Olive Street Design

Please describe your company and your position there.

It's Simply Lindsay is a for-profit lifestyle blog. I'm the creator, writer, and influencer of the brand.

For what projects/services did your company hire Olive Street Design?

I needed web design and development for the blog.

What were your goals for this project?

I wanted to create a functional, beautiful blog and have it essentially be the catalyst for my brand.

How did you select this vendor?

After meeting with their designer, she took my vision and spun her own into a mock-up. After that, I was instantly sold. They were so easy and enjoyable to work with and most importantly, they really came through.

Describe the project in detail.

The designer created a mock-up of my blog, sent it to me for approval and edits, and then it was sent to development. They trained me on WordPress so that I would know how to use it.

What was the team composition?

They provided a web designer, a web developer, and a project manager.

What outcomes or results can you share that demonstrate progress and/or success?

I was blown away by the initial design, and in fact, other bloggers and my audience felt the same way. My blog looked different from all the rest in my niche. I grew from a new blog to 10,000 monthly page views in only six months.

How effective was the project management?

I was extremely impressed with the easy communication we had.

What did you find most impressive about this company?

Their designer's skills are remarkable.

Introduce your business and what you do there.

I'm the executive vice president of the Mechanical Contractors Association of Chicago.

What challenge were you trying to address with Olive Street Design?

We were winding down a long-term relationship with a public relations company that hosted and maintained our site, and needed to rebuild our site quickly. We wanted a site that was more user-friendly and allowed us to manage it directly.

What was the scope of their involvement?

They recreated our website from scratch using WordPress. We wanted something clean and easy to use, and this was more efficient than trying to piece together legacy content.

For the design process, we provided them with information about us and our goals. We used Google Docs to exchange thoughts about the site content, audience needs, and design elements. Due to the aesthetic changes, they redesigned our logo to match the tenor of the new site. They also helped us with SEO and connected us with a contact who provided additional feedback about our social media presence.

One of their biggest tasks was to help us simplify how our content was organized. We have two major audience groups, so they set up links for mechanical contractors versus customers looking to hire a contractor. They also created a dynamic filter that lets end users sort through prospective contractors and drill down to match their specific needs.

What is the team dynamic?

We worked with nearly all their staff at some point or another.

How did you come to work with Olive Street?

I saw their logo on a site with a design I liked. We checked out several other companies, but Olive Street had the best prices, and we were excited that they were local, so we moved forward with them.

What is the status of this engagement?

The project started in November 2016 and lasted about 6 weeks.

How much have you invested with them?

About $18,000.

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

Our site looks better and it's easier to navigate. People are calling our office less because they’re able to find the information they need.

How did Olive Street perform from a project management standpoint?

They’re fantastic. They work on about 80 websites per week, so they're very efficient with each project because they’ve committed to multiple other deadlines.

What did you find most impressive about them?

It's a close-knit family business, so their staff works well as a team and their business culture is customer-oriented. They also really focus on making your site connect with your audience, and communicate well when making design recommendations.

Introduce your business and what you do there.

I’m the CEO of Argus Magnetics. We’re a magnet company. We import and resell industrial magnets 95% in the United States, but all over the world.

What challenge were you trying to address with Olive Street Design?

I needed a website redesign after purchasing an existing company. I had a website that wasn’t very good. My first task was to recreate the existing website in a much better-looking fashion. We wanted to get that switched over as quickly as possible.

What was the scope of their involvement?

Olive Street built a website for us in a couple of weeks, which was very helful. We went on from there over the years. We’ve changed the site on a regular basis. We’ve changed the look and the feel. They were fully responsible for that. I didn’t give them too much other than we would look at competitor’s sites and things like that. I’d meet with Nat [Principal & Chief Creative Director, Olive Street Design] and look at things that we liked or disliked. It gave them a general direction and they took it from there. When the product became more of a final product before it launched, I would add my critique and tell them if I wanted any changes. There wasn’t much of my input involved in the process. We’ve done SEO, advertising, and landing pages. That has helped us to have a nice presence on the web.

The original site was a five or six informational site. We started expanding the site every three, six, nine months. We revisit, add pages, products, and information. We’ve been doing SEO with them for over a year, which we’d never been doing before. They did a nice job being able to provide the full range of services.

I also wanted pictures of our products on the site. Magnets aren’t a very popular item. It’s not something a lot of people know about or sell. We had to take custom pictures of everything on our site. They were able to provide a photographer to take all of those and integrate them the way that I wanted so they looked good. 

They helped with action steps that I wanted. How do I want people to contact me? I don’t necessarily want my phone ringing off the hook. I prefer contact through emails and contact forms because a lot of times people are sending me drawings as well as their guidance on how to target specific types of customers that I’m looking for. An example, I don’t want a million small customers buying $50 from me all the time. I’m looking for large manufacturing organizations. We were looking at those and how to direct those people to find my site.

