Thrive Internet Marketing Agency

BACKGROUND

Introduce your business and what you do there.

I’m the CEO at Approved Course, an online driving course provider mainly in the state of Texas. We offer defensive driving courses for ticket dismissal and insurance discounts. We also refer people to other companies for classes that we’re not an approved provider for.

OPPORTUNITY / CHALLENGE

What challenge were you trying to address with Thrive Internet Marketing Agency?

We have many sites in different industries. Our biggest struggle had been getting our main website to rank well. Between the variety of information on our site and the industry itself, we might have been spread too thin instead of focusing on the actual services we provide. 

After having little success with an in-house resource, we decided to try the agency route again. We hadn’t used one in a while due to some negative experiences over the past 10 years.

SOLUTION

What was the scope of their involvement?

Thrive Internet Marketing Agency helped us narrow our focus to ranking for relevant keywords in our market. About 85% of their work involves targeting SEO, but they also improved our existing PPC campaign. 

We haven’t made that many structural changes. They brought down a few pages to flatten the structure a bit, but the overall layout has remained the same. To ensure the content is understandable for search engines and matches our users’ intent, they’ve done a lot of on-page optimization. Consistent updates show search engines that we’re relevant rather than wasting time sending uninterested users to our site.

We have Thrive Internet Marketing Agency on an ongoing monthly retainer. They’re working on building local citations and outreach for link building. Currently, our site has about 200 pages and 150 posts on it. The team is going through them all to look for areas to improve and making those changes on our behalf.

What is the team composition? 

We work with an SEO specialist and PPC specialist. Carlos (SEO Manager, Thrive Internet Marketing Agency) is the team lead and also does SEO.

How did you come to work with Thrive Internet Marketing Agency?

Clutch was one of the many sites that led me to contact Thrive Internet Marketing Agency. I submitted a request online to get some information. Our initial contact was great. After waiting for a proposal for a week past the deadline, I started looking for a different agency. I kept coming back to Thrive Internet Marketing Agency. I responded to a newsletter email from their CEO and he called me within about 20 minutes.

Later that evening, the person from the initial call apologized and took full responsibility. Thrive Internet Marketing Agency sent me a proposal, and I pondered it for a while. I was nervous about my past agency experience and lack of communication, but I’m glad I gave them a shot.

How much have you invested with them?

We’ve spent $25,000 so far.

What is the status of this engagement?

We’ve been working together since May 2018.

RESULTS & FEEDBACK

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

Thrive Internet Marketing Agency has helped us break even. Now we’re continuing to improve. The acquisition cost used to be 400% of our profit. They’ve made the most significant impact on organic traffic and individual keyword rankings. For the past 30 days, organic traffic has been up by 35% compared to the month before.

All our SEO keywords are moving up in the search rankings. We’re currently at number 18 for driving in Texas, which is about 25,000 searches a month. Before we started working with Thrive Internet Marketing Agency, we were barely in the top 100 results. We’ve seen some big improvements there.
 
How did Thrive Internet Marketing Agency perform from a project management standpoint?

Thrive Internet Marketing Agency has been great. They keep everything transparent. I can log in to their system and see how many minutes they spent on each task and the results from those efforts. This tool shows the entire project, lists upcoming tasks and lets me communicate with the team. We also use email, phone, and a video conferencing tool. Once a month, we have a video call to go over the previous month’s work and upcoming plans.

What did you find most impressive about them?

I really like how Thrive Internet Marketing Agency’s entire business is structured. Their teammates work from different locations. On our video calls, I talk to Carlos who is in Orlando while Katie (PPC Specialist, Thrive Internet Marketing Agency) is in Austin. It’s apparent how much they care about bringing in the best level of talent. They have resources nationwide and bring everyone together using technology.

Are there any areas they could improve?

The only slightly negative I experienced was the initial communication breakdown. Since then, it was much better and has proven to be worthwhile for me to continue with them.

Do you have any advice for potential customers?

Always ask questions. Thrive Internet Marketing Agency has always been great about explaining everything that they’re working on. They go above and beyond to make sure clients know and what that means for you and your company. 

Over time, I explained to Carlos that I much appreciated all the explanations but am not a typical client. I’ve been doing online marketing development for the past 10 years and have a firm foundation of the basics. 

BACKGROUND

Introduce your business and what you do there.

I’m the marketing coordinator for an ophthalmology practice.

OPPORTUNITY / CHALLENGE

What challenge were you trying to address with Thrive Internet Marketing Agency?

