Solid Digital

Introduce your business and what you do there.

I’m the director of application development for a real estate investment firm.

What challenge were you trying to address with Solid Digital?

We needed assistance with new features and security updates for our resident portal.

What was the scope of their involvement?

Solid Digital mainly helped us enhance the UX of our website and implement some security updates for a number of JavaScript libraries that we use. We initially provided their team with in-depth documentation to better understand our business and requirements.

What is the team composition?

We worked with five people from their team, including the CEO, developers, and a project manager.

How did you come to work with Solid Digital?

We found Solid Digital through an online search. We decided to hire them for this project based on their experience and personalized services.

How much have you invested with them?

We’ve spent around $50,000.

What is the status of this engagement?

We worked together on this project from March—September 2022.

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

We don’t have any specific metrics to share, but can say that all of the features that Solid implemented to enhance our UX are getting used successfully.

How did Solid Digital perform from a project management standpoint?

They always delivered outputs on time and responded to our needs promptly. For communication, we used Google Hangouts, Slack, and email.

What did you find most impressive about them?

We were impressed with the quality of their work and their expertise in the different technologies that we used for this project. Overall, they were a fantastic partner — they really worked well alongside our in-house team.

Are there any areas they could improve on?

I can’t think of anything that Solid Digital could improve on.

Do you have any advice for future clients of theirs?

Treat them as an equal partner during any engagement. They offer great advice and can work well with your team!

Please describe your company and your position there.

I'm a partner at Catchword, a naming and branding agency founded in 1998 with offices in CA, NY, CO, and Calgary.

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

For many years, Catchword has been the leader in brand name development. In fact, one of our proudest achievements is having been ranked the #1 naming agency here on Clutch since 2017! However, while naming is still our core capability, since our founding nearly 25 years ago, we've undergone considerable change and growth, including the addition of new services such as brand strategy, positioning, and identity/logo development.

Unfortunately, our website didn't reflect these changes or best represent the sort of agency we've become. While it was rich in content (after all, we are 25 years old), it didn't clearly signal the range of capabilities we now posses, and it wasn't visually/aesthetically consistent with the sort of top-tier creative services and branding agency we've evolved into. For this reason, we engaged Solid Digital to create a completely new website for our agency.

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

We went through a formal RFP process. Our original list of potential partners included around 10 digital agencies, though, ultimately, our shortlist for the RFP included 5 agencies. We solicited proposals from each, conducted interviews, and submitted follow-up questions. Right from the start, we felt a strong personal connection to the folks at Solid. Jesse, the agency's co-founder, and Jessica, the agency's Engagement Manager, were both extremely personable, responsive, and eager to answer our questions and ensure we understood their process and way of working, including steps, team composition, deliverables, etc. In addition, they showed a genuine interest in understanding our business, the space in which we compete, and fed the information back to us, to demonstrate an active curiosity about the work we do and who are as people and as a firm. In short, they came across very earnest and very professional, and we felt really confident that they would do a great job on the project.

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

Rather than attempt to summarize a six-month long project and the myriad steps involved (which, honestly, would be challenging for me to do at this point), I'll just say that Solid was exceptional at managing the process, and that this is just one of the many ways in which I would say they really shine—that is, taking control of a very complex, multi-phased process and confidently guiding their client through it.

Completely reimagining and redeveloping a site with 25 years of content (not to mention, a degree of repositioning) is so much more than a creative exercise. It requires a tremendous attention to detail, and an organizational ability to track not just innumerable pieces of information, content types, web elements, etc., but the feedback being provided by the client and whether that feedback has been addressed or still needs to be addressed.

While we've redone our website several times since our founding 25 years ago, this project really drove home for me just how important a digital agency's organizational skills are—they're "process"—to the success of a project of this sort, and Solid has these skills in aces.

Now, in terms of specific process steps, but taking an enormously broad stroke to them, they included:

- An initial strategy phase, including multiple work sessions, to understand our agency and goals for the new site, including target clients and the sort of "journey" we want to take them on—i.e., the information we feel will be most important and helpful to them in order to drive their outreach.

