Sunlight Media LLC

BACKGROUND

Please describe your company and your position there.

I founded Propel Philanthropy

OPPORTUNITY / CHALLENGE

For what projects/services did your company hire Sunlight Media LLC, and what were your goals?

I hired Sunlight Media to provide me with a high-level design that would be respected among upper middle class, wealthy, and ultra wealthy individuals.

SOLUTION

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

Sunlight Media provided me with the level of professional design work I was seeking.

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

The team provided approximately eight logo options. I picked one asked for minor revisions, which they provided. They then sent me three options for the homepage. Once I picked an option, they patiently assisted me through revisions until it met my satisfaction. They then designed four other pages and we went through revisions with those as well. I checked out the final version on their Wordpress server and Sunlight Media moved the site to my server with an instruction manual. After that they responded to several other requests free of charge.

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

I dealt with the President, Angelo, and the customer assistant, Lindsey.

RESULTS & FEEDBACK

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

The site was just launched, so there are not specific deliverables. However, I see them as very high-end designers and think they are a good choice for those interested in engaging at that league. Most designers are not at that league.

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

Everything went smoothly.

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

As mentioned, the quality of their designs.

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

It is not a question as much as differently as it is about whether one wants to work with a template or a custom design. In my opinion, each have their pros and cons. I simply recommend that prospective clients understand these.

BACKGROUND

Please give a brief description of your company.  

We are an academic professional society. I am chairing our annual conference in North America.

OPPORTUNITY / CHALLENGE

What was the business challenge that you were trying to address when you approached Sunlight Media?

We needed to provide the academic community with a website to facilitate conference registration and attendance. We were in need of website development services for our annual conference website.  

SOLUTION

Can you tell me about the scope of the project? what services were provided by Sunlight Media?

They designed and developed the site.

What was your process for selecting Sunlight Media?

We found them through word of mouth. They did an excellent job for the international conference the previous year and were highly recommended.

Can you give us a sense of the size of the project in dollar terms?

It cost $3,000. 

When was the project started and completed?

It was completed within one month, although Sunlight media remains responsive to small changes as required, even though the contract is finished.

RESULTS & FEEDBACK

What were the results of the project?

None to date. The conference will be in July 2017. 

How did Sunlight Media perform from a project management perspective?

They are easy to work with, very responsive, and professional.

What distinguishes Sunlight Media?

I like that they are very responsive to change requests, even after the project is concluded.

Looking back on the project, is there any area that they could improve upon or that you would do differently?

No.  I highly recommend them and they will be my first choice web design company.

BACKGROUND

Introduce your business and what you do there.

Federal Credit Group is a medium sized credit repair agency. We specialize in repairing credit for individuals who have less than perfect credit. I’m the CEO.

OPPORTUNITY / CHALLENGE

What challenge were you trying to address with Sunlight Media?

I’ve used them for several website developments and application. Federal Credit Group hired Sunlight Media to customize a form submission and add a method of payment. 

SOLUTION

What was the scope of their involvement?

To fix the form submission, they created a button that takes you to a checkout page. Sunlight Media made our website mobile friendly, added a form submission box that allows the user to submit their data and proceed to a checkout cart at the same time. 

They developed a mobile application called which is a six-figure project that you can post classified ads on. They did a good job on it. I can’t go into detail because it’s a classified site. It was developed on HTML5 and PHP. They had social integrations where you could sign in through Facebook and Google.

How did you come to work with Sunlight Media?

I found them on Google years ago.

How much have you invested with Sunlight Media?

Over the course of our relationship, I’ve spent approximately $100,000 with them.

What is the status of this engagement?

I started working with them in October 2012 and the work is ongoing.

RESULTS & FEEDBACK

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

I can’t disclose any information on the app but for the submission form, their changes will help us increase sales in the future.

How did Sunlight Media perform from a project management standpoint?

Sunlight Media is very fast and responsive when handling updates and changes. I'm more than pleased with the service provided all around. They are a great team to work with. I have worked with Sunlight Media on some other projects and will continue the relationship. They’re excellent - they’re timely and responsive.

What did you find most impressive about Sunlight Media?

Their mobile application development department is on point. They’ve got good graphic designs and good ideas.

