Coconut Moon

Introduce your business and what you do there.

I’m the executive director of the Fairfax Chamber of Commerce. We host events and represent and advocate for various businesses in Fairfax, California. Additionally, we work with other chambers of commerce in Marin county.

We’re a small town, so we have around 100 members. We do mixers once every quarter, and we also do webinars. Due to the new rules and regulations from the COVID-19 pandemic, we’ve been busy.

What challenge were you trying to address with Coconut Moon?

We needed somebody to help us with the design and implementation of our new website. We felt that we needed a new website separate from the chamber’s website.

What was the scope of their involvement?

We’ve created a new website called Fairfax Open for Business. The live website is helping us deal with all of the COVID-19 policy changes and shelter-in-place regulations. It also informs the general public which businesses are open for takeout, delivery, and, in some cases, outdoor dining and service.

The website links all of the various businesses that we have. We’ve also had an online auction and a link for the artists. It really functions at a multi-tiered level.

What is the team composition?

I work directly with Maya (Owner). I don’t know if she works with anybody else, but she’s our main contact.

How did you come to work with Coconut Moon?

Coconut Moon is a local company, which is huge for us. Additionally, they were highly recommended by somebody who I respect very much from the PR business.

How much have you invested with them?

We’ve spent around $6,000.

What is the status of this engagement?

We started working together in March 2020, and the partnership is ongoing.

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

We’ve had a dramatic improvement in terms of awareness on our website. It’s been very obvious to the businesses based on all the visits that we’ve had. I’m not sure about the exact amount, but we’ve gotten thousands of hits on the site. We’ve had a lot of positive responses from our members, which has also increased the interest in the chamber.

How did Coconut Moon perform from a project management standpoint?

We typically communicate by phone. Occasionally, we do Zoom meetings. The meetings help us set up the demonstrations for the website without having to be together.

Maya nailed it. She is very responsive and always available when we need her. Despite being very busy during this past year, she has been very attentive to us.

What did you find most impressive about them?

I’m not an expert in the field of web design. However, Maya turned out to be a real gem for us. She has helped us understand why she chose that platform for the website. Additionally, she provides a lot of the design aspects and fits within our budget really well. She’s always joining on the spot and waiting on us, more than we’re waiting on her.

Also, Coconut Moon has a great bedside manner. They have a great ability to understand the client’s needs and tune in to the best approach. Dealing with websites, it’s very difficult to describe the process that might benefit the client, especially with people who are non-technical. However, they are brilliant at being able to make that communication.

Are there any areas they could improve?

We all could do something better, but I can’t think of anything that they could improve. Every aspect of our relationship has been really good — it’s been a perfect match for us.

Any advice for potential customers?

Make sure that you have a clear idea of what you want.

Introduce your business and what you do there.

I’m a writer and a speaker. I’ve written several books, and I talk about my subject at various events around the country.

What challenge were you trying to address with Coconut Moon?

I needed to create a website and hired Coconut Moon to do it.

What was the scope of their involvement?

Coconut Moon provides full web services. They worked with my web designer and created my first website several years ago. Coconut Moon did the backend work and set the website up on Weebly. Both of them were hands-on, and they made it work despite all the challenges that invariably came with the website creation.

Since then, we’ve been working together on everything from my newsletters to any kind of technical- or web-related questions or needs that I have. Later on, they worked with another web designer to create a newer website for me.

What is the team composition?

I just work with one person from Coconut Moon.

How did you come to work with Coconut Moon?

My previous web designer had a lot of very positive experiences working with Coconut Moon. We started working together based on that recommendation. For at least 15 years, I’ve stayed with Coconut Moon because of the good experience I’ve had with them.

What is the status of this engagement?

We started working together many years ago, in 1999. I’m still using Coconut Moon after all these years.

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

In the early days, I wasn’t attuned to any metrics related to our website. However, things have changed over time. If someone considers hiring me as a speaker, they use my website as a resource to learn about me. Of course, there are now means beyond a website, like social media.

Yesterday, I had a question related to my website, and Coconut Moon gave me everything I needed to know without going too technical. They understand the backend, metrics, and everything you need to know when it comes to websites and what you’re supposed to do; frankly, better than I do. Coconut Moon unquestionably benefits my business.

How did Coconut Moon perform from a project management standpoint?

Coconut Moon is right on it when it comes to project management. They meet all deadlines and are always available. We primarily communicate through email and phone calls depending on what the need is. They’re very quick to respond and competent.

Prior to COVID-19, I preferred that we met in person for the design part. I wanted to learn how to do certain tasks that I felt Coconut Moon didn’t need to do. They were very willing to impart their knowledge, even though it meant taking away a few hours from them. They’re really into making their clients independent, which I really appreciate. Nowadays, we do everything online.

