NextLeft

BACKGROUND

Introduce your business and what you do there.

I’m the digital production specialist with Fiskars brands, which includes a subsidiary watering brand called Gilmour.

OPPORTUNITY / CHALLENGE

What challenge were you trying to address with NextLeft?

Most of their work has been done for Gilmour.com. We wanted to optimize our website for organic search. Also, our website didn’t have its own CRO or CRM built-in.

SOLUTION

What was the scope of their involvement?

NextLeft has done a number of different projects for us. They started by supporting our SEO work for product launches and for our website.

Their team performed keyword research and links products to different articles. NextLeft researched our consumers to understand what they want. They looked at product lines and categories to help us determine terms for internal use and as keywords to maximize our results. Their team created content in terms of products for us. On top of that, they created optimize content. Their team provided micro-integrations, so trying newly built features into standalone content based on products we offered.

They’ve provided other services including CRO, which their team’s currently managing. They built an external CRO service into our website.

What is the team composition?

My main point of contact now is Andy Kelly (Senior SEO Specialist, NextLeft). There are anywhere between 2–4 people working on our account at a time.

How did you come to work with NextLeft?

Some of their employees worked at a company that previously provided us with many services, especially SEO. That company dissolved and formed NextLeft, so we were on board with them immediately.

How much have you invested with them?

We’ve spent between $50,00–$200,000.

What is the status of this engagement?

We began working together in March 2015, and it’s an ongoing partnership.

RESULTS & FEEDBACK

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

Their SEO efforts have a powerful impact on our website. Year over year, our growth increases. They’ve rewritten our articles and needed to review them to make sure that the associated metrics weren’t fake.

NextLeft has done a great job taking content we’ve wanted to highlight and getting eyes on it. Their research abilities are top-notch. They’re excellent at looking at the consumer base and the website metrics to determine strategies for getting people to the content then to products and then through the sales funnel.

How did NextLeft perform from a project management standpoint?

They manage projects like nobody else. I have a standing meeting with NextLeft every week, but I talk with them multiple times a week usually. They’re fantastic communicators and are ahead of our internal teams in terms of helping us optimize the sites.

They excel at being a great collaborative partner. NextLeft not only comes to us with plenty of ideas but is also really good at sparking ideas within our team. We’re pitching ideas back and forth constantly. Their team’s always ready to listen, take our creative ideas, and make them work with our platform. They’re understanding, taking what we have and working around those parameters.

What did you find most impressive about them?

Their team finds opportunities for growth in businesses where it wasn’t thought possible. The people that work for NextLeft makes the company stand out. You create personal relationships with them. Their team takes the time to know you and your business including what you expect to achieve, how you work, and the challenges you’re facing. When you work with NextLeft, it’s like they’re working with you in the office.

Are there any areas they could improve?

No, NextLeft doesn’t leave anything to be desired. They’re always working to improve and come up with smart, new ideas.

Do you have any advice for potential customers?

I recommend NextLeft to everyone. Give NextLeft your money and do what they say.

BACKGROUND

Introduce your business and what you do there.

I’m the director of marketing at Paper Mart, a family-owned and operated business that’s been around for almost 100 years. We sell packaging supplies, and we’re strictly e-commerce. Our products range from mailing and shipping supplies to gift packaging, crafting, DIY ribbons and bows, tissue paper, and other similar items.

OPPORTUNITY / CHALLENGE

What challenge were you trying to address with NextLeft?

We’d noticed over the last year and half that our organic traffic was declining, and the other agencies that we were working with didn’t have the right strategy to turn that around. 

SOLUTION

What was the scope of their involvement?

We launched a brand new website last year, and NextLeft helped us prepare all of that content. They also revised our URL structure. We have over 26,000 products, which makes for a large number of URLs and redirects. They also built a site map for the new site and helped us revamp our navigation menu to be more targeted for specific keywords.

Now that the site is up and running, NextLeft uses reports to find items that we’ve missed. From there, they can correct links, implement redirects, and clean up any bugs. For example, if we find content missing on a page, they’ll come in and make the necessary edits.

What is the team composition?

I’ve worked with a total of three individuals from NextLeft. Casey (VP of Client Services, NextLeft) is my project manager.

How did you come to work with NextLeft?

We’d gone through several different agencies before we happened upon NextLeft. They came through as a peer referral from a friend in the industry.