Are there any areas Sunlight Media could improve?

No, they do a great job.

BACKGROUND

Please describe your organization.

I run an immigration and personal injury law practice in Los Angeles.

What is your position?

I'm an attorney.

OPPORTUNITY / CHALLENGE

What business challenge were you trying to address with Sunlight Media?

The old design [of my website] was outdated. It wasn't mobile-friendly, so I needed to start from scratch, and that's what we did. We did incorporate some of the elements from the old site, but it's a totally new look.

SOLUTION

Please describe the scope of their involvement in detail.

I gave Sunlight Media a basic outline of what I wanted. I had somebody do a Photoshop rendition of my basic idea with elements in it, but it needed a lot of finishing work. It was just a basic outline with some of the elements that were to be included in the final. It just needed a lot of work to make it right. That's what Sunlight did for me.

How did you come to work with Sunlight Media?

I found Sunlight on Yelp – of all places. Their great reviews on it drew my attention.

Could you provide a sense of the size of this initiative in financial terms?

It cost less than $10,000.

What is the status of this engagement?

It's completed.

RESULTS & FEEDBACK

Could you share any statistics or metrics from this engagement?

I noticed some increase in traffic on the site that Sunlight Media developed. We're talking about a month and a half, maybe almost two months since it went up. They didn't promise me anything specific, and I don't expect a big jolt. I expected the traffic to build up in time as people see it and look at it, and  – hopefully – get ranked a little higher in Google as we go along.

This didn't happen with the old website. Many of the visitors linger on the website for a long time, meaning they find something interesting and worth their time. I can get a good idea of what's going on with the website through Google Analytics. I do get visits, the time spent, pages viewed, and what kind of pages they see and just in these two months, I've seen what I had not seen before where some visitors will linger for a good hour, hour and a half, 30 minutes, or 40 minutes. It's something that didn't happen before with the previous website.

I'm going to attribute that, first of all, to the look of the site. People look at the window, and they like what they see, so they go inside and shop. They like the content. I provided the content but, nevertheless, if I cannot get you into the store, you're not going to see what's in it. I've seen that.

How did Sunlight Media perform from a project management standpoint?

Sunlight Media was very responsive. I'm the one that delayed the process or the project because, as I said, I would change my mind now and again. They were on top of it trying to get those changes out that I wanted so that we could get this thing up and running. I knew that they wanted a short turnaround. That's what people expect. That way it worked out for me because, again, of the changes that I would make. I had no complaints about the time that it took. It took three months from the time that we first submitted a first draft. They submitted some proposals, and we worked from there and took off. It was about a three months from the time they started working on the project to the time it was finished. To me, that was reasonable given all the work that I gave them.

Is there anything Sunlight Media could have improved or done differently?

Nothing major.

BACKGROUND

Please describe your firm.

We are a law firm that has been in business for five years in the Los Angeles area. We have 13 employees with many staff members working for large firms in the past. We are a boutique firm of lawyers with big-firm history and experience, but more friendly hourly rates, a more efficient business model with a commitment to environmental sustainability and social impact.

What is your role and responsibilities?

I am the managing partner, so the website and face of the firm is very important to me. I am also responsible for growing the business, performing administrative tasks, and providing legal services.

OPPORTUNITY / CHALLENGE

What was your goal for the work with Sunlight Media?

We needed to clean out hacker code from our website. We also needed to improve the sites' functionality and update content. The work affected the entire firm and had an immediate and positive impact.

SOLUTION

Please describe their work in more detail.

They had to make our website more secure by focusing on security features and keeping out hackers. We needed people to come to our website and navigate it quickly while getting necessary information after a few clicks.

Most of the work was Web development and troubleshooting. Their team helped us update content and gave design advice. The site is now more visually appealing and functional.

What was your process for selecting Sunlight Media?

We received a personal referral from someone else in the legal industry. They came highly recommended, so we decided to hire Sunlight. They have very competitive pricing, are very responsive, and have strong technical skill. It was an obvious choice to hire them after speaking with their management once.

Can you provide a sense of the size of the initiative with a general cost range?

That's confidential.

When was the project completed?

