Shout Digital

BACKGROUND

Please describe your company and your position there.

I am the co-owner and director of a holistic healthfood and supplements company. My core focuses are on product research & creation, growth and development.

OPPORTUNITY / CHALLENGE

For what projects/services did your company hire Shout Digital, and what were your goals?

We hired Shout Digital to provide and execute a strategy to help our our company to be discovered online. This included an SEO strategy to improve our google rankings as well as a PPC strategy to help drive traffic to our e-commerce store.

SOLUTION

How did you select this vendor and what were the deciding factors?

We selected Shout after an initial meeting to discuss our goals and what they believed they could achieve for our company if we were to engage them. This meeting was very informative and offered us insight into the strategy that would work best for us at this infant stage of our business. In this meeting, they also presented examples of what they had been able to achieve for existing clients and the relevance to our specific goals. As a new business, it can be daunting committing to lock-in contracts, especially when we are unsure what the results will be, and do not have insight into the tangible tasks that are being performed as they are outside of our skillset.

Trust and transparency played a big role in our selection, particularly as we had had a poor previous experience with another agency in the past. Shout made us feel comfortable with the service they were providing by making themselves available and answering any questions as we would ask them. This helped us to gain insight into what we were receiving within the contract. One of the biggest deciding factors in our selection was Shout's high client retention rate which indicated that they can deliver on what they are promising.

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

We began our journey with a discovery phase where Shout learnt more about our business model, ethos, demographic, competitors, tone of voice, and objectives. We responded to a series of questions so that Shout could better position their strategy. From here, Shout researched our keywords as well as suggested additional keywords worthy of targeting. Shout also performed a technical audit of our website and offered insights into how to improve operability and page speed. Key deliverables were established, including the rankings we wished to achieve and cost per conversion rates we wanted to aim for.

Each month, Shout meet with us to determine objectives for the month and ongoingly offer suggestions to improve our rankings and website traffic. Objectives evolve each month as our business grows. For example, we may target keywords for particular products each month through the positioning of our outreach links, dependent on product availability and which products we are focusing. Shout have been fantastic at identifying ways to alter the strategy in response to our growth as necessary (especially in response to inventory levels etc as a new company), particularly with our PPC campaigns.

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

Shout's Director assigned a project manager (Client Success Manager) to our team who is a perfect fit for us. Our project manager meets with us monthly, as well as being responsive and proactive throughout the month in response to our objectives. Our project manager then allocates tasks to the team which consists of 1 x SEO manager (head of SEO) and 1 x PPC manager (paid search director).

RESULTS & FEEDBACK

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

Since commencing our SEO strategy, we have seen consistent results in our SEO rankings, with 28 Keywords ranking 1-3. We are significantly out preforming our competitors with rankings. PPC has achieved a $10 Cost per conversion and our conversion rate continues to improve.

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

Our project manager (Jane) has been incredibly communicative and helpful. We meet with Jane monthly for a structured WIP and appreciate Jane’s evident commitment and genuine excitement to facilitate growth for Cell Squared. We ordinarily communicate via email, however all project team members have always made themselves available via VC as needed. All team members are quick to respond to our questions and always offer assistance as we navigate unfamiliar territory as a business.

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

Before engaging Shout, their standout results with companies of all sizes really stood out for us, alongside their client retainment rate. Since working with Shout, the results they have achieved for us in only 6 months speak for themselves. Being in the infant stages of our business, we greatly appreciate the time they take to educate and guide us through each of the steps in the process. Shout are engaged and genuinely motivated to see our business succeed.

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

The only thing that could have been improved is if our project manager had been appointed earlier. Resources seemed to be a little stretched at the time of engagement, however having a dedicated project manager has really helped to streamline objectives and deliverables to achieve them.

BACKGROUND

Please describe your company and your position there.

I am the Atomic Group e-commerce manager leading the digital offer for Marketing and e-Commerce across multiple brands under the Atomic Group banner; Sportsco, Homyped and Comfort & Fit. I am responsible for managing all aspects of digital, including; digital strategy, user experience, technology implementation, digital and traditional marketing, marketplace integration as well website maintenance, design and delivery across multiple Magento and WordPress sites.

OPPORTUNITY / CHALLENGE

For what projects/services did your company hire Shout Digital, and what were your goals?

We had been with a few different agencies and needed a pro-active and results based agency with experience in growing the our organic presence and maximising our ROI in Google Ad Spend.

SOLUTION

How did you select this vendor and what were the deciding factors?

We had some of the services aligned already (SEO for one brand) and was working with another agency that was not proactive and we were always very happy with the level of detail and care given to us by SHOUT and was very impressed with Michaels (and SHOUTS) depth of knowledge and experience. We had no hesitation in moving across other accounts and brands and now SHOUT looks after all our brands.

