Launch Digital Marketing

BACKGROUND

Please describe your company and your position there.

A government contractor for the DoD specializing in cybersecurity, data management, engineering and logistical support for the Army, Air Force and Navy.

OPPORTUNITY / CHALLENGE

For what projects/services did your company hire Launch Digital Marketing?

We hired Launch to design a 10x20 backdrop for an upcoming conference focused on innovation in the industry.

SOLUTION

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

I've worked with Launch in the past on projects that fell under Agency360 and I always admired their work on various UX design and videography projects for 360's clients.

Describe the project in detail and walk through the stages of the project.

The project focused on creating a 10x20 banner focused innovation of DoD AR/VR, cybersecurity and a variety of other efforts. The banner needed to also highlight the company's portrayal as a leader in the industry.

First, I had put together a mood board with images that I believe spoke to the services we provide, and shared a variety of resources and educational articles that would give Launch employees a more well-rounded understanding of how this industry "looks and feels". Then, I received a few different iterations from Launch. We reworked the best iteration to fit within the provided template from our printing provide before final approval.

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

2 Caitlin - VP LDM and Michelle - Graphic Designer

RESULTS & FEEDBACK

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

After almost 10 years, we were able to finally update our backdrop to

1) be malleable for smaller-scale conferences following IITSEC and

2) encompassed the services that each of our Business Units provide.

How effective was the workflow between your team and theirs?

Very! They responded to notes in a very timely manner and provided updated iterations usually within a day.

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

I think the turnaround time for updating iterations was quite impressive. Their ability to absorb information about a very confusing industry.

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

No

BACKGROUND

Introduce your business and what you do there.

I am the CMO and co-founder of Extreme Experience. We provide exotic car driving experiences for the general public, as well as corporate and private clients. Our mission is to make exotic cars accessible to all. 

OPPORTUNITY / CHALLENGE

What challenge were you trying to address with Launch Digital Marketing?

We were looking for a company to help us rebuild our website. 

SOLUTION

What was the scope of their involvement?

Initially, we first brought on Launch Digital Marketing to rebuild our website from the ground up. They created a custom theme on WordPress and also integrated several apps into the site. There have been three major iterations of the website. 

Launch Digital Marketing also worked with our conversion rate optimization agency to test a number of different designs and implement the best ones. As a part of our conversion rate optimization efforts, they changed our website host to WP Engine and we ended up being a feature of a case study by WP Engine. They’ve also assisted with different Zapier integrations. 

Our business requires the use of online booking platforms, similar to an e-commerce business, so they built a database and embedded the booking platforms on the site. We now have Peak Pro and Rocket Res fully integrated into our system. Their team helped us think through how each component comes together on our site to make one seamless user experience.

We actually ended up bringing them on for rebranding as well, utilizing their design services to support our logo and brand guidelines development. Their team collaborated with me and our in-house brand manager to complete the rebranding.

My team created a brief about what we wanted and then Launch Digital Marketing took it from there. They delivered a logo, iconography, and fonts. Launch Digital Marketing then incorporated the new branding into the website. Years ago, they also handled our media buys. 

What is the team composition?

I work closely with Caitlin (Vice President) and Dino (Senior Account Manager). I’ve also worked with a team of designers, developers, and project managers. When we did a media buy, I also worked with an account manager. 

How did you come to work with Launch Digital Marketing?

One of their co-founders was actually a customer of ours and he really connected with our CEO. They kept in touch and when we needed website assistance we reached out to them. 

How much have you invested with them?

We’ve invested between $50,000– $100,000 with Launch Digital Marketing. 

What is the status of this engagement?

We began working with them in June 2014 and the engagement is ongoing. 

RESULTS & FEEDBACK

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

Our project results are rather intangible because there is so much going on simultaneously. But I can say Launch Digital Marketing has really improved our website speed and helped us manage an increasingly complex business. Since working with them, we’ve doubled the size of our company twice. 

How did Launch Digital Marketing perform from a project management standpoint?

Launch Digital Marketing has great project management. They keep very good track of billable hours and have stayed within budget. They’re accurate with their projected project time estimates and I trust them to deliver in a timely manner. They have great communication and are good at meeting deadlines and sticking to timelines. 

