Thinkbound Inc.

Introduce your business and what you do there.

I’m a sales and marketing manager at Box Me Up Inc, a self-storage facility.

What challenge were you trying to address with Thinkbound Inc.?

We contacted Thinkbound for web development services.

What was the scope of their involvement?

We initially contacted Thinkbound to build our WordPress website. We have merchandise on the site, so the team implemented a merchant portal on the site so people can make purchases online. There’s also a tool that allows users to browse which lockers are available at which facilities.

Currently, Thinkbound is also helping us with our marketing, specifically with monthly blogs and our social media presence on Facebook, Instagram, and Twitter. They work on Google Ads and SEO as well. 

What is the team composition?

I work with Alex (Founder & Director), as well as with Nick (Strategist) and one other person. I’m sure there’s a larger team working on the project, but I mainly interact with those three.

How did you come to work with Thinkbound Inc.?

They’re a Candian company, which was important to me. We’d searched for some vendors in the US, but I found that since we’re a Candian company with facilities here in Canada, we needed a team that could build a site geared towards our audience. 

Once I narrowed in, I noticed Thinkbound had done quite a bit of websites, including storage websites, in the past, so I reached out to them to help us. 

How much have you invested with them?

I believe the website was around $12,000 CAD (approximately $9,500 USD). Now, we pay a monthly fee for the social media, which is $875 CAD (approximately $700 USD) per month. 

What is the status of this engagement?

We’ve been working together since February 2020.

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

We’re a brand new company, and the website just launched, so it’s tough to provide metrics. However, the site is very user friendly. We’ve only gotten positive feedback: everyone seems to like the overall appearance and functionality of it. It’s working well. 

How did Thinkbound Inc. perform from a project management standpoint?

With COVID-19, it was challenging. There were no in person meetings, everything was over the phone. Thinkbound was extremely organized, however. Everything was scheduled well and the team was always prompt. They’re the ones who kept us moving along throughout the project. It was a good fit.

What did you find most impressive about them?

The overall communication and feedback was great. Thinkbound is quite thorough with the information they required, but it was broken down very well and easy to share with them. The schedule they created was also organized, and it was nice to be able to follow along and know where we would be at what time.

Are there any areas they could improve?

I don’t think so. Thinkbound checks all of our boxes and provides everything we request. We’re quite satisfied.

Do you have any advice for potential customers?

Thinkbound really took control of the project because we didn’t have any experience with web development. They were the ones who are the professionals in this type of business, so they showed us how to make the most of the engagement. Anyone who doesn’t have much experience in web development would be in good hands with Thinkbound.

Introduce your business and what you do there.

I’m the general manager of a self-storage company.

What challenge were you trying to address with Thinkbound Inc.?

We needed an e-commerce site developed.

What was the scope of their involvement?

We collaborated to determine the requirements and build the functionality of the website. They presented designs to us, and we provided most of the content.

They built a customized e-commerce website, fully integrated with our property management software. They integrated location services via Google and added workflows for abandoned carts.

They are about to start website optimization services.

What is the team composition?

Alex (Technologist/Director of Marketing & Technology) was the main contact. I briefly interacted with another person regarding content.

How did you come to work with Thinkbound Inc.?

I had worked with them at my previous company. We considered a few agencies but decided to go with Thinkbound because we knew they could deliver quality service.

How much have you invested with them?

We spent about $15,000.

What is the status of this engagement?

We began working together in March 2020, and the relationship is ongoing. The development phase ended in December 2020.

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

We just launched last week. Feedback from users is that they can understand what we’re offering and easily navigate the checkout process. We are one of the first in our industry to present an entire checkout process online. 

How did Thinkbound Inc. perform from a project management standpoint?

We handled project management for the most part and communicated with them via email.

What did you find most impressive about them?

They are customer-oriented, accommodating, and have a great track record. Alex provided helpful suggestions and guidance during the decision-making process.

Are there any areas they could improve?

We didn’t finish within the original estimated timeline, and it felt a bit rushed at the end.

Do you have any advice for potential customers?