They also redesigned my logo from the beginning. We’ve modified it just slightly since then. They came up with all of that. I told them what I was thinking and they’ve done that. They provide business cards. They’ve done advertising with flyers and stuff for trade shows. They did magnetic business cards, which is actually funny. I haven’t done a tremendous amount of print stuff with them other than flyers and business cards.

How did you come to work with Olive Street Design?

Nat [Principal & Chief Creative Director, Olive Street Design] and Olive Street have helped me with multiple businesses that I own over the last seven to eight years. I go to them because they do a really good job. They’re reasonably priced and they do the work quickly. When they say it’s going to be done in 30 days, it’s done in 30 days. I went to him when I purchased this business.

I originally found them through a friend’s recommendation. I started talking with Nat, and it went from there. I interviewed several companies. I contacted a well-known company here in Chicago about the site that I wanted to build and they quoted me a price and a lead time that was outrageous. I had a similar experience with another company. It was quite expensive. I spoke to Nat [Principal & Chief Creative Director, Olive Street Design] and he quoted me a price and said he could have it up and running in less than 30 days. That’s how we started. The biggest thing I like about them is everything is fast. I don’t want to talk about changes to my website and see them happen 90 or 180 days later. Even small changes are done quickly.

How much have you invested with them?

Less than $10,000.

What is the status of this engagement?

We started working together in April 2014. We made the website passable within a couple of months from then. There’s been two to three times since then we have made changes to the site. The last change was about six months ago to get where it currently is. It’s been a three-year process, but it only takes them two to three weeks each time to do what I’m asking.

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

We were getting absolutely no leads from the web before we started. Nat manages most of that for me and we talk every three to six months about how the site is doing, the traffic is going, and what kind of traffic we’re generating. I measure it by the quality of the leads that I’m getting. When we first started, I started getting a lot of inquiries. Most of them were from other manufacturers in China, where I buy my magnets, who are just trying to sell to me.

Before, a lot of people were looking to ask a question or some university contacting me who wanted one magnet or something like that. Now, our leads are qualified.
 

How did Olive Street Design perform from a project management standpoint?

They perform very well. I couldn’t be happier. It’s a very easy process when we want to get things changed. Whether I deal with Nat himself or some of the designers. He usually brings in whoever is going to be working on that particular part of the project of what we’re doing. I explain to them what I want and it’s done.

What did you find most impressive about them?

Other than how quickly they do things; their prices are very reasonable. They don’t overcharge for work that’s performed. Every time that we talk about whether it’s two hours’ worth of changes or two weeks’ worth of changes, I’ve never been shocked by a price. They’re very honest about the amount of time spent on the project. I also like that Nat does what he says he’s going to do, which is important to me. If he tells me an update is going to be $3,000, will take three weeks, and tells me what he needs from me, I provide him the stuff and less than three weeks later, and for not $1 more than $3,000, it’s done. They do what they say they’re going to do. They’re on time and on budget.

Are there any areas they could improve?

No, I’ve been very happy with everything.

Introduce your business and what you do there.

I am the managing partner of SBR Events Group, and the director of culinary for our catering companies. We are a group of three different companies, including an event and decor company.

What challenge were you trying to address with Olive Street Design?

We wanted all of our websites to be unique to their brand, but also have consistency across the group, so it was clear we were the same company. We also wanted to update our web presence. All our websites were out of date and we needed to bring them into 2017.

What was the scope of their involvement? 

We had a meeting and we looked through other websites, letting them know what we liked and didn’t like. We then provided them with pictures and content for our website. Through those meetings and with that content, they were able to develop what we wanted. They took our ideas from what we had on paper and brought them to life. With some tweaking after they got started, we were able to get the results fairly easily.

One feature that was important for us was to have our websites be mobile-ready, allowing them to be converted for a tablet, phone, or desktop. We wanted people to be able to click-to-call straight from the site on their phone. This was a big change for us. It’s still a basic website, but we wanted it to be aesthetically pleasing, user-friendly, and suitable to use on all devices. They were able to meet those needs.

They also did some SEO work for us, in addition to creating some copy on the pages; they worked together with our marketing director for that.

How did you come to work with Olive Street Design?

The previous owners of the company recommended them to us.

How much have you invested in them?

About $10,000.

What is the status of this engagement?

We started working with them in March 2016 and the work is ongoing.

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

The websites have definitely benefited our business. We get leads from them, people tell me the sites look great, and I am happy with the way they look. They are current and really show our brands. I think they did a great job under the direction of our team.

How did Olive Street Design perform from a project management standpoint?