I cannot remember exactly. A few months ago. It was completed in only a few days, it was extremely fast turnaround. Subsequent tasks have also been carried out by Sunlight Media very quickly and accurately. We appreciate not having to engage in tons of back and forth with Sunlight Media. We explain the task, they get it, and then they get it done well.

RESULTS & FEEDBACK

What were the results of the project?

They performed very well. They were responsive, on time and on budget. We have no complaints. The project was successful, and Sunlight Media was very flexible.

When working with Sunlight Media, what is unique or special about them compared to other IT firms?

Sunlight Media is much more responsive than our previous Web developer and has a broader set of skills and is more cost effective.

Looking back on the project, is there anything that you think they could improve upon or something that you might do differently?

No.

BACKGROUND

Please describe your firm.

We are a two attorney law firm in Los Angeles. 

What is your role and responsibilities?

I am the president. I am responsible for answering phone calls and requests, acquiring new business, and providing legal services.

OPPORTUNITY / CHALLENGE

What was your goal for the work with Sunlight Media?

We had no website or Web presence at all prior to this project. We knew that we needed to improve the business with a nice website.

SOLUTION

Can you describe the scope of their work in more detail?

It just included design and development for the website. This was a simple project. I'm not sure what development model was used or which platform.

What was your process for selecting Sunlight Media?

Their portfolio was outstanding, and that's why we chose them.

Can you provide a sense of the size of the initiative in general dollar terms?

I'm not sure. I cannot answer.

When will the project be completed?

It will end around May of 2014. This is an approximate date.

RESULTS & FEEDBACK

What were the results of the project?

We used a template site for the project. The site came out great.

How did Sunlight Media perform?

Sunlight Media performed very well. The project was on time and on budget with no major problems.

When working with Sunlight Media, what is unique or special about them compared to other firms?

I have only worked with Sunlight in my experience. However, I noticed that Sunlight was extremely responsive to my concerns.

Looking back on the project, is there anything that you think they could improve upon or something that you might do differently?

No.

BACKGROUND

Please describe your company.

The company does small- and medium-sized business websites and backend programming. We’ve done that since the beginning of the modern Internet. We do a lot of outsourcing, generally repeat people that we find, and Sunlight Media is one of those.

What is your role and responsibilities?

I’m the president.

OPPORTUNITY / CHALLENGE

What was your goal for working with Sunlight Media?

Sunlight Media has done half a dozen or more projects for me, from SEO to WordPress customization. As a small company, often if business comes in beyond the ability of my regular staff, I'll call someone like Sunlight Media. During these times, I was able to treat them as a fire-and-forget missile. I tell them what they need to do, and they do it. I check it, the client checks it, and everybody's happy. Easy.

SOLUTION

What was your goal for working with Sunlight Media?

Sunlight Media has done half a dozen or more projects for me, from SEO to WordPress customization. As a small company, often if business comes in beyond the ability of my regular staff, I'll call someone like Sunlight Media. During these times, I was able to treat them as a fire-and-forget missile. I tell them what they need to do, and they do it. I check it, the client checks it, and everybody's happy. Easy.

SOLUTION

Please describe the scope of their work.

That is the work that they do. We have ongoing SEO customers together right now, with monthly projects. I often call him with some tricky WordPress problems.

What was your process for selecting Sunlight Media to work with?

I found them on Craigslist, and then made a few phone calls. Generally, in these cases, I start the vendor with small modules or easy-to-define pieces of business. I would never give a brand new contractor any kind of substantial job. It largely consisted of small projects like fixing a form and such. I want to see the quality of the result, how fast the turnaround is, and the communication. I’ve been doing IT for more than 30 years, and I can separate the wheat from the chaff easily. We started with smaller projects and built up to bigger projects, where he took a bigger project off my hands, and I just check his work.

Can you provide a ballpark figure for the size of the work that they’ve done for you?

We've done one- or two-hour jobs up to 100 hours or more.

RESULTS & FEEDBACK

Do you have any statistics or metrics to track improvement from the project?

They all worked. That’s why they still work for me. They have been everything that I’ve asked for and have delivered everything that they have promised.

Is there anything unique about them that really makes them stand out, compared to other companies?

Sunlight Media has been good and responsive. They are a good, solid company.

Looking back on the work so far, is there any area that you think they could improve upon or that you might do differently?

No.