180Fusion

BACKGROUND

Please describe your company and your position there.

I am the CEO and founder of a PR agency.

OPPORTUNITY / CHALLENGE

For what projects/services did your company hire 180Fusion?

We needed more inbound leads and to improve our online visibility after struggling in previous SEO and Google Ads efforts.

What were your goals for this project?

We wanted to grow the bottom line 20–30% after a year of digital marketing and continue to do so year after year. We wanted to reach the first page of Google search results and drive leads through Google Ads.

SOLUTION

How did you select this vendor?

They impressed us the most among the three agencies we interviewed. They audited our situation and competition, understood our needs, and educated us on what would benefit us in the interim and in the future.

Describe the scope of their work in detail.

They did SEO and managed Google Ads campaigns.

What was the team composition?

I worked with two account managers, one of whom oversees the SEO team and the other handles the PPC side.

RESULTS & FEEDBACK

Can you share any outcomes from the project that demonstrate progress or success?

We exceeded our goals for the first year and our progress is continuing at the same rate. We’ve seen improvement in our bottom line and that’s still expanding.

How effective was the workflow between your team and theirs?

I’ve been very impressed with my account managers. They share weekly reports and we conduct phone reviews about twice a month. They’ve been responsive and have taken the time to ensure I understood their services.

What did you find most impressive about this company?

They genuinely care about my business, my marketplace, and my challenges. They don't feel like a vendor I'm writing a check for, but rather an integral part of my company. They’re dedicated to helping me grow.

Are there any areas for improvement?

No, I can’t think of anything.

BACKGROUND

Introduce your business and what you do there. 

I’m the director of e-commerce for an online bakery.

OPPORTUNITY / CHALLENGE

What challenge were you trying to address with 180Fusion? 

Our goal was to increase sales on our site by revamping our digital marketing strategies.

SOLUTION

What was the scope of their involvement? 

They initially did an SEO audit before redesigning my mobile site. From there, they worked with us to develop and execute a Google Ads campaign.

What is the team composition?

I coordinated with their VP of business development to put together the contract before working with their audit department. They then assigned a customer service representative who was my main point of contact. 

How did you come to work with 180Fusion? 

A magazine had listed them as one of the top companies to work for in the US, so I prospected them to help send out client gifts. Afterward, they asked if I wanted them to help with our website and increase our sales. I accepted the offer, and we came to an agreement.

How much have you invested with them? 

We spent about $10,000 total.

What is the status of this engagement? 

It was a two-year engagement that lasted from April 2015–2017. We eventually decided to take our digital marketing in-house.

RESULTS & FEEDBACK

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

Their suggestions and digital marketing strategies helped increase our mobile site’s visibility, which yielded a 15%–20% increase in revenue in the first year alone.

How did 180Fusion perform from a project management standpoint?

The project management was great. They did exactly as they said they would while remaining within budget. We typically communicated via email but also had monthly phone calls.

What did you find most impressive about them? 

As a non-technical person, I appreciated that they explained the technical aspects of the project in layman’s terms.

Are there any areas they could improve? 

No, not that I know of. They fulfilled the agreement and performed well. We just decided to bring the project back in-house. 

Do you have any advice for potential customers?

If you have a seasonal business like ours, make sure you give 180Fusion enough time to understand your business before evaluating how effective they are. A majority of our business occurs during Q4, so they didn’t have all the necessary numbers to work with until after the first project. After gaining a better understanding of our goals and working with tangible metrics, they improved in the following year.
 

BACKGROUND

Introduce your business and what you do there.

We provide home care services to the senior citizen community as well as children and adults with disabilities. I am the director of marketing.

OPPORTUNITY / CHALLENGE

What challenge were you trying to address with 180Fusion?

Our original goal was to increase the visibility of our company in the senior community relevant to specific keywords. We primarily market to the children of the seniors who are 65 years and older. About 10,000 people are turning 65 every single day for the next 20 years, and the area of caregiving is an area in which there’s always a shortage of caregivers who can provide home care services for senior citizens. The second objective is caregiver recruiting by helping provide caregivers who are looking for work an opportunity to work with us.

SOLUTION

What was the scope of their involvement?

180Fusion is helping us with organic search. That encompasses also helping us craft content on our website and content on other sites that will have backlinking to our website. They help us a lot in analyzing our existing website in order to help us optimize the terms that we’re using across our site from an organic perspective.

