Results Through Digital

BACKGROUND

Introduce your business and what you do there.

I am the director of Ocean Bathrooms, a bathroom and kitchen refurbishment company.

OPPORTUNITY / CHALLENGE

What challenge were you trying to address with Results Through Digital?

We needed someone to refresh our website and help with SEO. We wanted to reach a fresh market and cast our nets a little bit further afield.

SOLUTION

What was the scope of their involvement?

We began working with Results Through Digital 10 years ago. They built our website and have since continued to maintain and optimize it. 

For our most recent project together, Results Through Digital refreshed the website. They migrated it to a new platform, but they kept the same information, texts, and photos. 
 
What is the team composition?

I mainly work with Julia (Customer Experience Manager, Results Through Digital). Aidan (Web Developer, Results Through Digital) does a lot of work behind the scenes, but I’ve never had the pleasure of meeting him.

How did you come to work with Results Through Digital?

I was in the market to build a new website and sourced them out locally, and we have been working together since. At the time, they were based in the same town as me. They have since moved slightly further away, but the initial attraction was the fact that they were local. It was a no brainer.

How much have you invested in them?

I have invested approximately $10,000–$25,000 over the years.

What is the status of this engagement?

We began working on this refresh in July 2019, and the work is always ongoing.

RESULTS & FEEDBACK

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

Our new site just launched, but our old site generally drew in a lot of traffic, and we felt that traffic converted into business. We have been more than happy.

The quality of their work is fantastic. If it wasn’t, I wouldn’t have let it go live. Julia and I worked hand-in-hand daily for a couple of months. I was more than pleased with the final proof. They have also come up with some great ideas.

How did Results Through Digital perform from a project management standpoint?

Communication is fantastic and has never been an issue. I don’t know how smooth it would be if it wasn’t for Julia. She is the backbone of all of this and my main point of contact. Any questions I have are answered straight away, and if there is something I can’t quite grasp, she comes to my house to explain it. Julia is fantastic at what she does.

What did you find most impressive about them?

Their competence, attentiveness, and speed are impressive. Aidan is very technically savvy. When I contact Julia, she relays things to Aidan, and things are sorted very quickly. Their response time has been fantastic, which is important when you’re working with a deadline.

I like how they treat me. Some companies treat you differently depending on if you’re a smaller or larger team, but that hasn’t mattered to Results Through Digital.

Are there any areas they could improve?

No, I can’t think of anything. I don’t have any queries and haven’t had any complaints since the process started. I am perfectly happy with everything and would 100% recommend them to anyone.

Do you have any advice for potential customers?

Explain exactly what you want. Be open to ideas and learn from their experience; they are the experts at the end of the day. Some of my ideas were non-starters after they explained their approach, and it became evident that they had the best way forward.

If you are flexible and open to ideas, you will go a long way with them. I would recommend them in all aspects. Their customer service, speediness, and personal touch have been great.

BACKGROUND

I am the owner of a new life coach business. I was laid off from a management job in the oil and gas industry. Since I'm a motivated and experienced person, I decided to get certified as a life coach. I went through a rigorous training course before starting my new company. 

OPPORTUNITY / CHALLENGE

I did a search on Google for UK SEO firms. I wanted a website and Facebook profile for an affordable price. I was pleased that EMS Internet (now Results Through Digital) promised to do both for a little over £600 [$770]. The timeline was 2–3 weeks, but the actual work took over 1 month.

SOLUTION

They made several mistakes on my website and Facebook page. They wouldn’t pass over my HTML code, so I threatened legal action. They eventually passed me the website code but refused to host my website any longer and took down the site.

The website was ugly, amateurish, and poor quality. I was able to get a new firm to build the website. Since I refused to pay £50 [$64] extra for EMS Internet’s hosting fee, they deactivated the website. They never fixed the problems and eventually gave up on me. 

RESULTS & FEEDBACK

EMS Internet rebranded themselves as Results Through Digital. They are still a terrible company who provided a very poor website that looks like a 6-year-old designed it. On top of that, they charged £299 [$380] for a Facebook business page that did not look anything like the one I advised or expected.

Do not use this company unless you want to pay through the nose for every little detail. They actually suspended my website after I refused to pay the £50 [$64] final installment of a £600 [$770] invoice. All I got was a 2-page website and Facebook page that were both terrible and did not meet my standards.

In the end, they ripped me off. Their old business name linked them to horrible reviews, but sadly I missed those before hiring them. 

BACKGROUND

Please describe your organization.

Windy Arbour Farm Shop is a small to medium-sized local family-run business specializing in fruits and vegetables. We also sell more high-shelf products like jams, chutneys, and biscuits. We have a butcher and sell cheese – everything to do with fresh, home-cooking ingredients. We are based in Wigan, United Kingdom, and have been in business for almost 42 years. The family that runs it has occupied the farm for more than 150 years.

What is your position?

I am a partner in the business. 

OPPORTUNITY / CHALLENGE

What business challenge were you trying to address with Results Through Digital?

We had a website with good rankings on Google. It was homemade and required me to learn new technologies in order to make it up to date, which I didn't have time for.

