Digital marketing partnerships that make waves
Since 2005, Big Sea has been producing content-driven digital marketing that connects smart companies with their ideal customers.
Our clients include museums, universities and family entertainment centers all over the country. Aromatherapy educators and eCommerce retailers. Regional non-profits and national publishers. Genetic testing experts and international reef restoration specialists. Our niche is smart organizations with complex problems to solve, and we excel.

headquarters
other locations
Focus
Portfolio
Your CBD Store / SunFlora, University of Tampa, Ohio Northern University, HSN, Stetson University, University of Evansville, The Poynter Institute, MontKush CBD, St. Petersburg Museum of Fine Arts, Stillpoint Aromatics, Mote Marine Labs & Aquarium, The University of Tampa, City of St. Petersburg, Invacare Corp, Hearken / Election SOS, Metropolitan Ministries, Accusoft / OnTask, Codexis, The Space Foundation

MONTKUSH Website Design & Development
This national CBD brand with a famous front-man needed a functional website - and fast. When faced with the opportunity to launch the brand at a huge national convention just a month away, MONTKUSH turned to Big Sea to do something great.
View the case study at https://bigsea.co/portfolio/montkush/ >
"Our website is the crown jewel of our brand. Without Big Sea’s help in giving us the foundation for success, we would have been dead in the water. They easily managed the different expectations of our executive officers and kept in constant contact with me as a result. Our communication was powerful in the respect that we could have candid conversations while still fostering mutual respect and understanding… a trait that is many times overlooked, but one that is far superior to any other. We have nothing but positive feedback for our entire experience with Big Sea." Noelle CrovoNoelle Crovo, MONTKUSH

University of Tampa Website Design
UT originally engaged Big Sea to design their website in 2015, and came back when they were ready for a refresh in 2020.
We helped them reorganize their thousands of pages of content, analyze their user journeys, restructure their information, and ultimately, redesign their user experience for an accessible, search-optimized and beautiful experience.
View the full case study at https://bigsea.co/portfolio/university-of-tampa/
“Big Sea’s team does their research, not only on cutting edge web design trends but also truly gets to know their clients’ mission and goals. They’re creative and make the process fun while putting in serious work into their strategy,” says Sarah Tackett, Web Communications Manager at The University of Tampa.

GoZone WiFi Web Design & Digital Marketing
This startup came to us to compete against some big players already leading their market, knowing that their software surpassed what was being offered. We started with a new, engaging website loaded with conversion opportunities, created multiple lead generation campaigns, a robust content strategy, and managed paid media and SEO leading to rapid and sustainable growth.

Web Design & Digital Marketing for Multi-Location FEC
From a geo-sniffing website designed primarily for mobile visitors to find their nearest location to conversion funnels aimed directly at parents ready to book birthday parties, our work with this 16-location chain of family entertainment centers spanned all facets of digital marketing. While we continue to focus on killer SEO and high-converting paid media campaigns, our real success comes from a robust creative email program.

Non-profit Website Design & Development
This non-profit agency manages foster care and family reunification programs across 28 states, and needed a website that could share their important mission. With complex information architecture, powerful copy, and a more intuitive interface, we made sure their multiple audiences could easily find what they needed and enjoy doing so. The results? Increased donations, more volunteers, and more support.

Revs Institute Website Design
A sleek new look for this museum of historic cars, an eCommerce store to sell their coveted merch, and a special event page complete with custom scheduling app are all part of this client's ongoing relationship with Big Sea.

Digital Marketing & Web Design for B2B SaaS Company
The Big Sea team designed a beautiful, custom website complete with high-converting lead generation campaigns and grew this start up from the ground up.

PPC, SEO and Digital Marketing for Law Firm
Jason Herman and Clifford Wells, Personal Injury and Insurance Claim Attorneys of Herman & Wells, talk about partnering up with Big Sea to create a new website for the firm. The pair also discusses their improved website lead generation following launch.

Digital Marketing is Storytelling
Big Sea's marketing strategies follow a storytelling approach — one that puts clients or customers as the heroes of their own journeys. Learn how to make the most of your marketing time and budget in this company trailer with Big Sea's leaders.