What did you find most impressive about them?

One of the aspects I like about Coconut Moon is that although it’s not their job to be creative, their input is really found on any design questions I have. I haven’t worked with anyone else because I never needed or wanted to. Coconut Moon is very reasonable, and we definitely get the total bang for our buck. I’m really happy with them.

Are there any areas they could improve?

I have absolutely no criticisms — there’s nothing that they could improve.

Any advice for potential customers?

Coconut Moon is very communicative. If you know what you want, you can communicate it. If not, they will guide you toward your goals which I believe goes beyond the scope of what they’re supposed to do. Other web developers don’t provide as much creative input as Coconut Moon does. Although they don’t position themselves as creative designers, they have the core competency in that.

I have a feeling that most people would have a very happy relationship with Coconut Moon. I can’t really speak on what they can do and don’t know the sophistication of their operation compared to other companies. However, I’ve referred them to other people, and they’ve been very happy together.

Please describe your company and your position there.

I own a graphics studio that handles print, web and exhibition design.

For what projects/services did your company hire Coconut Moon?

We were hired to do a complete reorganization and redesign of a client's website, including the addition of much new content. We handled design, editing, and project management. Coconut Moon handled the web design interface, including a number of new features to the site.

How did you select this vendor and what were the deciding factors?

Personal knowledge of their work, attractiveness of the design produced, and knowledge of their timely delivery.

Describe the project in detail and walk through the stages of the project.

We took a site that had filed all content to date under an ongoing blog, making it extremely difficult to know which blogs had hands-on useful information and which were musings about growing plants. The site was reorganized by the two companies working together to determine a functional structure that would separate narrative content from detailed instructional writing. Many rounds of design studies were interpreted by Coconut Moon to arrive at the chosen site design. Work to upgrade existing content and source completely new content took more than 6 months of steady work.

How many resources from the vendor's team worked with you, and what were their positions?

Owner Maya Butterfield

Can you share any outcomes from the project that demonstrate progress or success?

There has been a great deal of positive feedback from the new site launch. It presents the client's skills in a much more comprehensive way than the previous site and has become a valuable resource for those who are learning about this field.

How effective was the workflow between your team and theirs?

Maya was great. While we were going nuts, she kept cool and kept turning out great results.

What did you find most impressive or unique about this company?

The working process was quite smooth despite the inordinate amount of information that was conveyed among the three businesses involved, all without much of a hitch. I appreciated their patience while staying abreast of changes and updates getting sent daily.

Are there any areas for improvement or something they could have done differently?

It took a lot longer than expected, possibly an underestimate on my part but we ended up with almost three times more content in the end--and a better site.

Please describe your company and your position there.

We are a non profit environmental science and education organization located in the North Bay. I serve as Communications Manager.

For what projects/services did your company hire Coconut Moon, and what were your goals?

We hired Coconut Moon to manage several iterations of our web design and to manage ongoing updates and new features as needed. Our challenges include having several internal audiences with back-end access (more than 400 people), having several calendar views, heavy document uploading and organizing; video, audio elements.

How did you select Coconut Moon and what were the deciding factors?

We selected Coconut Moon after looking at several other local companies. We wanted personal attention, someone who understood our business goals and user personalities and would partner with us for the long run.

Describe the scope of work in detail, including the project steps, key deliverables, and technologies used.

Our website uses Drupal; Coconut Moon is well versed in this platform and stays up-to-date on latest best practices. We have several staff members who can make simple updates but are also free to contact Coconut Moon to make other improvements or install new features such as a form.

How many people from the vendor's team worked with you, and what were their positions?

We have worked directly with company principle Maya and indirectly with other specialists directed by her as needed. One example was when we needed to redirect a second domain name to reside within our main website. Coconut Moon worked with our external tech/security consultants and with our internal team to meet this marketing goal.

Can you share any measurable outcomes of the project or general feedback about the deliverables?

Coconut Moon has been able over several iterations of our website to fine-tune user access options and issues, help us think through how we present content, and generally help us deliver impactful strories and resources to our community. We've had ZERO downtime, ZERO miscommunication and ZERO complaints from our team. It's been

Describe their project management style, including communication tools and timelines.

Super 'big-picture,' asks the right questions to get our teams thinking about content, user experience and accessibility issues. Yet, also in the weeds with us when we need to make improvements or try something new. Communication flow is super fluid, very responsive, by email or video call. We never worry about whether our request will be fulfilled! We also appreciate their commitment to issuing timely invoices with no surprises.

What did you find most impressive or unique about this company?

They are great listeners and always eager to look at possible new ways of solving problems in the workflow. I don't think we've ever heard NO. Super honest, super reliable, we couldn't ask for a better partner.

Are there any areas for improvement or something they could have done differently?

We haven't come across any areas for improvement.