We needed an outside firm to help us redevelop our website and enhance our social media presence.

SOLUTION

What was the scope of their involvement?

Thrive Internet Marketing Agency oversees our various social media accounts. They post daily content on our Facebook, Instagram, and Twitter profiles. Our company changed its name, so they provided an entirely new WordPress website to match the updated branding. They also lead our digital marketing campaigns via AdWords and Google Analytics. This effort includes content creation services in the form of scheduled blog posts.

What is the team composition?

We primarily communicate with an assigned account manager, but I work with multiple people on their team as needed. They’ve allocated 5–6 resources to our project in total.

How did you come to work with Thrive Internet Marketing Agency?

We interviewed several different companies, but Thrive Internet Marketing Agency’s transparency caught our attention. They sincerely wanted to learn about our business to see how they could help but also weren’t pushy. We appreciated that they approached our project from a team-oriented perspective.

How much have you invested with them?

We’ve spent roughly $75,000 thus far.

What is the status of this engagement?

We start working together in January 2018. The website launched in May 2018, but our relationship with them is ongoing. They continue to run our digital marketing campaigns.

RESULTS & FEEDBACK

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

Thrive Internet Marketing Agency has produced positive results across the board, but our social media engagement has seen the most growth. Our posts used to receive likes in the single digits, but now each post usually reaches 40–50 likes or comments. Their digital marketing efforts reliably increase our conversion rate and the website functions excellently.

How did Thrive Internet Marketing Agency perform from a project management standpoint?

They’re a great team to work because they deliver everything on time. In addition to bi-weekly calls with the whole team, we constantly communicate via email. I reach out if I have a problem or a concern and they make it a priority to respond to me. They’re also capable of communicating amongst themselves to keep everyone on the same page.

What did you find most impressive about them?

They truly want to help our business grow and are always looking for new strategies. We never feel like they’re just trying to sell us another campaign. Instead, they’re continually reworking existing approaches to produce better results.

Are there any areas they could improve?

We would’ve liked to see more growth and engagement on our website, but we’re currently talking with them about how to achieve the numbers we want.

BACKGROUND

Introduce your business and what you do there.

I am in charge of Consumer Relations for Image3D. We manufacture and market 3D reels and viewers that consumers can customize through our website.

OPPORTUNITY / CHALLENGE

What challenge were you trying to address with Thrive Internet Marketing?

We needed to increase our online marketing and social media presence.

SOLUTION

What was the scope of their involvement?

They manage our AdWords, SEO, and keywords, as well as social media marketing. One member of the team creates and manages all of our social media posts. They also handle our paid marketing material over Google and social media campaigns.

What is the team composition?

We work with a team of three people. We have an overall product manager that also handles SEO and writes our blog posts, another person manages our social media, and the other team member takes care of AdWords.

How did you come to work with Thrive Internet Marketing?

We found them through online research, and after speaking with them, thought that they would be the best fit for our company.

How much have you invested with them?

We spend about $2,500 a month, which comes to an approximate total of $15,000, in addition to our ad spend, which is separate.

What is the status of this engagement?

We began talking to them in January 2018, the project officially started in February 2018, and we are still working together.

RESULTS & FEEDBACK

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

Our presence in AdWords has remained pretty consistent with where it was before the project, but we’ve definitely seen benefits from their help with our social media presence. There’s been a huge increase in likes and engagement with our blog posts.

How did Thrive Internet Marketing perform from a project management standpoint?

Our product manager provides us with in-depth monthly reports, which we discuss during monthly conference calls with the entire team. We go over the reports, the previous month’s performance, and our future goals.

What did you find most impressive about them?

They are incredibly reliable and responsive. They’re on top of the work, always on time, and make us feel like we’re their only customers. That is completely different from all of our previous experiences.

Are there any areas they could improve?

We were initially worried because all of the work was going to be remote, but the project has been great and we’re very happy with them. I don’t have anything negative to say.

Do you have any advice for potential customers?

They’ve made the project really easy. When you work with them, you won’t have to worry or take on unnecessary responsibility.

BACKGROUND

Introduce your business and what you do there.

I’m an office manager and dispatcher at a plumbing and water heater repair company.

OPPORTUNITY / CHALLENGE

What challenge were you trying to address with Thrive Internet Marketing Agency?

Business was insufferably slow, so we opted to bring in new customers by improving our online visibility.

SOLUTION

What was the scope of their involvement?