They combined what they know with the direction of our team, and the end result was great. They were responsive as well.

What did you find most impressive about them?

They are personable and easy to talk to. When I need something, I reach out to Nat, who is the owner, and he takes care of me. We have a good relationship. For the most part, they are accessible, and that is huge for me in the IT world, because other companies we work with can be hard to get direct contact with, but that is not the case with them.

Are there any areas they could improve?

Their content creation and ability to work without as much direction. I don’t know how realistic that is for those type of companies, but it would be great if I could tell them what I want and have them do it, instead of it being a team effort to get to where we wanted to go.

Introduce your business and what you do there.

I am the director of marketing at Anthony Michael Interior Design, Ltd., a high-end residential interior design firm.

What challenge were you trying to address with Olive Street Design?

Our goal was to create a brand identity in a competitive industry and in a larger market share in Chicago.

What was the scope of their involvement?

We have worked with Olive Street Studios for a couple of years. They handle our website, landing pages, print, media, press kits, and business cards.

They helped us fine-tune and tailor our website. They completely redesigned it, added separate pages regarding press, and created specific landing pages for people to find us through Google searches. We revamped our entire image and branding through them. We constantly update the press portion of the site to include new magazines and publications that we have been featured in. These are added with links that take the viewer directly to the magazine article. We also added headshots, bios, and profiles of our staff. We really took things up a notch with Olive Street Studios.

Their creative team of a lot of younger people can easily answer my questions and handle the tech portion of things. In addition to redesigning the website, they also take care of all the analytics and keep me updated on SEO. They show me what keywords people are using to find us, how many visits we are getting to our site, and how long they are on the site, as well as how our site is doing in comparison to our competitors’ sites in the Chicago market. They also show us our national ranking for websites in that market.

How did you come to work with Olive Street Design?

We found Olive Street Design through their great reputation. They are a small, hands-on firm, and we were referred through long-time friends.

How much have you invested in them?

We have spent upwards of $10,000 with them.

What is the status of this engagement?

They have been working with our firm for years, but I personally started working with them seven months ago. The work is ongoing on an almost daily basis.

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

When I meet with them in person, they show me how our website is doing in comparison to our closest competitor. This comparison offers me insight into things that we should do and things that we do correctly.

Nat, the owner, suggested creating landing pages. We have a landing page for our target area in Chicago that pleased us with 26 views last month, almost one per day.

How did Olive Street Design perform from a project management standpoint?

I act as the project manager. They do what I ask them to do, and they offer their input as well as suggestions. They are great and always efficient; they get things done. They are very agreeable to make changes. I throw a lot at them last minute, and they always respond quickly.

What did you find most impressive about them?

They are small, creative, and local. They are a very forward-thinking firm.

Are there any areas they could improve?

We have had our ups and downs, but overall things have gone very well.

I receive calls daily from other firms that want our business; they want to show us what we are doing wrong and how we can improve on it. I meet with them, but none compare to what Olive Tree is doing for our company. We are happy with them.

Introduce your business and what you do there.

Tricoci University of Beauty Culture is a premier beauty education provider for cosmetology, aesthetics, manicuring, and barbering. I’m the VP of marketing and communications.

What challenge were you trying to address with Olive Street Design?

We needed a new website. Ours was outdated and hard to navigate. 

What was the scope of their involvement?

We worked with Olive Street Design to create the architecture for the site. We did a complete revamp of our website with a responsive design, new navigation, and a site rollout based on our true brand standards.

We gave them a navigation map of how we would like the site to be structured and they did the wireframes, the design, etc. We provided imagery assets and a 14-page brand standards guideline for the company. Some of the special features include building out multiple lead forms that would integrate with our CRM [customer relationship management] system. We coded each form differently so we could tell where the leads were coming from on the site. We built our site on WordPress which has been much easier for our marketing manager to use. We have a custom image gallery, a custom video gallery, and a social media wall. We provided all the content and we handle the majority of the SEO [search engine optimization]. They provide feedback annually so we know what’s going with our keywords and other SEO work. They’ve also designed five custom vehicle wraps.

They helped us through the whole design process and development. They continue to work with us on backend development for when we need to make updates that are outside of our current online marketing manager’s capabilities.

How did you come to work with Olive Street Design?

My marketing manager had worked with them on other projects. When we put the project out to bid, they seemed to understand what we were looking for and were willing to put in the time to understand our brand and deliver what we wanted. Other firms were not as adept at creating the brand we wanted or they were trying to have the website do something different than what we wanted.

How much have you invested with Olive Street Design?

We’ve spent between $10,000 and $50,000 with them in total.

What is the status of this engagement?

We started working with them in the spring of 2015 and the work was completed in three months. They provide ongoing support for the website and we’ve also used them for other projects.

