Fable Heart Media

BACKGROUND

Please describe your company and your position there.

Patriot Rail & Ports offers rail and port transportation services. I manage the revenue growth of the Blue Ridge Scenic Railway; a passenger train in North Georgia.

OPPORTUNITY / CHALLENGE

For what projects/services did your company hire Fable Heart Media?

We hired FHM to develop a new website, re-brand, content creation, social media management, and create a digital marketing strategy.

What were your goals for this project?

The over arching goal for these ongoing projects is to grow revenue. In order to do that, we needed to understand why our customers were choosing to ride the scenic railway versus other tourism options. We needed market data to move forward.

SOLUTION

How did you select this vendor?

My team went through an exhaustive selection process. We began by contacting media companies, both local and non-local, for the first vetting phase. Each company made their proposals to panel of individuals at the company, and moved on to the next round of proposals per the group decision. The second round included the addressing of specific project questions. Following the second round, the CEO made the ultimate decision after discussing with the selection panel.

Describe the scope of their work in detail.

When the first phase of the project began, Fable Heart Media initiated a discovery session with our team. This was important because we had a lot of needs at the time, and we didn't quite know where to begin. FHM analyzed all of our needs and created a timeline based on the urgency of those needs.

The first concern was the fact that the scenic railway did not have consistent branding and the website was very difficult for customers to navigate. The path to purchase was too long. FHM worked quickly to create multiple variations of branding for our team to approve, including a full Style Guide (colors, fonts, logos, logo placement examples). Once approved, they began constructing the wire frame for the new website.

All of the timeline targets were met prior to the initial deadlines, and the work was exactly what we discussed in the discovery phase. There were no surprises. The final, and ongoing, phase was creating a digital marketing strategy. In the past, social media was managed at a high level with little to no direction. FHM created a social media management plan which included content creation.

They began analyzing the current social media posts, which wasn't done prior, to find out the content that had the most engagement. Once content was gathered, FHM created a digital advertising strategy which included specific campaigns promoting upcoming events which targeted the demographics we desired. Over the next year, revenue grew significantly which could be directly contributed to the digital marketing strategy. FHM tracked engagement and effectiveness of the digital initiatives which paved the path moving forward.

What was the team composition?

Our department was slammed with work, which made FHM's work so beneficial. We didn't have time to really get into the details that they were able to do. FHM operated with guidance from myself and my colleague. They were independent where they needed to be, but they didn't assume our opinions. Everything was passed by our team at the correct times.

RESULTS & FEEDBACK

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

Since FHM began managing our social media, engagement has grown exponentially. The website re-development shifted the large number of ticket purchases from phone calls to online purchases within a year. This caused less work for our ticket office agents.

How effective was the workflow between your team and theirs?

FHM has a clear organizational flow which made it easy for my team to communicate. We knew who to call for each question we had. They sent the team progress updates weekly which included in-depth social media insight reports, not just the canned Facebook reports. If we had concerns and needed to shift the sails, FHM was receptive to that and provided their professional, unbiased opinion. We never felt forced into making a decision. It was truly a group decision, including FHM.

What did you find most impressive about this company?

The breadth of knowledge FHM possesses is impressive. They went above and beyond to guide our team on our marketing strategy. They spent time with us and provided advice that most media companies would have charged for. We were so overwhelmed with other work at the time, that we really needed someone like FHM to step in and drive. They did that and so much more. If we had a question, they jumped on it. Their responsiveness is unparalleled.

Are there any areas for improvement?

We were very impressed with the quality of work that Fable Heart Media provided. We needed things done quickly because we needed to show progress quickly to upper management. They did that for us, but more importantly, they did not sacrifice quality. FHM isn't just a media company we contracted, they are an extension of our marketing department. They work in our best interest at all times. There isn't one thing we could say negatively about FHM. The experience has been phenomenal.