The primary objective is to improve our rankings within search engine results so that our website is visible at the top of the first page. Thrive Internet Marketing Agency linked our site with relevant keywords, which makes it easy for new customers to find us when searching for local technicians. Their team continues to analyze the keywords and send weekly reports that measure their impact.

What is the team composition?

I mainly interact with the assigned SEO specialist.

How much have you invested with them?

We’ve spent $3,600 for their SEO services over the past three months.

What is the status of this engagement?

We’ve been working with Thrive Internet Marketing Agency since May 2018.

RESULTS & FEEDBACK

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

While it’s too early to measure the full impact of their work, their keywords have already moved our site into the top 10 results on the first page of every major search engine.

How did Thrive Internet Marketing Agency perform from a project management standpoint?

We correspond via email at least once a week, usually to review their analytics reports.

What did you find most impressive about them?

It’s clear that our success is their top priority. They’re attentive to all of our needs, and none of our questions are left unanswered.

Do you have any advice for potential customers?

Try to learn about the benefits of SEO before blindly jumping into a project. I came onboard with little understanding of the digital marketing strategy, which occasionally made communication difficult. Fortunately, Thrive Internet Marketing Agency is always eager to explain their methodology.

BACKGROUND

Introduce your business and what you do there.

I'm the director of marketing and technology at an accounting and financial services firm.

OPPORTUNITY / CHALLENGE

What challenge were you trying to address with Thrive Internet Marketing?

After starting my position in January 2017, I was basically doing all of the company's marketing myself. I wanted to show the partners at the firm that content marketing could benefit our type of business and outsourcing SEO and PPC would help generate more leads.

SOLUTION

What was the scope of their involvement?

Thrive performed a website audit to see where we could make improvements to the content and SEO on our site, along with some keyword research to figure out what we should focus on and how we were currently performing. Through ongoing analytics reporting, they've offered clear action steps on specific areas for us to improve. They also oversee our PPC campaigns and adjust copy as needed.

What is the team composition?

I mostly work with Amber (SEO Specialist, Thrive Internet Marketing). At first, I was on-boarded by another person who's no longer at their company.

How did you come to work with Thrive Internet Marketing?

I searched online for the top SEO firms and looked through recommended vendors on Clutch's website. Thrive stood out for its good reviews and their rates were competitive next to some of the bigger firms on the market. I also liked their consultative approach, since we were looking for advice on how to structure our landing pages and other types of feedback.

How much have you invested with them?

We've invested about $20,000 thus far.

What is the status of this engagement?

We started working together in February 2018 and the relationship is ongoing.

RESULTS & FEEDBACK

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

Thrive provided a lot of invaluable feedback to help us transform our online marketing strategy. Their suggestions on changing our landing page led to an increase in conversion rates. We've also seen somewhat of an improvement in keywords performance over last few months of working with them and they continue to help us refine our strategy to keep making improvements. 

How did Thrive Internet Marketing perform from a project management standpoint?

They're great at communicating and staying on top of tasks, so I don't have to follow up with their team on the status of anything. They've also been receptive to my feedback after expressing a need for improved analytics-driven decision making on our PPC campaigns.

We mostly communicated through video calls and email in the beginning, but they've now transitioned to using our project management tool, Twist, and our meetings are becoming less frequent.

What did you find most impressive about them?

Their overall SEO services and ability to convert keyword research and analysis into actionable plans has been very good from the start. I also enjoy working with Amber, who's been instrumental in moving projects along swiftly and learning about our business.

Are there any areas they could improve?

I think they can make decisions regarding PPC campaigns more strategically by focusing more on data and analytics-driven decisions.

BACKGROUND

Introduce your business and what you do there.

I'm the owner of Woven Art. We sell woven specialty items and gifts, such as tapestries, wall hangings, and blankets.

OPPORTUNITY / CHALLENGE

What challenge were you trying to address with Thrive Internet Marketing?

I was looking for a company to help me drive more traffic to my website via social media channels.

SOLUTION

What was the scope of their involvement?

First, we had an information session where they learned about my company. Then, they developed a marketing plan and educated me about it. They also helped me set up my Facebook, Instagram, and Pinterest accounts. That is very important to me because that gives me an opportunity to run ads on those accounts in the future. They've provided valuable recommendations in terms of social media, but we've been creating all the content ourselves (we're doing this project on a budget).

What is the team composition?

