UnitOneNine

BACKGROUND

Introduce your business and what you do there.

I am the owner of Chef Luciano Kitchen & Chicken. We are a family-owned restaurant with two different menus and dining experiences within one building.

OPPORTUNITY / CHALLENGE

What challenge were you trying to address with UnitOneNine?

Our restaurant has a unique identity in that once diners enter our location, they can choose to go left or right and experience two different menus. This setup stemmed from many years ago when two brothers—who were not always amicable—shared the space to run their two different eateries. Our restaurant’s name at that time was Chef Luciano & Gourmet Chicken.

We approached UnitOneNine with the broad question of what they would suggest as we attempted to refresh our brand. We were unsure if we should keep both elements of the operation or if we should choose one name and maximize the value of a consolidated brand.

SOLUTION

What was the scope of their involvement?

At UnitOneNine’s recommendation, we kept the two different sides of the restaurant because they thought the quirkiness and the story behind it were worth preserving. That decision prompted us to drop the ‘Gourmet’ moniker, and rename ourselves as Chef Luciano Kitchen & Chicken—focusing more on the Chef Luciano name because it was more widely recognized. Before beginning the branding overhaul, Lee (Founder, UnitOneNine) interviewed me and my wife, my father, and many of our customers to learn about our vision. They also researched if other brands have had to overcome a similar challenge­.

Once we had a plan in place, UnitOneNine orchestrated an interior and exterior refresh of our entire location. Because we are in a landmark district of Chicago, they helped us secure permission from the city to paint the exterior of our building—going from brown to white was intended to make us stand out more in a neighborhood of brown buildings. We also decided on new exterior signage. Inside the restaurant, they helped us create new menu boards and other signs to complement a fresh coat of paint.

Before this engagement, we had never taken a hard look at how the pieces of our brand fit together. This project was our first attempt at making sure all of the parts fit together. UnitOneNine was instrumental in that regard as we decided on new and consistent designs for printed menus, signs, staff uniforms, and packaging and stickers for carry-out food.

Lastly, we relied on UnitOneNine to incorporate our brand on our website, which required some web development and transferring us to a Squarespace site. UnitOneNine selected Squarespace because it would be easy for us to maintain ourselves. When I need to change the menu, make an announcement, or launch a promotional page, I’m able to do that myself.

What is the team composition?

We worked with Lee and Harrison (Creative Director, UnitOneNine).

How did you come to work with UnitOneNine?

Lee is a regular customer of ours, so he was already familiar with our restaurant and our existing brand.

What is the status of this engagement?

We worked together from mid-2016 into 2017. We remain in contact for the occasional one-off projects that come up.

RESULTS & FEEDBACK

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

Our customers have provided overwhelmingly positive feedback. Everyone has been drawn to the design. Having a clear branding strategy has worked wonders for us.

How did UnitOneNine perform from a project management standpoint?

The project took longer than we expected, but that was mainly because, as small business owners, we sometimes had to tend to other responsibilities before we gave UnitOneNine feedback. Their team kept the process moving and gave us appropriate reminders when necessary.

What did you find most impressive about them?

Creativity is not a strong suit of mine. I was impressed by how creative they were while maintaining the integrity of our business.

Are there any areas they could improve?

No, I was pleased with the entire engagement.

Do you have any advice for potential customers?

Before working with UnitOneNine, we were pretty satisfied with the branding and graphics we produced ourselves. Once I saw what professional branding looked like, I knew we had made the right decision. My advice is to allow their team to push you out of your comfort zone.

BACKGROUND

Introduce your business and what you do there.

I’m a partner and CMO of Ad Results Media. We’re a performance-driven audio advertising agency that specializes in radio and podcast advertising.  Advertisers look to us to build campaigns and creative, purchase media, place ads, and perform analysis.

OPPORTUNITY / CHALLENGE

What challenge were you trying to address with UnitOneNine?

Our website needed a refresh. The business was growing rapidly, and our focus was evolving from just endorsement ads on terrestrial radio to a broader offering of services including podcast ads, satellite radio, streaming audio, and YouTube.  

As a result, we needed a design firm to help position ourselves as a leader in all of those marketplaces. The website functions an introduction to us, an education and content hub, and a lead capturing platform, so we required expert-level work.

SOLUTION

What was the scope of their involvement?

UnitOneNine performed a complete frontend redesign. Additionally, they suggested replatforming our CMS over to WordPress. That process addressed our goal of having an intuitive frontend interface that our internal team can manipulate easily as we see fit. They helped us bridge the gap of having a powerful, yet nimble and creative website.