This phase also included discussions around general positioning and how to better reflect it on the site, SEO considerations, and the introduction of wireframes mapping out our new site's page and information architecture, as well as style boards to gain insight into our team's stylistic preferences. Overall, a very thorough initial strategy phase!

A "Create" phase during which Solid developed several key page design concepts for our review and reaction. It was during this phase that we all agreed on one visual style that would inform the development of all of our key pages (I believe there were 13 of them) and form the basis for the site's overall look and feel. Naturally, there were multiple rounds to fine tune certain elements and address stylistic preferences.

After we had agreed and perfected the overall look and feel of the site, Solid began to actually develop the pages, building them out using Elementor, their preferred CMS. Again, plenty of work sessions, feedback provided in weekly check-in meetings and via Basecamp and feedback tracking sheets, etc. Throughout, Solid kept the process moving forward smoothly and barely lost track of a single detail.

Once the site, including all key and secondary pages, had been developed, Solid educated us on the use of Elementor (a new CMS for us) and prepared for launch, including developing various graphical assets consistent with our site for use in site announcement email campaigns and on social media. Naturally, there were several rounds of testing to make sure the site was functioning properly and presenting well on all devices and screen sizes—i.e., to make sure it was responsive.

This was a somewhat collaborative exercise, though we understood that Solid had checked, double-checked, and triple-checked everything to make sure there wouldn't be any surprises at launch. Again, a really broad stroke, and I'm happy to speak with prospective clients of Solid looking for greater detail into their process and how it worked out for us. In short, it worked beautifully.

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

I have to say, I was pretty darn impressed with the number of professionals and resources Solid dedicated to our project! We're a leading agency in our space, but we're not TikTok, or Starbucks, or Volkswagen (coincidentally, a few of our clients). The folks we communicated with the most and with whom we met weekly included:

• Mackenzie, Project Manager. Mackenzie was our primary point of contact and truly deft at keeping the project on schedule, humming along. In six months, I don't think she overlooked or mischaracterized a single piece of feedback we provided or failed to communicate something to the creative folk.
• Derek, Creative Director. Derek was awesome. A great creative partner in so many ways. Smart, strategic, responsive, directive but open-minded, articulate in explaining the team's reasoning for their creative and other recommendations, just a wonderful creative guide to have on this journey. Also, and like the rest of the Solid team, genuinely interested in delivering the best site possible and making sure we were happy with every element.
• Miguel, Web Desiger. Like Derek, a great partner to have on this project. While we don't know exactly how much creative work was developed by Derek versus Miguel (versus others, potentially) we believe Miguel was responsible for an awful lot of the actual design, and, of course, we're thrilled with where we landed. Also, and like the rest of the team, Miguel was super easy to work with, responsive and open-minded to our feedback, and extremely pleasant.

Other folks that were integrally involved in the process—and equally awesome—but whom we didn't see weekly included:

• Marla, Strategist and SEO guru. Marla helped us think through the SEO implications of our decisions and, actually, will continue to work with us on other organic and paid-search initiatives (we purchased additional support hours so that Solid can continue to maintain our site going forward, and our SEO initiatives will be a part of that ongoing support). Marla is awesome. Very knowledgeable, helpful, and extremely likable.
• Amber, Director of Production. Amber was more behind the scenes and generally only stepped in to address specific requests around process tweaks, and to ensure the core team was exceeding our expectations. Great personality, highly responsive, she seemed to provide general oversight of the project.
• Diana, Director of Experiences. Even more so than Amber, Diana's primary role it seemed was to ensure they had a happy on their hands (and they did!), and to help address any concerns our team might've had at any point. To that end, she solicited periodic feedback via online surveys to gain real-time insight into how things were going from the *client* perspective. A smart add-on to their process that would allow their team to pivot mid-project if necessary and based on our input, which we might've felt more comfortable providing via the online form and anonymously, rather than in meetings with the core team. Like everyone else, super friendly, responsive, and client-oriented.
• Peter, Director of Technology. Peter probably had a much bigger role throughout the project but we only got to know him toward the end of the project, as go-live drew closer. In addition to dealing with the actual site development, Peter was extremely helpful in resolving a post-launch, somewhat mysterious (!) email issue we were having. In addition to getting to the bottom of it and taking care of the problem, he was extremely pleasant to work with.

