Grater Digital

BACKGROUND

Please describe your company and your position there.

International Marble LLC is a leading engineered composites manufacturer, who products cast marble shower bases, wall surrounds, accessories, and glass shower doors for the Hospitality, Multifamily, Student Living, and Senior Housing industries.

As IMI's Business Development Manager, I was always out and about meeting with prospective customers and clients, and noticed that while we were a young, fresh organization (few and far between in manufacturing these days), we were still very much outdated in our web presence. As our target market was the Architect or Interior Designer, it was time for a facelift.

OPPORTUNITY / CHALLENGE

For what projects/services did your company hire Interactive Search Marketing, and what were your goals?

We hired Interactive Search Marketing to re-vamp our existing website, as well as monitor our website monthly for web traffic and security updates. Our goal with revamping our website was to create a cleaner, more modern and sophisticated look that was attractive to the trained eye of a designer and/or architect.

While we focused on those target markets, we did want to also make it applicable to General Contractors and Owners/Developers that needed quick access to technical product information, images, and recent projects that we had completed for reference.

SOLUTION

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

ISM was personally recommended me to me by my father-in-law - word of mouth is always the best! Being in the IT field himself, I knew that he would only recommend a top notch vendor for website development and management. I met with Greg and Tatelyn quite a few times prior to inking the deal with them, and felt that they were authentic, genuine, fun, and innovative folks to work with backed by a strong development team.

That was all I needed to give the green light! Additionally, we were a smaller company at the time, so cost was a factor. For what they were able to produce, we paid a very competitive rate that's now had a twofold return on investment (at a minimum).

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

Scope of work included revamping an existing website that was much more user-friendly to update, and created a seamless customer surfing experience. We met consistently either weekly or biweekly. To develop the content and images, we created a shared Google Drive folder that allowed me to import all sorts of media and pictures, while also scoping out the copy for the website.

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

There were mainly 2 that I interfaced with consistently. Greg is the owner of the company, and Tatelyn is his right hand. They had a very strong team of developers behind them, which I didn't get a chance to interact with, but they were both able to take what I want and translate into the technical terms the developers needed, as well as report back to me in layman's terms what the developers were working on. Extremely collaborative approach, which I still appreciate to this day.

RESULTS & FEEDBACK

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

Unfortunately, it's hard to track measurable outcomes. However, since we launched the new website, we average close to 1600 total user sessions per month, 1260 new site visitors/month, that visit an average of 2.31 pages/visit. Organic traffic has averaged close to 820 total visits per month (649 new visitors on average per month). The other aspect is optimizing the website for mobile browsing. Prior to, the website operated as a simple drop down form, and had a choppy flow.

Since ISM's work, our mobile website now flows seamlessly, creating a similar user experience to browsing on a desktop computer. Our total mobile sessions average close to 395 sessions/month.

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

They were collaborative, and they had an organized approach with a detailed timeline from start to finish.

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

Both Tatelyn and Greg were amazing at letting me know what we could and could not do, translating what the developers shared with them to terms that I understood, and explaining why. They also took a significant amount of time to walk me through the various administrative functions of the website. At that time, we were just acquired by a larger company, so we were able to bring their digital marketing team in on the conversation as well.

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

Not to my knowledge - they were both very easy and wonderful to work with.

BACKGROUND

Introduce your business and what you do there.

I’m a firm manager of a consumer law firm.

OPPORTUNITY / CHALLENGE

What challenge were you trying to address with Interactive Search Marketing?

We hired them to help us draw in new business.

SOLUTION

What was the scope of their involvement?

Interactive Search Marketing built our website based on the information we provided to them. With my previous experience with them, they already knew what I was looking for. As a result, they completed the website within 30 days. They also managed our SEO and PPC efforts. We continue to work with their team.

What is the team composition?

We work with four people, including their owner and project lead.

How did you come to work with Interactive Search Marketing?

I had worked with them when I was at a prior business. At that time, they helped me with some web development issues. From there, I continued to work with them.

How much have you invested with them?

We’ve spent $35,000.

What is the status of this engagement?