While the site is mainly informational, we also wanted it to function as an employee recruitment tool, a client recruitment tool, and an education portal. UnitOneNine developed a simple contact page, but they also included a news feature that updates regularly. Integrating that feature and numerous other components enables us to act as thought leaders within our industry.

The revamped website launched in 2017. We were so pleased with UnitOneNine’s efforts that we’ve recently contracted them to deliver another site redesign.

What is the team composition?

Lee (Founder, UnitOneNine) is our primary point of contact. We also interact with Harrison (Creative Director, UnitOneNine) on a regular basis.

How did you come to work with UnitOneNine?

My business partner went to college with one of the owners of UnitOneNine. However, we still sent an RFP to them and a few other firms. While some trust was garnered through the referral, they also demonstrated a level of creativity and professionalism that we didn’t see from the other candidates.

What is the status of this engagement?

We started working together in 2017, and the engagement is ongoing.

RESULTS & FEEDBACK

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

Web traffic has increased, but I can’t pinpoint if that’s due to UnitOneNine’s design and development efforts or a result of our firm’s natural growth. However, we’ve received a lot of compliments from C-level executives, network executives, and potential employees who research the agency. Feedback indicates that our brand comes across as a premium agency.

The site has also improved our ability to recruit talented employees. Candidates often say that the site exudes the presentation of a market leader. It reinforces the values we try to communicate during the initial interview process. The same can said about the client-side portion of our business model. It fits nicely into our sales process. From a creditability and validation standpoint, the site accomplishes all of our goals.

How did UnitOneNine perform from a project management standpoint?

Lee and his team are great at understanding project scope. I gave them my timeline and budget, and they stuck within those parameters to the best of their ability. They outsource development work, so that can yield project delays. However, Lee is communicative and lets us know whenever there’s a potential issue. Their transparency adjusts our expectations and alleviates misunderstandings between each party.

Also, Lee provides a consultative approach from the onset. His team went back and forth with us throughout the brand conceptualizing process. Not only did they design deliverables based on our requirements, but they also led us through how to best position our brand as a whole.

What did you find most impressive about them?

I found it challenging to articulate specific design concepts, but Lee and Harrison were able to bring my vision to life. To accomplish that, they worked to understand our business before jumping into the design process. That included learning about out short and long-term goals as a marketing agency. That sort of knowledge directly correlates with the designs they were able to deliver. In addition to redesigning our website, they helped improve the business as a whole.

Are there any areas they could improve?

No, as mentioned overall they have been absolutely fantastic to work with. 

​​​​​​Do you have any advice for potential customers?

Communicate project expectations often from the start. That includes providing a detailed scope of work, establishing management software if necessary, and setting reasonable milestones.

BACKGROUND

Introduce your business and what you do there.

I was the founder and president of a communications solution provider. We’ve had a management changeover, but I’m still on the board.

OPPORTUNITY / CHALLENGE

What challenge were you trying to address with UnitOneNine?

We needed to upgrade our branding and website. That involved a lot of work in terms of brand development, content, and website development.

SOLUTION

What was the scope of their involvement?

They helped us build and set up a fully functioning website from scratch using HTML. They did everything from the logo to the website’s look and feel. We got down to the story and overall semantics that we were using as a company. The other deliverable was a website.

What is the team composition?

The team lead was Lee (Founder/Creative Director, UnitOneNine) and there were a group of others too.

How did you come to work with UnitOneNine?

I’d been working with a friend who had found a website that he really liked. It was designed and developed by UnitOneNine, and we then found out that they were down the street from us in Chicago. That made interfacing and getting coffee with them easy.

The other thing that sealed the deal was their willingness to work with us as a startup, with a startup budget.

What is the status of this engagement?

We worked together from 2014–2016.

RESULTS & FEEDBACK

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

From a branding standpoint, they gave us a level of polish. We’d gone from just an idea in our first brand iteration to the ability to walk into governments and the biggest companies in the world with a brand and logo that exudes the idea of trust and value. That gave us a lot, including a level of confidence. We’ve gained 10% more users as a result.

How did UnitOneNine perform from a project management standpoint?

Project management was fantastic. They were the fourth or fifth online marketing company we had and were by far the best—my experience with the others made me appreciate it even more as I had expectations. They were the first to be able to accomplish the work on time.

It’s refreshing how honest Lee is about what he can deliver. He was the first to present me the idea that, in the software space, I could only pick two of working on price, time, or quality. His ability to lay out the expectations made managing and delivering the project a joy. It was fantastic.