They’re also helping us with our SEO [search engine optimization] and PPC [pay-per-click] keyword campaigns for both recruiting caregivers and creating our brand relevance. We also are not a national brand, so they help us a lot with localization in our PPC campaigns and ensuring that our local pages on our website are optimized for organic search. They did not build our website, but they’re helping us to inform and provide direction on updates that we need to make in order to make it as searchable as possible. We’re on the cusp of getting our foundation revitalized.

How did you come to work with 180Fusion?

We were using a different vendor, and their contract had come up for expiration. I worked with 180Fusion at the previous organization that I was at and had an incredibly positive experience. They helped meet our objective of SEO and PPC campaigns. I brought them in and they did a competitive analysis. I knew that they were the right partner to have because, compared to other SEO companies, they actually do a lot of collaboration. They are not the kind of organization that sends it and forgets it. Many organizations in this arena will build it and let it run. In 180Fusions’s case, my experience has been incredibly collaborative and they’re always searching for ways to improve and optimize various SEO and PPC campaigns. That was the reason that I brought them into the new organization that I’m in because I had a great experience with them in the past.

How much have you invested with 180Fusion?

$60,000-$110,000 is our range over the next year.

What is the status of this engagement?

We brought them on December 26th, 2016. This is a new relationship. Our initial contract is for a 6-month period, but I don’t anticipate changing to another agency after six months. I would prefer to stay with them.

RESULTS & FEEDBACK

Could you share any evidence that would demonstrate the productivity, quality of work, or the impact of the engagement?

I can say that I am satisfied already. I know the type of work that they can do because I have worked with them in the past, so I’m excited to see those KPIs [key performance indicators] coming through over the next few months. They are outstanding on onboarding, on communication, and collaboration.

How did 180Fusion perform from a project management standpoint?

Just given the experience with other companies in this type of service, their project teams are really easy to work with. They are incredibly knowledgeable, and they are also up to date on the things that are happening in this industry from an SEO, paid search, and even content development perspective. They’re writing blogs for us and creating content that will help SEO.

What really sets them apart from the other organizations they’re competing with is that they are not only easy to work with but they are very collaborative, down-to-earth people, and they keep up with the overall trends in the industry. I trust that they are providing recommendations that are the latest and greatest versus sticking with old school things that may not be working now.

What did you most impressive about 180Fusion?

Because we kicked off in the holiday period, our main contact at 180Fusion was out of town. Our account sales director led the kick-off call, and we had one of the staff on their end join the call. It’s very unusual that the account director would lead the kickoff, but he didn’t really want to leave things until the New Year. When she got back, she wanted to hit the ground running and get everything set up. That is a testament to me of how they work and the level of service they provide. We have been getting quite a few calls and different engagements that are leading us to start making the right strategic decisions.

Are there any areas 180Fusion could improve?

I can’t really think of anything off the top of my head that could be improved upon. My experience with them has been really positive: from meeting objectives, KPIs, and collaborating, to building a relationship.

What tips or recommendations could you share that might increase the likelihood of success with 180Fusion?

180Fusion, in my experience, has provided an upfront consultation session where they will come in and look at your business and also look at your competitive landscape. They actually do come in and provide recommendations just by looking at the different types of data that they have. That’s something that they’ve offered for free. It’s one of those things that motivate me to say to someone else to give them a chance to take a look at your business and see what kind of data and insight they can provide. If you’re looking at different agencies and comparing them up against each other, the data, insight, and strategy behind the way that 180Fusion operates will supersede any other competitor. Put them up again some other ones, and you will see the value that they can offer.

BACKGROUND

We're a small team of writers. I'm the CEO and editor.

OPPORTUNITY / CHALLENGE

My website traffic began to disappear fairly suddenly recently. I had no idea what to do since what I had been doing for several years was no longer working properly. I needed a company that could fix our SEO issues.

SOLUTION

Not long ago, my website's traffic fell off a cliff, so to speak. Why? Google. Apparently, 4 years of having no real SEO strategy – just writing and publishing – had caught up to me. The results weren't pretty. A previously healthy site that was generating almost 1 million views monthly dropped to below 300,000 views very suddenly – after a longer, more subtle decline.

I had no idea what happened, but I could see in my analytics that Google wasn't sending the traffic it used to be. I legitimately thought the site might be dead. I did what anyone would probably do in the same situation: I Googled.

I searched for SEO experts and contacted everyone I could find. I contacted 180fusion after finding them in search results. A major distinguishing factor was that they were the only company to respond to my request for SEO services. The crazy, cool thing was I had reached out to them during a holiday, and they still got back in touch with me.

RESULTS & FEEDBACK

They set up an introductory phone meeting quickly to learn about my site and business and got to work creating a game plan. Once the rubber met the road, it took about a month for us to start seeing some traffic improvements – just as 180fusion predicted.