Our ongoing partnership with Interactive Search Marketing began in March 2008.

RESULTS & FEEDBACK

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

Our project with Interactive Search Marketing has been immensely successful. In addition, although my competitors have been in the industry longer than me and have a greater presence than I do, I’m able to outcompete them for the same leads. I have a software where I can see what all my competitors are doing, and I can see that I’m first to market all the time.

How did Interactive Search Marketing perform from a project management standpoint?

They have a perfect project management process. We communicate through texts and telephone calls.

What did you find most impressive about them?

The amount of time that they’re willing to do what we’re trying to accomplish has been impressive. Above all, they really think things through.

Are there any areas they could improve?

No.

Do you have any advice for potential customers?

Make sure to involve Interactive Search Marketing in what you’re trying to accomplish and what sets you apart from your competitors.

BACKGROUND

Introduce your business and what you do there.

I’m the director of sales and marketing for MESH Automation, Inc. We build automation systems for manufacturers of cars and other products, primarily through robotic automation.

OPPORTUNITY / CHALLENGE

What challenge were you trying to address with Interactive Search Marketing?

We previously had a homegrown website that ran on software that was hard to use, and our relationship with our prior web development service wasn’t working out at all. We weren’t really tracking website conversions at that time, either. We initially hired Interactive Search Marketing to help us develop our website to create a more professional public image.

SOLUTION

What was the scope of their involvement?

Interactive Search Marketing migrated our website’s platform to WordPress. We’ve engaged them for more and more services as the project grows. They help us with our advertising, promotion, social media presence, SEO, and web analytics. 

They use a lot of Google Analytics tools and other software to help us gauge our website’s performance, research keywords, and structure areas of the website to attract and inform potential customers. Our goal is to reach more and more prospects via SEO. We work closely with Interactive Search Marketing to research keywords.

We provide specialized, complicated technical content, and Interactive Search Marketing turns that into language, SEO practices, and keyword development that make sense for our prospects. People who search for our services are involved in many different kinds of manufacturing, so a lot of different terminology comes into play.

What is the team composition?

We’ve worked directly with two of Interactive Search Marketing’s partners.

How did you come to work with Interactive Search Marketing?

We found them through a referral. They were developing an industrial machinery company’s website, and we were impressed with their work. We called them and switched from our previous web developer to Interactive Search Marketing.

How much have you invested with them?

We’ve invested over $50,000 with Interactive Search Marketing.

What is the status of this engagement?

We began working with Interactive Search Marketing in January 2018.

RESULTS & FEEDBACK

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

I recently completed a report on my company’s lead generation, and our website is one of our company’s primary sources of new prospects. We call the website our living brochure, and we now use it for our day-to-day sales activity as well. We don’t create a lot of printed material anymore — everything is electronic, and everything goes through our website.

WordPress has been much easier to use than our previous website’s platform. Interactive Search Marketing has helped us collect a lot of data about our website’s analytics. We’re now tracking lead sources more comprehensively in our internal system for projects and proposals, not just on our websites. We’ve added features for tracking the industries we’re serving, the applications that we’re providing, and total sales in those industries.

How did Interactive Search Marketing perform from a project management standpoint?

They understand our budget, and they work very closely with us. They join us for a meeting at our office once a month, and we communicate with them via email. We also share some files and folders with Interactive Search Marketing via OneDrive and Google Docs.

What did you find most impressive about them?

We’ve had a good experience working with Interactive Search Marketing; they’ve coached us through many of these new processes. Communication is really important for our needs, and they’re attentive listeners. They’re not robotic engineers, but they’ve understood our industry’s language over time. We’ve also learned a lot from them about their industry and their capabilities — I learn something new every time we meet with them. Our engagement with Interactive Search Marketing has worked out really well.

Are there any areas they could improve?

We don’t have any problems directly related to Interactive Search Marketing’s services, but we’ve discovered what they can do by asking them specific questions and learning their capabilities via a “peeling of the onion” approach. 