Set up regular calls to discuss progress and upcoming tasks. Ask about using a tool for tracking progress and providing feedback/comments to help prevent anything from falling through the cracks.

Introduce your business and what you do there.

I’m the owner of a computer sales and repair company.

What challenge were you trying to address with Thinkbound Inc.?

We were trying to improve our online presence to increase our sales. We wanted more repair business to come in.

What was the scope of their involvement?

Thinkbound Inc. revamped our website to make it more attractive to customers. Their team is working to fix our SEO to increase our search ranking. They also assisted with our email marketing strategy.

What is the team composition?

I’ve worked with Alex (Founder & Director) as our main contact. Nick (Strategist) works on the SEO and email marketing side. Amy (Senior Graphic Designer) helps out with the design. There might be another person, but those are the ones I’m directly familiar with.

How did you come to work with Thinkbound Inc.?

A family member referred them to me.

How much have you invested with them?

We’ve spent under $5,000 CAD (approximately $3,900 USD).

What is the status of this engagement?

We started working with their team in September 2020.

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

Their work is definitely noticeable. Our new website quickly drove in new business. Their SEO work has improved our ranking.

How did Thinkbound Inc. perform from a project management standpoint?

Their entire team is very professional and easy to work with. We have Zoom meetings and telephone conferences. There have been no communication issues.

What did you find most impressive about them?

I was impressed with their professionalism. They got things done promptly within the times that they stated.

Are there any areas they could improve?

No, not at this point. Everything is smooth right now.

Do you have any advice for potential customers?

I would highly recommend them. They’re very good to work with.

Introduce your business and what you do there.

I’m the head of operations at Storage Protectors. We provide insurance program coverage for contents contained in mobile storage containers.

What challenge were you trying to address with Thinkbound Inc.?

Our challenge was with a monthly recording requirement that our clients need to fulfill for us.

What was the scope of their involvement?

Thinkbound built and now facilitates the API that our clients use to do the recording to the program. The team looks at our clients point of sale system, and they customize the information extraction from that system. From that, we can see when an insurance policy was sold, how long it’s been paid for, when the next payment is, and what kind of container is being covered. 

The engagement is ongoing as Thinkbound is constantly maintaining and perfecting these APIs. 

What is the team composition?

Alex (Founder & Director) is my main point of contact. I also work with Nick (Strategist), who Alex supervises. There’s a whole team behind them depending on what we need, whether it’s graphic arts, printing, or something else. 

How did you come to work with Thinkbound Inc.?

Thinkbound was doing work for another company that the owner of our company also owns, which is how we knew of them. 

How much have you invested with them?

Our ongoing contract is for about $50,000 per year.

What is the status of this engagement?

We’ve been working with them since about June 2019.

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

Thinkbound’s contributions have allowed us to grow our business significantly because we can now work with any point of sales system within our industry. We don’t have to reject any client based on not being able to work with the technology. It’s significant.

How did Thinkbound Inc. perform from a project management standpoint?

They perform beautifully. They built us an interface to communicate with them, and gave us a project management solution which allows us to organize on a case-by-case basis, which is really important for us.

What did you find most impressive about them?

Anybody can use project management software. What makes Thinkbound stand out is their ability to create solutions that don’t otherwise exist. 

If a client is using a point of sales system I’ve never heard of, I have to be able to somehow extract reporting out of that technology. Thinkbound is that bridge that allows me to do that.

Are there any areas they could improve?

With any engagement, you’d always like to see better and more timely communication and updates. That being said, the team is still far better than anyone else I’ve worked with. It’s hard not to compliment them.

Do you have any advice for potential customers?

Be clear on what you need as well as your expectations on the timeline for fulfilling the request.

Introduce your business and what you do there.

We source and supply seafood throughout North America and in some parts of Europe, and I’m the marketing coordinator. Our team is small, so I’m the only person focused on marketing.

What challenge were you trying to address with Thinkbound Inc.?

When I started with the company, I noticed that our website was very basic. Customers could only get our name, contact information, and a general idea of what we sell. There wasn’t much about the products themselves, so this seemed like a good opportunity to get us to that point.