Speaking generally, like any good company or agency that's focused on culture, Solid seems to attract like-minded professionals with shared characteristics and values. Everyone on the team is really smart, professional but very personable, expert but collaborative, highly client-centric, and genuinely passionate about their work and the outcomes.

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

We just launched our site a week ago and already it's receiving high praise from clients, colleagues, and agency partners. Everyone agrees, it's an enormous step up and step forward for us and our online presence. Solid really did an amazing job of granting all our design wishes. That is, we wanted a site that reflects our creative spirit and acumen (so, a "creative" looking site) but not feel boutique (because our clients are Fortune 100 companies, and "creative" sites can often create the impression of a smaller agency not as suitable as partners for industry leaders, and that's not us).

We wanted it clean, but not sparse. Easily navigable, but journey-drive, so prospective clients with individual needs would be presented with the content in which we know they'll be they're most interested. We wanted it to feel fresh, modern, and distinct from all other agencies in our space, both visually and in terms of sophistication. And, in every way, Solid nailed it. Every box checked. The site is killer, both aesthetically and functionally, and our whole team is extremely excited and proud of what Solid produced for us.

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

I believe I probably covered this sufficiently in my other responses, but to summarize, Solid is truly one of the most organized, process-oriented, and communicative teams we've ever worked with. Completely on top of their sh*t, always keeping you in the know about next steps and upcoming milestones, nudging when necessary but always in a respectful and professional way, etc. Much of this has to do with their process, how well structured, thought out, and tested it is, and a good deal of it has to do with their PM, Mackenzie, who ensures there are no "blocks" that might impede progress or otherwise delay the project. Oh, and they didn't miss a single deadline in six months (and there were many deadlines).

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

I guess I started this review by acknowledging that, in my experience, this sort of massive website overhaul and complete "rethink" requires a combination of great creative vision, attention to detail, organization, and process rigor. Our site has literally thousands of pages and a degree of complexity that you might not expect from a creative services agency. Having a great design sense, while critical to delivering a knockout-looking website (and certainly something Solid possesses and excels at), is not enough to be successful on a project such as ours.

It requires a high level of strategic thinking, an enormous amount of process and structure, a serious attention to detail, and an appreciation for the importance of customer journeys and the way visitors will and should interact with your site.

It's really hard to put my finger on what impressed me most about Solid. Ultimately, I think it was the combination of all these critical skills, experiences, and agency characteristics.

They're this really beautiful blend of design chops, process rigor, and warm personalities. As a testament to how we feel about the collaboration and the work they did (and as I previously noted), we've already signed on for an additional support plan and will continue to work with them going forward.

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

Anything would be hyper nitpicky. They're awesome and we'd hire them again for sure.

Please describe your company and your position there.

President / CEO of small e-commerce business.

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

We needed a development partner that was able to help build a custom workflow management system while also maintaining the health + upgrades required for our Magento platform.

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

Met with the owner through same organization at the time. He came recommended.

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

SD was in responsible for customizing a backend workflow, hosting, website maintenance, some redesign projects, updates on security patches, other adhoc projects and website migration from 1.9 to 2.3 on Magento.

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

I had worked and spoken with at least 10 representatives on the team from the owner Jesse to several developers etc... some who are no longer part of the team.

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

Generally, the projects were close to on time or within 1-1.5 month of discussed timeline. In terms of quality, the beginning was good when they had talent capable of Magento development. When that person left SD, the quality of their deliverables were below average at best. I was told many of the the features I needed for our website were not possible unless you fully customize xyz; when in fact it wasn't true. Now, after having an agency that specializes in Magento, I realize that these "customizable features" can be plugs in or apps already available in the Magento marketplace such as adjustable shipping charts, showing production timelines in listings etc...

This ,however, wasn't my most disappointing experience. My final migration from 1.9 to 2.3 was complete disaster. Not only was it expensive, it was a requirement from Magento with a sensitive timeline. I was told when we were to migrate from 1.9 to 2.3, we would not lose any assets already customized on our backend. This was expensive and useful for our backend workflow so we needed it. Well, we lost most of our customizations while gaining a few replacement were only "close" to what our custom workflow was. Then was told I must have remembered it incorrectly.

