Plug Digital

BACKGROUND

Introduce your business and what you do there.

I’m the senior creative lead of a startup company in the fertility space. I’m also in charge of our marketing because we’re a small business still. Among other functions, I oversee our web design and development, our social media, our email marketing, and other marketing efforts that involve a creative output.

OPPORTUNITY / CHALLENGE

What challenge were you trying to address with Plug Digital?

We needed help with web development and UI/UX design.

SOLUTION

What was the scope of their involvement?

Plug Digital has been in charge of our Shopify site’s development and the UI/UX design behind it. When they joined, we already had a site that was built by another company, but they’ve taken over and improved it. Throughout our engagement, we’ve worked on an ongoingly wide variety of projects, averaging 1–2 projects per month.

These projects have ranged from small edits to the site, such as adding buttons or making small changes, to complete web page designs. For example, Plug Digital created the science page of our site, and they’ve recently integrated us with an app for reviews. Occasionally, they also do some backend work, like setting up our Google Analytics for tracking data.

What is the team composition?

I work directly with Liani (UX Strategist & Project Manager). I’ve also talked with Jessica (Director of Operations).

How did you come to work with Plug Digital?

I believe that my teammates found them through Shopify as recommended developers, but I’m not entirely sure. I know that the process also included posting a job offer on Upwork.

How much have you invested with them?

We spend at least $1,800 per month. So far, we’ve spent around $20,000–$30,000.

What is the status of this engagement?

We started working together in September 2021, and our engagement is ongoing.

RESULTS & FEEDBACK

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

Plug Digital’s work has been amazing — they’ve exceeded our expectations. They do their work very independently, so we don’t need to jump in or double-check their work. They’ve even helped us fix bugs our previous agency left on the site.

Over our engagement I’ve seen an increase in our conversion rate, going from 1.5%–2%. Unfortunately, we had some issues with the ad work done by a different company, so I don’t have other metrics I can share because it wouldn’t be fair to attribute those to Plug Digital.

How did Plug Digital perform from a project management standpoint?

Working with Plug Digital is very easy. We use Asana to manage the project, where I can go in and assign the tasks we need to get done. Then, they go in, add the estimated work hours needed to complete the tasks, and keep track of the hours spent.

We have Plug Digital on a retainer, so working through Asana helps us see how many hours we’re spending and detect when we go above the hours agreed. Everything is very transparent.

Additionally, Plug Digital is good at meeting deadlines. There have been only a couple of occasions when the deadlines are not clear, and they’ve taken a little longer than expected. Still, we’re very satisfied overall.

We use Slack and Zoom to communicate. We usually have monthly check-ins, but Plug Digital is open to jumping on a quick call if there’s an emergency. Additionally, I usually chat with Liani.

What did you find most impressive about them?

Plug Digital is very thorough, and they have a great QA system. We’ve worked with other agencies in the past that didn’t check their work, and some things were poorly done. 

Are there any areas they could improve?

We’ve had very small hiccups with things that didn’t go live immediately, which could have been improved. For example, we set up an out-of-stock system that didn’t go active immediately. Still, it was just a small error. Other than that, it would have been great if they had been more communicative throughout the design process, but we were ultimately very satisfied with that work.

Do you have any advice for potential customers?

Set up your own project management system and have one person within your team handle the collaboration. Additionally, ensure that you communicate everything upfront; the more information you provide them with, the more they’ll succeed in the project.

BACKGROUND

Please describe your company and your position there.

CEO Velasquez Family Coffee - we sell coffee grown by our family in Honduras.

OPPORTUNITY / CHALLENGE

For what projects/services did your company hire Plug Digital?

They helped us set up ReCharge subscription services through our Shopify website shopping cart.

What were your goals for this project?

Migration to new subscription payment service through ReCharge.

SOLUTION

How did you select this vendor?

Found them through Shopify Experts.

Describe the project in detail.

Set up and migration of customer and payment information from our previous payment vendor.

What was the team composition?

We had one primary contact from Plug Digital. Not sure how many people in the team were involved.

RESULTS & FEEDBACK

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

We loved working with Plug Digital. They have been great partners as we migrated to a new Shopify subscription service through ReCharge.

How effective was the workflow between your team and theirs?

Easy communication. Questions answered quickly.

What did you find most impressive about this company?

They quickly and efficiently addressed all the little details and answered my many questions.

Are there any areas for improvement?

Nope