well. We’ll grab drinks or coffee together whenever everybody’s in town, so that always helps. We all like doing business with friends. Also, Jay truly understands the luxury hospitality space. He works with some of the best out there and has great, fresh ideas. At the same time, he will also listen to me if I want to make a change. This is good since sometimes creative people get a little territorial about ideas.

Are there any areas IdeaWork could improve?

It would be nice if we could get more reports on the marketing campaign side. I’ll take some responsibility in that, too. I don’t ask for it all the time either, except for when we need it.

BACKGROUND

Introduce your business and what you do there.

I am an owner of a luxury boutique hotel in Charleston, South Carolina.

OPPORTUNITY / CHALLENGE

What challenge were you trying to address with IdeaWork?

Our hotel needed a complete rebranding and a completely new look. It was a challenge to go from a small, almost bed and breakfast place—into something more sophisticated. As a hospitality business, we have multiple outlets. Aside from the hotel itself, we have a rooftop restaurant, a retail store, a spa, and a coffee shop. Obviously, booking rooms is the most important factor as people need to do that first. We needed to make sure that was front and center on our site. Our guests also needed to know about our different activities and special events, so we had to get them to the calendar. All these different things had to interact on our site. It also had to be user-friendly.

SOLUTION

What was the scope of their involvement?

IdeaWork really helped with the design of the website and how it would flow. Our in-house creative director helped create the look that we wanted. IdeaWork then turned that look into a digital presence and helped maximize our platform. Ideawork took our new branding and determined how it would speak to the guest digitally. They helped develop the wireframe and figure out which categories to highlight. There was a lot of back and forth on how that would work and what would go first on the site. We wanted users to check out different pieces and keep getting interested as they continue to scroll through the site.

We provided all the content such as copy, imagery, anything like that. Then IdeaWork developed the site, how it was going to interact, and all the different links. Thanks to the CMS, we can make little changes that aren't structural, such as adding imagery or copy. For big things like changing the structure, moving big pieces around, then we go back to IdeaWork and they do it for us. I'm not very web savvy. I know what I want things to look like but I couldn't tell you exactly how it was built. They know how the site adapts if it’s used on mobile compared to a computer or iPad. I go onto these mediums all the time and it does a very good job of adapting.

How did you come to work with IdeaWork?

That's probably a question for our creative director, who lives in New York. We contacted IdeaWork because they had worked with lots of hospitality companies that we felt fit into our category. Their experience fit within what we were trying to do. I'm glad it worked out, but we chose them based on the fact that we thought it was going to work out.

How much have you invested with IdeaWork?

We spent $25,000 to $30,000 on IdeaWork’s services.

What is the status of this engagement?

We began the process in November and finished by March.  

RESULTS & FEEDBACK

Could you share any evidence that would demonstrate the productivity, quality of work, or the impact of the engagement?

I can't give any metrics because we just opened an entirely new brand. We've been operating for 9 months now and it’s a big task on so many levels. IdeaWork was able to create a quality product at a faster timeline because of the resources they have. They are such a competent company that they could easily make this work and get us where we needed to be.

Our brand targets the 35 to 50 market. Our customers have disposable income, like to travel, and are looking for a boutique experience. We get many of those people. What's interesting is that the feedback about the website is coming from an even younger crowd. These are the kids of the 50-year-olds—in their teens or twenties—saying, “I want to go stay there.”

We've had people come to the hotel because they say the website looks so cool. That is really neat because it drives them to our Instagram page. They look at that and go, “Wow, your imagery is amazing. It looks like a really cool hotel.” That then gets them to say, “Mom, dad I want to go stay here.” Then their parents say, “We've stayed here because our kids love your website. They loved all the imagery and all sort of stuff.” Our other clientele doesn't really give a lot of feedback about it because they don't think in that sense most of the time.

How did IdeaWork perform from a project management standpoint?

I thought they did very well. They were pretty easy to get a hold of and were there for support. Being the owner, I'm involved in about 70% of the conversations. Our creative director drove the whole process and I think he was very happy with IdeaWork’s communication. The updates that I saw were pretty thorough. To be able to get it done on time, we had a tighter timeline than usual. Typically, it takes a good 5 to 7 months, or even longer, to get this type of site developed. We started from the ground floor. It wasn't like they came in and built on stuff that we had. I think we got it done within about 4 1/2.

What did you find most impressive about IdeaWork?

Overall, the experience was positive. I usually work with smaller developers so, obviously, it’s better to work with someone a bit larger and more sophisticated. Given the parameters that we had, it was a good back and forth.

There are some design things that, creatively, we wanted to add that they felt were really not right. This isn't a negative comment; it's always interesting to work together with a lot of creative minds. You respect it when they say, “Look, I'm also helping design this. When you look at the overall picture, I'm trying to guide you. This is going to be a lot better in the long run, even though you might think you want this type of thing.” Creatively, it is important to have people that aren't just doing things for you. Things can get lost with too many hands in the pot.

I think they did a really good job of saying, “We can do this; I don't think you really want to do that. Let's wait on doing that so that you can sit with it for a while.” There was an interesting creative dynamic. They listen to you but at the same time, they also take the needed creative control. When you're in charge of a project, you're in charge of that entire piece of that project. To me, it's not a negative; it was a good way to get honest feedback. If we felt like we were going in the wrong direction, I knew that they would tell us that. That was good.

Are there any areas IdeaWork could improve?

There was probably one aspect of the website where we had some miscommunication. Again, that's one of those things where it was a new relationship. You go, “Okay, I thought it was going to be this or that,” and it didn't really work out to anyone's liking. I think that's a working relationship and getting to know each other issue. Everything else was great. I thought a lot of stuff that they did was good. It's always about expectations, I think. My expectations weren’t super high. We just needed to get this site up and it needed to look good. They answered those expectations and we're happy with the result. In the next few years, we'll look at that website and keep making it better.