Straight North

BACKGROUND

Please describe your organization.

We are Custom Cabinet Source. We make custom cabinets out of wood and wood products. We can build pretty much everything like kitchens, entertainment centers, baths, commercial, residential, and trade shows.

What is your position?

I'm the owner.

OPPORTUNITY / CHALLENGE

What business challenge were you trying to address with Straight North?

They are our pay-per-click marketing and our website management company. Any questions we have to make people visit our website to get people to look at our business is their responsibility. We don't want to hire a full-time salesperson since we are small and want to save money.

SOLUTION

Please describe the scope of their involvement in detail.

I am the only office person for my company, which is a small company with less than 10 employees. I'm the manager and the owner so I handle the website inventory section. I had them redesign my website 15 years ago and then a second time in 2014. We use them for pay-per-click marketing and the occasional website redesign.

How did you come to work with Straight North?

The current vice president at Straight North is Aaron Wittersham, and I've known his dad for 15 years from business and found him in his dad's basement when Aaron was working for a startup with a different name.

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

An average year is $5,000 for the paid search management without any website redesign and the web design projects cost much more. 

What is the status of this engagement?

It's ongoing.

RESULTS & FEEDBACK

Could you share any statistics or metrics from this engagement?

We've seen consistent response in the metrics we're looking for since day one. We don't have a full-time salesperson. Everything we do is word of mouth. Probably 70 percent of my current business 15 years later is the result of website design that was initiated through that entity.

What distinguishes Straight North from other providers?

Straight North has always been at the cutting edge of what they do. Before other people started calling on a daily basis to do SEO [search engine optimization] and pay per click, we were doing it with them 10 to 12 years before that.

Is there anything Straight North could have improved or done differently?

I think they're lacking on the artistic side a little bit. They don't have a full-time graphics design department. The content of your website generally is left up to the customer. Maybe this is a result of budget, too. The overlay, templates, data entry, and formatting is all their end, but to create the website copy is the customer's role. That task is very time consuming since we have many products so it's really the only thing I've ever had issue with.

BACKGROUND

Please describe your organization.

We are the Amish Cabinet Company. We have a show room in Arlington Heights, Illinois. We design and install Amish made cabinets. I'll meet a client and put together a kitchen, a three-dimensional perspective of their kitchen, and then work with an Amish shop that will make the cabinets. The driver will wrap them in furniture blankets, bring them up, and we'll deliver them to the job site.

What is your position?

My title is manager or member of the LLC.

OPPORTUNITY / CHALLENGE

What business challenge were you trying to address with Straight North?

We needed them to make our web design current, and they did a wonderful job with that.

SOLUTION

Please describe the scope of their involvement in detail.

At this time, they haven't done any internet marketing. That's a possibility down the road. All they did was a redesign on the website.

How did you come to work with Straight North?

I'd seen some of their past projects and was impressed by the design of the websites and creativity. I'm not the most articulate person when it comes to speech, but they were able to create the site with verbiage I support that brings me web traffic and the majority of my new business.

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

It was $10,000 to $50,000.

What is the status of this engagement?

They finished everything, and it's spectacular.

RESULTS & FEEDBACK

Could you share any statistics or metrics from this engagement?

It seems like most homeowners do a lot of research on their tablets and iPhones. They made it a responsive website that fits perfectly since I have to put on my reading glasses every time to look at stuff on the phone and, when a site is responsive, it fits the phone much nicer. That was huge.

Now, it seems like I'm one step ahead of some other cabinet companies on the web. Also, the way they organized the site itself – making it not cluttered, having too much information, or hard to navigate – is great. 

It seems like it's a very easy to navigate site, which is vital because people would ignore my business if they dislike the website. Those were the two biggest things that I thought were a huge upgrade from the way the website was before. 

I don't have any metrics. I do ask consumers where they found me and this year it seems like a huge percentage have found me on the Internet, which is great. I haven't done any marketing work with them. My business is growing fast, so I have too much work to handle with only two employees here. Straight North has helped me grow my business.