In addition, after we migrated over to 2.3, our site kept freezing and lagging from both the front and backend. It was virtually impossible to add inventory from the backend and you can't even checkout purchases from the frontend without timing out. When confronting the owner Jesse about the issues, I was berated and gaslighted for not being appreciative of his teams efforts. What I was complaining about wasn't the customer service aspect of it, but the quality of the final delivery. Not once did he apologize or take ownership for the mistake.

My website was held hostage because I was hosting through them (a mistake I will never do again). I made my final payment after I move our website to our own AWS hosting (which needed 3 servers to be spun so that it wouldn't crash). I was harassed the entire time by the owner for withholding the payment. I refused to give the final payment until I received all my assets which I found reasonable.

For why he was so aggressive on the payment, I have no idea given I have never been late or missed on a payment in the years I've been with them. And yes, I did make the final payment as promised. I've thought long and hard on whether I should write this review and decided to do it because I don't want anyone else to experience what I have experienced. This experience is for a website on Magento platform. I don't think the team is experienced enough for this platform. With the help of an experienced Magento dev team, I am happy to report, the website runs faster, front and backend, while only spun on 1 server.

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

Everyone on the team had excellent bedside manners and was very personable. I didn't speak with a single person the team who was rude. If projects were late, they were normally keep me posted on it. We communicated on basecamp regularly and had bi-weekly chimes.

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

I would give credit to the teams excellent communication skills and usually being timely with their responses.

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

Probably not have the owner Jesse address any conflicts. Any feedback or issues raised will turn into finger pointing and gaslighting. I paid for an expensive migration (which didn't need to be) that didn't function afterwards then got berated for it. I'd recommend finding a person for your team who can handle conflict with empathy. Or if you are not capable certain projects, be honest and kindly decline them. After all, honesty is your best policy.

Introduce your business and what you do there.

I’m the office manager of a law firm.

What challenge were you trying to address with Solid Digital?

We brought them on for SEO services and to maintain our website.

What was the scope of their involvement?

They created landing pages as well as posted content on our website. If something didn’t work on our end, they assisted us with updating the website, pages, and plug-ins. Our platform is on WordPress.

What is the team composition?

We worked with numerous people over the years. As people moved on, they assigned new individuals to us.

How did you come to work with Solid Digital?

We were with another company that merged with Solid Digital.

How much have you invested with them?

We invested about $35,000.

What is the status of this engagement?

Our engagement was from January 2015–April 2020.

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

They completed the landing pages in about a month's timeframe. We worked well together, and they were receptive to feedback.

How did Solid Digital perform from a project management standpoint?

They utilized a project management tool to communicate with us and tell us how soon a task would be done. We always knew the status of the project as well as who was working on what. They really took care of our needs. We communicated through a portal, and our rep would correspond with us.

What did you find most impressive about them?

They were always willing to work with our partners who were very specific about what they wanted. Solid Digital tried to figure out a better way to help us and give us feedback on how certain things may look or fit. Likewise, they were receptive to our feedback and it was always professionally handled. If something wasn’t to our satisfaction, they made sure we were happy with the product.

Are there any areas they could improve?

Part of the reason we’re no longer with them is that we were looking to get more information on updating and possibly revamping our website. Our firm partners weren’t satisfied with the response to our questions directed at Solid Digital. Additionally, there was a lack of knowledge about law firms. We wanted a website that met our vision. Our partners were looking for something different. It wasn’t anything Solid Digital did wrong.

Introduce your business and what you do there.

I work in sales and marketing for a company that creates SQL management software to help people query their data platforms and manages their SQL.

What challenge were you trying to address with Solid Digital?

We were doing a new product launch. That required that their team assisted with product design, a complete website redesign, and copywriting to accompany that.

What was the scope of their involvement?

They ended up designing two products for us. First, we met together as a team to discuss our plans for taking our new product to market. They worked with us to quickly determine the status of our current product, taking in our feedback and requests for a modernized redesign. We wanted to make the product clean and easier to use.

