DO:BETTER

BACKGROUND

Introduce your business and what you do there.

I am the coalition director for a youth mental health and substance abuse prevention coalition in Chelsea, Michigan. 

OPPORTUNITY / CHALLENGE

What challenge were you trying to address with DO:BETTER?

At the time, we were expanding our mission to include mental health and wanted to update our look and style to appeal to a younger audience — we needed help in maximizing that effort. 

SOLUTION

What was the scope of their involvement?

DO:BETTER helped us rebrand our organization. We provided DO:BETTER with a description of our needs, and they held several workshops with our team to nail down how we wanted to move forward with our rebrand. They defined our key values and the tone we wanted to use in our messaging. 

DO:BETTER then turned around and compiled that information into a brand proposal that included logos and icons. Once we finalized the material and turned it into a definite brand strategy, DO:BETTER’s team helped us craft a brand implementation strategy. 

Together, we determined how to launch the new brand and what supplies we needed to make it happen. We put together apparel, postcards, letterheads, and a website design. DO:BETTER also created a content calendar for our social media and provided us with a concrete branding guide to follow. 

Their team put together separate branding guidelines: one for parents and the community and another for our youth audience. Everything is within the same branding, but there are slightly different tones and content for each.

What is the team composition?

We worked with two teammates, a brand developer and Danielle (Co-Founder & Chief Strategy Officer), our primary contact. 

How did you come to work with DO:BETTER?

One of my teammates did some initial research and then got a recommendation for DO:BETTER from someone in his personal network. 

How much have you invested with them?

We invested around $20,000 with DO:BETTER. 

What is the status of this engagement?

We worked with DO:BETTER from February–October 2021.  

RESULTS & FEEDBACK

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

We just launched our rebrand last month and we’ve reached record student engagement on our social media pages — we obtained 240 new followers in a month. Recruitment has increased as well, and many students are interested in getting involved in our organization. We’ve also received a lot of verbal and written feedback from adults and students about how much they like our new brand. 

It is beneficial that we had targeted branding guidelines — it is essential to ensure each of our target audiences feels like we understand them. 

How did DO:BETTER perform from a project management standpoint?

I liked working with the DO:BETTER team; they were responsive and accessible. We shared information with DO:BETTER over Zoom and phone calls, and they were available at all times via email. 

My team had many questions and needed a lot of guidance, and they were always quick and comprehensive in their responses. 

DO:BETTER usually gave us updates and delivered branding materials via email, but when larger pieces were done, they would present everything in a slideshow during group meetings. 

What did you find most impressive about them?

I appreciated that Danielle worked with me one-on-one to navigate how we could be flexible with our new branding to maximize buy-in and use input while maintaining brand integrity and consistency. She helped me ensure that we’d have brand recognition and awareness whenever we’d present it. 

Are there any areas they could improve?

I would have loved it if we could’ve spent more time focusing on the brand launch and strategy logistics, but I’m not sure that was included in our contract. 

BACKGROUND

Introduce your business and what you do there.

I’m the president and CEO of the Ann Arbor-Ypsilanti Regional Chamber, a community business organization.  

OPPORTUNITY / CHALLENGE

What challenge were you trying to address with DO:BETTER?

We needed help with branding and marketing a new app.

SOLUTION

What was the scope of their involvement?

First, we sat down and gave them our goals and objectives. DO:BETTER worked with us to create a name for the app that was catchy and attention-grabbing. They developed advertising for us that factored in where we should position ourselves, visual components, and what a PR campaign would look like.

The team also made a landing page for the app so that there was a way for new people to figure out where they could sign up. The team pulled together some social media design ideas that loop in the landing page, too.

Currently, we’re looking at how to move forward in light of the current COVID-19 situation. We want to devise a way that the local art community utilize the app the most.

What is the team composition?

We worked with Jon (Co-founder & CCO) the most.

How did you come to work with DO:BETTER?

DO:BETTER was a chamber member of ours, and they came highly recommended. We wanted to work with a local organization in the Ypsilanti area. We also knew them from some other work they’d done in the community. Their quote and proposal both fit what we were looking for.

What is the status of this engagement?

We started working together in December 2019. A lot of the work got put on hold because of COVID-19. Our work is still ongoing.

RESULTS & FEEDBACK

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

While still in the process of creating the app, they’ve been flexible throughout the entire engagement. DO:BETTER has been excellent in helping us navigate uncertain waters during a difficult time. They’ve been fluid in helping us reposition ourselves based on current community conditions.

How did DO:BETTER perform from a project management standpoint?

We have a CRM that includes all of our project management tools. The DO:BETTER team also has its own project management tool.

What did you find most impressive about them?

They’re a personable team that takes time to sit down and go through a project with you. It’s also great that they’re willing to go the extra mile and talk to our app developer directly, rather than having us be their go-between. It’s a huge burden off my plate. They handle everything themselves seamlessly.

Are there any areas they could improve?

No, not really. Anything that we aren’t able to do is largely because of COVID-19 restrictions.  

Do you have any advice for potential customers?

My advice is to have a clear understanding of your timeline. If you make it clear what your expectations are, they’ll be able to deliver. If you don’t know what you want, make that clear, too; do a preliminary investigation for your price point so they can guide you through their suggestions.