What distinguishes Straight North from other providers?

Their customer service. I worked with Erin [Wozniak, director of project management for Straight North] and her attention to detail, how polite she was outstanding. I'm in the customer service business, so it's very important to me. I felt like Straight North was an extension of my company. They were just very polite, and they listened to me – paid attention to detail.

Is there anything Straight North could have improved or done differently?

I can't come up with anything.

BACKGROUND

Please describe your organization.

My business is a CPA [certified public accountant] and financial advisory firm. I'm the sole proprietor, I don't have any other employees. I've been primarily specializing in tax work and investment counseling. I've been in business for about 30 years, and I just needed to put together a website.

OPPORTUNITY / CHALLENGE

What business challenge were you trying to address with Straight North?

The website was meant to get people to call me for work. As a professional services firm, you have to put forth a certain image, so I wanted a high-quality website and Straight North certainly was able to deliver that. In addition, in time, I'm hoping that this new site will help attract clients. I built the website in such a way that I can put articles and other sorts of financial information, newsletters and things online, and if people run across those while they're searching the web, it will draw them to my website.

SOLUTION

Please describe the scope of their involvement in detail.

For now, it's just been web design, web build, and hosting. We didn't do any pay-per-click yet, but I might at some point.

How did you come to work with Straight North?

I've done some work through the years and put together some websites at other companies that I used to work for, so I was familiar with the process. I wanted somebody local, and I wanted somebody that was not a giant cookie-cutter type company. I wanted some degree of customization but, of course, I'm a small player so I didn't have a lot of money. Cost was important as well. I researched and talked to a number of different firms, and Straight North was able to deliver all those things I needed.

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

It was less than $10,000.

What is the status of this engagement?

The project is completed, and the website is up and operational. As I get into it, maybe in the coming years, I might look back to them to get some more marketing activity going.

RESULTS & FEEDBACK

Could you share any statistics or metrics from this engagement?

I'm really satisfied. They did a nice job. It was very easy to work with them. I had a handful of ideas. I showed them some website of some competitors that I thought were effective and functional, and they were able to look at some of those ideas and really improve upon them. They were able to build what I think is a real first-class website for a guy my size.

What distinguishes Straight North from other providers?

They're a good-sized firm, I think they probably have 50 to 60 employees, but I received personalized attention. I had a client services relationship person assigned to me. She was very attentive, really wanted to learn and understand my business, and did a good job at doing that. I think they really melded that sweet spot of size and capability with personalized, hands-on experience. They're a real quality outfit. I was really pleased. I'm glad I picked Straight North, and I'm happy with the website they gave me.

Is there anything Straight North could have improved or done differently?

Nothing comes to mind right off the bat.

BACKGROUND

Please describe your organization.

Our company is a commercial recreational products manufacturer in the U.S. We manufacture everything from playgrounds at schools and parks all the way to shelters. We really produce anything from the ground up that you might see in a recreational environment.

What is your role and responsibilities?

I'm the marketing director.

OPPORTUNITY / CHALLENGE

What was your goal for working with Straight North?

Our websites as a whole were lacking. We engaged them to help us on the SEO [search engine optimization] and PPC [pay-per-click] front to bolster quality lead generation.

Please describe the scope of their work.

We partnered with Straight North to help us with SEO and PPC campaigns. As we were developing our websites, we made sure that they were there on the onset in order to work with our development team to make sure they were putting in best practices. We did some keyword research. We applied that research to the SEO side. That allowed us to see which key terms we need to go after.

SOLUTION

What was your process for selecting Straight North with which to work?

We went through a three-month selection process. We did some online research on various companies. At the end of the day for the PPC and SEO side of the business, Straight North was the better fit.

Can you give a sense of the size of the initiative in dollar terms or a personnel work-hour figure?

This size of the project this year will be more than $300,000.

When was the work completed?

We have an ongoing partnership with Straight North. We just went through our second evolution of this project with them. 