From there, they guided the product through an in-house improvement framework before returning to us with recommendations on how to elevate the product. They also sat in during product review sessions, where were began showing their designs to users in the field. Having them hear user feedback directly streamlined the process and allowed them to quickly implement changes into the design to benefit user web flow.

For the website refresh project, we provided them with design direction and a few brands that we were inspired by. We came together collaboratively to make the website personable and showcase the real people behind the company. Branding ourselves as a company with people to support and listen to customers in addition to a great product became key to our design plan.

They asked for deliverables and documentation from us before implementing necessary information into the site design. There, they married our work with product design with our bold aims for the site design. 

We used Invision, Sketch, and WordPress for our work with them, but they were open to using any of our preferred technologies. It was important to us that they were able to provide a WordPress framework that would be sustainable for the long-term. They even set up some additional backend processes to further support.  

What is the team composition?

We worked with 2–3 developers, a lead designer, and a project manager. Additionally, an executive would check in on us every once in a while to make sure the project was running smoothly. Their CEO took a pretty active role in each of our projects. There was a project coordinator that helped move tasks forward as well. 

How did you come to work with Solid Digital?

We were looking for a team was local to the majority of our team. As a Chicago-based firm, we thought they could be a good fit. Our company cultures really lined up. In the interview process, they made a point to inform us of their interest in our project. They were also brutally honest with us, even in our early meetings. Their up-front nature was encouraging.   

What is the status of this engagement?

We worked together from about May 2018–November 2019. The project lasted about 18 months.

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

We’re still using their designs and products today. We often return to work they created for us several years ago. They always came up with fresh ideas and remained open to iterations and feedback from our team. Having design options along the way was hugely helpful for us.

We get great feedback on the product from our customers and users. Anecdotally, they praise the clean design and our implementation work.  

They completed the work on time and gave us great recommendations, encouraging us to think critically about the metrics we wished to track once the product went to market. Soon after we launched, we were impressed and encouraged by the number of downloads we were receiving from customers. As they used the product, customers were also able to provide continuous feedback on the product, which was helpful. 

How did Solid Digital perform from a project management standpoint?

They’re brilliant communicators, always sharing the next steps and warning us about potential delays in advance. If there were delays, they always had a reason as to why. We gave them some challenging deadlines, and I can’t recall a major deadline that they missed. They manage their team well and deliver on expectations. 

What did you find most impressive about them?

They excel in thought leadership, applying it with care to our brand. It felt like they were an internal part of our team. They provide great reasoning for their processes and decision-making. Their honesty, cohesiveness, and commitment pushed us in the right direction.

While they didn’t have a ton of experience in our space, they were clear and committed to our success in taking our product to market. I’d love to work with them again and would recommend them to anyone looking for similar work.

Are there any areas they could improve?

I’d work with them again any day and can’t think of anything for them to improve upon.

Do you have any advice for potential customers?

Trust their knowledge and ask questions for context on why they’re making certain design choices. I’d recommend allowing them to be a thought leader. Once they get up to speed on your industry, they operationalize very fast.

Be open to letting them speak to your end-users as well. That helped us move quickly and iterate fast.  

Introduce your business and what you do there.

The NetJets Association of Shared Aircraft Pilots (NJASAP) represents the professional interests of over 2,700 pilots who fly in the service of NetJets Aviation, Inc., a Berkshire Hathaway subsidiary. Established in 2008, NJASAP is governed by a five-member democratically elected Executive Board and supported by a professional staff and over 125 dedicated pilot volunteers. As an independent labor advocate focused exclusively on representing the NetJets pilots, the union maintains robust services and resources as well as a vital industry affairs program that seeks to advance aviation, the piloting profession, and organized labor aviation on Capitol Hill. NJASAP is based in Columbus, Ohio.

As the executive director, I am responsible for providing strategy guidance for and supporting the Association's elected leaders, directing all intra- and extra-organizational communication and managing the NJASAP professional staff as well as our relationships with vendors and consultants.

What challenge were you trying to address with Solid Digital?

We wanted to consolidate access to our three online resources—the website, message board, and member database—by making them available via single credential set within a completely redesigned online community. Previously, the end user had to enter a unique credential set to access each resource. The project demanded the creation of a single sign‐on (SSO) protocol that granted access to end users based on their status in the member database. Once access was granted, the user could seamlessly navigate all three resources.