How much have you invested with them?

We’re spending $6,000 per month for their services.

What is the status of this engagement?

We started in March 2019, and the partnership is ongoing.

RESULTS & FEEDBACK

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

NextLeft has been crucial in getting us through our site launch. We’ve watched some of our products move to the first page of search results, which leads to more traffic and higher revenue. Those numbers dropped initially when we launched the new site, but now we’re seeing consistent growth.

How did NextLeft perform from a project management standpoint?

They’re very organized, which makes a huge difference for me. They set call agendas, they follow up in a timely fashion, and they do so without being pushy or overbearing. That project management piece—their ability to keep track of everything—is one of their best qualities.

In terms of tools, we use Google Docs to share data. They’ll run their reports and put their findings on a document that we can access and edit. Occasionally, we’ll ask for unanticipated reports, and they’re always upfront with us about the results and what they mean for the project. This allows us to work together with them on deciding what our focus will be. It’s a fluid partnership.

What did you find most impressive about them?

They’ve taken the time to get to know us, to the point where we feel like they’ve taken ownership and want us to win. Other third-party vendors don’t bring that level of investment.

Even during the pitching stage, they showed us a relatively simple fix to a problem that we hadn’t yet identified. We could tell early on that they knew their stuff. 

Are there any areas they could improve?

I can’t think of anything.

Do you have any advice for potential customers?

Let them know what’s important to you. List out your company objects, and let them adjust their approach to your specific account. Giving them as much information as possible—even the history of your firm and the products that you offer—will help.

For example, there was a situation where they wanted us to focus on a specific product because it garnered a lot of traffic. We decided against that because the product is being sold at such a low price that it doesn’t make a significant impact on our revenue. Working with a vendor is a two-way street, and you need to be able to share information and concerns.

BACKGROUND

Introduce your business and what you do there.

I am the assistant director of marketing and social media at Gwynedd Mercy University.

OPPORTUNITY / CHALLENGE

What challenge were you trying to address with NextLeft?

Overall, we were looking to increase traffic to our website and in turn increase conversions and applications.

SOLUTION

What was the scope of their involvement?

NextLeft continues to provide help in all things SEO related. Their team stays up to date with Google search changes and is constantly in touch with us on how we can improve our website. They give us all the information we need to know to create new content. 

We create learn pieces such as pieces and they use social media to drive traffic to those pages. They assist us with content creation for our main website. NextLeft builds our organic traffic using both on and offsite SEO.

What is the team composition?

We work primarily with Casy (VP of Client Services, NextLeft), Jason (Director Earned Media, NextLeft), and Brian (Senior Client Services, NextLeft). Casey is our project manager and she makes sure we’re all on the same path and keeps us moving forward.

How did you come to work with NextLeft?

We had worked with Casey and Jason when they worked for a prior company. When they went over to NextLeft, we decided to continue our relationship with them.

How much have you invested with them?

We have invested about $700,000–$800,000.

What is the status of this engagement?

Our ongoing engagement with NextLeft began in 2014.

RESULTS & FEEDBACK

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

Thanks to NextLeft, our organic traffic has nearly doubled. From October 2016–October 2019, organic traffic has increased by 127%. I’m constantly raving about the whole team at NextLeft.

How did NextLeft perform from a project management standpoint?

NextLeft keeps us in line with that we need to deliver and they never let projects go by the wayside. If we haven’t circled back to a project in a while, they’ll always remind us and keep us on track. 

It’s really helpful that they come out to meet us in person once a year in summer to talk about our goals. That helps us set our path forward for the rest of the year. 

NextLeft provides a monthly report on our SEO. They go over our goals, traffic, keywords, and what they are working on that month. We also have a monthly call about the report and another separate project-based call.

What did you find most impressive about them?

NextLeft really understands their clients. They don’t just make changes in practice based on Google, instead, they take a deep dive into what will and won’t work for your organization. Their team crafts their services based on your goals and needs. They don’t provide one blanket service.

Are there any areas they could improve?

No, they’ve been fantastic and have done everything we needed them to. 

Do you have any advice for potential customers?

Make yourself available to learn. NextLeft is willing to teach you the in and outs of SEO. They really take the time to invest in your team. Ask questions and invest the time needed.