RESULTS & FEEDBACK

Do you have any statistics or metrics to track improvement from the project?

One of the biggest issues from our company's standpoint is that we didn't really have a closed loop sales cycle. We implemented a CRM [customer relationship management system] in February, and those were the first leads that came in that will be closed loop. I don't have any stats right now. Our cost per leads has dropped substantially. 

Is there anything unique or special about Straight North that really makes them stand out compared to other business partners?

The Straight North team really cares about this project and our overall success. With other business partners, we are just another client. We have a solid partnership with Straight North.

Looking back on the work so far, is there any area that you think they could improve upon or that you might do differently?

The first time around, Straight North developed our websites. That's not really their strong suit. They're more of an SEO and PPC firm. The SEO and PPC is fantastic. Web development is a bit lacking.

BACKGROUND

Please describe your company.

We are a technology and business consulting firm in Chicago.

What is your role and responsibilities?

My responsibilities range from inbound marketing to PR [public relations] communications.

OPPORTUNITY / CHALLENGE

What was your goal for working with Strait North?

Our ultimate goal was to bring in new leads. Our old website was built four or five years ago, and it had definitely outlived its usefulness.

SOLUTION

Please describe the scope of their work.

They redesigned our entire site. We worked with them for three to four months rebuilding the site and the content. We launched the site at the end of September of 2014, and then in October we went into the SEO [search engine optimization] portion of their services. Now, their role has shifted to support of the site, but mostly focused on SEO, content writing, back links, and just generally upgrading our level of visibility out on the Web.

I’ve worked with them closely throughout our relationship. We have biweekly meetings, and I constantly receive emails from the account manager with new blogs that they’re written. They also provide reporting every month for us.

What was your process for selecting Strait North with which to work?

We went through several Web vendors, maybe five or six. We were looking at where they were located in relation to our headquarters. We were trying to find more local design firms. We looked at their portfolio, and we interviewed them. We sent them a questionnaire, interviewed them by phone, and then scored them on a matrix.

The reason we selected Strait North is because they brought to us some branding expertise and the SEO piece. They were a finalist with two other Web design firms. Each firm had strengths in different areas, but Strait North really brought a balance of being able to not only redesign our site, but also elevate it as far as SEO is concerned. That’s ultimately why we went with them.

Can you provide a ballpark dollar figure for the size of the work that they’ve done for you?

Based on our review of different vendors, they were in the middle of the pricing range.

RESULTS & FEEDBACK

What were the results of the project?

The site launched in September of 2014, and relationship is ongoing for SEO and upgrades.

Are you satisfied with their work?

The project was very successful. We were able to launch a little bit early. They were always willing to find us areas where we could trim down time if we wanted to launch early, and that was very helpful. A lot of guidance in what we needed to do, a lot of back-and-forth collaboration especially around design. As far as SEO is concerned, we’re catching that rhythm now, and we have monthly and biweekly check-ins as far as what’s going on. Collaboration is definitely very high. They’re also very disciplined. So, even if they are working with a team that’s not disciplined or seasoned in these kinds of projects, their discipline is really helpful in guiding the clients. They’re not afraid to keep the client accountable, and that’s a good thing. They’re just great people to work with.

Do you have any statistics or metrics to track improvement from the project?

I don’t have any stats just yet as far as SEO is concerned, but I can tell you that the numbers are very promising. We’ve heard from our team and some of our clients that the website is fantastic. I’d say the best feedback so far is from our team. Prior to the redesign, our folks didn’t want to share the website.

Is there anything unique about them that really makes them stand out, compared to other companies?

They are very adept at branding, every little thing they have is very well-branded. They really embrace their brand, they’re very proud of it, and that shows.  

Looking back on the work so far, is there any area that you think they could improve upon or something that you might do differently?

No. I think the project was a success. I think that there could have been a smoother transition between website completion to SEO.

BACKGROUND

Please describe your organization.

We are a large, multi-specialty, multi-location dental office with more than 30 dentists.

What is your role and responsibilities?