To measure the success of this effort, we developed five metrics based on giving our 2,700-plus members access to the following:

• a website that was incredibly robust and user-friendly with sharp, clean lines,
• a web resource that put necessary information into their hands quickly and with ease,
• a single login point for members‐only sections,
• a dashboard that integrated with all existing and new web applications, and
• an intuitive user interface that looked consistent across all applications. 

What was the scope of their involvement?

They provided a full range of services, beginning with strategy and ending with continued support. They had a good feel for what we wanted. We had maybe two follow-up, in-person meetings where we got into the nitty-gritty of what we wanted. From there, the project really took off.

Because web design and the associated technology fell squarely within Solid's expertise, we let them take the lead. Of course, we felt more than comfortable requesting changes throughout the process. However, our strategy sessions were exceptionally productive, allowing designers and programmers to get a true feel for NJASAP's vision and run with it.

They completed an SSO with vBulletin as a component. The underlying CMS written in JS was developed by Solid and functioned like an API and database. We appreciated that they’d written this forward-facing technology in a language known to most developers.

What is the team dynamic?

Numerous people were involved, and they brought in whoever’s competency matched the project need at that time. I assume they engaged every person on their team at some point. They handled a lot of that internally, which I appreciate because our project was so massive. We were bringing together three completely unique web properties and asking them to communicate with each other seamlessly. Now, it works like a charm.

Jesse [CEO & Partner, Solid Digital], our technical lead, enthusiastically communicated a vision for the project, and his quiet confidence made me believe that he and his team could deliver what we needed.

How did you come to work with Solid Digital?

I found them online. We met with Naveed [CRO & Partner, Solid Digital] and Jesse in February 2015 in Dallas for a session of planning. I don’t think that our organization really knew what we needed at the time. That planning session gave us enough information to develop the RFP. Once we had the RFP in place, we talked to four different groups, including Solid. In 72 hours, we went to Portland, Chicago, and New York. We ultimately selected Solid because they seemed aware of our technical and creative requirements.

What is the status of this engagement?

We began the selection process in February 2015 and officially entered into an agreement with Solid in May 2016. 

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

We couldn’t be more pleased with our redeveloped community. The SSO protocol works without fail to the delight of our leadership, members, volunteers, and staff. The NJASAP online community has been tremendously popular, drawing more members. Since our membership is geographically disbursed, a dynamic online community that features timely, relevant resources is a requirement and now a major asset.

How did Solid Digital perform from a project management standpoint?

They excelled at developing timelines and providing prompt updates. We communicated via web conference or teleconference, depending on what was most appropriate. I was pleased with how they handled such a massive project. Any delays were totally due to our organization trying to acclimate to everything that was going on. We used Basecamp to provide feedback to each other and talk about tasks. We used a different online tool when we were talking in person.

What did you find most impressive about them?

I appreciated that they took the time to talk to us and remained flexible. They offer exceptional flexibility, accessibility, and expertise. They took the time to understand our vision and were open-minded. They understood that they didn’t know my audience like I did. They weren’t trying to force something on me that they’d done before because it would be easier or faster.

Are there any areas they could improve?

I don’t think that they could have done anything differently. Toward the end stages, I would’ve felt more comfortable with having more in-person meetings. I actually want to feel and see people in the room. I’m sure if I’d asked for that, they would have honored my request. If I had the opportunity to do this project again, I would’ve made all the same choices that we did previously.  

Introduce your business and what you do there.

I’m the CMO for two companies: a home warranty company and a car warranty company.

What challenge were you trying to address with Solid Digital, LLC?

Our websites were very outdated so we wanted to find a vendor to help us with the design and development of new sites. 

What was the scope of their involvement?

The team took care of the development, design, and SEM for both sites. They helped us choose what platform to develop our sites on. We went over wireframes and branding with their team at the beginning stages of the project. They helped us refine our image and consulted us on how to manage our digital media presence. 

What is the team composition?

My main point of contact was Jessica (Engagement Manager, Solid Digital, LLC). I also worked with a developer and Derek (Creative Director, Solid Digital, LLC) who worked on the creative aspects of the sites. 