UPDATED REVIEW

This review was updated by Deborah O’Reilly (Digitial Content Specialist, Gwynedd Mercy University) on August 3, 2020. The original star ratings were: Overall - 5, Quality - 5, Schedule - 5, Cost - 5, NPS - 5. New content is below:

BACKGROUND

Introduce your business and what you do there.

I work for Gwynedd Mercy University, a small university in southeastern Pennsylvania. I am a digital content specialist working in the marketing department.

OPPORTUNITY / CHALLENGE

What challenge were you trying to address with NextLeft?

They’re helping us with SEO, making sure that our brand is reflected in Google’s search results as best as possible to support enrollment.

SOLUTION 

What was the scope of their involvement?

NextLeft gives us recommendations for all of our specific programs. They have helped us launch content that supports SEO. The team has also designed exit pops that move people from content to our program pages to help inspire conversions, or requests for more information forms and applications. They have quite a wide range of services in regard to SEO, and we've been quite pleased with them. They use Google Analytics and Tag Manager.

What is the team composition?

We generally work with two people, including one project manager and another specialist. 

How did you come to work with NextLeft?

I started about a year ago, so that predates me.

What is the status of this engagement?

I believe our relationship with them began in 2016, so the fact that we’ve worked with them for several consecutive years speaks for itself. 

RESULTS & FEEDBACK

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

We can very clearly measure our success based on their support. They’ve helped us garner higher amounts of traffic as well as requests for information, forms, and applications. They’ve helped us optimize for Google’s Answer Boxes and 3-Packs.

How did NextLeft perform from a project management standpoint?

They’re wonderful in terms of project management. Our project manager is extremely communicative. He keeps us on track to meet deadlines. Like most businesses this year, we’ve been stressed, and they’ve responded accordingly.

What did you find most impressive about them?

They had an idea, which they began a few years ago before I joined the university, to help us build traffic and get new users to our site by creating content. Maintaining that traffic has been critical, especially this year, due to COVID-19. Most people go online to find information on colleges, so ensuring people are still coming to our site is critical.

Are there any areas they could improve?

No, not that I can think of. I’ve only been working with them for 11 months, but I have no complaints.

Any advice for potential customers?

Be very clear about what your goals are, whether that is traffic or conversions, and they can help you meet those goals.

BACKGROUND

Introduce your business and what you do there.

I work for an organization called Fiskars. They're most prominently known for manufacturing sewing, crafting, and lawn care tools. We're probably most identifiable by our orange-handled scissors. I head up digital marketing for the Americas.

OPPORTUNITY / CHALLENGE

What challenge were you trying to address with NextLeft?

They're specialists in the SEO space. We look to them for expertise in content strategy, content development, continuous optimization of multiple websites, and technical SEO consultation services.

SOLUTION

What was the scope of their involvement?

Given the work that we had been focusing on, I'll break it down into two parts. The first is a global re-platforming project, which is essentially a CMS migration from one enterprise to a new one. Our existing CMS was never managed properly. At one point we had about 0,000 redirects, which was giving us massive headaches with Google and was really detrimental to our organic traffic. Over the course of several months, they took the 10,000 and reduced it to 3,500.

To do that, they formulated a plan that mapped the path to our goals. They examined key metrics like page speed and mobile performance. Their team was a critical part of that long-term plan. 

Secondly, using Google Lighthouse, Crawl, Screaming Frog, different SEO optimization tools, they recommend ways to correct problems with our digital presence. They also pointed us to opportunities to use our deep catalog of articles to benefit the business, taking a very data-driven, customer-focused approach.

For instance, NextLeft did a competitive analysis for one of our brands and found that there was a very significant traffic opportunity related to soil. So, they did some research, finding that the most popular result had not been updated since 2011. We targeted that keyword based on their findings. Their research was instrumental to the project. They were able to synthesize data, identify opportunities, and then execute to meet our customers' needs.

What is the team composition?

We have predominantly two points of contact, Katie (VP Marketing, NextLeft) and Andy (Senior SEO & Content Strategist, NextLeft). We've had occasional inclusion from John (CEO, NextLeft), who comes in for larger strategic planning. They also have a team that does our backlink outreach.

How did you come to work with NextLeft?

NextLeft had actually been with my company prior to my arrival. My predecessor had a wonderful working relationship with them and left our partnership with them up to me when I arrived. I'm actually departing Fiskars soon and I will bring them along to my new position as soon as I'm given the chance.