Digital Marketing & Web Design for Pin Chasers Bowling Centers
Even 10 years into a relationship, Big Sea never settles for "good enough." We continually push to see what's around the corners to that we can provide 700% ROI for clients like Pin Chasers, a family-owned chain of bowling centers in the Tampa Bay area.

Brand Strategy for National Home Warranty Company
Big Sea provided consulting, strategic messaging, branding, website design for Centricty, a national home warranty company owned by Banker's Financial Corporation.

Library Information Resources Network
Big Sea worked with the LIRN team to improve the user experience and modernize the design for this national association's website.
Reviews
the project
Digital Marketing for Law School
"They are knowledgeable about market trends and relevant content."
the reviewer
the review
The client submitted this review online.
Please describe your company and your position there.
I am the Director of Law Admissions at a small, private law school in central Ohio. I oversee enrollment, recruitment and financial aid for the college while working closely with the director of law communications.
For what projects/services did your company hire Big Sea?
We hired Big Sea to assist our team in digital advertising in addition to content creation for website, social and emails.
What were your goals for this project?
Our goal was to increase leads to in turn increase applications to the law school.
How did you select Big Sea?
Our new dean had previously worked with Big Sea and their firm came highly recommended from another one of our consultants.
Describe the scope of their work in detail.
Big Sea provides our team with strategy, creative, paid media planning and buying as well as marketing execution. We meet on a bi-weekly basis to discuss our progress, goals and actionable projects. Our team provides comments, guidelines and other materials that Big Sea requests in order to efficiently complete all projects.
What was the team composition?
We have worked with 3 team members for the majority of our relationship - a project manager, content creator and social media/digital ad team member.
Can you share any outcomes from the project that demonstrate progress or success?
Since beginning our work together, our general brand awareness has increased, the number of leads has also increased as well as the total number of applications to our program.
How effective was the workflow between your team and theirs?
The communication between our team and theirs has been streamlined throughout our entire relationship. Our project manager responds to our inquiries promptly. We recently started using the project management system Asana, which has also helped with our workflow.
What did you find most impressive about this company?
It is evident that Big Sea has a unique history working with other educational institutions. They are knowledgeable about market trends and relevant content.
Are there any areas for improvement?
We are very pleased with our current relationship.
the project
Web Dev & SEO Services for Beach Wedding Company
"We’ve been pretty happy with them."
the reviewer
the review
A Clutch analyst personally interviewed this client over the phone. Below is an edited transcript.
Introduce your business and what you do there.
We own a beach wedding company based in St. Augustine. We mostly handle destination weddings and the majority of our clients come from outside the state, but we do local weddings too. Basically, we plan their events, and, do weddings and receptions for them. We also have a team in Tampa.
What challenge were you trying to address with Big Sea?
We’ve been working with Big Sea for a long time, and their work mainly revolves around our website.
What was the scope of their involvement?
They handle our month-to-month website work. They also conduct website redesign and perform SEO services. The Big Sea team has written our website in multiple versions, probably for the past eight years. We’ve also done other projects with them.
What is the team composition?
Typically, I work with my project manager. Currently, I work with Krista (Marketing Coordinator). However, I probably have collaborated with 10 different employees from Big Sea.
How did you come to work with Big Sea?
They may have been referred to us locally in the Tampa market.
How much have you invested with them?
In total, we’ve spent approximately $60,000–$70,000. We spend $1,500 a month on SEO services.
What is the status of this engagement?
We started working around June 2013, and the engagement is ongoing.
What evidence can you share that demonstrates the impact of the engagement?
We’ve been very happy with our website. They’ve redesigned multiple versions of our website. Every time we follow their advice to redo things and spend the money to invest in the site, we’ve always ended up growing the business. It’s also important to note that the majority of all of our business comes from our website, and we’ve gotten good results from it as far as ROI is concerned. The team has not only increased our business but our market share as well.
How did Big Sea perform from a project management standpoint?
When I’m working with them on a project, they always assign a project manager to work with them. So far, the project manager they assign has always been great. Krista is my project manager now and she’s been very responsive. She gets back to me quickly whenever we have an issue with the website or if something goes wrong. Overall, she has been very helpful.