I’m the marketing director. I’ve been with the company for almost 29 years. 

OPPORTUNITY / CHALLENGE

What was your goal for working with Straight North?

We needed to focus on search engine optimization in a bigger way with a larger budget. Knowing that it’s very labor intensive to manage and oversee those types of programs and it requires expertise, which I didn’t have, I decided to work with Straight North. Their team has really educated me along the way as to how we can grow through search engine optimization, pay-per-click programs, remarketing, written content and those sort of activities.

SOLUTION

Please describe the scope of their work.

Our target market are mothers in their early 30s because they are health care decision makers. Most of them are looking for us on their laptop, their tablet or their smartphone. When they need a dentist or they have a few minutes to research it, we need to be very visible. Straight North has made us very visible in that way. They’ve monitored search behaviors and figured out how much to bid on certain keywords and which keywords should be in first position.

They make sure that the content that’s written below the search results is accurate, appealing, and effective, but also filters out people who really wouldn’t be a candidate to be our patient. As of September [2014], they developed and host our website.

What was your process for selecting Straight North with which to work?

I actually worked with a sister company of theirs. That company created our website. When we decided to do more search engine optimization, we needed outside help. The Web design vendor recommended Straight North.

Can you provide a ballpark dollar figure for the size of the work that they’ve done for you?

The budget has continued to climb over the years. It is a major expenditure for us.

When was the work completed?

We started working with them several years ago, and it’s still ongoing. 

RESULTS & FEEDBACK

Do you have any statistics or metrics to track improvement from the project?

We ask all potential patients who call us how they heard about us. Patients mostly say they found us on the Internet. We have more than 500 new patients this year from SEO or Internet search, which is a very conservative number. 

Right now, Straight North’s service is our number one lead generator. I predict their leads are going to increase in 2015. I see my company growing because of their efforts. They do call tracking, so I can listen to the phone calls because they’re recorded. I listen to the calls from all four of our offices. We concluded that Straight North is doing a great job of bringing the leads to the phones and the contact forms on the website. Straight North’s programs are essential to our business.

Are you satisfied with their performance?

We have been very happy with them. They’ve handled every task in such a way that they’re service is the biggest part of my marketing budget now. They’re very straightforward about budget. They give me regular status updates regarding budget.

They never try to increase our spending unless it will help us. They never overreact. I appreciate that I can call anyone at Straight North at any different level, at any time and get answers to my questions. They’re exceptional with customer service.

Is there anything unique about Straight North that really makes them stand out, compared to other online marketing companies?

Their expertise sets them apart. I’m very impressed when I’ve had some of their personnel at our owner meetings. They can explain things in terms that are easy to understand for those who aren’t digital savvy, helping the owners to know why we’re putting money into this particular program. I feel really good about inviting them in at any time to meet with my doctors. We’ve held meetings in their office on a few occasions. It has always been a very positive meeting. After the owners investigated our options, they concluded Straight North are the real experts. They know what they’re doing. This is exactly where we need to be.

Looking back on the work so far, is there any area that you think they could improve upon or that you might do differently?

There has never been anything really difficult that would cause me to have a second thought of going elsewhere. There’s nothing I would frown upon and nothing to improve.

BACKGROUND

Please describe your organization.

Our company is a technology-enabled payment processing company. We have more than 35,000 merchants that process their electronic transactions through us. We have offices in New York, Boston, Philadelphia, two offices in Chicago and independent sales agents around the country.  

What is your role and responsibilities?

I’m the CEO.

OPPORTUNITY / CHALLENGE

What was your goal for working with Straight North?

Our top three goals were: We wanted to revamp our website completely so that it portrayed our company as an integrated payment technology-driven payment solution to the marketplace. We made it clear to Straight North that we needed the site to deliver leads to our sales people. More than 50 of our 150 employees are direct sales people. We wanted to take advantage of search engine marketing techniques to drive leads to them. Finally, we wanted to make sure that our website took full advantage of the money we could spend on pay-per-click and SEO [search engine optimization] efforts. 