All said, in the last 2 months, site traffic saw a rise of nearly 250% thanks to 180fusion's efforts. I definitely appreciate the thoroughness, professionalism, and friendliness, I found thanks to that fortuitous Google search – not to mention the outstanding results. This is a firm I look forward to growing with as a long-term partner.

BACKGROUND

Introduce your business and what you do there.

We are an agricultural parts supplier with a worldwide Internet presence. We service around 20,000 customers around the world, processing roughly 15,000 to 20,000 orders per year. Our top 3 markets are agricultural, industrial and manufacturing. I am the e-commerce marketing manager of the company.

OPPORTUNITY / CHALLENGE

What challenge were you trying to address with 180Fusion?

We wanted to make our branding better known by putting products in front of customers on a daily basis.

SOLUTION

What was the scope of their involvement?

180Fusion has worked on organic SEO for our company, but the majority of the work involves pay-per-click management. We've seen the greatest return on this front.

How did you come to work with 180Fusion?

I did a lot of online research through Google. 180Fusion's name was on the top and their company had a great reputation among the customers I contacted.

How much have you invested with 180Fusion?

Our average ad spend is between $15,000 and $20,000 per month. Given that we're a seasonal business, those figures fluctuate from spring to fall. 180Fusion's fee is 8% of our spend, which is fair compared to the market.

What is the status of this engagement?

We started working with 180Fusion 3 years ago.

RESULTS & FEEDBACK

Could you share any evidence that would demonstrate the productivity, quality of work, or the impact of the engagement?

Our base metric is the 700-800% return on ad spend. It has been a good average for our work with 180Fusion over the last 3 years. Our pay-per-click advertising has seen great returns. Their work has been very successful and I highly recommend them to other online companies. In addition, the previous company we were using for PPC and SEO had gotten us a Google penalty. 180Fusion was able to get that penalty relieved within 3 to 4 months.

How did 180Fusion perform from a project management standpoint?

180Fusion stays on top of Google modifications and they reach out to customers on a monthly basis.

What did you find most impressive about 180Fusion?

We like to keep a high return on ad spend and 180Fusion has done an excellent job in this area.

Are there any areas 180Fusion could improve?

180Fusion could improve their SEO work.

What tips or recommendations could you share that might increase the likelihood of success with 180Fusion?

Clients can trust 180Fusion's account reps and keep an open line of communication. Their people know what they're doing.

BACKGROUND

Introduce your business and what you do there.

We are a cloud-based business telephony system. I am the senior director of sales, marketing, and retention.

OPPORTUNITY / CHALLENGE

What challenge were you trying to address with 180Fusion?

We were looking to get our ranking increased for relevant search terms associated with our industry.  

SOLUTION

What was the scope of their involvement?

Please describe the scope of their involvement in greater detail.

What we hired 180Fusion for was strictly organic search. We wanted to test them first in that particular endeavor because that's the simplest one and there's less money spent on our end. If they were successful, we would continue with other marketing techniques. We had an initial contract with them for 4 months. At that time, they were supposed to show some results.

How did you come to work with 180Fusion?

I didn't find them myself. My predecessor found them through the web.

How much have you invested with 180Fusion?

We paid less than $10,000 for their services.

What is the status of this engagement?

It started in June. We terminated them last month, in October.

RESULTS & FEEDBACK

Could you share any evidence that would demonstrate the productivity, quality of work, or the impact of the engagement?

We started with a ranking of 55 out of 100, which was done through their own ranking system on the website. When they provided us the ranking in the initial paperwork, it also reflected that same number, which was 55 out of 100. We contracted them for 4 months and it was to be renewed for an additional 3 months if we were satisfied with the work.

Before, we were ranking anywhere from the 1st page to the 5th page on the relevant keywords. These were very specific, like "VoIP telephone business systems." On long-tail keywords such as that, we were ranking on the first page. For the shorter keywords, like "VoIP" or "telephones," we were ranking on the 5th page. They started the work and said they were going to improve it. We would probably not only be on the 1st page for that particular long-tail keyword but, more than likely, we would be in the top-5 selection. That never happened. In fact, during their tenure working with us, we didn't see any results whatsoever. Worse yet, the ranking went down to 51 from the original 55. Our ranking dropped, we were no longer present in the first 1 to 5 pages. We weren't even present in the first 20. After searching 20 pages, I had my people quit looking.