What did you find most impressive about them?

I am impressed with Launch Digital Marketing’s expertise in web development — over the years they’ve developed a lot of expertise in the automotive dealership space. They’re also very conscious of UX best practices and they turned our complicated business into something simple for a user to understand on the frontend.  

I also like that I am able to talk to their executive-level leadership, not just a lower-level director. Specifically, Caitlin has been great as a technical advisor to work through different development changes via direct phone calls. 

Are there any areas they could improve?

I can’t think of anything for them to improve on. 

Do you have any advice for potential customers?
I would advise potential customers to engage in an agency like Launch Digital Marketing that has a wide range of experience because it helps them problem solve. I would also say that it’s important to have someone in your corner that you can trust — I trust Launch Digital Marketing and building that relationship and having that trust is critical for our business. 

BACKGROUND

Introduce your business and what you do there.

I’m the marketing manager of an educational institution — a trade school.

OPPORTUNITY / CHALLENGE

What challenge were you trying to address with Launch Digital Marketing?

When I was hired into the company, they needed to modify many things, and one of which was a website. As a result, I reached out to Launch Digital Marketing.

SOLUTION

What was the scope of their involvement?

Launch Digital Marketing redeveloped our WordPress site. Their work involves implementing tweaks, changes, and updates on our site. They also help us see what goals and initiatives we can integrate in the website. On top of that, they show us how we can achieve our goals.

What is the team composition?

We’re working with 8 people including Deborah (Senior Project Manager), Caitlin (VP), and Jessica (Web Development Lead).

How did you come to work with Launch Digital Marketing?

I had worked for a dealer group and signed up with them for three of our dealerships, all of which were different brands. I had an understanding of what the automotive industry looked like. After that, I reached out to my contact on LinkedIn and randomly asked about the subset of that company. Within 10 minutes, I got connected with Launch Digital Marketing’s VP.

When I went to Launch Digital Marketing, I mentioned to them that I wanted a process and a team that could give us monthly support. I didn’t want to work with a vendor where I had to spend $80,000 on the website and the engagement would end after. Since they had a complete understanding of what I needed, I chose to work with them.

How much have you invested with them?

We’ve spent $5,000.

What is the status of this engagement?

Our ongoing project began in January 2021. I started reaching out to Launch Digital Marketing back in 2013, but we were scrambling as a corporation to take care of other things. I then initiated the conversation at the end of 2020 to kickstart our project.

RESULTS & FEEDBACK

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

We have a one-year contract with Launch Digital Marketing, and they’ve told us that if we want to walk away with the website, we can. However, I don’t see us ever leaving them. They’ve been great since the start of the project. The marketing company that we’ve partnered with has also been impressed with their work. Overall, they have a complete understanding of our systems.

How did Launch Digital Marketing perform from a project management standpoint?

Their process has been seamless, and their lines of communication are pretty fluid — they’ve been completely on point on their end. There have been some delays on our end, but we highly appreciate that Launch Digital Marketing has a soft touch for follow-ups. I also appreciated that they’ve provided us with some worksheets and other things that need to be filled out.  

Their team is very kind and not demanding. Furthermore, nothing gets lost in translation. Our marketing company and Launch Digital Marketing both speak the same language. Both of them have a high level of understanding of our infrastructure. We’ve never worked with anyone that’s fluid and knows what they’re talking about.

What did you find most impressive about them?

Their team is awesome because they completely work as a group, and they perform like a think tank. On top of that, their personalities are built on kindness. Overall, they’re phenomenal and they have such a strong team.

Are there any areas they could improve?

If they can hire me as an assistant, that’ll be great so that I can help them. However, there’s really nothing lacking in their work.

Do you have any advice for potential customers?

If you have 2–3 people within your company that can help push the ball down the road faster, that will be beneficial for the engagement. Make sure that they know what they’re doing so that ideas can be implemented as quickly as possible. Launch Digital Marketing reminds me of a racehorse — they’re thoroughbred. More importantly, the team has the ability to take information and swiftly solve problems.

BACKGROUND

Introduce your business and what you do there.