How much have you invested with them?

We've spent about 300,000 between our two brands.

What is the status of this engagement?

It's been over seven years since we started working with them. Our collaborations are ongoing.

RESULTS & FEEDBACK

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

As a result of their SEO improvements, we've had triple-digit organic growth over the last two years each year.

Their research landed us the first Google search result for targeted keywords and phrases. That's been instrumental in boosting our conversions. 

They've been swimming upstream, dealing with all sorts of technical difficulties. However, they've still been able to increase organic search traffic by almost 5%, even though total traffic is down. It's been impressive to witness the increases in sales and e-commerce conversions, regardless of total traffic decreases. That tells me that they're bringing the right people to the site.

How did NextLeft perform from a project management standpoint?

They're very strong in that regard. Katie is an outstanding project manager and an even better communicator. Nothing gets left uncovered. Even when we've worked triangularly with other agencies, they easily handle communication over email. When my internal team decided to switch to BaseCamp, they jumped right in with us. That way, communication has been even more seamless and organized than before.

What did you find most impressive about them?

We have our project manager's attention at all times. Our team knows that she's only a phone call away with a remedy for our situations. Additionally, many agencies position themselves as a one-stop-shop without really being able to deliver on everything.

NextLeft knows they're SEO experts, and there have been instances where they will say that a task isn't right for their team. The self-awareness and maintained focus are really strong and positive. On top of that, they're extremely talented and client-focused.

Are there any areas they could improve?

No, not really. They're like an extension of my team with really strong and positive intentions. They've probably given us the greatest ROI our team has seen. They're great.

Do you have any advice for potential customers?

I actually referred them to another contact. When they asked me for advice, I told them that they don't do pay-per-click. They've experimented with it, but it's not their primary focus. I wanted them to understand that their specialty is in SEO.

Similarly, they're capable of development work, but it's not their area of greatest expertise. Understand your goals. If they're organic search-related, then they're perfect for them.

BACKGROUND

Introduce your business and what you do there.

I am a senior marketing manager for a large media company.

OPPORTUNITY / CHALLENGE

What challenge were you trying to address with NextLeft?

Our company had been putting a lot of resources into digital paid strategies, but we hadn’t focused much on SEO. We engaged NextLeft to help us find improvements that could likely be had in organic search.

SOLUTION

What was the scope of their involvement?

We’ve worked with NextLeft for five or more years, but because of turnover and lack of resources, we never implemented a lot of their recommendations. It wasn’t until about two years ago that we took a fresh look at what we discussed in the past. At that time, we worked with them to identify the strategy and actions we should be taking—such as link building—and we developed a roadmap for our success.

We now have a standing SEO-based engagement. They have helped us improve our keywords, title tags, and meta descriptions across the site. We conducted a substantial audit of our site and took advantage of the increased character limits for title tags and such, and we implemented several changes based on their recommendations.

What is the team composition?

NextLeft supplies an account manager supported by two SEO strategists. They’ve helped explain the technical complexities of our efforts. They’ve proven that they’re experienced in this field.  

How did you come to work with NextLeft?

Our company’s engagement with NextLeft predates my hiring, and I am unsure of how we found them.

How much have you invested in them?

We invest approximately $125,000 per year.

What is the status of this engagement?

Though we’ve had a relationship with them for several years, we began taking their recommendations in earnest in October 2017. We’ve had an ongoing engagement since then.

RESULTS & FEEDBACK

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

After implementing NextLeft’s changes, we’ve seen our traffic and sales increase exponentially. When looking at the graphs of our growth, it’s quite obvious how well this engagement has paid off.

How did NextLeft perform from a project management standpoint?

We have a very healthy working relationship. NextLeft is responsive whenever I have questions, and I often tap into their expertise for information about different industries. They have been impressively thorough in all of their reports during our weekly calls when we discuss the various digital channels we manage.

NextLeft has integrated well to the point that they now feel like an extension of our team. They make us aware of relevant tests or algorithm changes and what we should be doing to position ourselves better. They remain ahead of the curve and are always pushing us to think about our future.

What did you find most impressive about them?

They are personable and knowledgeable. We can tell they are committed to being responsive.

Are there any areas they could improve?

No, I can’t determine anything that needs improvement.