We had a conversation with a gentleman named Josh and told him we were unhappy with the level of service. We told them that we hope that they would finally earn their money and show us some results. The result of that conversation was that they sent us a list of 404 errors for us to work on. That work probably only took 5 minutes. Of course, we worked on sealing some of our links. I think there were around 130 404 errors. That's been the extent of the work that they did. The reason why I say it's a sham of an organization. Not only did they not do anything, but later had the audacity to bill me an additional $800 for the next month.

They got another guy, Ryan, who was supposedly the last line of defense. Ryan tried to defend the position, but I told him: "I have no report as to what you've done and you've shown me no results. When I look at the relevant keywords, it's worse than what we started off with. Can you provide me any evidence that you've done work? Any evidence that you've improved my score in any different parameters, whether in the meta-tagging or back-linking?" The back-links weren't increased. I started with 168 and ended up with 168, of which 12.8% were of high value; the rest were low-value. They have done nothing. They just collected my money.

How did 180Fusion perform from a project management standpoint?

Everybody has their own experience. I'm sure that they may have limited resources. They work on some accounts and don't have the resources to tend to the other accounts. We just happened to be one of those accounts that were completely neglected.

Are there any areas 180Fusion could improve?

I looked through some of their reviews on their own site and found that customers have had similar experiences to us. It seems that they're a sham operation.

BACKGROUND

Introduce your business and what you do there.

We're a uniformed security service provider in the state of Arizona, with 99 percent of our business being focused in Phoenix. We have the largest company of its type in the Southwest and 30th on a national level. I oversee business development and strategic growth planning, including the recruitment of officers.

OPPORTUNITY / CHALLENGE

What challenge were you trying to address with 180Fusion?

We needed to increase our recruiting efforts for new employees.

SOLUTION

What was the scope of their involvement?

We're working with 180Fusion on Google SEO [search engine optimization] and have expanded into blogging and Yahoo Gemini content. 180Fusion has built backlinks, and done other SEO-related work.

How did you come to work with 180Fusion?

We received proposals from 3 companies. 180Fusion seemed to be the most hands-on. We didn't necessarily want to choose the biggest company or the cheapest, but one that shared our values and would care about the work.

How much have you invested with 180Fusion?

Our additional blogging services have a cost of around $600 per month while the rest of 180Fusion's work has a cost of about $12,000.

What is the status of this engagement?

We have been working with 180Fusion for one year and renewed the contract in September 2016. One month ago [October 2016], we also signed the contract for the Yahoo Gemini work.

RESULTS & FEEDBACK

Could you share any evidence that would demonstrate the productivity, quality of work, or the impact of the engagement?

We've increased the number of people visiting our jobs page as well the overall number of applicants by about 40 percent, which is huge.

How did 180Fusion perform from a project management standpoint?

When 180Fusion first presented their offer, they demonstrated that they cared and were interested in our success. We have no reason to think otherwise, which is why we renewed our contract.

What did you find most impressive about 180Fusion?

180Fusion has accomplished what we were looking to do, mainly increase our pipeline of applicants. It's 180Fusion's job to drive people to our office, which they've certainly done.

Are there any areas 180Fusion could improve?

180Fusion's interface for the services provided could come with some better marketing materials, breaking down the benefits of each offering. We've always had to do this by word of mouth or through proposals, and have never received a PDF detailing what each service could do.

What tips or recommendations could you share that might increase the likelihood of success with 180Fusion?

Everything depends on the specific industry, and what the customer's goals are. I advise people to track metrics and have second parties verify those metrics.

BACKGROUND

Introduce your business and what you do there.

We sell crowd control equipment. I am the owner of the company.

OPPORTUNITY / CHALLENGE

What challenge were you trying to address with 180Fusion?

We needed help increasing our online ranking.

SOLUTION

What was the scope of their involvement?

180Fusion has helped us create SEO content for different keywords which we are targeting. We are looking to also use pay-per-click services from 180Fusion, and have recently started using them for our second company.

How did you come to work with 180Fusion?

180Fusion found us through a Small Business Expo seminar.

How much have you invested with 180Fusion?

The cost of 180Fusion's services is $2,600 per month.

What is the status of this engagement?

We have been working with 180Fusion for 3 years.

RESULTS & FEEDBACK

Could you share any evidence that would demonstrate the productivity, quality of work, or the impact of the engagement?

It's hard to assess results based on our SEO rankings. 180Fusion has brought us on the front page for Google results. We've asked customers where they found our company and around 50% of them cite Google searches.

What did you find most impressive about 180Fusion?

Our budget may not seem like a lot of money, but for us as a small company, it's significant. I appreciate the fact that 180Fusion has provided us weekly rankings and maintained good communication on the work being done. Most businesses like ours don't have this kind of knowledge about knowing what SEO entails and how we can reach results.

