TRD Studios

BACKGROUND

Introduce your business and what you do there.

I’m the owner of a restaurant chain.

OPPORTUNITY / CHALLENGE

What challenge were you trying to address with TRD Studios?

When I decided to get into the food and restaurant business, I wanted to bring an authentic experience. At the same time, I wanted to build a brand across a chain of restaurants that provided quality food. However, I didn’t have any brand, visual, or virtual identity. We hired TRD to provide a range of services, from digital marketing to website development, to help promote our business.

SOLUTION

What was the scope of their involvement?

TRD guided us through the branding process and the necessary steps to take. They created our brand identity, including logos, color template, typography, and visual identity. The team also gave us insight into how our audience perceives our brand and why that's important in a real business.

The next step was creating a website that was easy to find, whether in a search engine like Google or on Facebook. TRD helped us get our site sorted. Later, we decided to implement a table booking system, and the team helped us configure it for our site. They also configured the website for home deliveries as per our requirements. We have a payment gateway that they integrated.

At one point, I realized TRD also has a research ring where they do a market feasibility study for particular business ideas. We engaged them in this capacity, and they started as basic technical support. Eventually, they became our partners. They also help us with social media marketing. The team created our social media profiles and now runs promotional campaigns for us, including paid campaigns. They design our flyers, posters, or banners whenever we have new events.

TRD manages almost everything in the digital aspect of our business, supplying any creative requirement we have. For example, I plan to expand, so I'm having conversations with TRD’s founder about a pitch deck presentation for investors. He suggested we can get the presentation done with the data available. This is still in the pipeline, though.

What is the team composition?

My main contact points are Raam (Owner & CEO) and Reshmi (CMO). An account manager is also available when needed. I’m unsure how many people are assigned to the project beyond them.

How did you come to work with TRD Studios?

I knew about TRD because I knew someone on their team who builds websites, apps, and social media. When I relocated and started my business, a friend suggested trying out TRD, so I called them and explained what I wanted. I chose them because they took all my requirements and objectives in mind. Their presentation about their strategy and process was great, and their research was their main selling point.

What is the status of the engagement?

We started working together in June 2020, and the engagement is ongoing.

RESULTS & FEEDBACK

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

TRD’s work is really good, and I’ve gotten very nice feedback from customers who come to my restaurant. The team says they’re a lifecycle management company; they convert an idea into a viable and sustainable business and help us with whatever we need.

The team’s social media work has brought an identity to my business in the area. Once they started paid promotions on social media, we could see a daily increase in customer numbers as people became aware of our name and brand. People come in from different places throughout the globe, and they leave good reviews. Our audience appreciates the food photos TRD uploads to our social media. The team shares a monthly report with all the people that they’ve tagged, the organic views that the posts get, and the paid views. They’ve presented the data for everything they promised, and the results have been satisfactory. 

The website has also gotten a lot of positive feedback. After looking at our branding, a competitor even tried to hire TRD for the same services. Although I could have gotten my website done by anyone, their service and research are good for my business and add value. Additionally, their work relieves my workload; I can’t handle everything on my own. With TRD, I can focus on the business part while they take care of the marketing and social media. Overall, the experience of working with TRD is nice, and so is the service they provide. 

How did TRD Studios perform from a project management standpoint?

They’re very open with us, and we’re in constant communication. We chat through Google and also use email. I also have access to them via WhatsApp. Their budget is in line with ours, which we’re happy about. Overall, the team prioritizes the project and us as clients. 

What did you find most impressive about them?

I admire the amount of research TRD puts in to bring anything out. I didn't do much market research, even though that brand is mine, so when they presented their research, I was blown away — that was when I decided I wanted to try them out.

Are there any areas they could improve?

There’s room for improvement in their process. It would be very convenient if they could have things move a little more quickly.

Any advice for potential customers?

My advice is to be involved in the process when discussing strategy and manufacturing operation management. That way, you’ll have a better-optimized result.

BACKGROUND

Introduce your business and what you do there.

I’m the managing partner for H Studios, an interior design company.

OPPORTUNITY / CHALLENGE

What challenge were you trying to address with TRD Studios?

We needed someone to develop our website and do our branding and social media marketing.

SOLUTION

What was the scope of their involvement?

TRD Studios has developed our website from scratch and designed our logo. They also do our social media marketing.

What is the team composition?

We work with six people.

How did you come to work with TRD Studios?

I’m close friends with the owner’s father.

How much have you invested with them?

We’ve spent 11–12 Lakhs (approximately $15,000–$16,000 USD).

What is the status of this engagement?

We started working together in January 2020, and our relationship is ongoing.

RESULTS & FEEDBACK

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

They’re very hardworking, and they’ve helped us a lot. We didn’t know what we needed to do with our online presence before, and now we’re getting a lot of leads. We’re also planning to launch another office.

How did TRD Studios perform from a project management standpoint?

Project management is good; they’re professionals. We have a Google Meet call every Friday where they tell us what is happening, and we know we’ll get posted at least 15 days ahead of time. They use Basecamp, email, and WhatsApp to communicate.