What did you find most impressive about them?

No.

Are there any areas they could improve?

No. Lee and the company has a very strong vision, which was very good for us. Getting us all on the same page could sometimes be a little difficult, but I don’t necessarily see that as a bad thing. It allowed us to find the right answer.

Do you have any advice for potential customers?

They have a great vibe of how things should look and feel. Offer your input, but then trust what they’re doing.

BACKGROUND

Introduce your business and what you do there.

I’m the owner of a sandwich restaurant.

OPPORTUNITY / CHALLENGE

What challenge were you trying to address with UnitOneNine?

We needed help refining the concept of our branding and marketing. We contracted UnitOneNine to serve as an interior design partner, in addition to building a website and a logo.

SOLUTION

What was the scope of their involvement?

Their team flew to North Carolina to visit our establishment and learn about our town and community. They wanted to get a sense of the surroundings before starting any of the design work.

We relied on UnitOneNine to design our logo and overall brand, which would be present on collateral such as menus and T-shirts. Our restaurant was takeout-only, so the logo and brand were also necessary for cups, bags, to-go containers, and so on.

Once we established the brand, they helped us design and develop our website. We make daily changes to our menu, so UnitOneNine arranged for the site to be edited easily by a member of our staff. It’s very user-friendly. They also helped set up our social media presence.

Because we only offer counter service, there was no furniture design to speak of, but UnitOneNine provided guidance as we determined the interior paint schemes, menu boards, and external signage.

What is the team composition?

We worked primarily with a project lead and the founder, who also serves as the creative director. There was also a team of designers, but we mostly had those two points of contact.

How did you come to work with UnitOneNine?

I have a friend who owns a hot sauce company. UnitOneNine designed the labels for their sauce bottles, and I liked the visuals. I contacted UnitOneNine to discuss that project, and I respected their excitement about it. I explored more of their portfolio, and I felt they would be a good fit for us.

How much have you invested with them?

We spent $35,000.

What is the status of this engagement?

We worked with UnitOneNine for nine months beginning in early 2015.

RESULTS & FEEDBACK

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

UnitOneNine was instrumental in helping us get off to a great start. We were able to get the word out about our business because our branding was strong and our social media performed well. 

How did UnitOneNine perform from a project management standpoint?

They pushed us more than we pushed them. They delivered everything on time. UnitOneNine was incredibly organized, and we communicated well across several platforms.

What did you find most impressive about them?

It’s very easy to work with them. We felt like we were working with a friend who really cared about what we were trying to do. They felt like partners in our business from the first day.

Are there any areas they could improve?

No, they were fantastic to work with. The founder still calls us to this day to see how we’re doing.

Do you have any advice for future clients of theirs?

It was not easy for us to give UnitOneNine a lot of creative freedom because we had our own ideas of what we wanted the brand to look like. But we ended up with a much better product by allowing them to take the lead. I would recommend that other clients refrain from micromanaging too much and instead trust UnitOneNine’s team.

BACKGROUND

Introduce your business and what you do there.

I’m the CEO of OutCold, an event marking, grassroots, and guerilla experiential marketing company. We provide all the staffing for our events and also fabricate and build all the displays.

OPPORTUNITY / CHALLENGE

What challenge were you trying to address with UnitOneNine?

We needed to redo our logo, making it more professional and presentable. We initially just wanted to refresh our brand, but the project eventually turned into an entire site redevelopment.

SOLUTION

What was the scope of their involvement?

UnitOneNine evaluated our site and provided options on what it would look like if we tried to redo it or if we just started from scratch. Once they developed our brand (logo, colors, fonts), we reviewed what they’d look like in an updated site or a new site, and we chose to make a completely new site.

For the branding, they also created document templates for things such as invoices and company pitches. They made everything uniform and used a platform for the site that allows our internal team to make changes easily. The site includes signup forms for people who want to work at our events, people who want to be full-time employees, and clients who want to utilize our services.

What is the team composition?

We’ve worked with an account manager, a few designers, and some web technicians.

How did you come to work with UnitOneNine?

I met them through a professional organization. Their CEO gave honest feedback on our website, which was a fresh take, so we hired them.

How much have you invested with them?

We’ve spent between $25,000–$50,000.

What is the status of this engagement?

We’ve been partners since 2016, and the work is ongoing.

RESULTS & FEEDBACK

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

The brand and site are amazing, and we’re currently working with a third party SEO company to optimize our relationship.

How did UnitOneNine perform from a project management standpoint?

