Harley Oliver

Introduce your business and what you do there.

I am the CEO of a health center.

What challenge were you trying to address with {company_name}?

We needed to do some brand refresh so we hired Charlie Oliver.

What was the scope of their involvement?

This project included a clean up of the logo and creating a new look and feel, among other things. In terms of the color scheme, they provided us with a new logo, digital print materials, and the homepage design. The site was created as an expression of the new brand.

What is the team composition?

We worked directly with the account manager.

How much have you invested with them?

We spent $10,000 with them.

What is the status of this engagement?

Our engagement with Digitopia began in July 2020, and it’s ongoing. 

How did you come to work with?

I studied around 15–20 companies that engineer software for about one year before I found Cieden. The reason I chose them was that they seemed to be the best fit for what I needed.

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

We can’t quantify their work because it’s a bit intangible. However, it did help us with the rest of the project we were working on. We saw an increase in site traffic, brand awareness, and brand engagement.

How did the company perform from a project management standpoint?

They were good at meeting deadlines, staying on budget, and meeting deadlines. Communication was good, and they were done on persona. 

What did you find most impressive about them?

What stands out the most about their team is their dedication to meeting our needs and bringing innovative solutions.

Are there any areas they could improve?

I think they could go further in creating our expectations and deliverables.

Do you have any advice for future clients of theirs?

Nothing comes to mind.

Please describe your company and position.

I am the Senior Brand Manager of Westland Distillery

Describe what your company does in a single sentence.

Westland distills, matures, and bottles American Single Malt Whiskey.

What specific goals or objectives did you hire Harley Oliver to accomplish?

• Build custom microsite.
• Rebuild main brand website on a new platform.
• Consult on E-commerce and CRM Strategy

How did you find Harley Oliver?

Referral

Why did you select Harley Oliver over others?

Great culture fit, Other

What was the size of Harley Oliver’s team?

2-5 Employees

What was your primary form of communication with Harley Oliver?

Virtual Meeting, Email or Messaging App

Describe the scope of work in detail. Please include a summary of key deliverables.

Westland was looking to build a microsite to serve as the landing place for our paid media campaigns. Our goal was to have a mobile-first digital experience that immersed visitors in our brand quickly and compellingly.

Our second goal was to migrate our existing brand site to a new platform that could be more easily maintained by our internal team. Finally, we were looking for a partner in helping to bring our digital properties up-to-date in terms of best practices and functionality.

What were the measurable outcomes from the project that demonstrate progress or success?

• Custom site works across devices and meets brand standards
• Main brand site works more seamlessly for internal teams to update

Describe their project management. Did they deliver items on time? How did they respond to your needs?

Harley Oliver is excellent at reaching out with updates and communication relevant to the project. Timelines are respected and they have an overall attitude of customer first.

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

Their ability to engage our brand in a meaningful way, understand our identity, and then offer creative solutions to further our presence in digital spaces was surprising and exciting.

Are there any areas for improvement or something {provider_name} could have done differently?

Nothing comes to mind.

Introduce your business and what you do there.

I’m the owner of a jewelry company that frequently works with private clients.

What challenge were you trying to address with Harley Oliver?

We needed to set up the entire company. The goal of this initiative was to sell more products online.

What was the scope of their involvement?

Harley Oliver worked on our platform from the ground up. They helped with the layout and vision for our e-commerce website. Their team helped us put everything together. We dealt with suppliers that would collaborate with us and secured products.

What is the team composition?

I worked with two people from Harley Oliver.

How did you come to work with Harley Oliver?

We knew that Ben’s (Founder) work was exceptional, so there wasn’t a question about working with him on this project. There was an absolute fit.

How much have you invested with them?

We spent between $15,000–$20,000 on their services.

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

The website was incredible and performed well after it launched. Harley Oliver did an exceptional job on the product. Unfortunately, we weren’t able to give it the time that it needed. We’ll come back to it because we have a foundation.

How did Harley Oliver perform from a project management standpoint?