What did you find most impressive about them?
Their overall quality, quality control, and ideas are sharper. We’ve had other web designers, but Big Sea has always come up with better ideas, which is what we’re looking for because we’re not experts in the field. In the past, we’ve had people there who just leaned on us to give them ideas. What makes Big Sea different is they come with pitches to us, on what we need to do and they present it based on their web world expertise on things we need to do to stay current.
Are there any areas they could improve?
No, we’ve been pretty happy with them.
Do you have any advice for potential customers?
Working with a web designer may be a bit of a learning curve, but just make sure you give them clear direction on what you want upfront. Do your research and let them give you advice. However, when it comes to designing stuff, make sure that you have clear expectations.
I’ve sat with them many times where I didn’t give them clear advice and when they came back with something that’s not what we’re thinking — I ended up paying for what they did since they work by the hour. Additionally, we’ve needed to pay for a whole redesign.
the project
Advertising for Global Space Community Nonprofit
“The deliverables that they were able to give to us were really impressive, and we valued their help.”
the reviewer
the review
A Clutch analyst personally interviewed this client over the phone. Below is an edited transcript.
Introduce your business and what you do there.
I’m the manager of strategic communications and outreach at a space nonprofit that inspires, educates, connects, and advocates on behalf of the global space community. We try to bring awareness and host activity educational programs in addition to major industry events.
What challenge were you trying to address with Big Sea?
We brought on Big Sea to help with the marketing and advertising for our new subscription-based program. They were responsible for helping us reach out to new audiences and markets.
What was the scope of their involvement?
Big Sea promoted our new space program through paid social media advertising on Facebook and LinkedIn. They also did some Google Ads work. For each platform, they would create the ads and publish them for us.
Their team also helped put together organic social posts. That involved typing up a Google Sheet with a written post for each scheduled day. We gave them some of the stuff that we’d been doing for the space program, which they used to develop the copy. Then, I or another team member would approve the content before posting the copy alongside pictures or videos.
What is the team composition?
I worked with Zakary (Office Director) who oversaw our account, Ben (VP of Marketing), and Kevin F. (Search Marketing Coordinator).
How did you come to work with Big Sea?
At the time, I’d just started at the foundation, so I don’t know the full details. But, I believe we won free advertising and marketing help a year ago through one of their grants. It was for a philanthropy effort that we’d been working on. Because our team enjoyed working with Big Sea, we wanted to work with them again for this opportunity.
How much have you invested with them?
It was roughly $10,000–$20,000, not including ad spend.
What is the status of this engagement?
This specific project started with Big Sea in September 2020, and the bulk of the project was completed in December 2020.
What evidence can you share that demonstrates the impact of the engagement?
It was a successful project. We ended up adding Facebook and LinkedIn ads, which, granted, we’d never done in the past. That was a new strategy for us. However, we didn’t get as many registrants for our program as we’d hoped. And, we were hoping to identify more audiences, but we were able to get the word out about our new program to a lot of people.
How did Big Sea perform from a project management standpoint?
Everyone was great. Every time I had a question about Google Ads or wanted some advice on our social accounts, Kevin was always willing to walk me through those issues. Zakary was also constantly communicating with us. She got us sorted on our ad copy and reported on calls to explain what she was seeing and her recommendations.
In terms of project management tools, they shared a dashboard with us. I wasn’t a huge fan, but they kept well-organized using it. The team also collaborated on Google Docs when it came to providing content, ad copy, and creatives.
What did you find most impressive about them?
We gave them a big ask. We knew that we weren’t giving them a whole lot to work with, especially at the beginning of the partnerships. Regardless, the deliverables that they were able to give to us were really impressive, and we valued their help.
Are there any areas they could improve?
One thing that we were a little disappointed with was that it took a bit longer than we’d thought to get the ball rolling once we’d signed the contract. As a result, it took a bit longer for some of the deliverables and ads that we’d agreed upon.
Do you have any advice for potential customers?