How did you come to work with Solid Digital, LLC? 

I was searching for firms in the Chicago area and Solid Digital, LLC kept popping up because of their great reviews. I met with them and was very impressed by their strategy, abilities, and willingness to work with me. 

How much have you invested with them?

We spent over $20,000 on this project. 

What is the status of this engagement?

We began working together in October 2019 and the sites were launched about two months later, in December. 

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

I don’t have any specific metrics to share, but I’m very happy with their work. They add value to every aspect of the project and I enjoyed working with them. We have two wonderful websites with no issues. 

How did Solid Digital, LLC perform from a project management standpoint?

They were always on target with timing and budget. They were also keen to keep me on track and would reach out to make sure they had everything to keep moving forward. 

What did you find most impressive about them? 

Their ability to be agile was impressive. They are unbelievable partners who are smart and strategic. 

Are there any areas they could improve?

No, it was a really good experience. 

Do you have advice for potential customers? 

I highly recommend working with them.

Introduce your business and what you do there.

I’m the marketing and brand manager for a global transportation and logistics company. 

What challenge were you trying to address with Solid Digital?

We wanted someone to design and develop a new website for us, as our previous site was about eight years old.

What was the scope of their involvement?

Since our old site’s platform was outdated, they built the new WordPress site from scratch. The nature of our business doesn’t lend itself towards any online sales, so the main goal for the project was to attract potential customers to our service offerings and set ourselves apart from our competitors. We also wanted to increase our digital functionalities, mainly being able to collect inquiries and provide quotes electronically. We provided them with the content and images for the site, but they handled all front- and backend development. Having the new site encouraged us to get set up on several social media platforms as well.

What is the team composition?

We worked with at least six to eight people from their team at any given time. They provided us with developers, design experts, SEO professionals, and a project manager.

How did you come to work with Solid Digital?

I found them through an Internet search. Their team seemed to be a good size, not too big or too small. We also like that they were based in Chicago, and they were quick in responding to our inquiry. Jesse (Partner & CEO) made the engagement feel warm from our first interaction.

How much have you invested with them?

We spent about $40,000 with them on the site development project.

What is the status of this engagement?

We’ve worked together since April 2020. Since the proposed launch, October 2020, Solid Digital continues to provide us with maintenance and hosting services. We’re hoping to work with them on another project later this year.

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

I don’t have exact numbers, but every relevant metric has gone up since our new site launched. Between the updated feel of the site and our expanded online presence due to our new social media pages, site traffic has steadily increased over the past several months. They’ve also taught us how to update and add content to the site, which has been really helpful.

How did Solid Digital perform from a project management standpoint?

Our assigned project manager checked in with us at least once a week. We communicated frequently via Basecamp, keeping the engagement very transparent and accessible. If our project manager couldn’t answer a question, she would find out and get back to us quickly. We also collaborated via G-Suite tools.

What did you find most impressive about them?

Their people make them stand out from the competition. In looking for a partner for this project, we wanted to make sure our company’s ideals, goals, and personality matched up well with the vendor we chose to work with. Their team was very caring and worked to understand why we wanted certain site aspects to be a certain way. They conducted extensive research into what our top competitors were doing as well. The other vendors we looked into working with seemed like they would provide us with a less personal solution.

Are there any areas they could improve?

I can’t think of anything. They worked tirelessly to make our project successful.

Do you have any advice for potential customers?

Talk to them. Their communication skills made a project manager shift during our engagement seamless. They’ll be open, honest, and happy to work with you on any concerns.

Please describe your company and your position there.

OMEGA is a civil engineering firm focused on construction. My role is Senior Communications and Marketing Manager.

For what projects/services did your company hire Solid Digital, LLC?

We hired Solid Digital to create a new website for our company.

What were your goals for this project?

We wanted our website to rival those of our competitors but also be more creative. The main purpose of our website isn't necessarily to secure future jobs, but more so it's focused on recruiting the best talent. We wanted the website to be easy to use, creative and photo-centric.

How did you select this vendor?

Solid Digital had the best of everything! Not only is their team great, but their portfolio is incredible, and their professionalism is unmatched. Plus, their price point was right where we wanted to be.