The project is complete as far as achieving a functioning website. Whenever I want to make changes that are not possible through the online portal, I will contact them. Results Through Digital is also offering ongoing SEO [search engine optimization] work.

We receive reports each month on how our SEO work is going, and we can alter keywords used, and so on. I am due shortly to have a meeting with one of their client managers to review this service.

SOLUTION

Please describe the scope of their involvement in detail.

They developed our new website. We are also looking to implement a blog feed and an event calendar.

How did you come to work with Results Through Digital?

I was familiar with Results Through Digital and attended a Facebook seminar at their office. I started talking to them and explained the situation with our website. From there, we continued to a design consultation where I presented my ideas. Results Through Digital remained responsive to my requests throughout the process. It was entirely a smooth operation.

Their headquarters is a place that screams creativity. Everyone was buzzing, the offices were modern, and the technology was up to date. They looked like the kind of team that would do a good job, and that's what happened. We went from a homemade website, which was not optimized for mobile, to a modern version that is a good reflection on our company.

Could you provide a sense of the size of this initiative in financial terms?

The total development cost was less than $10,000.

What is the status of this engagement?

We started working with Results Through Digital in July 2015. The site went live three months later. 

RESULTS & FEEDBACK

Could you share any statistics or metrics from this engagement?

We've received positive feedback from everyone who has seen the website. We're getting new customers who report finding us online. The site is performing well on Google thanks to Results Through Digital.

We receive monthly analytics reports, but don't focus on them very much. Our customers tend to be local so, although we try to identify how people are finding us, it's not a massive part of our business success.

A part of the design brief included a way in which we could receive orders online. We created a simple contact form that sent the necessary information directly to us. We did want to create proper e-commerce functionality, but decided against it.

How did Results Through Digital perform from a project management standpoint?

Results Through Digital made our contact form at no additional cost, creating a feature that was tailored to our needs specifically. Customers have mentioned that ordering in this way is much easier than having to register using an email and going through other steps.

What distinguishes Results Through Digital from other providers?

I felt like I was in good hands while working with them. I dealt with different people in their team, from the new business manager to graphic and web designers. All of them knew what they were doing.

Another thing that I appreciate about them is that, if I call the company, no matter who responds, they will know who I am and what my history is with them. Their client management system is comprehensive. With other companies, if I call and mention an issue I'd been discussing previously with another of their colleagues, it's likely they would have to find that actual person, instead of having the information logged into their system. With Results Through Digital, whatever your point of contact is, your history as a client will be available.

Is there anything Results Through Digital could have improved or done differently?

As a small business owner, I most often want quick answers to my questions. Although Results Through Digital is very good at keeping a record of your history, it's not easy to call and speak directly with a designer. I do understand that they have other clients and deadlines, and that this is the modern way of doing business.

BACKGROUND

Please describe your organization.

We are a small automotive repair shop.

What is your position?

I am the owner of the company.

OPPORTUNITY / CHALLENGE

What business challenge were you trying to address with Results Through Digital?

I wanted to reach new customers online. I get a lot of local business in the form of established customers. I do rely on a fair amount of new blood coming in though, which can only come through word of mouth or the internet. I get quite a few calls coming in through online marketing, which is very important.

I initially got in touch with Results Through Digital because I was paying more and more for Google ads in order to get my rankings up. I intended to wean myself off of Google, create a website, and not have to pay 90-100 British pounds [approx. US$130-140) per month in order to maintain my position.

SOLUTION

Please describe the scope of their involvement in greater detail.

Right now, I don't pay for any forms of advertising other than what Results Through Digital ensure, which seems to work very well.

My only fear when getting involved with Results Through Digital is that I would be too small of a client. They typically dealt with bigger companies, and there was a possibility of them overshooting my abilities.

How did you come to work with Results Through Digital?

I believe they contacted me several years ago and I decided to try out their services. They have changed a lot as a company in the past few years.

Could you provide a sense of the size of this initiative in financial terms?

That is confidential, I would rather not say.

What is the status of this engagement?

We've been working together for at least two years. I have no plans to stop the collaboration.

RESULTS & FEEDBACK

Could you share any statistics or metrics from this engagement?

The internet is constantly changing. You're always fighting for your position. This was made especially hard by the recent recession, and I also started having competition that had seemingly come from nowhere. This is how business works currently: if you pay enough for advertising, you will reach the top spot. A business' history is not as relevant.

Google was providing inconsistent results, which Results Through Digital were able to provide. I can target specific areas, and get good results for them. I didn't want to receive complex analytics from them, but rather to get calls from new customers, which is what they offered.

How did Results Through Digital perform from a project management standpoint?

There were moments during our collaboration when I felt they were too big for my company, too business-like. I don't have a background in internet marketing. Whenever they contacted me with specific approaches they wanted me to take, I would have no understanding of what they were saying. Recently, they have been a lot more user-friendly and approachable.

What distinguishes Results Through Digital from other providers?

They are able to get me highly ranked on Google with a smaller budget. That is not easy to do, so the results are what makes them stand out.

Is there anything Results Through Digital could have improved or done differently?

They are doing much better the past two years because they aren’t so focused on sales and growing accounts. They provide great service now and in general.