N49 Toronto Web Design

Introduce your business and what you do there.

I’m the director of operations and one of the owners of XYZ Storage.

What challenge were you trying to address with Toronto Web Design?

We originally hired N49 Toronto Web Design in 2011 for a website redesign. Since then, they’ve helped us manage our UX, online content, and website development.

What was the scope of their involvement?

They’ve helped us manage our SEO user experience through our online properties, linking in to our other online content, making sure we have a seamless user experience, and offering both SEO consulting services and development for our website. 

They’ve also designed several websites for us, depending on our needs. Sometimes, they supply all the content, and other times they work with a team of people or none at all. It all depends on the website. Over the years, they’ve worked with several platforms, and they’ve built some custom CMS as well. The most recent site they’ve made for us — which is our corporate expertise storage site— is on WordPress.

What is the team composition?

It would depend on the project. For the corporate website, which was a huge undertaking, we rebranded the company, so there were a lot of different stakeholders involved in that process. For other sites we built, they’ve managed the work exclusively internally. The tean can vary from a couple of people to most of the N49 team, which means 5–7 people working on a project.

How did you come to work with N49 Toronto Web Design?

I believe it was many years ago. They had a directory service, and we were listed there, so when we decided it was time for a website. We interviewed them to become a partner.

How much have you invested with them?

It depends. We’ve done little two-page microsites, which are around $2,000. Some projects are over $10,000, and others are around $50,000. But there’s been years where we’ve spent more. For example, when we did a complete corporate site overhaul, and we spent over $100,000.

What is the status of this engagement?

We started collaborating in January 2011. We’ve kept working together for the past 10–15 years, and the partnership is still ongoing.

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

Since we’ve been working with N49, there’s been some changes in the clickthrough rate. Moreover, with every new property we launch, we look at how it’s going to perform organically and how it’s going to be optimized for SEO. We also consider what the UX will be, if it’s a sales-focused initiative, what the conversion and funnel are going to look like, and so on. 

As evidence, I think our existing website looks wonderful, robust, and it’s filled with a final sales approach. That way, going into the funnel, our different products are visible and completely linked to our ERP system, which I find to be a very good visual example of the work they've done for us. Of course, there have also been some changes in the clickthrough rate since we’ve been working with N49

How did N49 Toronto Web Design perform from a project management standpoint?

They’ve been exceptional. They handle a very diverse group of stakeholders in design, development, and implementation. Currently, we’re working with groups that could be 5–6 different unique stakeholders, and they’ve often taken on the project management role.

We were doing in-person meetings, but we’ve also communicated through Zoom, phone calls, and email.

What did you find most impressive about them?

N49 Toronto Web Design looks at projects holistically, so it’s not just the design that would be ideal for the company or the customer. They plan out a process that will give the best end product. I’ve yet to see another organization that looks at it through as many different lenses as they do.

Are there any areas they could improve?

There’s nothing that stands out. They continue to evolve over time. When you're working with a company for 10 years, there's a lot of growth —or at least you hope that there is. I've seen them grow exponentially in their expertise, in their service offerings, and in their bandwidth. I think anything that you would expect the company to grow and improve on, they met all those markets in space.

Any advice for potential customers?

Be open and honest with what you want to accomplish. There's a great brain trust within N49 that will help in operationalizing what your vision is and put it into a product that fits the criteria you're looking for.

Please describe your company and your position there.

We have multiple business ranging from home service to real-estate to billboard advertising over 10 operating web sites. I am the constant in each as president

For what projects/services did your company hire N49 Toronto Web Design, and what were your goals?

Web design, Seo, and management

How did you select N49 Toronto Web Design and what were the deciding factors?

Have other benefits outside the normal web developer like premium domain listings and review platform

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

From logo designs and color pallets to page innovations for newer customer engagement and providing focus groups to evaluate before final design. As well as adding a review platform that is proprietary to them

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

5-6 from president to admin and obviously marketing and developers

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

general ranking and positive customer experience

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

nothing outside of the ordinary but timing and scheduling was always a priority and met

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

Unique advantages and ideas based on experience

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

pushing our internal team a little more to prioritize the needs of our online operations