Their team was phenomenal and top-notch with every aspect of the project. They were on top of our requirements at every moment. Harley Oliver provided exceptional customer service.

What did you find most impressive about them?

I was impressed by their integrity and ability to personally connect with us. Their team was there for us and understood the business.

Are there any areas they could improve?

No, we were pleased with how the initiative unfolded.

Do you have any advice for potential customers?

They connect extremely well with their clients. They’ll learn their client’s business to become a part of it. They’re exceptional.

Introduce your business and what you do there.

I’m the former VP of a retail marketing company. Our primary business was hosting and managing warehouse sale events for big, branded retail clients. 

What challenge were you trying to address with Harley Oliver?

We needed an e-commerce platform developed.

What was the scope of their involvement?

We were launching an e-commerce platform to mirror the experience of attending one of our in-person events. In addition to creating the e-commerce experience, they were responsible for leading the design of the project. The build involved a Shopify integration, which was pretty new and technical at the time. 

They also customized an e-commerce pop-up shop for us. There, they were tasked with emulating an in-store experience. Only individuals that were part of our email list were able to access the event. That required some creative solutions for unique problems. This wasn’t a straightforward e-commerce build.

What is the team composition?

I worked with about four people. 

How did you come to work with Harley Oliver?

Someone we had recently hired in an internal key marketing role brought them on. There wasn’t an RFP process or anything like that. 

How much have you invested with them?

We spent between $10,000–$15,000 on their work.

What is the status of this engagement?

We worked with them throughout 2013.

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

It was a positive, boutique experience, and the outcome of the work was solid. They executed all of our requirements effectively, and I would work with them again.  

When we launched the platform, everything worked seamlessly and it was very profitable. There were a few unique problems that required them to think creatively and approach tasks in innovative ways. They did a good job with that.  

How did Harley Oliver perform from a project management standpoint?

Everything was on schedule, and I don’t remember any cost overruns. Our day-to-day communication was smooth, without any problems. 

What did you find most impressive about them?

I really enjoyed their collaborative approach to the project. We felt included in their work every step of the way. Their transparency was appreciated. 

Are there any areas they could improve?

I can’t think of anything. 

Do you have any advice for potential customers?

While they’re collaborative and work hard to guide the project, it’s important to come to them with a strong vision. That will allow them to do their best work.

Introduce your business and what you do there.

I’m a former institutional resource teacher for Peel District School Board.

What challenge were you trying to address with Harley Oliver?

We were trying to promote the program to our students and staff and develop some visual banners as well as print materials that would allow us to display elements and information about the program.

What was the scope of their involvement?

Harley Oliver used digital design technology to create the images. The team went on site to the school to take photographs of students, and some video work was done as well. They coordinated the different elements of the vertical banners that would be displayed during presentations and in different locations around the school. 

What is the team composition?

There were three, possibly four, people, including those who did the photography and video work.

How did you come to work with Harley Oliver?

We’d seen some of their work in another context, and we found their staff to be youthful and creative. We thought they would be a suitable partner for our project.

How much have you invested with them?

The total cost was approximately $25,000 CAD (approximately $19,000 USD). 

What is the status of this engagement?

We worked together from January 2013–January 2014.

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

Overall, it was a very successful project and our banners were very well received. When we displayed the banners, we got positive comments from our staff, who felt like they represented the students well. Throughout the project, Harley Oliver was more than happy to accommodate any alterations or preferences we had.

How did Harley Oliver perform from a project management standpoint?

They were excellent. All of our timelines were met, and the team was always easily accessible to discuss progress or any modifications or additions to either the text or the visuals. I have no complaints. Harley Oliver was attentive to our requests and always there to discuss ideas.

We kept in touch using email and phone, and we used a few digital platforms to see the video work. 

What did you find most impressive about them?

The best part about working with Harley Oliver was their enthusiasm. Their positive energy was infectious, and they brought business savvy without sacrificing creativity. 

Are there any areas they could improve?

The outcome was very positive. I don’t think there’s anything I would suggest.