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

With shout we have fortnightly meetings to discuss initiatives and goals and review the results. We incorporate SEO ranking changes, PPC ROI and organic visibility. Examining opportunities constantly for link building, outreach and content development.

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

Shout allocated an account manager, PPC manager and SEO Specialist but I also had access to the Director when I needed to.

RESULTS & FEEDBACK

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

Our results have flourished since changing from other agencies to Shout; Our SEO results continue to be strong with first page results for many of our important keywords and our PPC results continue to grow with ROAS growing every month. They are always proactive in working with us to continually refine and grow our brands presence.

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

Its great that they are always prompt with professional and detailed monthly reports and with regular meetings - I am always kept in the loop with our areas of development and our improvement. They are always happy to facilitate ad-hoc meetings to discuss key initiatives.

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

Shouts experience and expertise are second to none in the industry - I have an agency background myself so it was important to be with an agency that are best in class at what they do. Michael and his staff are always very knowledgeable in their field and I feel confident to trust that they will deliver results for our brands.

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

Agencies can always improve with more contact but we are all busy people - I am happy with the level of support they provide.

BACKGROUND

Please describe your company and your position there.

Peaches Pilates is a collection of boutique Pilates studios located in Sydney and Byron Bay. We also run a digital Pilates platform with several thousand subscribers located in over 50 countries around the world. I am one of owners of Peaches and am responsible for all marketing, communications and driving growth of the business.

OPPORTUNITY / CHALLENGE

For what projects/services did your company hire Shout Digital, and what were your goals?

We had achieved great organic growth with our subscriber count to our online platform launching iOS and Android apps and developing a small but profitable revenue stream. It was time to increase paid media to outgrow our churn rate and grow the business to the next level. Our SEO also needed a lot of work so we employed Shout to handle SEO, SEM and paid social for us.

SOLUTION

How did you select this vendor and what were the deciding factors?

Everyone has a great website these days and it can be hard to know what you're looking at when searching for a new agency as they all sell you on the same things. So I always look for case studies. Shout has worked with some great clients and they had a notable case study in Sam Wood that was highly successful and relevant to our business. This gave me confidence that they would have industry specific expertise and be able to add significant value to our business. I also liked the fact that I would have direct access to senior staff and that those staff had excellent resumes themselves. Mark - head of SEM - for example was previously employed at Google.

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

The goal was to double our online subscriber base and continue to outgrow churn via a paid social and SEM campaign and to simultaneously make us more discoverable via improved SEO. Shout started with an audit of our website, social etc along with analysing the market and developing key search terms for our products and services. We then collaboratively developed the SEO strategy along with social creative and launched the initial campaigns to market. This was implemented at a key moment during Australia's covid lockdowns where our online product was particularly relevant.

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

5 - head of SEM, social, SEO, account manager and Michael the director of the company.

RESULTS & FEEDBACK

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

We achieved the initial goal of doubling our subscriber count which effectively doubled our revenue as well.

How effective was the workflow between your team and theirs?

Monthly WIPs have been very successful and I have a dashboard that I refer to weekly to keep an eye on key stats.

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

Direct access to senior, experience staff rather than juniors. Turn around times have also been very quick - particularly for SEM.

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

We've had a few missed meetings and communication issues but I put a lot of this down to working remotely and the pandemic. Shout do also run some of our creative production for social media and while this is extremely helpful I think their expertise is more tailored to media management and creative production could be improved. It's very handy for a small business to have access to this though.

BACKGROUND

Please describe your company and your position there.

I am the Director of OiOi. Established in 1998, OiOi has built a strong global presence with our range of award-winning nappy bags, pram glam and nursery accessories.

OPPORTUNITY / CHALLENGE

For what projects/services did your company hire Shout Digital, and what were your goals?

We identified a huge opportunity to grow our e-commerce sales and wanted to expand our reach. We hired Shout to provide full-scale SEO services to improve our rankings and grow traffic to our existing pages. More recently, Shout has also taken over our Google Ads management.

SOLUTION

How did you select this vendor and what were the deciding factors?

Shout has lots of experience in the Nursery industry which gave us confidence to hire them. Further, we liked that they were a local SEO company here in Melbourne.

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

Looked at out Google Analytics to identify key word analysis, backlink analysis, technical audit, quick-win strategy and long-term strategies. Wrote SEO content for all of our pages which we approved with minimal changes. Also value-added with tips for increasing conversion, industry knowledge & tailored marketing advice.

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

We have worked closely with the director Michael over the past 3 years. In this time, we have also worked with team members from the SEO team (Nandeep, William etc) and Google Ads team (Mark).

RESULTS & FEEDBACK

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

Now ranking on 1st page for many key words - biggest wins were high rankings for Nappy Bags, Nappy Backpacks etc. Seen huge increase in our organic traffic.

