Xtra Mile ltd

BACKGROUND

Introduce your business and what you do there.

We’re the biggest public cloud provider in our location. We also provide professional services to clients, like 27/4 NOC and DevOps, and sell infrastructure as a service.

OPPORTUNITY / CHALLENGE

What challenge were you trying to address with Xtra Mile?

They’re our marketing agency for all the processes we need.

SOLUTION

What was the scope of their involvement?

They manage conferences, digital marketing, LinkedIn marketing, and anything else we need on the marketing side.

What is the team composition?

I have a marketing manager and an assistant, who manage all of my marketing. They manage all the people in their agency, like the designers and the people who oversee the B2B and the digital campaigns. If I need something special, or I want to discuss financial issues, I go to Erez (Co-Founder and CFO, Xtra Mile).

How did you come to work with Xtra Mile?

I found them around a year ago when I was looking for a marketing agency. I didn’t have an in-house marketing manager, so I decided to check the option of outsourcing the service. I found them through references from three different colleagues, who told me they were very good. After the second meeting with Erez, I decided to start working with them.

How much have you invested with them?

The cost is below $10,000. I’m paying them a monthly retainer and I have a contract with them for the next year.

What is the status of this engagement?

We started working with them in February 2017 and we have an ongoing collaboration. I’m sure that I’ll continue the project in 2019.

RESULTS & FEEDBACK

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

Our ROI shows that we’ve made the right decision in working with them. Financially, it’s much better for me to work with an outsourced marketing agency than to have a local marketing manager. They’ve done very good work with managing the finances, alongside me and the CFO.

We’ve done two conferences in the last month and they performed well. We met the goals we had and got hundreds of leads at each.

How did Xtra Mile perform from a project management standpoint?

I meet with the marketing manager at least once a week, and sometimes twice a week. They have very good software procedures for managing projects as well as for the marketing area and the project process. We go over the current project and schedule every week, to understand our status.

Erez can call me at 10 p.m. and I can also call him in the late evening. He’s always available for any kind of solution in the marketing area.

What did you find most impressive about them?

They're very creative, which is the most important thing for me. I have particular needs within my company, given that we operate in two different markets, both local and global. They’re usually original, they understand my needs, and they know how to create good campaigns for my specific markets.

Are there any areas they could improve?

They have a number of departments in their company, including design, B2B, and digital; the only part of my experience that could’ve been improved is in the copywriting department. However, whenever I had an issue with the service, I had someone to talk about it with. I can reach their CEO, who will always listen to and understand my needs. I’m sure they’ll improve their copywriting work for our next campaign.

BACKGROUND

Introduce your business and what you do there.

I’m the head of global communications and marketing at ZIM Integrated Shipping Services, a maritime shipping company.

OPPORTUNITY / CHALLENGE

What challenge were you trying to address with Xtra Mile Ltd?

We needed help managing our social media platforms, including setting strategy, messaging metrics, peer-to-peer interaction in LinkedIn, and lead generation for specific services.

SOLUTION

What was the scope of their involvement?

They first learned about our market and the high-tech companies we work with. They quickly understood our challenges and established a trial-and-error methodology to fit our marketing. We are in a relatively old-fashioned industry but wanted to keep up with the companies we serve. They researched how things are changing and how we can bring in more leads.

We’ve done a lot more on social media in the past year and a half. Xtra Mile oversaw our LinkedIn, Facebook, Twitter, and Instagram accounts. They either use our own pictures and video or design visual assets based on what we need. They offered practical and creative ideas and helped us develop a content strategy.

We designed appropriate answers to questions on each of the platforms and they responded to followers’ comments for the first year. They helped us reach our target audience and boosted our account-based marketing.

What is the team composition?

We have an account manager and are in close contact with one of the owners. We also developed a recent interest in employer branding, so they put us in contact with a lead from that department.

How did you come to work with Xtra Mile Ltd?

Someone who worked with them in the past recommended them.

What is the status of this engagement?

We’ve worked together for at least two and a half years.

RESULTS & FEEDBACK

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

The impact of their work is impressive. Our subscriptions and followers have increased since they started working with us. We were also ranked first for engagement and social media activity on a global maritime and shipping news source.

How did Xtra Mile Ltd perform from a project management standpoint?

I love working with them. They use a project management tool internally but we mostly use email and phone or WhatsApp for urgent needs. They come to our offices for regular weekly meetings and we go to them every three weeks for brainstorming sessions.

What did you find most impressive about them?

They’re very dedicated, caring, and professional and they find solutions that are both creative and realistic. They’re up-to-date and timely.

Are there any areas they could improve?

They’re great to work with and we don’t have any issues with them. We’ve recently scaled back our involvement due to financial considerations but hope to renew the connection soon.