I work with Alissa McKenzie (Social Media Specialist, Thrive Internet Marketing).

How did you come to work with them?

I found them through an online search. I was impressed with them during our initial phone call, so I signed a contract.

How much have you invested with them?

I've spent about $1,400

What is the status of this engagement?

I started working with them in May 2018 and the relationship is ongoing.

RESULTS & FEEDBACK

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

I'm very satisfied with what they've done for me. It has only been a couple of months, so we don’t have any metrics yet to demonstrate the results.

How did they perform from a project management standpoint?

They've been very attentive and timely in their responses. There were some delays on my end, but they've stayed on top of everything. We mostly use email and phone to communicate.

What did you find most impressive about them?

They always try to make sure what they're doing is working for me. As their client, I feel I'm getting my money's worth. They genuinely care about the project.

Are there any areas they could improve?

I can't think of anything.

Do you have any advice for potential customers?

Know your goals and be ready to give them the information they need. They charge by the hour, so you can save money if you prepare beforehand.

BACKGROUND

Introduce your business and what you do there.

I work at the law firm Sizemore LLC.

OPPORTUNITY / CHALLENGE

What challenge were you trying to address with Thrive Internet Marketing Agency?

Our previous provider wasn’t achieving good enough results, so we began looking for another partner to handle our PPC.

SOLUTION

What was the scope of their involvement?

Thrive Internet Marketing Agency did background research to determine what our previous partner had been doing and what we could do better. They then proposed a budget and list of keywords that would improve our PPC. We wanted to get more clients because the market we’re in is highly competitive.

What is the team composition?

We have one main point of contact.

How did you come to work with Thrive Internet Marketing Agency?

They contacted us and did an introductory call to showcase their services. They looked promising, and we were in the market for a new partner, so we hired them.

How much have you invested with them?

We spent between $5,000–$7,000 a month.

What is the status of this engagement?

We’ve been working together since May 2018.

RESULTS & FEEDBACK

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

It’s too early for comprehensive analytics, but we’ve definitely seen an increase in click rate and conversions. Thrive Internet Marketing Agency is also cheaper than our previous partner.

How did Thrive Internet Marketing Agency perform from a project management standpoint?

They provide regular reports on our success, and we have monthly calls to strategize and make plans. They’re consistently available and responsive; I can call or text our project lead and get a response quickly.

What did you find most impressive about them?

Our project manager is amazing. He’s knowledgeable and gets amazing results in a competitive market. They also have great communication. At our old agency, multiple people worked on our project. With Thrive Internet Marketing Agency, we have one main point of contact who knows the ins and outs of our business. They’re incredibly transparent, so we know exactly how successful their work has been.

Are there any areas they could improve?

It took us a while to get the great project lead we have now.

BACKGROUND

Introduce your business and what you do there.

I am a manager at Legacy Antiques. We are an antique retailer based in the design district of Dallas, Texas. Mainly, we sell French, European, and Italian antiques from the 18th and 19th centuries.

OPPORTUNITY / CHALLENGE

What challenge were you trying to address with Thrive Internet Marketing Agency?

We do a lot of our business through our website and we are always looking for ways to improve our visibility, so we wanted a partner to help us with our SEO.

SOLUTION

What was the scope of their involvement?

Since we didn’t really have a lot of experience in this field, we collaborated with Thrive to determine the best direction to take for both paid and organic marketing. Their team analyzed our site, highlighted areas where we could improve, and helped adjust our content to align with their SEO strategy. They evaluated our website’s usage and engagement through more focused Google AdWords and Google Analytics efforts. They continue to manage these campaigns.

What is the team composition?

We work with two representatives from Thrive.

How did you come to work with Thrive Internet Marketing Agency?

After my search process, I was left with three potential companies. We ultimately chose Thrive because we got along well with their team and they seemed competent in our first meeting.

How much have you invested with them?

We have spent over $10,000.

What is the status of this engagement?

We started working together in February 2018 and the partnership is ongoing.

RESULTS & FEEDBACK

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

As a result of Thrive’s efforts, our search rankings for multiple keywords substantially improved. Our website isn’t strictly e-commerce, but we have experienced increased traffic rates, as well as more incoming phone calls.

How did Thrive Internet Marketing Agency perform from a project management standpoint?

As the main point of contact with Thrive, I have been impressed with their management skills. The team provides diligent reports that detail the work they’ve done and the progress we’ve made. We communicate mainly through email, with video chats when necessary, and they are always responsive and accessible.