I don’t know if this is practical for their business, but it would’ve saved some time if they’d given us a menu of their services or a brochure to look at. It would’ve helped if they’d educated us on how to buy their services. We’re not experts in their field, and we don’t always know what questions to ask.

Do you have any advice for potential customers?

The more clearly you know what you want, the more likely it is that you’re going to get it. Be prepared, and don’t be afraid to ask questions — Interactive Search Marketing has been very good about answering our questions.

BACKGROUND

Introduce your business and what you do there.

I’m one of the owners of The Ageless Center, an aesthetic and medical spa in Atlanta, Georgia. We focus primarily on injectables, such as botox and dermal fillers, and we work with various companies to provide dermal filler products.

OPPORTUNITY / CHALLENGE

What challenge were you trying to address with Interactive Search Marketing?

We had purchased the company from its previous owners, and it had been around for 18 years. We needed help making sure the transition would be smooth and not disruptive to the existing client base. We were also looking for support for our ongoing marketing efforts to acquire new patients as the company grew.

Additionally, the previous owners didn’t change anything about the company’s branding in 18 years. Thus, our website had an outdated design and color scheme, and the spa’s appearance itself needed to be enhanced. 

SOLUTION

What was the scope of their involvement?

Initially, Interactive Search Marketing helped transition the business from its previous owners to us through forward-facing communication. They’ve ensured the messaging is clear to our 13,000 existing patient database, with some coming to the center for a decade or longer. 

Our goal is to communicate that although the company has new owners, it’s still the same great place they’ve been coming to all these years. We don’t want to scare people away or make the ownership change an opportunity for them to try somewhere else. 

Interactive Search Marketing is collaborating with our social media marketing person to form timelines for communication with our patients. They are directly responsible for all email communication, gathering customer reviews, responding to feedback, and ensuring we’re accessible on all platforms. 

Interactive Search Marketing has also helped us rebrand the company, and they’ve modernized our logo and website. We haven’t launched the site yet, as we don’t want to change everything too quickly for our existing patients. We’ve been implementing updates slowly and in phases. 

In addition, Interactive Search Marketing is managing our Google Ads campaigns. Their team ensures we have a good presence across search engines. They also provide us with monthly reports and metrics to show the success of our campaigns. 

Interactive Search Marketing is also handling our SEO campaigns. They offer reports to show which keywords are performing well. Initially, they’ve targeted the keywords that have been targeted under the previous management, but we’ve ramped it up. 

We’ve added new keywords based on Interactive Search Marketing’s suggestions and what has been performing well. We’ve also recommended related keywords to products that will generate the most profit for us. Likewise, our team has also given keywords that we want to improve. 

Interactive Search Marketing has broad quarterly campaigns, but when we have specific needs, we collaborate with them and develop a more defined strategy. We do this when one of our manufacturers launches a promotional drive or when a holiday comes up. 

What is the team composition?

I communicate primarily with Tatelyn (Web Dev & Digital Marketing Specialist) and occasionally with Greg (Owner). I know a web design resource is also working in the background. 

How did you come to work with Interactive Search Marketing?

Interactive Search Marketing was introduced to us by the company’s previous owners. Since the previous owners enjoyed working and had a successful partnership with Interactive Search Marketing, it was a no-brainer for us to hire them. 

How much have you invested with them?

We’ve spent around $80,000.

What is the status of this engagement?

We’ve been working together since May 2018, and our relationship is ongoing. 

RESULTS & FEEDBACK

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

The quality of Interactive Search Marketing’s work is excellent — I love that Tatelyn and I collaborate a lot. They send us any marketing material that they’ll use so we can review them before they’re implemented. We go through details line by line, and I love having input in their work. 

Interactive Search Marketing has improved our review metrics, especially since the previous owners haven’t had great reviews. We’ve told them that reviews are a priority for us, and they’ve made multiple suggestions to get our ratings up. Nowadays, we hear folks saying they’ve come to our spa because our reviews are great. 

Interactive Search Marketing has effectively delivered a good message and made sure our communication’s look, feel, and tone is consistent.

How did Interactive Search Marketing perform from a project management standpoint?