Do you have any advice for potential customers?

Because they have been working with our company for quite a while, they know the business. They understand the seasonality of our business, our products, and our priorities. We have brought them very much into the loop as far as what our goals are. We figured that the more they know about our company, the more they can help us.

BACKGROUND

Introduce your business and what you do there.

I’m the CMO of eLocal, a pay-per-lead generation company. We generate calls and leads for home service providers such as legal, medical, autobody professional, etc. We have several vertical sites for each business.

OPPORTUNITY / CHALLENGE

What challenge were you trying to address with [XYZ Company]?

Our company is over ten years old, and we hadn’t adapted to keep up with Google’s changing algorithms so our SEO ranking had been dropping with time. We hadn’t dedicated time to optimizing our various sites and had recently acquired 10 companies, so we hired NextLeft to help consolidate our multiple URLs and grow our SEO baseline.

SOLUTION

What was the scope of their involvement?

We’re currently in the first year of the engagement and NextLeft is implementing all the SEO basics. They support us in various ways, including establishing h1 tags and consolidating our URLs. Along with this, they launched B2B paid search campaigns. Additionally, NextLeft provides content and link building services. They’re restructuring our pages and improving the categorization of the sites.

We recently acquired several businesses and NextLeft is assessing their brands. Each of the newly gained companies has an established online footprint and dedicated audience. We’ll potentially be expanding the project scope to include SEO for these businesses.

What is the team composition?

We have a project lead who handles the daily tasks. NextLeft provides experts from various areas depending on the need. Our main point of contact is available throughout the project and supports many of the paid search efforts. The principal of the company is also involved on a regular basis.

How did you come to work with NextLeft?

I reached out to several companies who I had worked with in the past or whose reputation I respected. I chose NextLeft because of their skill, proven deliverables, and adaptability. They were willing to take a flexible approach to our budget and scope.

What is the status of this engagement?

We began working together in 2018 and the engagement in ongoing. We started with a one year contract but we’ll likely be extending it once we figure out the scope of the next stage.

RESULTS & FEEDBACK

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

We’ve seen a big turnaround in the direction of our business. Before the engagement, our traffic and engagement were declining. They stabilized once we began working with NextLeft and are now doubling. Our revenue is also increasing significantly from their efforts.

How did NextLeft perform from a project management standpoint?

NextLeft provides top-notch responsiveness and transparency. We can always easily reach senior management at any stage in the project. They provide clear communication on cost, timelines, and results.

What did you find most impressive about them?

Their core values align with ours—we can trust them as partners. They’re accessible and communicative. We know that they’ll follow through on everything they promise with a quick turnaround.

Are there any areas they could improve?

Though this will come with time, expanding their team would help broaden their reach and resources. Throughout our engagement, they’ve already increased their paid-search staffing so we know they’re actively working on growing.

Do you have any advice for potential customers?

Take advantage of the resources they offer. Don’t be afraid of tapping into the depth of their talent or asking the senior members for their insight.

BACKGROUND

Introduce your business and what you do there.

My company is a one-man show. I’m the President and only employee of an SEO and website usability consultancy, but I also do business writing and some general business consulting to do with e-commerce in the consumer electronics field.

OPPORTUNITY / CHALLENGE

What challenge were you trying to address with NextLeft?

I use NextLeft as my primary third-party provider for SEO services and consulting. I typically do the SEO work myself on smaller SEO project, but for very large clients, and particularly for premium link-building, I’m the intermediary. I manage the SEO program for the company and liaise with NextLeft and others if necessary.

SOLUTION

What was the scope of their involvement?

We don’t do any SEM; that’s not my area of expertise. I do technical SEO, particularly on-page element optimization and premium link-building programs. I give NextLeft 100% of my premium link-building work. They provide me with a monthly report, and I dumb it down to an executive summary so it makes sense to my clients.

How did you come to work with NextLeft?

I’ve been working with their predecessor company, which went out of business about a year ago. Before the SEO part of the company was purchased by that predecessor, company, it was a startup that I worked with back in 2007 or 2008. I worked with them for SEO work in all their iterations ever since. My connection with them goes way back.

How much have you invested with NextLeft?

My average client would spend about $18,000 per year, and 100% the premium link-building income goes to NextLeft.

What is the status of this engagement?