Come fully prepared with clear ideas and a defined mission to get the ball rolling.
the project
Branding & Web Design for Children's Nonprofit Org
“Of all the vendor relationships that I’ve had, this has been one of the most overwhelmingly positive experiences.”
the reviewer
the review
A Clutch analyst personally interviewed this client over the phone. Below is an edited transcript.
Introduce your business and what you do there.
Champions for Children is a nonprofit based in Tampa, Florida that prevents child abuse through family education services. I’m the director of development and communications, which means I oversee fundraising as well as our external relationships and marketing communications.
What challenge were you trying to address with Big Sea?
Prior to a couple of years ago, marketing wasn’t a focus for us. We’d started to make some time investments in marketing but didn’t have much of a budget. Not to mention, our website and social media were pretty weak — even our overall messaging lacked brand consistency. We eventually asked Big Sea to help us with our branding and web design needs.
What was the scope of their involvement?
Big Sea has created some initial language, content templates, and strategies to expand our community’s brand awareness. They were also tasked with building up our internal capacity to continue our improved marketing efforts after the engagement was complete.
We loved working with them so much that we decided to engage them on overhauling our website. That’s been the biggest project so far, and we’ve just completed it. Our second main project has been developing a formal case for support for our organization as well as strategizing and implementing our end-of-the-year fundraising appeal.
What is the team composition?
We work with a core team across St. Pete, Florida and Colorado. Zak (Office Director) is our project manager. She’s the one who runs the show. There’s also Ben (VP of Marketing) who handles our strategy, a designer, and a content specialist. The extended team consists of SEO specialists and web developers who work behind the scenes.
The CEO who initiated the engagement paired us up with this team because some of the marketing experts had previously worked in nonprofits like ours. That deep experience and personal understanding of our challenges made all the difference.
How did you come to work with Big Sea?
We got to know Big Sea because we applied for and won a $30,000 in-kind services grant from them (called their “Wavemakers Grant”). The grant covers one year of services, and we’re about half-way through.
When we applied, I remember thinking that it was a long shot. I told another marketing person on an unrelated project that we’d won, and they assured us of how lucky we were.
How much have you invested with them?
The initial grant was worth $30,000 but was provided pro bono. We then put in another $25,000 for the website and a small additional project. They’ve given us a great nonprofit rate so far.
What is the status of this engagement?
We started working with them in January 2020 and are still in touch. We actually have a small additional project that we’re looking to start with them in 2021.
What evidence can you share that demonstrates the impact of the engagement?
Big Sea is excellent about anticipating our concerns, and they’ve taken the time to learn why we have them in the first place. From there, they work within our comfort zone (occasionally pushing us out of it where appropriate) to get us to the right place in terms of marketing best practices. It’s about helping us think through our problems so that we can shape and then meet our goals.
They’re also considerate of our needs and budget constraints as a nonprofit. Sometimes, rather than doing something themselves, they’ll make a video to show me how I can do something myself so that I can have the option of completing the task independently.
Finally, Big Sea understands the complex relationships involved in a nonprofit with diverse stakeholders. I have a lot of stakeholders to deal with in the background such as board members who care about the outcome of our efforts. Not only has their team anticipated those needs, but they’ve also worked with me to make sure that I have the proper tools and deliverables at my disposal to satisfy my board members.
How did Big Sea perform from a project management standpoint?
They’re extremely well-organized, using one-week sprints to complete tasks. Zak is on every call, taking notes on everyone’s comments so that we can all focus on the content of the work itself. She’s also great at following up quickly. All communication is run through her, which can seem indirect. But, they do it this way to ensure that one person is staying on top of everything.
During the last five days of the website project, I started to communicate more directly with individual team members, which ended up working really well, too. That shows that they’re able to shift their project management style over the course of a project to meet client needs. In fact, we had that project up and running in under three months with days to spare.
I also appreciate that they draw knowledge from their various teams. For example, there have been a couple of times when they’d tell us that they haven’t done a task before, but another team of theirs is working with a client with a similar problem. They’d then lean on their internal talent to collect information and feedback, which would benefit us.
What did you find most impressive about them?
Of all the vendor relationships that I’ve had, this has been one of the most overwhelmingly positive experiences. I’ve been thrilled about it!
