Blue Meta

BACKGROUND

Introduce your business and what you do there.

I’m the business manager of Tap 2 Drain Plumbing.

OPPORTUNITY / CHALLENGE

What challenge were you trying to address with blue/meta?

We didn’t have much experience on the marketing side of our business or time to devote to it, and it began impacting our business. blue/meta was working with us on a part-time basis whenever we needed help, and I eventually brought them on and gave them full control.

SOLUTION

What was the scope of their involvement?

I asked them to do a light digital audit to start with to see what our footprint was. From there, I was very impressed with what they came back with. It told me exactly what I thought was the problem. Then, we put together monthly marketing reports and dashboards. This let me access all the information they were tracking for me. We met on a monthly basis to steer our efforts in the right direction.

One of the things they built for me was a live dashboard that tracks and compares KPIs with how much I’m spending, including cost-per-click (CPC). I also asked them to track all my calls and they found a company that lets me use different phone numbers for different clients – with everything linked back to my phone so we can track which ads or landing pages they’ve seen. We've also looked at website traffic, booked calls, and analyzed Google Ads and Facebook Ads and Bing Ads performance. They don’t do any organic work for me.

We were about to start on a website redevelopment in mid-April as well, but that’s on hold because of the pandemic.

What is the team composition?

I’ve worked with everyone since the beginning, from the President on down. I’m a face-to-face kind of person. Especially at the beginning, I like to know who I’m working with: how they handle themselves in meetings and how they think on their feet. Starting with the President, I worked my way down to the team I have now.

Nick (CEO, blue/meta) is the President, and though he no longer works on the day-to-day side, he joins meetings, which allows us to discuss if they’re actually performing the work that I want. Ricky (CMO, blue/meta) is the project manager and my main contact. I go to him to perform certain tasks for me or put projects together going after certain clients. Finally, Carissa (Digital Marketing Specialist, blue/meta) is the one behind the scenes that I work with on a daily basis.

How did you come to work with blue/meta?

I’ve worked for banks for years and owned my own company for years. In working in different industries and with different sales and marketing teams, I can say that blue/meta is number one. They deliver, they’re not afraid to communicate and they don’t mind when I tell them if I don’t like something. They’re very open. I would recommend them to anybody.

How much have you invested with them?

We’ve spent over $50,000.

What is the status of this engagement?

I’ve been working full-time with them since August 2019. They’re part of my management team. I’m not planning on bringing anyone else in. I get great value from them.

RESULTS & FEEDBACK

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

Business has increased by 20–30% thanks to them. Because I request a face-to-face meeting every month, along with the reports in front of me, it holds them accountable. We go over everything — every KPI, ever number we’re tracking — and they’re well-prepared for me. They’ve taken responsibility, no matter how it falls out.

Anecdotally, I work mostly with Google services, but they told me that Bing was trending and that it was less expensive, and we’ve seen traffic grow from that source. I wouldn’t have even considered it without them. They look at all angles.

How did blue/meta? perform from a project management standpoint?

If I send out an email or text, they’re on it right away. I’m not versed in everything but they handle me very well. By the time they’re done explaining, I’ve realized it was a stupid question, but they never make me feel that way. They’re on time and budget, and if something happens during the project they won’t increase their bill form the original quote. Some people will add to your bill, but they don’t.

What did you find most impressive about them?

I went to them in March and told them I was losing well over 30% with the virus and I asked them what they could do to help me out. Without reducing their services to me, they reduced their invoices by 50%. That’s unheard of. Since then, I’ve sent two projects to them and given them some money back because of it. Most people would cut back their services, but now, when we get out of this, we’re going to start franchising and I’m bringing blue/meta with us. Every one of our franchisees is going to work with them.

They work well as a team. I tried to trip them up by saying the same thing to two different people — seeing if I could get two different answers — but they were on it. They don’t put each other down for any reason if something gets dropped. Their communication as a team is amazing.

Are there any areas they could improve?

Nothing comes to mind right now, and I’m the type of guy who would tell you if there was something. They’ve just knocked it out of the park.

Do you have any advice for potential customers?

Be brutally honest. Don’t hide if your business has been bad or your marketing is not good. They’ll find it regardless, so be honest from the beginning. They do the same. They won’t mince words or make you feel wonderful if it’s not the case. They want you to learn.