Citizen Group

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

The look they created gets us endless praise. They designed interactive webpages and engaging materials, doing an excellent job translating our clients' needs into designs while staying within our brand guidelines. Their work also changed how our own employees are looking at our organization. We constantly receive favorable feedback from other organizations in our industry, who are impressed with our website.

How did they perform from a project management standpoint?

The project manager assigned was critical to our success and organization. They use Basecamp, keeping everything organized. They're responsive and flexible, letting us adjust timelines if necessary.

What did you find most impressive about them?

I was impressed by how much they care about the product. They only take on projects they believe in, so they're very invested in those projects.

Are there any areas they could improve?

No, all of their work has been fantastic.

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

Their creative development has helped our clients decide which direction to take their campaigns. They bring insight and engaging new ideas to every project they tackle.

How did Citizen Group perform from a project management standpoint?

They have excellent project management skills. They’re easy to work with, accomplish tasks on time, and respect budgets. They personally invest themselves in the challenges of their clients.

What did you find most impressive about them?

They’re dedicated to solving any challenge.

Are there any areas they could improve?

Nothing comes to mind.

Do you have any advice for potential customers?

Robin is a very experienced senior strategist and creative director. Don’t hand him a small issue; give him the entire challenge. He can add value on more than just simple, tactical engagements.

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

We were able to really amplify our voice. Citizen Group's collateral was used for banners and promotional material during major events. The print ads were used to raise the business voice on climate change and show that business could de-couple growth from emissions reductions. It’s hard to say how many people that reached. The print ads, in addition to the banners around the climate change talks, were also in major print publications. There were tens of thousands of people filtering through that week, not to mention the people we touched in the months before and after that. There were a lot of impressions.

For the project in 2013, we focused more on the domestic business community. The work we did with Citizen Group inspired an initiative at the international level. That meant that the idea of setting a target consistent with the proposed solution was now viral at a global level. There are now over 200 companies that have committed to setting science-based targets. There are 35 or so who have gotten their targets approved so far. Most of those are US companies that participated in workshops we hosted in 2013–2015, and Citizen Group was a part of those workshops.

How did Citizen Group perform from a project management standpoint?

We did have some challenges with missed deadlines. I think that’s reflective of the fact that they manage a lot of client work and have a relatively small shop, so we understood. Their communication was reasonably good.

What did you find most impressive about Citizen Group?

They bring a fresh, Northern California perspective. Sometimes, it’s nice to work with an agency that’s not in Washington, DC, and can think outside the box. They do a nice job with that. It also helps that they’ve done big campaigns for other large nonprofit organizations.

Are there any areas Citizen Group could improve?

They could improve in terms of meeting deadlines and taking our feedback into account more consistently. We had some trouble with the video. There were also some surprise costs not in the original proposal that got added on. That sort of thing isn’t helpful when we have processes in place in our institution, and we can’t go back and get extra money.

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

First of all, we increased the city's waste diversion, going from a 16% diversion rate when we first started to 20%, and we’re slowly inching up.

The initiative has increased our followers in Twitter, Facebook, and Instagram. I think everyone was happy with the brand. It’s been received very well, both internally and externally, to the point that we’re still using all the graphics in everything we do; we still have it on our garbage trucks. It has helped us identify, in a roundabout way, programs on what we’re going to be doing in the future. For example, we got a program that we’re moving forward now and will still be implementing new programs for probably the next two or three years.

How did Citizen Group perform from a project management standpoint?

They did excellent in project management. They were always on time. We communicated daily either through email, telephone, or personal meetings onsite. It was a constant communication with their staff. They came in and talked to us about what is it we were looking for and what was our goal, which was nice. They tried to understand our program and what we were trying to achieve. They took that and came back with a plan, a messaging scheme that was different than what we were looking for, but better from our perspective.

What did you find most impressive about Citizen Group?

We’ve worked with several companies throughout our program here in Phoenix, and Citizen Group was very professional, provided great support and services, and provided the materials needed for our program to move forward. The material, from my point of view, doesn’t get old. It can be used, refreshed, and animated to continue the message of what we want to do here in Phoenix. They’re a great group. I would recommend them to anyone, and they helped our program in getting to where we are today.

Robin and David were the two key people that worked with us. They were always looking for ways to help us achieve our goal beyond just what they were providing. They provided key contacts for us within their industry to help us with what we were trying to achieve. That’s what I liked about this company: they went beyond what we of asked them as part of their program.

Are there any areas Citizen Group could improve?

To be honest, they were just a great company to work with and easy to understand.