Do you have any advice for potential customers?

With any design project, make sure to provide Harley Oliver with as clear of a vision of what you’re looking for as possible. Don’t hold back on something just because you think it might not be possible.

Introduce your business and what you do there.

I’m the director of marketing and PR for a fitness company.

What challenge were you trying to address with Harley Oliver?

We wanted to do a full revamp of our website.

What was the scope of their involvement?

Harley Oliver did a full overhaul of our complete online customer experience. Before they came on board, we had a relatively basic website, so they introduced WordPress as a platform. The team also helped us develop a streaming platform, a full e-commerce experience and integrations, along with custom solutions.

What is the team composition?

I liaised with about three or four people, but I don’t know how many people were working on the project in the background.

How did you come to work with Harley Oliver?

One of my colleagues recommended Harley Oliver. We liked the work they did, so we decided to partner with them.

How much have you invested with them?

In the range of $200,000 to $400,000.

What is the status of this engagement?

We worked together from January–October 2019.

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

The site is such an improvement to what we had before. We’re very happy with it. It’s helped our streaming business — we’ve seen an increase in streaming members. 

How did Harley Oliver perform from a project management standpoint?

They performed very well. They were very thorough. When we first started with them and they were giving us the strategy overview, it was extremely detailed. Harley Oliver did an excellent job. 

To stay in touch, we mostly used email, phone calls, and Skype calls. We also met in person a couple of times.

What did you find most impressive about them?

Harley Oliver is very detail-oriented. They’re also very proactive in the sense that they’re not afraid to propose new ideas. We really appreciated that. 

Are there any areas they could improve?

There’s nothing that comes to mind at the moment.

Do you have any advice for potential customers?

Be open-minded to new ideas and strategies. They might be able to add things you never thought of. 

Introduce your business and what you do there.

I led national marketing and events for JA Canada. It’s a national nonprofit in Canada that helps students between third and twelfth grade with financial literacy and entrepreneurship.

What challenge were you trying to address with Harley Oliver?

We had a skills program and wanted to create content about entrepreneurship and financial literacy that would better engage our students. The challenge was making financial literacy and entrepreneurship cool and relevant.

What was the scope of their involvement?

We created a YouTube channel and leaned on Harley Oliver to help create a series for it. As a fresh team, we wanted to showcase their story in the content’s voice. We engaged Ben (Founder) to understand what he wanted to know when starting his company. Using his input, we then created the content.

We specifically worked with them to create the content, and then Harley Oliver managed the entire production process. They filmed, edited, and uploaded the videos to our YouTube channel. Their team also did voice-overs and photoshoots. We broadcasted the videos on our channel and used them during volunteer and program sessions.

What is the team composition?

In addition to Ben, we worked with three other people from Harley Oliver. Their team included a designer and individuals who worked in a project management capacity.

How did you come to work with Harley Oliver?

I knew Ben personally and was familiar with his previous work. When I joined JA Canada, I thought that he would be a good person to contact for this project..

What is the status of this engagement?

We worked on this project between June–December 2015.

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

This project happened before every single organization had a YouTube channel. Even at the time, 1,000 views were great for a nonprofit.

As a national nonprofit, every province had its own committee that needed to approve my work. Everyone was impressed with the content Harley Oliver created. They thought it was relevant and relatable, which was important. We worked with students who had economic, land, and access differences. Their content reached a large audience, which impressed our committees across Canada.

How did Harley Oliver perform from a project management standpoint?

Their team was helpful and tight, which was great. They communicated their progress throughout the project’s duration and met our timelines. Their team kept up with our internal changes. Harley Oliver understood that we wanted to create content that was different and futuristic.

What did you find most impressive about them?

I was impressed by their energy and commitment to the project. They believed in what we wanted to build and wanted the content to reach our students.

Are there any areas they could improve?

No, their team was great.

Do you have any advice for potential customers?

Go into as much detail as possible during the discovery session. Ask questions and reiterate your goals to ensure your story is conveyed in their work. Harley Oliver wants to understand your goals.