What did you find most impressive about them?

They’re subject matter experts.

Are there any areas they could improve?

They should do things faster.

Do you have any advice for potential customers?

Be patient and listen to them.

BACKGROUND

Introduce your business and what you do there.

I'm the managing partner of an organic product supplier.

OPPORTUNITY / CHALLENGE

What challenge were you trying to address with TRD Studios?

We wanted to sell natural, organic, healthy products. So, we reached out to TRD Studios to help us with our branding. 

SOLUTION

What was the scope of their involvement?

TRD Studios ran our branding and product design processes, starting by conducting market research. There was a questionnaire of 25 questions that we filled out to help TRD Studios get a deeper understanding of our company and how we wanted to position our brand. TRD Studios also showed us our competitors' branding. Then, they provided 7–8 product design drafts for us to pick from. We provided feedback on the designs they provided — it was a very collaborative process. 

TRD Studios then explained that we needed a comparative analysis and several financial projects. Germany was one of the markets TRD Studios suggested we worked with. They provided us with a consultation on how we should run our business and made us aware of beta concepts that we had to develop for further company evaluations. 

I still need to finalize the product designs, but now TRD Studios is helping us design our website. 

What is the team composition?

We work with an account manager, who acts as our liaison between the design and marketing teams at TRD Studios. 

How did you come to work with TRD Studios?

A friend referred me to TRD Studios. I looked into their work and was happy with it, so I hired them.

How much have you invested with them?

I invested $6,000 with TRD Studios. 

What is the status of this engagement?

We started working together in January 2020, and our engagement is ongoing. 

RESULTS & FEEDBACK

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

TRD Studios is good at what they do. They invest time into each design, and I'm happy with them. Honestly, I'm satisfied with TRD Studios' work as long as I'm making money. My products are already being exported, and once we receive licensing, our products will be on the shelves. 

How did TRD Studios perform from a project management standpoint?

TRD Studios meets deadlines, although the overall project timeline is relatively long compared to a standard month-long branding process. We communicate with TRD Studios via phone calls, email, and Basecamp.

What did you find most impressive about them?

I completely trust TRD Studios because their quality of work is good. While our branding project is now complete, we're continuing our relationship with TRD Studios. They've essentially run our business' branding for us for the last two years. 

Are there any areas they could improve?

TRD Studios is growing, so they should scale up their team. 

Do you have any advice for potential customers?

I'd advise customers to have patience and invest time with TRD Studios.

BACKGROUND

Introduce your business and what you do there.

I am the director of Fine O Wine, a wine wholesaler and distributor in New Zealand.

OPPORTUNITY / CHALLENGE

What challenge were you trying to address with TRD Studios?

We had a logo that was made by a different company, but it was hard to make signage and marketing materials with it. We needed to redesign our whole logo and portfolio.

SOLUTION

What was the scope of their involvement?

TRD Studios designed our logo and our whole brand portfolio. We sell organic wine that’s made by small families and free of chemicals or parasites, and we needed that to be represented in our brand and portfolio. I provided them with ideas, but they did independent research as well. 

They presented 4–5 different logo designs for us to choose from. Their team suggested that we use the image of a bird that is now extinct in New Zealand. We felt that it was a symbolic fit with our company’s culture and got our message across to customers.

TRD Studios also helped design our basic WooCommerce website. We wanted to incorporate a lot of premium plugins to enable us to support the more than 500 products that we have listed on the platform. Their team provided us with an interim design solution: a new code that makes our website mobile-friendly and easy to navigate and purchase from. 

Their team also recently supported our marketing activities. We put together a social media campaign for a few brands that we directly import from other countries, and they designed some informational slides and videos for each brand and product. 

What is the team composition?

There were more than five people involved. A lot of people came in throughout the engagement, but we mostly interacted with the head of the company, the head designer, and a web developer.

How did you come to work with TRD Studios?

They were recommended to me by my friends as TRD Studios did a project for them. I decided to approach them, and they gave me quotes before we started the project.

What is the status of this engagement?

We started working with them in July 2020. This project is complete, but we continue to use their branding and design services every time we open a new retail shop.

RESULTS & FEEDBACK

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

TRD Studios has done a fantastic job. We’ve received a lot of appreciation for our rebranding from customers. The whole concept has even been considered for a best design award in India.

How did TRD Studios perform from a project management standpoint?

The project management has been pretty good. They’ve delivered the whole design project on time. They’ve given me access to their project management platform where I can go in and make comments, request changes, and track our progress and schedules.

We mostly communicate through phone calls and conference calls, and also through the project management tool.

What did you find most impressive about them?

TRD Studios has a good team that listens to the client but also does their own extensive research. They’re able to pull up statistics and information to better inform our design decisions. 

Are there any areas they could improve?

No, I don’t have any negative feedback, but they could definitely go for tools that are more premium than the ones they are using now.

Do you have any advice for potential customers?

You need to know what you really want and put everything in writing. If there is something you don’t like, tell them straight away.