MERIT

BACKGROUND

Introduce your business and what you do there.

We’re a community foundation, and I work there as a marketing communications officer.

OPPORTUNITY / CHALLENGE

What challenge were you trying to address with MERIT?

We hired them for their web design and marketing communication services.

SOLUTION

What was the scope of their involvement?

MERIT has done a bunch of work for us, with the most recent project being a year-long brand awareness campaign. For this project, they helped us create campaigns across every single marketing channel possible, including social media, billboards, radio spots, emails, etc. They also took charge of coordinating the creation of digital assets, such as videos, audio, and commercials. They made press releases for us as well.

Their team has also redesigned our website, giving it a fresh new look. We plan to continue with the brand awareness campaign and work with them on a retainer basis for additional marketing communication support.

What is the team composition?

We usually work with 2–3 people from their side, but we’re aware that more people are working behind the scenes.

How did you come to work with MERIT?

They were already working with us before I joined the company, so I don’t know the answer to that question. My guess as to why we decided to work with them is because their office is just a block away from ours.

How much have you invested with them?

We’ve spent over $200,000.

What is the status of this engagement?

We started working together in August 2020, and our engagement is still ongoing.

RESULTS & FEEDBACK

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

We’ve met a lot of metrics from the campaigns that they’ve done for us, including the brand awareness campaign.

How did MERIT perform from a project management standpoint?

The new project management team that we’ve been working with is great — we have weekly check-in meetings, and they respond to us right away. For communication, we mainly interact through email, SMS, and phone calls. We also use SharePoint to manage and share documents.

Are there any areas they could improve?

I honestly can’t think of anything that MERIT could improve on at the moment.

BACKGROUND

Introduce your business and what you do there.

I'm the VP for strategy and innovation at Community Services Group, which is a community based provider of mental health, intellectual & developmental disabiliy (IDD) and children services. I'm responsible for our communications and public relations programs, among other things.

OPPORTUNITY / CHALLENGE

What challenge were you trying to address with MERIT?

We work with MERIT on general PR, website development, recruitment campaigns, and other program- and service-specific campaigns.

SOLUTION

What was the scope of their involvement?

We’ve had different projects with MERIT, such as our brand review and rebranding campaign. They’ve reviewed our current website, competitor websites, and logos. The team has interviewed some of our staff and external stakeholders to refresh our brand. 

For website development, we’ve had a fair amount of discovery meetings with our internal staff. We’ve compared ourselves to similar organizations and their websites that have some best practices we like. We’re in the development phase now and using WordPress.

Moreover, they help develop blog posts, social media posts and create graphics and videos we use for our accounts and website.

Additionally, MERIT has helped us think strategically about using our social platforms for employee recruitment and promoting our services. We’ve asked them for some input on our job descriptions, particularly on the part where we talk about our company culture — that’s where some of our branding work comes into play. They’ve also helped us facilitate walk-in days for hiring events. 

What is the team composition?

We primarily work with Meg (Customer Success Manager) and Jessica (Director of Client Strategy & Activation). They’re our two primary points of contact, but we’ve had access to their web developer and creative director in various meetings. 

How did you come to work with MERIT?

We starting working with the previous organization that ultimately became  MERIT.  Originally, we did a comprehensive search for firms in the area. We've stayed with them as their company developed and eventually became Merit.

How much have you invested with them?

Throughout the years, we’ve invested close to $200,000. 

What is the status of this engagement?

We started working with MERIT in January 2007, and the engagement is ongoing. 

RESULTS & FEEDBACK

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

To measure success, we look at a lot of metrics for each ad we do, such as CTRs and impressions. We watch application and hiring trends for recruitment. We’ve seen an increase in these metrics. Typically, MERIT provides us with industry benchmarks, which gives us some sense of what we can expect based on industry trends. 

How did MERIT perform from a project management standpoint?

Since we’ve been working with them for so long, there have probably been times when either of us failed to meet our deadlines. Nonetheless, we’re pleased with MERIT in terms of both meeting deadlines and budgets. 

For communication, we do biweekly calls via Zoom. We also communicate via email. 

What did you find most impressive about them?

Their creative skills are great. On top of that, they truly try to get to know us. We don’t feel like they’re giving us cut-and-paste solutions. Instead, everything they do is tailored to our needs and messaging. Overall, they’re professional, and everyone we’ve worked with in MERIT is great. 

Are there any areas they could improve?

No, there aren’t any. We’ve been truly happy with them. 

Do you have any advice for potential customers?

Impress upon them what’s unique about your business, and they’ll help you further discover that. They’ll also help you promote it and make it the center of your messaging.