Interactive Search Marketing has been great at project management — I’ve never had any issues with them. We rarely have time crunches since our services are seasonal. However, on the few occasions that we’ve needed something last minute, they’ve been able to deliver. 

Interactive Search Marketing provides us with monthly reports about their performance, discussing metrics about keywords, platform usage, average time spent, traffic source, and more. 

Everything is done promptly. Interactive Search Marketing even sends us automatic reminders about deadlines and unopened emails. They try to maximize our exposure to our patients and ensure people get the information. They’re very accessible and responsive through emails and phone calls.

What did you find most impressive about them?

Interactive Search Marketing’s team is very personable and accessible. If I need something or have a question, I know I can email or text them and get a reply within the day, if not within a few minutes. 

Are there any areas they could improve?

I can’t think of anything. 

Do you have any advice for potential customers?

It’s important to know your customers and who you’re targeting. That way, you can give information about your business to Interactive Search Marketing and get the best results from them. As long as they have the correct details, they can target the right people.

BACKGROUND

Introduce your business and what you do there.

I'm the owner of Don Turner Legal Team, a law firm that's been in business for about 40 years.

OPPORTUNITY / CHALLENGE

What challenge were you trying to address with Interactive Search Marketing?

I was looking for a vendor that could help us increase leads through digital marketing.

SOLUTION

What was the scope of their involvement?

Interactive Search Marketing provides digital marketing services, including SEO and social media. They also add elements to our website as needed. This includes producing video content and writing copy for blogs and social media posts.

What is the team composition?

I work with Greg (Owner and Project Lead, Interactive Search Marketing) and Tatelyn (Content, SEO, and Social Media Manager, Interactive Search Marketing). They provide ongoing analytics reporting and meet with me once a month to go over everything they're working on.

How did you come to work with Interactive Search Marketing?

I believe someone recommended them to me. After I met with Greg and Tatelyn, I felt confident that they'd be great to work with based on their background and professionalism.

How much have you invested with them?

We spend about $1,200 per month on their services.

What is the status of this engagement?

We've been working together for about three years and counting.

RESULTS & FEEDBACK

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

Interactive Search Marketing has provided a great ROI overall. Their campaigns help improve our online presence, attracting more leads as a result.

How did Interactive Search Marketing perform from a project management standpoint?

They do an excellent job of tracking their results and communicate with me regularly to go over campaigns and analytics. We mostly interface through phone and email and also hold monthly meetings.

What did you find most impressive about them?

Their communicative, personalized approach to client relationships sets them apart. They're very responsive; I generally hear back from them within a few minutes whenever I reach out. They're also very creative and are able to take my ideas and run with them when needed.

Are there any areas they could improve?

I don't think so. They've done everything I've requested well.

Do you have any advice for potential customers?

Provide them with as much information about the company and industry from the start. I'd definitely recommend working with them based on what they've been able to do and continue to consistently do for us.

BACKGROUND

Please describe your company and your position there.

I am the co-founder and principal of Involved Media, a digital advertising and media firm. We perform outsourced ad sales/operations for publishers and have our own digital publications primarily within the nonprofit and higher education verticals.

OPPORTUNITY / CHALLENGE

For what projects/services did your company hire Interactive Search Marketing?

We hired Interactive Search Marketing to help with SEO and to develop a lead generation site. We did not have 360-degree competencies in house, nor did we have the staffing to undertake the projects ourselves.

What were your goals for this project?

The goal was to build a lead generation WordPress for a specific client to help us garner salable qualified leads. We also wanted to use the project as a functioning/operational test to gauge the viability of the marketplace and our business plan for that market.

SOLUTION

How did you select this vendor?

I was introduced to ISM by a past colleague. After interviewing multiple firms, ISM provided the most honest feedback, offered the best price, and was the best fit for our project. 

Can you go into detail about the services they provided and the scope of the project?

ISM analyzed SEO within the new site's vertical to determine the most cost-effective way to build a site that captured qualified leads. Then, they built the site using the custom funnel they created.

