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    Philadelphia, PA
    267.908.4736

Digital business builders.

5.0
2 reviews

Firestorm SEM builds businesses through digital expansion and demand generation utilizing a portfolio of key channels and technologies such as paid and earned acquisitions, push/pull marketing, and community building and management. Leveraging not only deep industry experience, but also key market players and influencers allows us to position our clients in ways unachievable by other means.

Historically, we have been selective about who we work with, but due to increased demand we are expanding our capacity and interviewing additional partners. 

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Undisclosed
 
$100 - $149 / hr
 
2 - 9
 Founded
2008
Show all +
Philadelphia, PA
headquarters
  • Firestorm SEM Philadelphia, PA
    United States
    267.908.4736

Portfolio

Key clients: 

Blink Health, SAP, Eli Lilly, Verizon, Toys R Us, NFL Shop, Dicks Sporting Goods, Sports Authority, PMI, ConAgra Foods, IBX, CVS

Google AdWords Premiere Partner

We are a Google AdWords Premiere Partner 

$1MM+ Managed in Ad Spend - June 2016

This is a screenshot from our AdWords MMC account showing the $1MM+ managed mid-June to mid-July.

Reviews

5.0
2 reviews
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PPC Consulting for Mattress Seller

"Firestorm SEM helped put us on the map in terms of having an Ad Words presence and increasing our impression share with competitors."

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5.0

Quality: 
4.0
Schedule: 
5.0
Cost: 
5.0
Willing to refer: 
4.5
The Project
 
Confidential
 
2Q 2015 - 4Q 2015
Project summary: 

Firestorm SEM was hired to perform an audit of the client's competitive landscape for search terms, as well as their AdWords account. Firestorm then rolled out new campaigns and ads for the client.

The Reviewer
 
11-50 employees
 
Virginia Beach, VA
Head of Marketing, Mattress Seller
 
Verified
The Review
Feedback summary: 

The client praised Firestorm SEM for their solid approach and in depth knowledge around the pay per click industry. The client notes that they were able to increase their impression share and recommends Firestorm to others for their reliability and reasonable prices.

BACKGROUND

Introduce your business and what you do there.

We're a direct-to-consumer online mattress company. We launched our business at the beginning of 2015, and were the fastest-growing e-commerce brand in North America at the time. We sell luxury foam mattresses which are delivered compressed to customers' doorsteps.

I am the Head of Marketing for the company.

OPPORTUNITY / CHALLENGE

What challenge were you trying to address with Firestorm SEM?

The mattress industry is extremely competitive when it comes to online search terms in the pay-per-click space. As a new brand, we were trying to gain traction with the incumbent ones, and make a dent within the generic mattress terms. We also wanted to protect growing brand queries. We didn't have an in-house capability to do this, so we reached out to Firestorm SEM.

SOLUTION

What was the scope of their involvement?

Firestorm SEM performed an audit of the competitive landscape for pay-per-click terms, as well as a specific audit of our Ad Words account. Firestorm SEM then structured new campaigns, ad sets and creatives for Ad Words, and shopping campaigns, specifically around branded, competitor, and generic terms. Firestorm SEM wasn't involved in social media marketing.

How did you come to work with Firestorm SEM?

I think that we found Firestorm SEM through a recommendation from a SEO [search engine optimization] expert which we'd worked with. We went through some due diligence on accounts which Firestorm SEM had worked on, checking out their online search presence. I thought that Firestorm SEM was doing a good job, so we gave them a test campaign. It went well, so we decided to employ Firestorm SEM on a retainer model.

How much have you invested with Firestorm SEM?

This is confidential.

What is the status of this engagement?

We started working together in the 2nd quarter of 2015. We hired an internal resource at the end of 2015, so we're not working with Firestorm SEM anymore. We found this to be more effective.

RESULTS & FEEDBACK

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

Firestorm SEM helped put us on the map in terms of having an Ad Words presence and increasing our impression share with competitors. Firestorm SEM drastically lowered our cost per acquisition as well.

What did you find most impressive about Firestorm SEM?

I have no base for comparison, but I found Firestorm SEM to have a solid approach and a deep knowledge for what they're doing. I trusted Firestorm SEM's methodology.

Are there any areas Firestorm SEM could improve?

Not that I was aware of.

