MyDesignSpace, Inc.

Introduce your business and what you do there.

I’m the president and owner of the Midwest Revolving Door Company. We're a revolving door parts manufacturer in the pedestrian door industry. 

What challenge were you trying to address with MyDesignSpace, Inc.?

I started the company in July 2020, and I needed a website to reach out to service and manufacturing businesses in the revolving door industry. 

What was the scope of their involvement?

I reached out to Monique (Owner & Graphic Designer) to have an interactive and user-friendly website built on WordPress. I was pretty specific in the types of illustrations that I needed. I had previously helped create a website for another company, and she basically regurgitated the information from that website to our website. 

What is the team composition?

I worked only with Monique. 

How did you come to work with MyDesignSpace, Inc.?

I know Monique personally. For this project, I liked the graphic design that they were willing to put into the website, and she was inquisitive about the products and services that our company was providing. I had used another website designer before, but having seen Monique’s work, I decided to go with her. 

How much have you invested with them?

We invested around $2,500–$2,700.

What is the status of this engagement?

The project lasted from October–November 2020.

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

I've been getting great responses for the website. A lot of my clients and colleagues liked its design and content. It provided them a personal approach to the service industry, and the hits I've been getting have been above and beyond what I expected. 

How did MyDesignSpace, Inc. perform from a project management standpoint?

MyDesignSpace did excellent work and made whatever revisions I needed in order to finish up the project in a timely manner. Monique provided a great service. She was very active with me, continually providing me with rough drafts on a weekly basis — she was very thorough. 

They were also attentive to my needs, and their feedback was spot on in terms of search words and content types. Monique even brought up a couple of things that I didn’t think about, such as providing a navigation tool for customers on the website. 

What did you find most impressive about them?

They were informative. Monique even gave me a comparison of different platforms and content types that I could look into or apply to the website. 

Are there any areas they could improve?

MyDesignSpace could improve on writing content for the website, such as creating product descriptions or storyboarding. Some web designers have their own content writers. 

Do you have any advice for potential customers?

Provide as much information about what you need and want for the website as possible because Monique is very creative with what you give her.

Introduce your business and what you do there.

I’m the executive director of a chamber of commerce.

What challenge were you trying to address with MyDesignSpace, Inc.?

We had a terrible website that needed to be more user-friendly and interface with ChamberMaster.

What was the scope of their involvement?

We chose MyDesignSpace to create our new website and integrate ChamberMaster. They also taught a class so that our chamber members were able to use the benefits of ChamberMaster through the website.

What is the team composition?

I worked with Monique (President).

How did you come to work with MyDesignSpace, Inc.?

Monique was a chamber member, so it was easy to choose her. We looked at other chamber members for bids but she seemed to be the most reasonably priced and easy to work with.

How much have you invested with them?

We spent a little over $1,000. We also did some trade-out work with her membership.

What is the status of this engagement?

We started working together in November 2018, and we finalized everything in January 2019.

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

Everyone was quite relieved at how easy it was for them to update an address or contact person. Chamber members were also being searched more efficiently.

They did a remarkable job of working with ChamberMaster to make sure everything was going to work properly. In the long run, they did such a fabulous job that other chambers in the area ended up hiring them to make their web pages as well.

Monique was remarkable in her vast knowledge of how the site should look for chamber members and their community members. In the end, the board of directors and staff were very happy with the results.

How did MyDesignSpace, Inc. perform from a project management standpoint?

Monique was fabulous. She always kept us up to date and told us what was going on. Even today, I had some questions on making a page and she emailed me right away. I’ve always had tremendous follow-up with her.

What did you find most impressive about them?

Monique is funny and nice, which I wasn’t expecting from a web designer. I thought it would be a boring process but that wasn’t the case at all.  

Are there any areas they could improve?

No, we were 110% satisfied.

Do you have any advice for potential customers?

My advice is to hire them; they’ll do a remarkable job. They’re easy to work with, punctual, and they communicate fabulously.

Introduce your business and what you do there.

I am the board president of Patrick B. Harper Scholarship Foundation, a private foundation.

What challenge were you trying to address with MyDesignSpace, Inc.?

