&Berlin - Creative Agency

BACKGROUND

Introduce your business and what you do there.

I run an event production company in London. 

OPPORTUNITY / CHALLENGE

What challenge were you trying to address with Us Berlin?

While organizing an event, I needed help with visual design elements.

SOLUTION

What was the scope of their involvement?

They assisted with web design, banners, and other visual assets relevant to the event. First, we created a vision together based on my concept and their past experience creating design work. This was a larger event than I’m used to planning, so they helped structure the creative side of the process.

Additionally, they assisted with selling tickets and merchandise through an online shop. We passed social media management onto them, and they used their past experiences with the industry to create templates while explaining what does and doesn’t work with digital advertising. 

What is the team composition?

I work with three individuals who front three different departments.  

How did you come to work with Us Berlin?

I worked with them on smaller jobs before and was always happy with their work. 

How much have you invested with them?

We spent about €5,000 (approximately $5,566 USD).

What is the status of this engagement?

We started working together in November 2019, and I had to pause the effort in March 2020 due to the global pandemic. We’ll pick it back up in preparation for the postponed date.

RESULTS & FEEDBACK

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

It was a successful engagement because they understood exactly what I needed from them. Their project plan and timeline always made sense, which helped us to estimate more accurately. I was very happy with their work and advice. 

How did Us Berlin perform from a project management standpoint?

In terms of deadlines, they did a better job of keeping up with the timeline than I did. We stayed in contact through phone and email. Additionally, there was a planned meeting every month.  

What did you find most impressive about them?

They offer modern design skills, and their work speaks for itself. 

Are there any areas they could improve?

They did a good job, so I can’t think of anything.

BACKGROUND

Introduce your business and what you do there.

I’m the founder and managing director of LINQ Management. We support scientists in managing large international collaborative projects. We do classic project management, but also a lot of dissemination and exploitation support.

OPPORTUNITY / CHALLENGE

What challenge were you trying to address with Us Berlin?

We were looking for a professional partner that could help us optimize what we deliver to the groups we work with.

SOLUTION

What was the scope of their involvement?

Us Berlin helped us set up a corporate identity. They had workshops with the scientists to work out how they saw the project and what kinds of messages they wanted to communicate. They had to adapt to different scientific work plans, and develop the corporate identity for each project. They also produced guidance documents, gadgets, and items that supported dissemination activities in the project.

They brought in their ideas, co-creating with the customer. We had two different settings: one where they worked primarily with us, so the interface was between us and Us Berlin; and one where they worked directly with the scientists. Either way, it was a highly interactive process. 

What is the team composition?

We’ve worked with 2–3 people from Us Berlin. Jon (Founder and Partner) was my main point of contact. We also had a project manager allocated for each project.

How did you come to work with Us Berlin?

I met Jon in Berlin and saw some of the products and projects he was working on. I found those to be interesting, and I contacted him just to get an introduction to Us Berlin and assess whether they’d be a good partner for us. When we had several projects where we could use professional support, we went back to them and asked for an offer.

How much have you invested with them?

The cost across all projects is around €60,000 (approximately $65,500 USD). 

What is the status of this engagement?

I first met with Us Berlin in late-2016 or early-2017. We’ve been working with them ever since, and we’re also planning new initiatives.

RESULTS & FEEDBACK

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

I’m satisfied with both the deliverables and the process of working with them. They’ve tailored the process to our needs over the course of the numerous projects we’ve implemented together. The engagement has been very fruitful and satisfying, and our customers have been very happy with what has been delivered.

How did Us Berlin perform from a project management standpoint?

It’s been going smoothly. They’ve grown and adapted their structures, and everything that’s in place now is working smoothly. The project manager on our side is the one who interacts with them on a consistent basis. 

They have a management tool that’s used on both sides, and there’s constant tracking in place, but they’ve changed their workflows recently, so I can’t say much about what’s in place now. I just know that it’s working nicely.

What did you find most impressive about them?

We had a number of new projects in 2019, so we started working with different service providers, to compare them, and to establish a portfolio of partners. I must say that Us Berlin has proven to be a fantastic partner. They’re very flexible and customer-centered. I’m very pleased with the collaboration.

They’re absolutely dedicated to customer satisfaction, they’re very creative, and their products are high quality. I can definitely recommend them.

Are there any areas they could improve?

I can’t think of anything currently. They’ve switched to a different management approach since we started working together, and everything is working well currently. I’m looking forward to starting the next project with them.

Do you have any advice for future clients of theirs?

You shouldn’t hesitate to communicate and talk to the team as much as you can, to make Us Berlin understand what you need. I’m sure they’ll deliver something that makes the client happy.

BACKGROUND

Introduce your business and what you do there.

We’re a nonprofit association for startups in Germany. We bring together scholarship holders that want to become founders, and we help them set up their own businesses.

We have more than 1,000 members across Germany and abroad. Most of our work is handled online, and therefore we have a web presence. I’m a member of the board.