I began working with them in 2008 and I have no plans to stop working with them. I was worried about the transition to NextLeft when the predecessor company folded, but they took all their reporting structures and methodologies for premium link-building over to NextLeft with them and it’s been completely seamless.

RESULTS & FEEDBACK

Could you share any evidence that would demonstrate the productivity, quality of work, or the impact of the engagement?

You can really tell how effective their work is. We’ve had various degrees of success with different projects and different clients, but to give you an example, I invested in a small boutique loudspeaker company that was founded 25 years ago by a close friend of mine. Because of the electronics industry consolidating in big box retail, a lot of the mom and pop electronics stores are drying up and going away. So I recapitalized the company and they asked me to be the CEO. We reinvented the company as a web-only business. We fired all of our distributors, canceled our rep contracts and built an extranet for our dealers to buy at dealer costs directly from the company. And then after about six months, we opened a direct-to-consumer e-commerce site. We didn’t have any money to spend on SEO, so I went to NextLeft and we put together a program. We almost quadrupled our web traffic in an 18-month period with nothing other than SEO and premium link-building.

And that’s not even the most successful program we had. My biggest client right now is a brick-and-mortar retailer that dominates their tiny market of audio, video, and electronics, but they also have a website that’s been around since 2001 or 2002. They have an excellent site. I’ve been working with them on premium link-building for 2.5 years. I basically run their entire SEO program. They’ve increased their page rankings and visibility massively. They’re a tiny company in terms of employees, but they’re ahead of Best Buy in some categories in terms of page rankings on critical electronics keywords. We’ve taken them from nothing, no keyword ranking on the front page, to about 40 keywords on the front page and a couple dozen in the top three rankings. The owner of the company is ecstatic with the results of both my services and NextLeft’s.

How did NextLeft perform from a project management standpoint?

I’ve dealt with a number of different companies as a client, and NextLeft is in the 90^th percentile in terms of responsiveness. Their monthly reports are very helpful in terms of communicating progress to my clients.

What did you find most impressive about NextLeft?

There are two reasons why we’ve been so successful with them. The first is that they really try and understand the business goal rather than just doing keyword research mechanically. Second, they have really good systems in place. They have very sophisticated software that analyzes hundreds of thousands of sites for Google authority score, and then when they identify them they actually have a team of people that goes in and manually ranks pages for authority, and contacts the webmasters of those sites in person to select the pages and the premium outgoing links from their site. They also work on anchor text and stuff like that, and that level of detail and that hybrid approach with sophisticated proprietary software plus actual human interaction – it’s why they’re so successful.

Are there any areas NextLeft could improve?

This is totally understandable, but they rely a lot on the automated system that they use for reporting. I’m digging deep to find a negative, but if I had to pick something, I would say that more times than I’m happy with, there have been some technical errors in the reports that they missed before they presented them to me. But that’s really nitpicky.

What tips or recommendations could you share that might increase the likelihood of success with NextLeft?

I trust the people at NextLeft, so I always recommend that when my clients engage with NextLeft that they be completely open with their data, particularly in the electronics industry. There’s the parochialism that exists where people are very hesitant to share any data. In most industries, everybody’s partnering with everybody else and data is very open, but the electronics industry is very close-mouthed with it comes to sharing data. I’ve encouraged all of my clients that they way to be effective with a company like NextLeft is to give them access to your dashboards and Google Analytics and let them see the good with the bad. They’ll do a better job.

BACKGROUND

Introduce your business and what you do there.

We are an umbrella company for a number of worldwide logistics businesses.

I am the SEO [search engine optimization] and content manager of the group. I am also the product owner for all customer-facing web assets, as well as internal customer tools.

OPPORTUNITY / CHALLENGE

What challenge were you trying to address with NextLeft?

We needed help gaining visibility for 2 of our brands.

SOLUTION

What was the scope of their involvement?

NextLeft has provided consulting around keyword targeting and content development. They've developed promotional plans and performed research around customer personas and prevailing search trends. NextLeft is also constantly link building for us. Whenever we undergo large content campaigns, NextLeft provides influencer outreach services for us.

How did you come to work with NextLeft?

We had been working with another agency in San Diego. After it went bankrupt, a part of the team we were using went to NextLeft. My primary decision making factor was the level of trust we'd gained in those resources; they knew our account. I also liked the idea of working with a smaller agency, one which would not relegate us to low-level coordinators.