SOLUTION

Please describe the scope of their work.

They were involved in the design and development of our website and with SEO and pay-per-click. They did such a good job that we also used them for virtually all of our corporate identity including things like trade show booth design, brochures and brochure ware and targeted email campaigns.

What was your process for selecting with which Straight North to work?

It was pretty extensive, taking about 60 days. We made a number of cold calls. We did a lot of searches for references. We started with local firms and then went a bit outside of local firms. Fortunately, we ended up with Straight North.

Can you provide a ballpark dollar figure for the size of the work that they’ve done for you?

Our overall efforts for search engine marketing cover more than $1 million a year in expenditures. Those don’t all go to Straight North. We pay them for the SEO efforts. I’d say hundreds of thousands of dollars.

When was the work completed?

It’s very much ongoing. We’re on our third revamp of the website as our company has evolved. We just completed our 25th acquisition beginning in 2008, which was when we met Straight North. 

RESULTS & FEEDBACK

Do you have any statistics or metrics to track improvement from the project?

They drive an average of about 40 leads a day to our salespeople.

Are you satisfied with their performance?

They’ve done an excellent job. We’re very satisfied. They’ve done a terrific job of generating leads. Our website identity has received many compliments. They give us great reporting. We get full data on cost per lead for the various channels. When necessary, they’ve redone some targeted email campaigns, in some cases, at their expense. We’re very happy with their efforts.

Is there anything unique about Straight North that really makes them stand out, compared to other online marketing companies?

We’re extremely happy with the level of contact we have with them. We have monthly reports whenever we need them and we’re able to get quick turnaround if we decide to do a certain trade show and we need a redesign of the schemes on our booth, we have quick turnaround from them. The overall service level has been very high.

Looking back on the work so far, is there any area that you think they could improve upon or that you might do differently?

No. They’re very responsive to our needs.

BACKGROUND

Please describe your company.

I work for a business-to-business communications company based in Chicago. We’re a reseller of phone, Internet, and data services.

What is your role and responsibilities?

My role is the marketing and creative director. I oversee all of our digital, marketing, messaging, communication, and advertising.

OPPORTUNITY / CHALLENGE

What was your goal for working with Straight North?

I’ve worked with them for a year and a half. Our relationship started out initially doing some pay-per-click marketing, and that expanded into an entire website redesign.

SOLUTION

Please describe the scope of their work.

Straight North was contracted to build an SEO [search engine optimization]-friendly website. They provided the full service for that project. They provided the architecture and the design as well as the copy writing.

What was your process for selecting Straight North with which to work?

I sent out an RFP [request for proposal] to a select group of digital marketing agencies and design firms here in Chicago. I wanted to do business locally, which was important to me. I reviewed their work and their personality as well. I tend to make a lot of decisions based on whom I am best going to be able to work with on a four-month project.

Can you provide a ballpark dollar figure for the size of the work that they’ve done for you?

Between $20,000 and $30,000 a year.

RESULTS & FEEDBACK

What were the results of the project?

We’ve been working together for about a year and a half. They are still on retainer for ongoing SEO and pay per click work.

Are you satisfied with their work?

Absolutely more than satisfied. We started out doing pay-per-click advertising, and we saw some impressive increases in website traffic that were noticeable in a short period of time. That aided in the decision making process of awarding them the project for website redesign.

Do you have any statistics or metrics to track improvement from the project?

The site has only been live for eight or nine days, but I haven’t heard a single bad thing about it. Their approach to project management is straightforward and really refreshing. It’s very transparent as to the entire process with how things are going. I’ve worked with the same project manager for both projects, and that individual is a true professional.

Is there anything unique about them that really makes them stand out, compared to other companies?

Their willingness or ability to not come across as arrogant or make me feel uneducated about the topic that they specialize in. I found that many other firms walked into the room with this certain arrogance because of the work they do. It was such a turnoff to me that I didn’t even listen to what they had to say. So, I was really impressed with Straight North’s ability to build rapport and relate to their client right away.