This review was published on July 25th, 2018.

Safia Dakri

Former Director, JA Canada

Nonprofit Organization Management

11- 50 Employees

Ontario, Canada

$200,000 to $999,999

Mar. 2015 - Ongoing

Project summary: 

After a discovery phase, Harley Oliver developed a web platform and tool including the front- and backend, UX/UI, and content. They're now conducting QA.

Feedback summary: 

The platform and tool expand volunteer opportunities for numerous communities and increases youth engagement. Their team is proactive, organizing a set plan of action and clearly communicating milestones. Their creativity and ability to innovate high-quality features is impressive.

BACKGROUND

Introduce your business and what you do there.

I'm the former director of JA Canada.

OPPORTUNITY / CHALLENGE

What challenge were you trying to address with Harley Oliver?

We need them to develop a virtual education platform and a digital tool that could facilitate the resume writing process for our clients.

SOLUTION

What was the scope of their involvement?

Harley Oliver's team first conducted a discovery phase with our team stakeholders, and leadership to understand our requirements and audience. Using this information, they created a plan of action to tackle all angles of our product. They identified our roles and responsibilities and worked closely with us like an embedded team. They walked us through the creation of frameworks, explained the technical foundation, and showcased their UX/UI standards. Their developers coded the front- and backend of the web platform and tool. They built content and features side by side with our team.

We’re currently in the QA process for the tool. After the first round of revisions, they indicated the progress made, future challenges we might have, and solutions to those problems. We’re discussing the plans for a pilot soft launch, and then, a full implementation to our staff and clients.

What is the team composition?

We work with two primary contacts and two developers.

How did you come to work with Harley Oliver?

I sent out an RFP for the project. Harley Oliver was one of the vendors that responded and was recommended to me. We worked on the web platform for three years thus far, and they provided great customer service. It was natural for us to pick them for this tool as well.

How much have you invested with them?

We invested around $1 million in total.

What is the status of this engagement?

We started in March 2015 and the work is ongoing.

RESULTS & FEEDBACK

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

The platform and tool are working as intended. Our product is the first of its kind as a virtual space for volunteers. It allows our organization to expand its reach to thousands of volunteers and many more students. It allows us to reach our goal of engaging with people of various generations. The platform and tool significantly increase engagement and volunteer applications from younger generations.

How did Harley Oliver perform from a project management standpoint?

They’re an extremely proactive and responsive team. Their oversight and perspective are excellent, and they even make sure our team is going to meet our timeline. We’re always aligned and on the same page. We communicate a few times a week through Slack to set up our responsibilities and discuss our next steps. We also use Trello and Basecamp to track the project’s progress. Their team consistently engages with us and immediately takes care of any hiccups.

What did you find most impressive about them?

Their creativity and innovation are impressive. Their ability to bring our vision to life and take it to the next level is exceptional. They go above and beyond within the digital space and clearly represent our ideas.

Do you have any advice for potential customers?

I would recommend them for any project. They’re extremely open and responsive to ideas, but also keen to do things outside of their knowledge base as well. Don’t just judge them by their portfolio, as they’re eager to break into new spaces and learn new concepts.

Star Ratings

Overall rating: 5

Quality: 5

Schedule: 4.5 

They're great at adapting their schedule to a non-profit organization’s fluidly timeline.

Cost: 5

They’re honest about where our money is going into the product and where there might be opportunities for further development.

Willing to refer: 5

They’re extremely pleasant to work with, have a friendly demeanor, and develop creative and innovative solutions.

Introduce your business and what you do there.

When I worked with Harley Oliver, I was a communication consultant for Autism Ontario. I no longer work for that organization.

What challenge were you trying to address with Harley Oliver?

We had a burgeoning awareness campaign around World Autism Awareness Day. At the time, our website was built in the Lotus Notes, which meant it wasn’t an easily managed platform. It didn’t offer any flexibility.