Describe the project and the services they provided in detail.

Created a new website for us Did market research Created two options for us to choose from Meeting coordination Graphic creation Photo editing Copy writing Project Management

What was the team composition?

They had three people we worked with consistently, and a few others who would come in for different things. One designer/developer, one project manager, and one creative director.

Can you share any information that demonstrates the impact that this project has had on your business?

Our clients and employees really like the website and it's been attracting more recruits!

How was project management arranged and how effective was it?

So well! They arranged weekly meetings to stay on top of tasks and used Google drive and Basecamp which made everything pretty easy to manage.

What did you find most impressive about this company?

Working with the Solid Digital team is an absolute joy. By far the best vendor group I've ever had the pleasure of working with-- which is saying a lot because I have worked with some incredible and creative vendors in the past. Their professionalism combined with their expertise, organization and creativity is unmatched.

Plus-- they're just a fun group to work with! Solid Digital hires the types of people you'd grab a beer with after work after accomplishing all the things. They were exactly what we were looking for in a vendor-- experts who are willing to manage the project from start to finish. We didn't have to micromanage them or ask for updates-- they were always on the ball and one step ahead of us. 10/10 would hire again.

Are there any areas for improvement?

Nope.

Introduce your business and what you do there.

I’m the executive vice president and director of marketing for Pine Tree. We’re a real estate company that manages shopping centers all around the country.

What challenge were you trying to address with Solid Digital, LLC?

Our company expanded from 30 employees to well over 100 and grew our portfolio from 30 properties to nearly 130. The growth occurred overnight as a peer joined the Pine Tree ranks.

In anticipation of that growth, we wanted to refresh our website. One of our biggest challenges was figuring out a way to import all of the new property data into a platform and make that information searchable.

What was the scope of their involvement?

Solid Digital helped us redesign and launch a revitalized website. To help us nail down the initial design, their team used InVision. In the end, all of their work was done in WordPress. They built a system from the ground up that allows users to filter their searches and find the properties that fit those constraints.

Their team also helped to grow the social media presence of individual shopping centers. They managed Facebook pages, reached out to the stores to help them promote their own businesses, and communicate with our communities. Their team not only managed the content but also the ad spend.

What is the team composition?

In terms of the social media project, there were usually 3 people involved. We had an account manager, a social media manager, and a content creator on the team. On the website project, we worked with their creative director, CEO, web developers, and marketing managers.

How did you come to work with Solid Digital, LLC?

We initially worked with a company that eventually merged with Solid Digital. We’ve worked with them off and on ever since.

How much have you invested with them?

The website redesign cost $30,000. We spent about $70,000 annually on their social media services.  

What is the status of this engagement?

With Solid Digital proper, our engagement started around April 2017. We just wrapped up a project in May 2020. We don’t an active engagement, but I certainly hope to work together again in the future.

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

We always wanted to have a property search function, which made our website more usable. They spotlighted our brand when our portfolio expanded. The expansion happened during an industry lull, but we got positive feedback about our growth, our website, and its new functions.

We have to give their social media team credit for being data-driven and analytical. Their team helped us start Facebook pages from scratch. Each page now has thousands of followers. The pages continue to be our primary method of marketing on behalf of our shopping centers. Their team was essential in spearheading these campaigns and implementing best practices.

How did Solid Digital, LLC perform from a project management standpoint?

Solid Digital was always in control. Their team pushed the website development, which had a tight deadline. We came to them in November and rolled out the new site just after the new year. That’s a testament to their project and time management skills.

On the social media side, we always felt like their favorite client. Likewise, they’re one of our favorite vendors. It was easy to get in touch with them.

What did you find most impressive about them?

Their team is expert at what they do. They’re a forward-looking design team that wants products to not only look beautiful but also be functional. They combine that perspective with heavy data analytics, which we emphasized in both projects. On our social media profiles, their team dove into demographics and ran different A/B tests for ads. I really appreciated their combination of left and right brain capabilities.

Are there any areas they could improve?

No, I always found them to be personable.

Do you have any advice for potential customers?

It’s helpful to be honest and share your initial vision. They excel at creating a vision if you allow them to do that. If you can formulate an opinion, their team will help to achieve your goals.