How much have you invested with NextLeft?

The cost of NextLeft's services for 2017 will be between $150,000 and $200,000.

What is the status of this engagement?

We started working with NextLeft at the beginning of 2016. We have an ongoing contract, which was renewed for all of 2017.

RESULTS & FEEDBACK

Could you share any evidence that would demonstrate the productivity, quality of work, or the impact of the engagement?

I don't have any specific feedback around our results. There is a level of internal bureaucracy which keeps us from posting big numbers, but NextLeft has done an amazing job with the research presented to us. Our ability to turn that around and shake the earth with it is limited, but since engaging with NextLeft, they've guided us in the right direction in terms of trends. NextLeft is a trusted consultant when it comes to planning and making decisions. They've helped underscore our plans moving forward.

How did NextLeft perform from a project management standpoint?

I've enjoyed working with a small team. We've gotten a lot of value out of the brainstorming with NextLeft because of their small scale.

What did you find most impressive about NextLeft?

My main contact from NextLeft is their VP, who knows SEO as well as her counterparts. Whenever we hop on a call, we can obtain a lot more perspective from NextLeft's team than from other agencies whose principals only act as go-betweens.

Are there any areas NextLeft could improve?

Not that I can tell.

What tips or recommendations could you share that might increase the likelihood of success with NextLeft?

Because of NextLeft's ability, as a small team, to be reactive, creative, and collaborative, potential clients should give them as much autonomy as possible. Giving NextLeft the freedom to create will yield more from the team.

BACKGROUND

Please describe your company and position.

I am the Marketing Director of Torrey Holistics

Describe what your company does in a single sentence.

4-location Cannabis Dispensary in California

OPPORTUNITY / CHALLENGE

What specific goals or objectives did you hire NextLeft to accomplish?

• SEO optimization of core webpages
• Google My Business optmization
• SEO content creation

SOLUTION

How did you find NextLeft?

Online Search

Why did you select NextLeft over others?

• Pricing fit our budget
• Great culture fit

How many teammates from NextLeft were assigned to this project?

1 Employee

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

We contracted NextLeft to assist with a variety of SEO projects, including GMB optimization, SEO content creation, and SEO focused website optimization

RESULTS & FEEDBACK

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

We've seen an immediate uptick in numerous SEO metrics (traffic, ranking keywords, etc)

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

NextLeft has been perfectly punctual and communicative throughout the entire process. VERY impressed.

What was your primary form of communication with NextLeft?

Virtual Meeting

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

They're honestly just wonderful people to work with. The results are good, and the entire process has been smooth.

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

No areas for improvement.

BACKGROUND

Please describe your company and position.

I am the Marketing Manager of Propeller Industries

Describe what your company does in a single sentence.

Propeller Industries is an enterprise-grade financial partner that provides a fractional model workforce solution as a cost-effective alternative to hiring full-time finance talent too early.

OPPORTUNITY / CHALLENGE

What specific goals or objectives did you hire NextLeft to accomplish?

• Improve website SEO
• Increase organic website traffic
• Redesign website

SOLUTION

How did you find NextLeft?

Online Search

Why did you select NextLeft over others?

• High ratings
• Pricing fit our budget
• Great culture fit
• Company values aligned

How many teammates from NextLeft were assigned to this project?

2-5 Employees

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

• Category keyword research & SERP analysis
• metadata recommendations
• information architecture
• core web vitals audit
• ongoing strategy & consulting
• technical work
• monthly SEO report & analysis
• citation management
• Google My Business audit & best practices
• existing content audit
• article content keyword research
• article content briefs, article content development
• account & project management
• Google Ads audit and recommendations
• website redesign

RESULTS & FEEDBACK

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

Increased organic website traffic, higher SEO rankings on Google searches, increased lead form submissions from prospects that found us through organic search.

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

NextLeft provided a content roadmap that outlined the deliverables that could be expected from them and their due date. They have stuck to the provided timeline, even as things were delayed on our end. If we had any new ideas that we wanted implemented, they worked with us to make them come to life in the most technically sound way.

What was your primary form of communication with NextLeft?

Virtual Meeting

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

We love working with the NextLeft team members. The energy and expertise they bring to every meeting is invaluable and makes the relationship easy.

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

N/A