They’ve adapted well to working virtually — probably because they have teams in St. Pete and Colorado. As a result, they have a tight grasp on collaborative tools that allow for successful remote work.
They’re fantastic at the creative side of things. From digital marketing strategy to creative design, content development, and brand messaging, they take a thoughtful approach. Even our board present who is a retired, high-powered communications executive came away impressed with them.
Are there any areas they could improve?
When minor things come up with any vendor, I always care a lot less about what happened and more about how someone responds to it.
There was one minor issue that we encountered, which was nobody’s fault, but we still had to address it. One of the members of their extended team was handling our paid advertising on our site. But, because they were more behind-the-scenes, I didn’t necessarily know what they were up to all the time.
I would’ve liked them to have communicated important progress done outside of the core team to us a little more strongly. After I brought it up, Big Sea’s team was non-defensive, took a solutions-oriented approach, and treated it seriously to fix it.
Do you have any advice for potential customers?
Before you engage them, you should do your own work and have your initial goals set up. You should also make sure that you have the staff time to dedicate. They are really organized, but you need to be there, too, if you’re going to stay on top of things.
One of the reasons they picked us for the grant was because we specifically expressed that we wanted them to help us build our own marketing capacity. They did a lot of video tutorials for us so that we could do things on our own, but we wouldn’t have learned anything if we hadn’t dedicated the staff time. That’s the only way they could’ve provided the right impact for us.
I’m not sure that it’s worth booking any marketing firm if you’re just looking for them to do everything for you because it doesn’t work that way.
the project
Digital Marketing & Web Design for Faith-Based Nonprofit
“They took the time to learn about our company, goals, and strategy before jumping in.”
the reviewer
the review
A Clutch analyst personally interviewed this client over the phone. Below is an edited transcript.
Introduce your business and what you do there.
I work for a nonprofit in Tampa bay that serves poor and homeless families throughout the region. We’ve been doing this for about 48 years. I’m the VP of marketing here. My responsibilities involve brand building, site maintenance, and public relations.
What challenge were you trying to address with Big Sea?
The ways we raise money are changing. It used to be all about sending out direct mail fundraising asks and getting funds through relationships. That was before social media. Marketing is now becoming more complicated in the digital space. We partnered with them to focus on our digital brand awareness and digital fundraising.
What was the scope of their involvement?
In the process of building out our digital presence, they revamped the look and feel of our donation pages and cleaned up our backend code. This was incredibly important for us. It needed to be quick and easy to use on desktop and mobile.
They also helped us with digital advertising, running our paid digital campaigns on Facebook. We also came up with a strategy and a general roadmap for the implementation of our budget. Recently, we reached out to boost our year-over-year donations. In the end, they had handled web design, digital strategy, SEO, and digital advertising for our organization.
What is the team composition?
My main point of contact is Kristen (Account Manager, Big Sea), but there are about 4–5 direct points of contact. We have an account manager, a content creator, a web developer, and a digital marketing specialist.
How much have you invested with them?
We’ve spent about $50,000 to date.
What is the status of this engagement?
We started in July 2019, and the project is ongoing.
What evidence can you share that demonstrates the impact of the engagement?
By the end of our calendar year in 2019, we were up 20% in our digital giving online. That was fantastic to see that the work we were putting in was paying off. At this point, we’re trending to finish 2020 at least 10% up from the year before.
The quality of our content with their team and their collaboration with our in-house storyteller are impressive. They’re collaborative, nimble, and smart. Their team was able to function as an extension of our marketing staff, which has worked very well.
How did Big Sea perform from a project management standpoint?
We have weekly meetings and review our progress toward goals on a monthly basis.
What did you find most impressive about them?
They took the time to learn about our company, goals, and strategy before jumping in. The discovery phase took weeks but was worth it. They were willing to listen and collaborate. They’re smart and knowledgeable about the most effective, personal channels we can use to reach different audiences. The team helped us nimbly shift our budget in real-time to optimize our output in the digital ecosystem. Their industry knowledge is superior.
Are there any areas they could improve?