Initially, they would've been tapped to generate ongoing content and provide SEO support, but because we chose to go a different way with our work, that piece of work was scrapped. It had nothing to do with ISM's work whatsoever.

What was the team composition?

We worked primarily with the principal, account manager, and designer. They also had developers and contractors working behind the scenes. 

RESULTS & FEEDBACK

Can you share any information that demonstrates the impact that this project has had on your business?

ISM's work allowed us to validate certain areas of our business thesis. Ultimately, we went down a different path based on the results of our combined work, but ISM's expertise otherwise gave insights into our space. Because of their exceptional work for us, we continue to work with them on other projects.

How was project management arranged and how effective was it?

ISM was responsive and available to our needs. We were happy with the way our teams worked together.

What did you find most impressive about this company?

ISM quickly and efficiently worked with us to achieve our goals. They helped us in keeping costs to a minimum and are flexible when our needs and timelines change.

Are there any areas where they can improve?

ISM is a hardworking, but small, team. Much of their capacity depends on how available the principal is, but there's not much you can do about that.

BACKGROUND

Introduce your business and what you do there.

We sell secondhand equipment for the food and beverage packaging industry. I’m the VP of sales and operations. I oversee the majority of our staff.

OPPORTUNITY / CHALLENGE

What challenge were you trying to address with Interactive Search Marketing?

We had an outdated website that was cobbled together with different formats and programming languages. We wanted a new vendor who could develop a new site from scratch and improve our UI/UX.

SOLUTION

What was the scope of their involvement?

They built our website with WordPress. One of our many segments is our used equipment business. It feeds the live inventory of over 1,500 items from a SQL database on our backend. We needed to add photos and descriptions of each item and to make the search options more user-friendly. They gave us the ability to update the inventory daily and give customers the option to send quote requests for more information.

We also run a new equipment segment. We needed to reflect the information from the original equipment manufacturers to accurately represent each product. They completed both segments and are now working on our parts page as part of our second phase.

What is the team composition?

We interacted directly with Greg (Owner & Project Lead, Interactive Search Marketing), Tatelyn (SEO & Social Media Manager, Interactive Search Marketing), and their programmer. They usually turned work around within 12 hours and were quick to resolve any issues or glitches.

How did you come to work with Interactive Search Marketing?

They approached my CEO, who then sent them to me. We’d reached out to other vendors who didn’t fit our needs. ISM was local and willing to meet with us in person. They were mindful of our budgetary constraints and gave us a higher level of confidence than any other company.

How much have you invested with them?

We spent around $10,000 on the website.

What is the status of this engagement?

We started working together on SEO and other projects in May 2016. They redid the website about seven months after that and completed it in May 2017. They still do AdWords and other work for us.

RESULTS & FEEDBACK

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

They’ve definitely improved our traffic quality. As expected, our traffic quantity dipped a bit after the launch, but is improving as search engines recrawl the new site. We don’t have an e-commerce element, so we measure our conversion rate based on how many users fill out a quote request. We’ve seen a 10% increase in that rate within Q1.

How did Interactive Search Marketing perform from a project management standpoint?

They’re very competent and always exceed my expectations. They delivered the site on time and reported any potential problems before they occurred, so we had no trouble with the launch. Most of our interaction was via email, GoToMeeting, or in person.

What did you find most impressive about them?

They’re willing to meet and discuss our needs. They’re flexible, very accommodating, and ready to customize a package and price that fits our needs. They communicate effectively and make us feel important. They stuck with us from conception to implementation and our experience with them is better than with any other technical support business.

They know what is possible and how much effort is required for a desirable product. They never overpromise or misrepresent their abilities. I’m happy with their AdWords management and we continue to identify changes and add content. I’ve referred them to several other companies.

Are there any areas they could improve?

Not at this time.

Do you have any advice for potential customers?

You’ll get the most value from them if you tell them exactly what you expect. They can point out unrealistic expectations and meet all your realistic goals.

BACKGROUND

Introduce your business and what you do there.

I’m the general manager of Mooring Tech, an official provider of Panasonic Toughbooks and Toughpads. These ruggedized laptops and tablets are primarily used by businesses, first responders, and the military.

