Alfa Charlie

BACKGROUND

Introduce your business and what you do there.

I’m the executive director and founder of  The Malibu Foundation for Environmental Education, a nonprofit organization. Our main program is Kids Ocean Day; it’s an environmental education program about beaches and the ocean that we take to the schools.

We educate the children about how the trash in the streets goes down to the beaches and ocean and can tangle animals. Then, we gather a few thousand kids every year and take them to the beach for a big cleanup. They have lunch, gather together, and form an image on the sand to communicate the ocean issues or their love for the ocean. Basically, we go to schools, talk to children about the environment, and bring them out to the beach to empower them to save the Earth.

OPPORTUNITY / CHALLENGE

What challenge were you trying to address with Alfa Charlie?

Our website was a little confusing to people.

SOLUTION

What was the scope of their involvement?

Initially, Alfa Charlie approached us to contribute branding work, which led to a complete website revamp. They pointed out that they could make our site clearer on who we were and how we looked in the world. We had many conversations with them; they listened and provided a space to articulate who we were. They set up the questions, interviewed us, and got the answers out of us. Each conversation revealed more about us and how we wanted to communicate our branding to the world.

They came up with the logo and developed the branding identity. The final product was an in-depth and professional style guide. Then, they offered to create the website from scratch. We wanted to create something out of Squarespace, and they agreed to do it for a reasonable fee. Alfa Charlie designed all the pages and their look — they were the ideal company because they created the branding. On the other hand, we supplied wording, videos, pictures, and so on. Ultimately, they highlighted the mission statement and our purpose on the website and put it all together.

We didn’t think of the site as a branding tool; it's just a depository for teachers participating in the program. They can get information on how we’ll clean the beach, forms they’ll need, a lesson plan, and more. Also, the site is easy to maintain because we can change it, add pictures, and post videos on our own. However, if we’re stuck, we can call them. They send us videos on how to do what we want, so we return to them for a fee.

Additionally, sometimes we have contests or events, and they create landing pages and put them on the site. For example, this year, they redid the opening on the website. Currently, we’re planning to work with a clothing manufacturer. Once they say what we need, we’ll go back to Alfa Charlie to create a landing page or a store for caps and t-shirts.

What is the team composition?

We’ve only worked with Kimberly and Reva (Co-Founders).

How did you come to work with Alfa Charlie?

We didn’t reach out to them; they reached out to us. As soon as they did, we fell in love. They were fantastic.

What is the status of this engagement?

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

RESULTS & FEEDBACK

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

We’ve gotten comments from many people about how great the site looks. Also, it works very well and is clear about our purpose. On the other hand, the branding process was fantastic because it was like seeing a good therapist; they just got the information out of us.

How did Alfa Charlie perform from a project management standpoint?

Project management is excellent. They keep us on track and are clear on communication and deadlines. All in all, they stay on business so we don’t drift off.

We prefer to use Zoom, texts, and phone calls to communicate. They’re readily available.

What did you find most impressive about them?

Not all volunteers are quick to see the lay of the land and what we do. Alfa Charlie came to the beach cleanup from San Diego to see what our day was like. They jumped right in, and it was fabulous seeing them there. They were the best models for the t-shirts.

Are there any areas they could improve?

No, I don’t have anything.