The people who built the website also charged a high fee to maintain or update the platform. We wanted a microsite that could be easily updated and managed by our team to catapult our campaign and online presence.

Another reason that we decided to work with an external vendor was the organization’s complexity. We thought that having external professionals guide us towards the best approach to build the campaign was better than having multiple people internally making the decision.

What was the scope of their involvement?

They laid out a digital strategy for us and built a microsite on WordPress. Their team created different personas according to our diverse audiences.

Those projects led to additional engagements related to our awareness campaign. For example, their team created an interactive video experience. We went into a French immersion school for two days because the video needed to be in French and English. They shot another video with a celebrity in the autism world.

What is the team composition?

We worked with about four people from Harley Oliver.

How did you come to work with Harley Oliver?

We worked in the same building and met at an annual fundraiser barbecue. I liked them and their approach to work. As we were a charity, we had to have other companies submit their RFPs. Harley Oliver was accessible, well-priced, and thoughtful in their presentation. It was essentially a no-brainer.

How much have you invested with them?

We spent around $50,000 CAD (approximately $38,000 USD) on their services.

What is the status of this engagement?

Harley Oliver worked on three big projects with Autism Ontario. I engaged them between 2014–2016.

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

One of the campaign’s key components was to register as many municipalities in Ontario as possible. On World Autism Awareness Day, the municipalities would host events and raise one of our flags on the municipal flagpole and have a local leader proclaim the day as World Autism Awareness Day. The last year I was with the organization, we had over 80% of municipalities register for the day.

Their work also enabled us to raise funds. Individuals and schools could register to raise the flag and fundraise. We went from $0 fundraised to over $100,000 CAD (approximately $76,000 USD). That was huge for a small organization.

As well, they built a cool website that engaged our volunteers more than ever before. The website activated our volunteers and helped them bring in fundraising dollars. The impact was quite tremendous.

How did Harley Oliver perform from a project management standpoint?

They laid out the process and then followed it. I reported to an executive director who had a crazy schedule. When we had to bring her into the project, she was impressed, comfortable, and understood what their team spoke about even though she didn’t have a marketing background. That made my job easier. It was great to have their professionalism as well as their organization, which made a world of difference. Harley Oliver was like a dream team.

What did you find most impressive about them?

We wanted to reach municipalities, schools, parents, and people on the autism spectrum. Their team laid out the user journey and experience well. They then built an accessible website that engaged all of our audiences, which was an exceptional achievement.

Also, I was impressed by the way that their team executed the autism interactive video experience. Their communication and organization made it easy for the teacher to pitch the video to her principal as an educational experience. In the end, the people on the spectrum involved in the experience were blown away by it. They felt respected and heard.

Are there any areas they could improve?

No, I don’t have feedback on the top of my mind. It was a positive experience.

Do you have any advice for potential customers?

Let them show you all of the possibilities. Don’t be too tied to your ideas. Let them run with the project because it could be a door opener for your organization.

Introduce your business and what you do there.

I’m the CEO and founder of a company called Mentally Charged. We’re an educational platform that helps hockey players specifically with their mental toughness.

We have a seven-course program where kids go through lessons, watch videos, read articles, and listen to podcasts about different struggles and adversity they may face throughout the season. It’s a membership-based product where people can go online and get the tips, strategies, and tools they need when they’re struggling. 

What challenge were you trying to address with Harley Oliver?

We had a lot of difficult pain points, but we knew we had a good idea since mental training wasn’t really prominent in the hockey world. When we brought our idea to them they let us know we needed to find clarity and form an actual product. We had some good ideas and a social media presence, but we used them for branding and promotional support.

What was the scope of their involvement?

They took over everything we needed in terms of development and UX. They focused on making the platform user-friendly, so kids could get the supplementary tools they needed on the go. They understood the value of timely and relevant content, so they put that together into a product that was convenient and easily accessible. 

What is the team composition?

Their whole team was involved with our project. Ben (Harley Oliver) served as a wealth of knowledge, along with others on their team. 