They take ownership of their projects and require very little oversight. Their team even came to work on-site for a while, immersing themselves in our culture. We meet about once a month, and they always bring new ideas. They’re responsive and provide honest feedback, answering questions in a timely and efficient manner.

What did you find most impressive about them?

They proactively provide solutions and ideas instead of waiting on us to do most of the work.

Are there any areas they could improve?

No. They’re consistently improving their services.

Do you have any advice for future clients of theirs?

Ask for their honest opinion; that optimized our relationship. They're experts in their field, so let them get involved.

BACKGROUND

Please describe your organization. What is your role and responsibilities?

Analytics8 is a full service business intelligence consulting company.  We provide custom analytic solutions for our customers.  I’m the marketing director and I’m responsible for developing and executing the overall marketing strategy for all of our products and services.  I oversee all areas of marketing at Analytics8 including lead generation, brand positioning and awareness, digital marketing, advertising, business development, events, sponsorships, and sales enablement.

OPPORTUNITY / CHALLENGE

What was your goal for working with UnitOneNine?

We first started working with UnitOneNine several years ago before I was even at Analytics8.  At this time, they helped us re-haul all of our marketing collateral and developed a more modern and professional set of documents.

SOLUTION

Please describe the scope of their work.

We use UnitOneNine for all of our creative and design needs including: website design, product branding, collateral development, tradeshow design, and more.

What was your process for selecting UnitOneNine to work with?

We’ve been working with UnitOneNine for many years now and I know the team over there very well.  When we redesigned our website, we looked at other firms just to ensure we were doing our due diligence to select the best vendor, but UnitOneNine came out on top.

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

We have done countless projects with UON over the years.

RESULTS & FEEDBACK

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

Some of the success of these types of projects is hard to directly measure, but the work we have done with UnitOneNine has allowed us to really stand out in the marketplace in terms of branding and our visual identity.  We also worked with them to rebrand a few of our products and since then, these products have really taken off. 

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

I consider UnitOneNine to be a creative advisor and partner for all of our design needs.  They do not just provide cookie-cutter solutions.  They approach every project with fresh and thoughtful ideas and always deliver solutions that exceed my expectations. 

BACKGROUND

Please describe your organization. What is your role and responsibilities?

JLL is a global real estate and financial services firm. I lead the mobile marketing team. I produce strategy for the mobile channel of our website as well as manage the creative output of the mobile side for our global team. We set the strategy, and then our regions adopt it and modify it for their own needs.

OPPORTUNITY / CHALLENGE

What was your goal for working with UnitOneNine?

UnitOneNine has been a great creative and strategic partner for us. Two years ago, we began the replatforming of our public website. As part of that, we were introducing a mobile channel. We approached UnitOneNine to help us strategize how to enter the mobile space. We continue to have projects we utilize them for.

SOLUTION

Please describe the scope of their work.

UnitOneNine helped us create a new visual design. We were also working on creating content for our website at the time. They helped us create an overall user flow that made sense and a great visual design. They helped us adapt it to mobile. They worked with us on what made sense in terms of content, design, and functionality, and they have worked with us on the technical side. They provided all the front-end code. They’ve helped us extend our brand.

What was your process for selecting UnitOneNine with which to work?

The principal of UnitOneNine, Lee Salisbury, has been working with our team for several years now. So, based on their valued partnership and their previous good work there was no alternative. We trust them and they’re our team’s go-to strategic partner for new creative endeavors. 

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

My team spends around $100,000 per year with UnitOneNine. However, that’s only for what my team spends. UnitOneNine has partnerships across JLL, so I would imagine we’re easily spending $100,000 to $300,000 annually.

RESULTS & FEEDBACK

Are you satisfied with their performance?

They’re a fantastic group of technical experts. We can take any project and put it in their hands and know that it will be well thought through and pushing the envelope for us. They are excellent at doing large scope work. 

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

They are unique in that they are able to provide the strategic knowledge from the beginning, but also the deliverable is top notch. I can’t say the same of many of the partners we work with. UnitOneNine’s primary concern is the quality of their work. It’s thoroughly thought through and seamless. It is not just about meeting a deadline. They are so detail oriented. The product they deliver is superb, and I can trust that. That level of trust is invaluable.

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’s nothing we feel needs to change, but another need for our team is a need for a quicker turnover. That’s something that may not fit within UnitOneNine’s business model. I would love if we had that avenue with them as well, but they work at a much higher level, so it’s not the same as having a freelancer that you can get a 24-hour turnaround. That’s not a complaint just a need we have at JLL.