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

Provide dashboard so we can easily track results & see progress. We have a monthly meeting to go over progress & planning. They are a very personable partner who wants to see us succeed — our success is their victory.

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

Knowledge in the nursery industry is a big stand out and they are very professional. Deliver value & don't over promise. There are lots of "cowboys" in the SEO industry and they are not one of them! Rare to find.

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

None

BACKGROUND

Please describe your company and your position there.

Private medical practice. I am the Practice Manager and co-owner.

OPPORTUNITY / CHALLENGE

For what projects/services did your company hire Shout Digital, and what were your goals?

Initially SEO and SEM management. We then decided to redevelop our website and the process was co-jointly run by Shout and myself. There advice and contacts across all of the different platforms and areas we required to get a product that we were happy with were excellent.

SOLUTION

How did you select this vendor and what were the deciding factors?

Shout were recommended to us. Ultimately after the initial meeting I enjoyed the fact that they were a smaller agency with high calibre and vastly experienced staff so we have received tailored and attentive service from day one.

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

Our engagement began with a detailed description of our business they asked a lot of questions to really understand our business and the market we work in. They looked at key words and reviewed our current situation and provided new ideas straight away. They set tangible goals for our company to reach. We worked on some areas to provide instant results such as google ad headers as well to kick start the campaigns. We have continued to refine these in line with our brand identity and position.

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

We initially had a sales contact and an account manager. This transitioned to the account manager and the assigned back end SEO and SEM person.

RESULTS & FEEDBACK

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

We are ranking 1st for most of key words. We have rankings and traffic results which are sent through every month.

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

They have been great at meeting our expectations of communicating in a timely and efficient manner.

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

We appreciate their professionalism, knowledge, and great resources. Senior experienced staff.

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

Possibly sharing a few more ideas of what other company's in other industries do or could be developed to keep developing our online brand.

BACKGROUND

Please describe your company and your position there.

I'm the Digital Manager for Sky Music Supplies in Melbourne, Australia. We sell musical instruments and accessories and offer servicing, repair and installation of new parts. We service customers both online and in a brick and mortar store.

OPPORTUNITY / CHALLENGE

For what projects/services did your company hire Shout Digital, and what were your goals?

While having some basic knowledge of SEO and SEM, we experienced limited success with organic searches, SEO and website building during the peak of lockdowns in Melbourne. We managed to pivot the entire business online, and saw an opportunity to maintain that business once we re-opened, resulting in more business across the entire store.

We wanted to build our search engine outreach overall and gain new customers as well as retaining customers.

SOLUTION

How did you select this vendor and what were the deciding factors?

We spoke with a number of similar agencies but Shout seemed to be the most honest, upfront and performance driven of the lot. We did our tests based on their previous work and theirs showed the most results.

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

They started by doing a lot of keyboard analysis before diving into implementing those keywords across the site. We sae immediate results. Since then we've continued to build this, as well as introduced ideas for more paid search marketing, EDM campaigns etc.

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

We've been in contact with 3-4. Most often it's Michael, the company Director, and more recently with Jane, our Client Success Manager. Outside of that we've had contact with staff from SEO and Paid Search teams.

RESULTS & FEEDBACK

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

We've seen a massive uptick in overall traffic and therefore conversions. Any downturns are explainable and have been addressed or added to the list of work to do to our website on our end.

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

Shout host monthly catch-ups which make us feel like we're across the work, as well as keeping them accountable for their work and results - we like that.

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

Their personal feel is great. We're aware they're a large marketing agency but we really appreciate the attention they give us and our project

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

No, we're very happy with Shout. We've had a number of other firms that have approached us and we've turned them all away.

BACKGROUND

Please describe your company and your position there.

We are a National Retailer and my role is Head of Digital.

OPPORTUNITY / CHALLENGE

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

We engaged Shout to improve our overall SEO & SEM perfomance to lift our online exposure.

SOLUTION

How did you select this vendor?

I found Michael and the team very personal, consistently bringing solutions to the table.

Describe the scope of their work in detail.

Complete website audit, developing an SEO strategy Key Word and Google Shopping strategy in line with our SEM objectives.

What was the team composition?

I am in regular contact with Michael and his senior team, discussing monthly results snd further opportunities to improve performance.

RESULTS & FEEDBACK

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

In line with Shouts recommendations, we have invested heavily in both SEO & SEM over the last 4 years, which has resulted in significant growth in traffic and conversion.

How effective was the workflow between your team and theirs?

We have a great working relationship with Michael and his senior team.

What did you find most impressive about this company?

Shout Digital was committed to fully understanding our business requirements, forging strong relationships between both organizations.

Is there any area for improvement or anything that could have been done differently?

No, it is a genuine partnership.