How did you come to work with Harley Oliver?

My partner for Mentally Charged knew Ben, so we checked them out after hearing they were doing great things. We thought they’d be the right fit after we saw what they had to offer. We went to meet with them and saw they were so down to earth and had a wealth of knowledge. We went from nothing and a good idea to having their support in creating a sleek, convenient, accessible, affordable product. 

How much have you invested with them?

We’ve spent in the range of $250,000–$500,000. 

What is the status of this engagement?

We worked together from roughly January 2016 – January 2018. 

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

Unlike other businesses, our biggest metric was testimonials. When we have close to 100,000 followers on social media and get countless messages about how sleek, easy-to-use, and helpful our product is, that’s a sign of success. We’ve heard that our product has helped people become better on the ice as well as a better person. Customers have remarked on how seamless our product is. Hearing that feedback is wonderful and shows how professional the product is. 

We were really happy with their services. They were exactly what we needed to catapult into the market and be a successful company. We really appreciated everything they did for us — it was amazing. 

How did Harley Oliver perform from a project management standpoint?

We’d go to them and have great meetings. Their team brought a lot to the table in terms of their skillsets, so I was able to learn a lot from them. Everyone brought their own ideas and skillsets to the project, so they helped us stay laser-focused and stay on track. Ben would guide us to focus on what needed to get done and not get ahead of ourselves, which was invaluable in a business adviser. 

What did you find most impressive about them?

The relationship that I built with Ben was a high point of the project. He’s very down to earth and easy to talk to, so within a few meetings we were clicking. Having a strong relationship with their team made the engagement seamless; they provided great personal touches. They had a great team over there and made me want to keep working with them for as long as I could. 

Are there any areas they could improve?

It’s tough because not everyone knows the hockey world. However, even though they didn’t necessarily have the breadth of knowledge within the hockey community, they still did their due diligence and stepped up. 

Do you have any advice for potential customers?

Reach out and start a dialog. Let them know the impact you’re trying to have and why you’re doing it. The rest will fall into place. They have all the pieces there to help you build the foundation, grow, and exceed your expectations. There’s nothing they aren’t capable of, so I’d recommend them to anyone. 

Introduce your business and what you do there.

I'm the founder of a payment technology company for restaurants.

What challenge were you trying to address within Harley Oliver?

We wanted to come up with a new type of payment software for restaurant customers. It's not something that's prevalent in the market today, so we really went from nothing. We needed professionals in design thinking, research, ideation, to the generation of the actual design.

What was the scope of their involvement?

They did design cycles to generate an MVP. They started out by doing market research to talk to various stakeholders in the restaurant industry to see what they wanted. Then, they designed user profiles to ascertain who would be the primary users of the product and what they'd want.

From there, they started going through the design process and what the user flow should be. They also created a modular product model where they have all the core features. Finally, they did the actual layout of the application and created a design template so we could add features ourselves.

What is the team composition?

We work with four people from their team.

How did you come to work with Harley Oliver?

I reached out to a lot of different design firms, but I wanted to work with someone specifically from Toronto. I reached out to a lot of different design firms, and I decided to work with Harley because he was a great communicator. It was a lot of intuition but it felt right. Their design portfolio was also pretty impressive, too.

How much have you invested with them?    

We invested approximately $45,000 CAD (approximately $32,000 USD).

What is the status of this engagement?

We began working together in October 2019, and our engagement is ongoing.

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

I talked to restaurant owners and asked what they thought and the reception was really good.

How did Harley Oliver perform from a project management standpoint?

They were great. One of their core strengths was keeping everyone aligned and on track. Obviously, it's pretty easy for people to get sidetracked, but they kept things on task.

What did you find most impressive about them?

Their dedication to communication was huge. We always have a direct line to them, unlike a lot of other design firms. It came across like they really cared about their customers.

Are there any areas they could improve?

No, nothing I can speak to.

Do you have any advice for potential customers?

My advice is to be clear about what your objectives are going in. It'll save a lot of time and energy throughout the project.