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

We’ve seen our traffic more than double compared to our previous site. The engagement is up quite a bit and the bounce rate is down by 10%. The inquiries we receive through our website have gone up about 50% year over year.

How did Olive Street Design perform from a project management standpoint?

They delivered on time and were very easy to work with. They gave us consistent updates, and if they needed anything from us, they let us know. We didn’t feel like we had to manage them.

What did you find most impressive about Olive Street Design?

They delivered on what was promised. They met the deadlines and had a sense of urgency to do so. They were very easy to work with. I really appreciate their willingness to go into a new industry vertical and really understand the business and what will work for that specific industry.

Are there any areas Olive Street Design could improve?

I don’t think I’ve been involved in a complete website overhaul that has gone as smoothly and seamlessly as this one.

Please describe your company and your position there.

I'm a senior contractor at a roofing and construction company. I supported the company in reinvigorating our website and promotional advertising.

For what projects/services did your company hire Olive Street Design?

They were hired to do website design, advertisement development, and campaign.

What were your goals for this project?

They were to give RX Roofing a new look in the market place to promote top-line sales.

How did you select this vendor?

They are a local vendor in Villa Park.

Describe the project in detail.

Olive Street consulted us with website development, field sign designs, business cards design, and administrative carbon copies of contracts for sales crew in the field.

What was the team composition?

Nat was the lead and receive help from various people on his team dedicated to the website design, field signs, and business cards. All members were very professional with prompt responses when we had questions.

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

We have started seeing more web traffic through our website.

How effective was the workflow between your team and theirs?

They have a very effective workflow and used multiple channels of communication such as Zoom, calls, and email.

What did you find most impressive about this company?

They are dedicated subject matter experts.

Are there any areas for improvement?

None that I can say.

Please describe your company and your position there.

I am the founder and president of Tylmen Ties, a men's accessories company focused on empowerment and sustainability of consumer apparel.

For what projects/services did your company hire Olive Street Design?

We hired Olive Street to bring life to our website, mission, and product offerings.

What were your goals for this project?

Our goal was to increase the awareness of the products that we produce in the US and increase more traffic to the site.

How did you select this vendor?

I was referred to them by a former client of theirs.

Describe the project in detail.

They took our current website layout and completed restructured our site to be more visually appealing, detail-oriented, and presentable for our millennial consumer base.

What was the team composition?

Nat assigned Kristin and Dylan to lead this project.

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

Since having our site refurbished, we have seen an increase in activity with our sales and daily traffic! We are still in the early stages and I am positive our numbers will continue to grow.

How effective was the workflow between your team and theirs?

They were very responsive and worked diligently. We finished ahead of schedule.

What did you find most impressive about this company?

I found Nat's dedication to his client's most impressive. He will always go the extra mile to make sure his clients are completely satisfied.

Are there any areas for improvement?

None that I can think of. They were easy to work with. 5 stars.

Please describe your company and your position there.

Dental office that has been in operation for well over 25 plus years. I am the doctor / owner.

For what projects/services did your company hire Olive Street Design ?

Hired Olive Street Design to design our office website

What were your goals for this project?

Goals are to inform and educate the public of what our dental office has to offer.

How did you select this vendor?

Recommended by a mutual friend.

Describe the project in detail.

Project without many words is for Olive to design a website that is geared towards all aspects of dentistry.

What was the team composition?

Olive design has all the team composition figured out.

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

Progress was a slow growth with steady success of bringing new patients.

How effective was the workflow between your team and theirs?

The workflow is excellent.

What did you find most impressive about this company?

Their designs are user-friendly, and the team is very approachable.

Are there any areas for improvement?

None

Please describe your company and your position there.

I am the owner and CEO of Oostas, LLC, a small business web and online marketing business.

For what projects/services did your company hire Olive Street Design?

They handle all of our website design projects.

What were your goals for this project?

We wanted high-quality web design delivered on time at an affordable rate.

Describe the project in detail.

Olive Street is currently working on six sites for us, and they have completed nearly 10 others. They have allowed us to white label most of the web design we’ve outsourced to them.

What was the team composition?

We work directly with Nat (Founder, Principal & Creative Director, Olive Street Design). We also worked with Kristin (Designer and Developer), Dylan (Web Developer and Designer), and Lindsay (Senior Content Manager).

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

Our customers have been very happy with the quality of the finished websites. Nat and his team do incredible work and we expect to continue working together.

How effective was the workflow between your team and theirs?

Nat is very focused on goals and is not a detail-oriented person, so we've had to go back and forth to make sure details are covered, but it always works out.

What did you find most impressive about this company?

Their combination of price, quality, and customer service stands out.

Are there any areas for improvement?

No, we’re completely satisfied.