We needed a new website that successfully conveyed information about our scholarship.

What was the scope of their involvement?

MyDesignSpace, Inc. developed and designed our WordPress website for us from scratch. The site is accessible to both students and high schools. The website allows users to donate money and fill out applications for our scholarship. 

Their team included payment processing functionality through PayPal. They also recommended we set us Twitter, Instagram, and Facebook accounts.

What is the team composition?

I worked directly with Monique (President)

How did you come to work with MyDesignSpace, Inc.?

MyDesignSpace, Inc. was recommended to me by a colleague. After I called her, she sent some references and examples of their past work. I liked what she had created in the past and her personality was a good fit with mine, so I decided to work with them.

What is the status of this engagement?

Our project ran from July–September 2020.

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

We’ve begun to see applications for scholarships and donations. Our social media channels have also seen engagement. We’ve gotten great feedback so far. 

The MyDesignSpace, Inc. team is very easy to work with. Whenever we wanted to make changes and tweaks, they were accomodating and flexible. Monique even set up a Zoom call to show us how to make changes to our back-end in house. She went as far as to record the training and send us the file so we would always have access to it. 

How did MyDesignSpace, Inc. perform from a project management standpoint?

Monique is incredibly quick to respond to questions. We had a brief down period while we waited for clearance from the IRS, and Monique stayed in contact with me throughout the waiting period. Our teams communicated via Zoom calls, phone, and email.

What did you find most impressive about them?

MyDesignSpace, Inc. has the expertise and knowledge to succeed, they really know what they’re doing. Monique is professional and provides a high level of customer service.

Are there any areas they could improve?

No, everything was great.

Do you have any advice for potential customers?

Be open to Monique’s suggestions, she has really great ones.

Introduce your business and what you do there.

I’m the owner of an engraving company that specializes in custom gifts.

What challenge were you trying to address with MyDesignSpace, Inc.?

We needed help creating a logo and rebuilding our site.

What was the scope of their involvement?

They designed a brand-new website for us from scratch using WordPress. First, we discussed where we wanted to go with the new website, including how much we wanted to spend. This included basic overall design and look to what we actually wanted on the website, and what we were trying to achieve.

They also helped guide us through social media channels, such as Instagram, Pinterest, and Facebook.

What is the team composition?

We had one main point of contact.

How did you come to work with MyDesignSpace, Inc.?

We met through our local chamber of commerce. I sat down with them and I liked the look and feel of their past sites.

How much have you invested with them?

We’ve spent over $10,000.

What is the status of this engagement?

We started working together in October 2019, and our work is ongoing.

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

We’ve seen an uptick in organic searches, which has been great for us. Their social media guidance has helped us grow our site, too.

How did MyDesignSpace, Inc. perform from a project management standpoint?

The team was very good at project management. They started with wireframes to show the initial progression. From there, it was pretty straight forward. They always gave us updates and were on time with deliverables.

What did you find most impressive about them?

They take pride in what they do and help me achieve my goals. We had no products on our online store, and they helped us integrate that with properly sized pictures, too.

Are there any areas they could improve?

No, it’s been fantastic.

Do you have any advice for potential customers?

My advice is to have a design on where they’d like to go and how they’d like to get there.

Introduce your business and what you do there.

I’m the president of a chamber of commerce. Chambers of commerce exist in small, medium, and supersized communities. We design websites for member businesses be they manufacturing, staffing, or small, home-based companies. They join us in order to utilize our networking and growth activities.

What challenge were you trying to address with MyDesignSpace, Inc.?

We were looking to redo the chamber website. It was about four years old, and we weren’t really happy with it. We didn’t feel it was interactive enough.

What was the scope of their involvement?

MyDesignSpace, Inc. developed our new website from scratch using WordPress. This was challenging and the database was foreign to our developer. It has custom CSS coding. We were looking to make the site more interactive, sell the chamber, and get people involved.

We didn’t want it to be something that is used once when learning about the chamber for the first time. Rather, we wanted a site that people visited monthly to find out how to get involved at a particular level. It wasn’t meant to be a book that was read one time; it was meant to be a resource to be looked at frequently.