They’re an agile workforce that allows them to work remotely and mobile. I can communicate with them from anyway. We’ve met several times in-person as well, which is positive. However, the agile, mobile workforce can sometimes be challenging.
Do you have any advice for potential customers?
Be collaborative and trust the agency you hire. Their team can be trusted. It’s also important to allow time for discovery at the start of the engagement. That certainly gave them insight into how they could best help us.
the project
Website Dev for Mentoring Program
"They were big enough to have the level of expertise needed but not so big that I felt lost in the number of clients."
the reviewer
the review
A Clutch analyst personally interviewed this client over the phone. Below is an edited transcript.
Introduce your business and what you do there.
I am the founder of Digital Women Leaders.
What challenge were you trying to address with Big Sea?
I wanted to make a lot of improvements to the website I launched in 2018. I hired Big Sea to help me revamp the entire site, create a new logo, and add a search function tool to the website.
What was the scope of their involvement?
They designed everything based on what I was looking for from our interviews. From that, they provided many color and font options, and we eventually landed on the website and logo. The search functionality tool is complex. It is essentially a filtering system for volunteers to use during phone calls. The filter allows the user to look through topic languages in different areas.
What is the team composition?
I consistently worked with five people, including a product manager.
How much have you invested with them?
I have spent about $25,000 so far.
What is the status of this engagement?
We started working together in August 2019 and the project is currently ongoing but it is wrapping up soon.
What evidence can you share that demonstrates the impact of the engagement?
Within the first 48 hours of launching our site, we had more than 100 people sign up for mentoring sessions, which is amazing. I have also received a lot of great feedback about the website. Someone mentioned it was better than imagined.
How did Big Sea perform from a project management standpoint?
They’re great. With clear communication throughout the project, we used Asana and Teamwork. They were timely with deadlines minus a few that were pushed back, but they informed me in advance so it was fine.
What did you find most impressive about them?
This is unique to the project, but it was important to me to work with female designers. I know that can be hard to find, and it was great finding that in Big Sea. The team was also very diverse, which I thought was impressive. They were big enough to have the level of expertise needed but not so big that I felt lost in the number of clients.
Are there any areas they could improve?
Having done the site launch, I think the QA process at the end could have been a little more thorough. There were a few things that were caught after the launch that I think could’ve been caught ahead of time, but they were minor things.
Do you have any advice for potential customers?
Have a strong idea of what you want and spend the time to think about what design and feel you’re looking for. It really helps them create your vision.
the project
Digital Marketing for Litigation Management Company
“Even with minimal interaction, they execute the deliverables we need.”
the reviewer
the review
A Clutch analyst personally interviewed this client over the phone. Below is an edited transcript.
Introduce your business and what you do there.
We are a litigation management software company. We created a platform for insurance companies and their attorneys to manage cases and provide e-billing, matter management, and attorney score carding. I'm the vice president of marketing.
What challenge were you trying to address with Big Sea?
We wanted to redesign our website and increase leads in our marketing efforts.
What was the scope of their involvement?
They worked with us through a few discovery sessions, and they walked us through the website process. We provided the overall version of what we wanted, and their designers, content writers, and marketing team laid out a formula to build out the website and attract leads through paid ads and outbound email engagement. They used Google Ads and LinkedIn targeted ads to attract specific individuals within the insurance agency. They designed a couple of layouts, but most of the content came from us.
How did you come to work with Big Sea?
We knew one of their former owners. Through that referral and other positive information we had about them, we decided to meet with them. We liked their professionalism and their ideas.
What is the status of this engagement?
We started on the website at the end of June 2019 and finished at the end of October 2019. The marketing piece started in July 2019, and that portion is ongoing.
What evidence can you share that demonstrates the impact of the engagement?
Since the site is so new, we don't have any major metrics as yet. Our old website wasn't particularly beneficial for us, but the new site answers all the user questions we saw in the past. When people come to our website, they immediately know what we're selling. We have a number of CTAs involved, so the site is very easy to navigate. They streamlined the whole process and made it much more user-friendly. They learned a lot about our process, which saved time.
How did Big Sea perform from a project management standpoint?