OPPORTUNITY / CHALLENGE

What challenge were you trying to address with Us Berlin?

We were founded in 2013, and we had quite a simple website and no real corporate identity. We asked Us Berlin to help us with that.

SOLUTION

What was the scope of their involvement?

Us Berlin redesigned our website, logo, and general corporate identity colors. We started with a meeting about who we were, where we were coming from, and what we wanted to represent.

They learned what the network was about, what kinds of people were in there, and what kind of message we wanted to show to the public. From there, they created a design concept, and they kept in close touch with us, going back and forth on the progress.

What is the team composition?

I’ve had contact with two people there, including Jon (Founder).

How did you come to work with Us Berlin?

I knew of their website design and corporate identity work, and I approached them with this project.

How much have you invested with them?

We’re a nonprofit, so their work was pro bono. Their valuation was around €20,000.

What is the status of this engagement?

We worked with Us Berlin between January–May 2019.

RESULTS & FEEDBACK

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

They organized the process professionally and strived to meet our expectations all the time. We really appreciate their professionalism and the excellent results that their work enabled.

From my side, everything was fine, and I was happy to work with Us Berlin. They have a very qualified understanding of design and customer needs, and they provide a very high quality of work.

How did Us Berlin perform from a project management standpoint?

They were very professional and always kept us updated about our progress. They used modern methods for sharing files and updating us about the progress. We could make comments about all the details we wanted to change. They basically integrated us into their project management process.

What did you find most impressive about them?

The bottom line is that, if someone wants to have a very good design, not only for their website but for their entire corporate identity, I’d definitely recommend Us Berlin.

Are there any areas they could improve?

There’s always difference of opinion on design, but Us Berlin is definitely a very good design agency, and they’re the right people to contact, unless the client just needs quick and dirty results.  

Do you have any advice for future clients of theirs?

I recommend getting an idea of what the client really wants, and for them to be clear about expectations. Us Berlin will help make those happen.

BACKGROUND

Introduce your business and what you do there.

I’m the owner and managing director of Squareball Digital. We build digital products and provide services for startups and global organizations in Germany and around the world. Our services focus on UX, UI design, and development.

OPPORTUNITY / CHALLENGE

What challenge were you trying to address with Us Berlin?

We had a client in Ireland and were looking for a strategic partner to assist us with brand identity and visual design for part of the delivery of the website.

SOLUTION

What was the scope of their involvement?

We brought Us Berlin in to meet the client with us; this was in order to clearly define the brand strategy. The key deliverables were discovery and definition workshops where we sat with the client for 3–5 days. Us Berlin helped us interview the client about their company, objectives for the site, audience, and preferred brand elements, such as typography and color.

Us Berlin handled the creative direction for the website, which our team ultimately built, delivered, and rolled out. Us Berlin provided the key style guide, screens, and animations. The discovery and definition process resulted in workshop notes and wireframes for the site, and then the design itself.

On some of our WordPress websites builds, we provide the development expertise and do the hosting whilst Us Berlin handles design.

What is the team composition?

From end-to-end, we worked with 3–4 of their team members, including their lead designer and Jon (Founder and Partner).

How did you come to work with Us Berlin?

Our team shared the same co-working space in Berlin a few years ago and met Jon through networking. Then, Jon’s company started its own coworking space, which we moved into. We shared an office with them in Berlin for over a year before moving across the street. We’ve had a continued partnership since our initial project.

How much have you invested with them?

We invested between €15,000–€20,000 (approximately $16,000–$22,000 USD) for the first project. However, the overall value of their work has been around €40,000 (approximately $43,000 USD).

What is the status of this engagement?

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

RESULTS & FEEDBACK

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

We’ve been really impressed with their dedication to the workshops. We spent three back-to-back days onsite, and two extra days to wrap up. It was an intensive, dedicated time to get to know the client, and was a real plus point. This time was reflected in the deliverables, and we met the expectations of the client.

We delivered well and within the timeframes for the end-to-end piece, and that was a direct result of connecting resources early. Us Berlin got involved quite quickly, not only on the project itself but also on the presales process. We were able to make that connection with the client, and it was a key factor in the project. The delivery began straight away, and Us Berlin committed resources and adapted to feedback quickly as we went along.

How did Us Berlin perform from a project management standpoint?

They’re an approachable team with a friendly, engaging, and proactive style; that’s a really strong plus point. Us Berlin is ready to make suggestions and contribute to the overall process as well as remain engaged after the delivery. They do care about the work once it’s out there.

What did you find most impressive about them?

The quality of the design is extremely high, and Us Berlin has a really good standard of delivery. They have a great approach on a brand and design level, and their portfolio backs that up.

Are there any areas they could improve?

No, there aren’t any areas for improvement. We’ve shared an office with them, and all our collaborations have gone really well.

Do you have any advice for future clients of theirs?

As much as plausible, clients should meet them in-person or through video calls. This will help you get a feel for their style and commitment as well as the personalities comprising the team. That really comes across one-on-one, and it’s a good foundation for the start of a project.