As an example, we created four tiers of membership. Chambers typically base their memberships on the number of employees, but we found that to be archaic. We wanted to base it on different benefits and services that could be provided. Based on what someone wanted, they could adjust their membership level which is not the easiest thing to do on our old site.

There’s a lot of research that our members are doing, and Monique (President, MyDesignSpace, Inc.) made it easy to read with lots of simple diagrams for the different levels. The previous website made it much more difficult for people to find things. We have 28,000–35,000 people who connect with our website every year for one and a half minutes. That’s because we do so many events, which were also added to the website for registration purposes. 

MyDesignSpace, Inc. has also done marketing design for different brochures and programs. We have an annual gala, and Monique did a lot of design for that.

What is the team composition?

We work with Monique and Barbara (Visual Display & Decorating Consulting Expert, MyDesignSpace, Inc.).

How did you come to work with MyDesignSpace, Inc.?

Monique was working in New York, but she decided to come back and start a new firm. She was looking for places to network, and we’re very much out there. She found us and joined the chamber.

How much have you invested with them?

We got the value of $30,000 website for $10,000.

What is the status of this engagement?

The website project ran between December 2018–February 2019. We do call her if we have something a bit more serious that requires coding.

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

One of the things that really stands out is our bounce-back rate, which was 69% before the new website, and is now 2%. That’s a huge thing for us. People are finding what they need on the site. The amount of time spent on the site is longer, and users visit more pages.

There’s an easy site map. Monique set up redundancies for different pages for user-friendliness. Everything is being used the way we hoped it would be. Monique is incredible, that’s all I can say. The design allows someone who’s nonproficient with coding to make changes easily.

Barbara is a phenomenal designer, and we’ve utilized her skills to develop packages and baskets for auctions. That has raised our return by 20%.

How did MyDesignSpace, Inc. perform from a project management standpoint?

They were excellent. Monique may have used project management software, but nothing that she discussed with me. We frequently sat down and did a lot of pen and paper drawings of what we wanted the site to look like. She was very flexible with our lack of knowledge and handled all aspects of the project.

What did you find most impressive about them?

She was good at anticipating what came next. We worked well together. I’d come up with an idea, and she’d tell me what she needed to do in order for it to happen. Monique researched it and determined if it was possible before I made any decisions. She was very good at that kind of thing. She’s great at graphic design, but the functionalities were even better.

Are there any areas they could improve?

I can’t think of anything.

Do you have any advice for future clients of theirs?

Clients should be open to her ideas because she has some good ones. She knew things I didn't.

Introduce your business and what you do there.

I’m the treasurer for the McHenry Riverwalk Foundation.

What challenge were you trying to address with MyDesignSpace, Inc.?

We lacked a sufficient presence with social media and our website.

What was the scope of their involvement?

MyDesignSpace, Inc. designed and developed our website. They now handle the site along with our Facebook and Instagram profiles. That involves receiving emails that come through the site and messages through Facebook. They also designed posters and flyers and other marketing pieces that we need for events, like booths and handouts for shows.

What is the team composition?

My main point of contact is Monique (President, MyDesignSpace, Inc.).

How did you come to work with MyDesignSpace, Inc.?

They were a part of the foundation before I joined— Another board member found them and brought them in. However, I knew MyDesignSpace, Inc. from a previous relationship and business associated. 

How much have you invested with them?

We spend $550 per month on their services.

What is the status of this engagement?

We started working together in November 2018, and the partnership is ongoing.

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

For the first time, the foundation can accept donations through our website. We’ve seen an overall increase in total donations thanks to MyDesignSpace, Inc.’s work. The website is also incredibly pleasing from a visual perspective. It captures everything our foundation represents and tries to achieve.

How did MyDesignSpace, Inc. perform from a project management standpoint?

Monique is extremely responsive and always accessible. I can contact her via text, email, or Facebook Messenger. 

What did you find most impressive about them?

Passionate about her work, Monique is always willing to jump in to fill a need. I highly recommend her.

Are there any areas they could improve?

No, not that I think of.

Any advice for potential customers?

I don’t have any advice. Monique is detail-oriented and thorough.