They're very good project managers. They keep us up-to-date, and they communicate clearly. They gave us a project plan early on, and they alerted us whenever they needed something. They assigned tasks to the right team members, and we got constant updates.
What did you find most impressive about them?
They're very professional, knowledgeable, and easy to work with. Even with minimal interaction, they execute the deliverables we need.
Are there any areas they could improve?
I can't think of anything they could improve or do differently.
Do you have any advice for potential customers?
Working with them is very straightforward. They offer multiple options, and they execute very well. I don't have any specific recommendations for potential clients.
the project
Website Dev & Marketing Strategy for Insurance Company
“Big Sea helped ground our brand, pulling our management team together to help us find our voice.”
the reviewer
the review
A Clutch analyst personally interviewed this client over the phone. Below is an edited transcript.
Introduce your business and what you do there.
I'm an executive at Centricity, which provides service contracts and structural home warranties.
What challenge were you trying to address with Big Sea?
We engaged them for rebranding services, including help relaunching our website.
What was the scope of their involvement?
Big Sea designed and developed our website, providing some written content in the process. They've also helped with additional branding work, bringing our logo and color palette to life. From there, they've worked on our marketing strategy, conducting an onsite workshop with some of our management staff to create a plan of action and brand guidelines.
What is the team composition?
We work with an account manager, copywriter, and design team.
How did you come to work with Big Sea?
Our corporate marketing team selected them after one of our colleagues recommended them. They integrated very well into our team from the start.
How much have you invested with them?
We've invested $75,000–$80,000.
What is the status of this engagement?
We've been working with them since around May 2017.
What evidence can you share that demonstrates the impact of the engagement?
Big Sea helped ground our brand, pulling our management team together to help us find our voice. Their work has helped us take our company to the next level.
How did Big Sea perform from a project management standpoint?
Big Sea feels like part of our own team. They've done a great job of immersing themselves into our work, learning our products, and studying our industry. Their communication is excellent; they're responsive through phone, email, and text, and also use another project management tool to keep tasks organized. They're always willing to come into our office and keep us up to date on everything they're working on.
What did you find most impressive about them?
They're very responsive and receptive to our feedback. They're also good at connecting with the client's targeted audience and brand; they immerse themselves into their client's culture and products and have a strong passion for their work.
Are there any areas they could improve?
No. We haven't had any issues.
Do you have any advice for potential customers?
Don't hold back when it comes to providing their team with information about your company, brand, and goals. The more details available to them, the better.
the project
Ecommerce Dev, SMM & SEO for Aromatherapy Company
"Big Sea can overcome any challenge and never stops trying until they succeed."
the reviewer
the review
A Clutch analyst personally interviewed this client over the phone. Below is an edited transcript.
Introduce your business and what you do there.
I’m the co-owner of Still Point Aromatics. My business partner and I import and sell almost 450 essential oils from across the world. Other products include carrier oils, aromatherapy products, and 70 hydrosols. The sister company, Still Point Studies, is a school for basic and advanced certification in energetics. We offer clients vibrational aromatic medicine and weekend workshops. Soon, we’ll start holding weekly Chakra cleansings for local tourists.
What challenge were you trying to address with Big Sea?
As massage therapists, my co-owner and I noticed the poor quality of domestically available essential oils. We started importing alternatives to give our clients a better experience. After amassing a personal collection of 180 oils, we decided to sell them. We hired Big Sea to create our entire brand identity, marketing strategy, and e-commerce platform from scratch.
What was the scope of their involvement?
Big Sea developed and optimized our e-commerce platform from scratch. They also built a complementary site from the ground up to showcase our aromatics school. The platform’s first iteration lasted six years after its initial launch, which is impressive staying power in the digital space. We just started a redesign to make it mobile responsive and refresh the look and feel. They make continuous updates and add-ons to both pages. Alongside the retail aspect, it also works as a research tool for interested potential clients.
The team also plans and runs our marketing strategy. They manage our Facebook account and item sales. We collaborate on the copywriting. I’m impressed by their ghostwritten content. It’s uncannily similar to my personal tone and style. Creative graphic design and blogging assets keep our brand visible. For special edition releases, they write press releases to generate interest in our new products.