What did you find most impressive about them?

They are very knowledgeable and competent in the skills we require.

Any advice for potential customers?

It is hard to say because every business is different, but I would recommend companies look at different agencies before choosing Thrive so they can see how the team’s level of knowledge stands among others in the field.

BACKGROUND

Introduce your business and what you do there.

I'm a co-owner of a custom fabrication shop. We do water jet cutting, metal screens, and inlay work.

OPPORTUNITY / CHALLENGE

What challenge were you trying to address with Thrive?

We wanted to increase our online exposure, so we were looking for a company to manage SEO for us.

SOLUTION

What was the scope of their involvement?

We showed them our competitors' websites and explained our business and our goals to them. After that, they did some research and came up with the keywords we should target. 

They currently produce content for our website – writing about our products and areas of expertise – and provide SEO services for us. We're also considering adding PPC campaigns and redesigning our website. 

What is the team composition? 

We work with a project manager, who handles our SEO.

How did you come to work with them?

We were in touch a few years ago, but at that time, we were a small company and didn't have the resources for this kind of work. When I started looking for an SEO company again, their website came up and I remembered them.  Since they could reach high SEO rankings for their own company, we decided they're well-equipped to help us.  

How much have you invested with them?

We've spent about $5,000.

What is the status of this engagement? 

We started working with them in August 2017 and the relationship is ongoing. 

RESULTS & FEEDBACK

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

Every month our keyword rankings get higher and more people visit our website, which means we're getting more exposure.

How did they perform from a project management standpoint?

They deliver on promises. They're very organized and thorough about reporting what they've done and what they plan to work on.

What did you find most impressive about them?

They're keeping track of what they do during the hours they allocate to the project and report everything back to us.

Are there any areas they could improve?

It would be nice to have a better idea of how long it'll take to achieve specific results.

BACKGROUND

Introduce your business and what you do there.

I am the owner of Lawn and Landcare, which is a landscape contractor and maintenance company.

OPPORTUNITY / CHALLENGE

What challenge were you trying to address with Thrive Internet Marketing Agency?

Most importantly, we wanted to increase our internet search rankings through search engine optimization (SEO), but we also needed to update our website and add new sections for promoting our business.

SOLUTION

What was the scope of their involvement?

After our initial meeting, we decided on a direction and they assigned us first one direct contact and then a second one. We have two people from Thrive with whom we work now, and they were in charge of examining our current website, learning about our company, and exploring how we were currently ranked in online searches. Together, our team made a plan for how to proceed and what we were going to add, with the end goal being to increase our ranking in search results and for us to be able to determine how many people found our site. To help achieve these aims, they modified everything about our website. Some of the specific features they adjusted include: Building in better search functionality, adding new pictures, providing more refined search criteria, and creating a section dedicated to new services, among other changes. Now that they have completed all of the above, we are fine-tuning the search keywords for our site and focusing on improving our placing in those search results.

What is the team composition?

We have two account managers, although I am not sure if that is their official title. They are the ones with whom we work directly, and they take care of everything involving both the technology and strategy.

How did you come to work with Thrive Internet Marketing Agency?

I believe I got a reference from someone to look at Thrive, after which we conducted interviews with them as well as a few different companies. Once that process was complete, we made the decision to engage Thrive’s services.

How much have you invested with them?

We have invested around US$8,000 so far.

What is the status of this engagement?

We began working together in October of 2017 and it is an ongoing process. Right now, we are paying for a set number of hours of work from them every month, and we plan on doing that at least through the end of 2018. Once we start getting consistent, concrete results in all of the areas where we really want to focus, then we will likely cut down on the amount of hours.

RESULTS & FEEDBACK

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

We are beginning to see more activity on our website than we had before, with a particular uptick in the past two weeks. This is still early days in terms of implementation of their strategy, so the results are just beginning to show. Hopefully, we will reach our goals for increased traffic in the next six months.

How did Thrive Internet Marketing Agency perform from a project management standpoint?

Their project management performance was very good. Once a month, we have a telephone call to discuss the site’s status in more detail, but we communicate through both email and telephone on a regular basis whenever we need to share information.

What did you find most impressive about them?

They listened to what we wanted to accomplish and worked to help us achieve it. Instead of just forcing us into a cookie cutter approach to SEO, they actually built something specific just for our business.

Do you have any advice for potential customers?

Do your due diligence up front. Have them make a presentation using ideas based on your company, and see where they take it from there.