Looking back on the work so far, is there any area that you think they could improve upon or something that you might do differently?

Nothing I can think of.

BACKGROUND

Please describe your company.

[Our company] is a custom metal fabricator specializing in the rolling of structural shapes into rings, angles, flat bars, channels, whether it be out of steel, aluminum, or stainless steel. We do custom metal fabricating with laser cutting, robotic welding, and assembly. We service anyone in the country who has a need for something to be fabricated out of metal.

What is your role and responsibilities?

I’m the president of the company. My main role is sales.

OPPORTUNITY / CHALLENGE

What was your goal for working with Straight North?

We’ve been working with them for a number of years, and they do our SEO [search engine optimization] and PPC [pay-per-click] campaigns. They’re in charge of our Web marketing, and that’s basically our main sales vehicle. We’re a small company, so that’s what we depend on to generate new business.

SOLUTION

Please describe the scope of their work.

It’s all SEO and PPC work.

What was your process for selecting Straight North with which to work?

We had been doing work with a different company and the gentleman who was running that merged with Straight North.

Can you provide a ballpark dollar figure for the size of the work that they’ve done for you?

Our annual budget with them is in the range of $60,000.

When was the project completed?

The relationship started around six years ago and is ongoing. The contract is renewed annually. 

RESULTS & FEEDBACK

Are you satisfied with your performance?

Yes, we are satisfied. Prior to the recession, we saw some really dramatic increases in new business. When the recession hit, everything had dropped off. It’s never returned to the pre-recession levels, but we generated new business, new people have found us. I’m happy with the results of the website because that’s how people find us.

Do you have any statistics or metrics to track improvement from the project?

I don’t have that information in front of me.

Is there anything unique about them that really makes them stand out, compared to other companies?

I don’t have anything to compare them to since we have stuck with Straight North the whole time. They’ve done a great job. I’m happy with what they’ve done, they listen, and they take their time to deliver quality work. They don’t come in like they know it all. They get to know what your goals are and what you want to do with your website. That’s why we keep renewing. I don’t have any complaints, and we’ve gotten a lot of compliments on the website.

Looking back on the work so far, is there any area that you think they could improve upon or something that you might do differently?

They’ve experienced some employee turnover. It’s part of that market, and I understand that. Sometimes, that makes a little bump in the road.

BACKGROUND

Please describe your organization.

The company is a vehicle tracking service. We sell GPS devices that are installed in company vehicles.

What is your role and responsibilities?

I’m the president of the company.

OPPORTUNITY / CHALLENGE

What was your goal for working with Straight North?

They help us manage our pay-per-click and SEO [search engine optimization] campaigns and bring us more leads.

SOLUTION

Please describe the scope of their work.

They help with organic SEO work, pay-per-click advertising and website design. They do copyrighting and make changes on the site for SEO purposes. They do onsite and offsite work.

What was your process for selecting Straight North with which to work?

They had come in and presented to us, we weren’t ready at that time but we reengaged them more than a year later. I really didn’t do any research. They found us through an acquaintance who is a trusted source, so we listened to their presentation and had a melding of minds right away. 

Can you give a sense of the size of the initiative in dollar terms or a personnel work-hour figure?

We spend $8,000 a month with them. 

When was the work completed?

We started in December of 2010, and it’s a monthly service.

RESULTS & FEEDBACK

Do you have any statistics or metrics to track improvement from the project?

When we first started with them we were getting 300 to 400 leads a year from our SEO. They’ve increased that to 2,300 this year through November.

Are you satisfied with their performance?

Yes. They do a nice job.

Is there anything unique or special about Straight North that really makes them stand out compared to other online marketing companies?

They go beyond the call of duty more often than not. If we have questions about marketing they will meet with us to give us ideas. The more we grow, the more valuable they are to us. There have been issues, but they’ve always reacted in the right way.

Looking back on the work so far, is there any area that you think they could improve upon or that you might do differently?

No. I wouldn’t say there’s anything I would have them do differently.