5.0
Overall Score Firestorm SEM provided solid work, was reliable, and will be a good fit for other people.
  • 5.0 Scheduling
    ON TIME / DEADLINES
    Everything was on time, and Firestorm SEM was prompt regarding meetings.
  • 5.0 Cost
    Value / within estimates
    For what we received, and relative to other vendors, Firestorm SEM was extremely reasonable, cost-wise.
  • 4.0 Quality
    Service & deliverables
    It wasn't the most innovative approach in the industry, but Firestorm SEM definitely provided solid work.
  • 4.5 NPS
    Willing to refer
    I would be more likely to recommend Firestorm SEM to an emerging brand.

Search Engine Marketing for Healthcare Products Retailer

"They always go with their gut because their intuition and knowledge is fantastic."

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5.0

Quality: 
4.5
Schedule: 
5.0
Cost: 
5.0
Willing to refer: 
4.5
The Project
 
1,000,000 - 9,999,999
 
Nov. 2015 - May 2016
Project summary: 

Firestorm SEM provided website SEO for a pharmaceutical company with the goal of improving overall search ranking.

The Reviewer
 
11-50 Employees
 
New York City Metro Area
Founder and CEO, Pharmaceutical Products Retailer
 
Verified
The Review
Feedback summary: 

The project was successful at lowering costs per click and generating more leads. Firestorm SEM understands project management and has expertise in the SEO field. However, the team tends to rely on their significant experience rather than data and analytics. 

BACKGROUND

Please describe your organization.

We sell discounted pharmaceutical products.

What is your position?

I am the marketing manager of the company.

OPPORTUNITY / CHALLENGE

What business challenge were you trying to address with Firestorm SEM?

We needed search engine marketing services. Our aim was to obtain as many conversions as possible, within a certain cost per action target.

SOLUTION

Please describe the scope of their involvement in detail.

Firestorm SEM provided strictly search engine marketing services for us.

How did you come to work with Firestorm SEM?

I'd worked with them previously for another business that I ran. The experience was reasonably positive, so it made sense to bring Firestorm SEM on board for our current project.

Could you provide a sense of the size of this initiative in financial terms?

The average monthly budget for the work was $200,000.

What is the status of this engagement?

The work has ended. We've brought on an in-house team as of a couple of weeks ago [May 2016]. We worked with Firestorm SEM during a six-month period.

RESULTS & FEEDBACK

Could you share any statistics or metrics from this engagement?

The work's been reasonably successful. We've done well, raised expectations and met most of them. SEM continues to be a marketing channel for our company, so we're continuing to focus on it, but we decided to have an in-house team focused on this.

We launched the business a relatively short time ago, so our understanding and knowledge of the space continues to evolve. We offer 20,000 different drugs and run multiple campaigns, so the mix of those has had an effect on the overall cost-per-click as well as our click-through and conversion rates.

Firestorm SEM's work was pretty good. The overall cost-per-action for this channel improved in time, and we came to get more and more acquisitions, which was exactly what we were looking for.

How did Firestorm SEM perform from a project management standpoint?

Firestorm understands how to run and manage these types of projects because their two guys at the top [partner and managing director Mark Barletta and partner and president Jonathan Stec] have years of experience and great industry knowhow. They always go with their gut because their intuition and knowledge is fantastic. They wouldn't be a fit for a client who requires a very strong data and statistics focus of the PPC [pay-per-click] work.

What distinguishes Firestorm SEM from other providers?

They were able to lower costs per click and help generate more qualified leads for the client during the substantial engagement.

Is there anything Firestorm SEM could have improved or done differently?

There are certain advantages to having an in-house team that, unfortunately, we couldn't find with Firestorm SEM. The people that we train here will always know our industry better. Since we have such a niche product base and industry that is a global market, it's quite difficult for agencies to make an impact with our marketing.

I also wish they would focus on data and analytics more. They have been in the industry for many years, but a data focus would provide better client service.

5.0
Overall Score I think they were very good, but not necessarily great. We are just moving in a different direction by hiring and training in-house online marketers. That is no fault of Firestorm's.
  • 5.0 Scheduling
    ON TIME / DEADLINES
    They were always on time and timing wasn't a major issue.
  • 5.0 Cost
    Value / within estimates
    Costs were reasonable and close to expectations.
  • 4.5 Quality
    Service & deliverables
    . Their quality is excellent, and we received the lower cost per acquisition that we wanted. I just think they might fit other clients better in different industries.
  • 4.5 NPS
    Willing to refer
    .