I am the CEO and founder of Romer Skincare, which is a direct-to-consumer, clean and sustainable skincare line that seeks to help both men and women who are struggling to look and feel their best. The line includes a cleanser, a moisturizer, and a CBD-infused treatment mask, and has been running since February of 2020.

OPPORTUNITY / CHALLENGE

What challenge were you trying to address with Launch Digital Marketing?

We needed a partner to really help with all things digital marketing throughout and after the process of launching my business.

SOLUTION

What was the scope of their involvement?

Their team has been with us since before we even got the business off the ground, helping me to develop the website and ecommerce platform, as well as providing digital marketing, SEO, and brand design creative.

Everything we did was completely from scratch, including the entire website and user experience. They worked primarily in WordPress and used WooCommerce API for the storefront. We’ve used many different plugins as well to connect third-party resources and services such as a rewards platform and text updates to customers along with it.

As we got the site up and running, we also optimized for mobile, did some keyword optimization, and set up a blog to help start performing on SERPs. After that, we tested paid advertising across a social media marketing platform.

What is the team composition?

We’ve probably had about 10–15 of their teammates work with us at some point or another. That includes the initial salesperson, the project manager, and the web developers for that part of the process. From there, we transitioned to a new project manager after the site launch, who brought with them the paid advertising team. Along the way we got access to a few copywriters and graphic designers.

How did you come to work with Launch Digital Marketing?

I was introduced to their team through a personal connection with one of the executives on their team. They put me in touch with a salesperson, and right from the first call they seemed to be a great fit because of their hands-on approach. It was clear that they were committed to working with us down the line, not just to the fulfillment of our initial scope of work.

How much have you invested with them?

We probably spent about $30,000 with them in total.

What is the status of this engagement?

The project started in March 2019 and is still ongoing in a primarily maintenance capacity.

RESULTS & FEEDBACK

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

It has been much more difficult to quantify our measurements of success as it relates to the website. Obviously, because of being a new business during the pandemic, that has only become more challenging.

Anecdotally, I am extremely pleased with the quality of what they’ve delivered. They built a fantastic website that consistently impresses my customers and friends who have interacted with it. It presents a really professional and successful brand, which is exactly what I was hoping for.

Other feedback we receive focuses on it being easy to use because of all the features and add-ons, and very consistent in terms of performance. It doesn’t break down, and it’s very fast, so I’m not worried that we’re losing potential customers because of issues on the technical front.

How did Launch Digital Marketing perform from a project management standpoint?

I have been incredibly impressed with their work ethic. The whole team is always happy to roll up their sleeves and join me in the trenches of running a startup. They act quickly and are good at prioritizing what needs to be done first to allow us to keep moving quickly, which has really helped us to be nimble when we need to be.

On top of that, they’re organized, which is extremely important when as a startup pretty much everything seems to be all over the place. We have weekly meetings that allow us to evaluate how much progress we’ve made and what our priorities are on a regular basis. They’re very much an extension of the Romer family.

What did you find most impressive about them?

I really appreciate just being able to trust that they’ll do the right thing in just about any situation that could come up. They know their stuff, they’re not shy about providing opinions when I ask for them, and they’re professional and take criticism very productively.  It’s just a unique group in their capacity to work with both large operations and small businesses, and the ability to have access to a world-class team with years of experience has been completely fabulous.

Are there any areas they could improve?

The only real issue we’ve had is that I wish they would be a little bit more forthcoming with suggestions or guidance for me when I really need it. I think they’re a little bit more reactive to me than I would like, particularly in making the ecommerce shop a success. That’s a hard point to give criticism on because they do everything so well, but there’s just that little bit extra that I wish they could be doing as well.

As for the paid advertising side of the project, I really don’t think that was as good of a fit as the development was. We had similar issues with the reactivity rather than proactivity, and in advertising that made a much bigger difference, so I was a little bit underwhelmed by the success we had there. I would really recommend to them that when working with startups they be more front-facing and aggressive about suggestions on how to do things. The more they get out in front of it, the better that client is going to receive that advice.

Do you have any advice for potential customers?

Be realistic about what you’re good at and what your weaknesses or blind spots are. They particularly like to work in WordPress and WooCommerce, whereas a lot of ecommerce sites are built using Shopify, so if you know what you want ahead of time, make sure you make that clear to their team.