Are there any areas 180Fusion could improve?

We had some communication challenges initially, but 180Fusion improved the process and started providing monthly updates and follow-up calls. We have become more educated on 180Fusion's activity.

What tips or recommendations could you share that might increase the likelihood of success with 180Fusion?

Clients should educate themselves on the online marketing field.

BACKGROUND

My business performs pre-purchased vehicle inspections, Lemon Law inspections, and vehicle diagnosis in the Greater Los Angeles area. I am the owner and also do inspections and compile information.

OPPORTUNITY / CHALLENGE

180Fusion, in their ineptness, deleted the majority of my channel's videos (Car-Inspectors) in the process of "optimizing my YouTube account".

One of the videos had over 150,000 views at the time it was deleted and was starting to increase with views and complimentary comments at an exponential level. The target market was for people who needed instructional information on how to diagnose and repair their vehicles, and those who need high-quality pre-purchased vehicle inspections performed in the greater LA area.

SOLUTION

I selected 180Fusion based on online SEO [search engine optimization] ratings which were quite good 5 years ago. After I contracted them, they were supposed to provide SEO for my business, focusing in the local greater LA area. They were given access to my Google analytics and my YouTube channel since part of the contract included "YouTube account creation & optimization".

This was a month-to-month contract with an initial $700 set-up fee and $600 a month thereafter.

RESULTS & FEEDBACK

180Fusion, after contacting me to get information regarding my "account setup" including relevant keywords, assigned me to a "team" who would be doing my SEO.

The "team" had no definite leader and the team’s "go-to" person was unclear to a point that no-one on the team knew what anybody else was doing. Contacting any member of the "team" when I had a problem was difficult at best. There was no record of any work actually being done, and the only confirmation of the items on the contract I signed being completed is this monthly generated "report" which shows keyword rankings and not much else.

However, my reports were meant for a different company not even in the same industry as mine. Even after I had complained about it a month earlier, it happened twice! Mega-indifferent or inept is the "keyword" here!

BACKGROUND

Please introduce your business and what you do there.

We are a criminal defense firm in Miami specializing in state and federal criminal defense cases ranging from DUIs to homicides. My partner and I are former state prosecutors with experience in complex criminal matters. I am an owner and the managing partner of the firm.

OPPORTUNITY / CHALLENGE

What challenge were you trying to address with 180Fusion?

Our  firm hired 180Fusion after they made a very promising sales pitch. We wanted their help in locating potential clients interested in hiring a criminal defense attorney for criminal cases in South Florida.

SOLUTION

What was the scope of their involvement?

180Fusion has managed my SEO campaign for the last three months and my PPC campaign for the last month.

How did you come to work with 180Fusion?

I found 180Fusion online after reading former client reviews and looking through their webpage. They seemed to have mostly positive reviews, but I unfortunately did not focus on the fact that their website emphasizes what a great business they are, not that they deliver acceptable results.

RESULTS & FEEDBACK

Could you share any evidence that would demonstrate the productivity, quality of work, or the impact of the engagement?

I am now three months into my contract, and they refuse to let me out even though they have not done the work they said they would. Many of my keyword rankings are dropping, they frequently deliver low-quality work, and have completely ruined what was before them a successful PPC campaign.

My law firm is in Miami, and I guess they mostly market to India and Pakistan. My money has just been flushed down the toilet. I could spend all day listing their errors, including their failure to start the project on time, forcing me to bring up their complete lack of work two weeks later. Of course they billed me for those two weeks during which they did nothing.

The reason I even realize how much they are taking advantage of this situation is because I know a lot about SEO and PPC. I don’t understand why 180Fusion optimized my account so cities like Multan (Pakistan), Hyderabad (India), and Mumbai (India) are more popular in my PPC advertising than Miami—for a Miami criminal defense attorney!

My customer service manager at 180Fusion has been completely ineffective and refuses to refund the money I have lost. He admits he doesn’t really understand the Google analytics metrics we discuss in our calls when I’ve complained, but he still won’t issue a refund. Apparently, he only understands the “customer service” aspect and not the technical side. How can you deny a refund if you don’t understand the subject matter? I believe their policy is no refunds no matter how badly they screw up.

When they ran my PPC campaign, I received only 3% of my leads from Miami. I used to get over 60% of my leads from the local area. They made terrible mistakes, and now I have to run the campaign myself.

[UPDATED: 7/11/16]

The client states that all issues with 180fusion have been positively resolved and there are no outstanding concerns. All ratings have been changed to 5-stars from the initial half-star scores.