What is the team composition?
I work directly with a team of 6-7 resources who manage all my projects. For business and technical concerns, I have four main points of contact.
How did you come to work with Big Sea?
A friend and colleague I’d studied with recommended using them. Big Sea built a comparable site for her aromatics company.
What is the status of this engagement?
We've been working together consistently since 2010.
What evidence can you share that demonstrates the impact of the engagement?
Big Sea is the absolute best partner I've ever worked with. They haven’t let us down once over our 10-year partnership. Monthly reports detail our inbound web traffic. Since we started working with Big Sea, this figure has increased annually by 10%-15%. Clients can test products at our storefront in Sedona, but sales come almost exclusively through our site. Our business couldn’t exist without them.
The quality of their work is the absolute best. On a scale from 1-10, I’d rate it a million. All our customers tell us we have the best essential oils website online. They’ve found it beautifully designed, precisely informative, easy to navigate. It's especially fantastic how each high-caliber page they design looks so distinct. Using an elegant, concise copywriting style, they perfectly encapsulated our brand's personality on both platforms.
How did Big Sea perform from a project management standpoint?
We use Basecamp to organize the project. They included each relevant party in email correspondence. The team attentive and accessible around the clock. We always get a response within five minutes. For urgent matters, they even work after business hours despite a three-hour time difference. I’ve never seen them act doubtful about fulfilling our requirements. Big Sea can overcome any challenge and won't stop trying until they succeed.
What did you find most impressive about them?
Big Sea is dependable and creative. The team’s numerous resources each offers uniquely excellent ideas. Synergistically, this range of opinions and expertise helps us make the best choice every time. They've consistently shown tremendous integrity. As an online-only brand, their dependability and attentiveness are key to our success. The quality of their work is unsurpassable.
Are there any areas they could improve?
Honestly, no.
Do you have any advice for potential customers?
My main tip is to be as open, honest, and forthcoming as possible. Clearly identifying your exact goals will help you succeed the first time around.
the project
Web Dev & UX for Economic Development Service
"They grasped our vision, as well as our clients’ needs, from the very beginning."
the reviewer
the review
The client submitted this review online.
Please describe your company and your position there.
I co-founded The Greenhouse, an entrepreneurial collaboration between the St. Petersburg Area Chamber of Commerce and the City of St. Petersburg. I'm also the VP of Entrepreneurship and Community Development at the Chamber.
For what projects/services did your company hire Big Sea?
The Greenhouse held classes, provided counseling, and hosted events. We needed a website to promote the organization, and display information and schedules.
What were your goals for this project?
We wanted the site to be responsive and user-friendly. As a tool, the site needed to serve as a meaningful space for new and growing businesses, particularly tech startups.
How did you select this vendor?
Five companies responded to our RFP. Our panel – comprising technology experts, entrepreneurs, and city officials – immediately eliminated two vendors from consideration. We chose Big Sea because they had a strong portfolio and reasonable prices. Importantly, they were already involved in the community.
Can you go into detail about the services they provided and the scope of the project?
Since we had no design or development experts on staff, they walked us through their process step-by-step. Big sea helped us think through UX design and messaging features to make sure they fit with our organization’s mission.
What was the team composition?
I served as the primary contact for our eight-person team. I interfaced with the project manager. Although we didn’t work directly with other team members, Big Sea’s leadership took part in some meetings.
Can you share any information that demonstrates the impact that this project has had on your business?
Prior to the site’s launch, less than half our registrants joined via the internet. Currently, that number is over 95%.
How was project management arranged and how effective was it?
They were effective via email, phone, and one-on-meetings, which we preferred. The project manager was a great communicator.
What did you find most impressive about this company?
They grasped our vision, as well as our clients’ needs, from the very beginning. The team translated concepts we couldn’t verbalize, and then leveraged them into tangible results.
Are there any areas where they can improve?
No, there were no significant issues.
Brand awareness, leads, and applications have all increased since the client began working with Big Sea. Moreover, the communication is seamless as the vendor responds to the client's inquiries promptly. The client is very pleased with their current relationship.