OPPORTUNITY / CHALLENGE

What challenge were you trying to address with Interactive Search Marketing?

We’d been bouncing around different AdWords/SEO firms for years. One of the key problems was that none of them were nearby, so we set out to find a local provider.

SOLUTION

What was the scope of their involvement?

Interactive Search did an extensive design of our website and improved its backend functionality. About 4–5 years ago, Google did a major update and we were caught very unprepared. Our old website used a different domain name. The Google update had a major negative impact on our site, to the point where we were borderline blacklisted by Google. We basically had to start over. Interactive Search helped us build a new site under a completely new domain name.

Currently, they manage our Google AdWords account and SEO initiatives. They take the lead on keywords. They update me on everything on a monthly basis. We strategize together in terms of what we're to focus on, what's not working, and what needs to change.

What is the team composition?

Greg (owner & project lead, Interactive Search Marketing) is my main point of contact.

How did you come to work with Interactive Search Marketing?

I researched local firms and brought several in for interviews. We felt Interactive Search was a good fit, so we went forward with them after the vetting and interview process.

How much have you invested with them?

We’ve spent about $100,000.

What is the status of this engagement?

We started working together 3–5 years ago and work is still ongoing.

RESULTS & FEEDBACK

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

Interactive Search put in a lot of hard work. After many years of investing in SEO and AdWords, our website is now back on top of the search results. We’re on the first page of Google results for a lot of the relevant keywords in our industry. Our site is also considered to be of the best Toughbook-related websites out there.

How did Interactive Search Marketing perform from a project management standpoint?

Greg is available to me at all times. Given my previous issues with non-local companies, it’s nice to meet face-to-face with somebody once every month. Greg will respond to an email at any time day or night. If there are any issues in terms of project management, it’s likely due to our limited bandwidth. Failure to follow through usually resides with us, and they will harass me until I do what I need to do. They've always really heard what we have to say, put together a game plan, and have been ready to implement. Everything gets done, and that's really all I care about.

What did you find most impressive about them?

The depth of what they offer is very impressive. I don't think I've ever gone to Greg with a question or an idea that they haven't been able to contribute something. The work they do for us to maintain our position in the industry speaks for itself. Whatever it is I ask of them to do, they’re able to get it done.

Are there any areas they could improve?

If I’m going to provide any constructive criticism, it would be to produce more in-depth monthly reporting on the success or failures of the SEO and AdWords campaigns.

Do you have any advice for potential customers?

When it comes to hiring an outside firm, find somebody that you're on the same page with and that you trust. Sit down and listen to what they say, then ask yourself if they have your best interest in mind. With Interactive Search, I believe our interests are aligned. They want to keep us as a client so they want us to succeed with PPC, have the phone ring, and sell our products.

BACKGROUND

Please describe your company and your position there.

I am the CEO and Executive Producer of Atlanta Media Pros. We’re a turnkey video production company and white label service provider.

OPPORTUNITY / CHALLENGE

For what projects/services did your company hire Interactive Search Marketing?

We hired them to design our website.

What were your goals for this project?

We were looking to expand our client base and reach more decision makers.

SOLUTION

How did you select this vendor?

Word of mouth brought us to ISM.

Describe the project in detail.

We started with designing a website from scratch, and then expanded the scope to include ongoing SEO consults and Google Adword support.

What was the team composition?

We worked with a project lead as well as a content and social media manager.

RESULTS & FEEDBACK

Can you share any statistics or metrics that speak to the quality of their work and impact of the engagement?

Our top five clients came from our website, and we always get comments about it.

How did the Interactive Search Marketing perform from a project management standpoint?

They were extremely responsive and well organized. They tackled everything head-on and accomplished what they said they would when they said they would.

What impresses you about the Interactive Search Marketing?

We've worked with other website and SEO service providers who leave things hanging, but ISM followed up to make sure that we were on track with the assets they needed. They were on the ball and kept things moving when we lost steam because of the size of the project. I can't recommend ISM enough.

Are there any areas for improvement?

I can’t think of anything.