What was the scope of their involvement?

They provided website development and creative content site components. Prior to our engagement, we didn’t have a strong definition of content on our site, so we needed help expanding. At this point, the site is launched and updated. I know I can call them if I run into issues, though. They also provide our hosting.

What is the team composition?

I started out working with an account manager who was responsible for quoting their work and getting us set up. Once the project started, I mainly coordinated with Alex (Founder & Director) and a designer as needed. 

How did you come to work with Thinkbound Inc.?

I got quotes from 3–4 companies with the intention to compare my options. They wanted to understand and learn more about our company. Additionally, they were responsive and willing to work within our time and budget. 

How much have you invested with them?

We spent about $15,000.

What is the status of this engagement?

We started working with them in September 2019, and our work wrapped up in March 2020.

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

I’ve been looking at incoming emails from people that have found us through our site. Many of those inquiries and leads convert into actual customers. We’re also able to direct our customers to the site as a resource.  

How did Thinkbound Inc. perform from a project management standpoint?

They’re organized, helping us keep up with their progress along the way. We communicated with Google Sheets project updates, texts, and emails. 

What did you find most impressive about them?

They did a great job responding to our urgent requests very quickly. Their team is able to address problems within 24 hours. 

Are there any areas they could improve?

While I’m satisfied with their work, they could be a bit bolder with their creativity. 

Do you have any advice for potential customers?

Actively communicate and show a reasonable amount of flexibility. Additionally, recognize and appreciate them when they exceed expectations.

Introduce your business and what you do there.

Vifloor Canada provides commercial and residential projects with floor covering for projects of all sizes.  Our specialty is commercial walk-off matting, commercial flooring, bespoke carpet, custom area rugs and broadloom as well as, artificial landscape grass.  Our focus of business is in the commercial, multi-family, hospitality, residential, and senior living sectors.

What challenge were you trying to address with Thinkbound Inc.?

This year marks our 25th anniversary, and we decided to celebrate this milestone with a re-branding and revamping of our website.  We realized the functionalities needed enhancing and the look of our site needed a refresh.

What was the scope of their involvement?

Thinkbound redesigned and developed our website. This revamp incorporated designs and functionalities that are standard and expected in 2020.  A couple of top enhancements were to include mobile/tablet optimization, easy navigation, and showcasing our blog in a better way. One of the highlights we incorporated was a visualizer they built to enhance our custom rug and broadloom category.   

What is the team composition?

Alex (Founder & Director) was my main point of contact. He worked with my in-house designer and me.

How did you come to work with Thinkbound Inc.?

I googled and researched companies myself, observed their own website, functions, ratings, etc. In the end, I brought in three companies, and Thinkbound was one of them. We provided each company with a full list of our goals and what we wanted to incorporate into our website, which included a sample list of other company websites highlighting things we liked about it.  

Then, I left the floor to them to deliver a presentation, and Thinkbound ultimately won the contract. This presentation was an introductory meeting that allowed me to watch how they responded, the detail of information, and the feedback they provided. It was a telltale sign of how our relationship would unfold.

How much have you invested with them?

We invested between $10,000–$15,000.

What is the status of this engagement?

The engagement lasted from September 2019–April 2020. Any delays in the process were due to me and the unfolding of the COVID-19 pandemic.  We reflected on whether this would be the best time to go live. Ultimately, we decided it was the right time to launch.

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

Because we launched so recently, I can’t give an answer right now. With time, we’ll be able to see analytics and provide a qualified reflection of the impact.

How did Thinkbound Inc. perform from a project management standpoint?

It was really helpful to have one point of contact for email and phone conferences to provide direction. This allowed us to build rapport and develop an understanding of how each other works. This made project management effective for Alex and I.  Overall, communication was good.

As for his team, I didn’t work directly with them, but they were doing the work behind the scenes, and I was satisfied. Many ideations were fluid in the early weeks, and ultimately, we were able to balance our vision with realistic development goals.   

What did you find most impressive about them?

From the get-go, Alex understood our company and website objectives. They have the technical experience and understood the direction we wanted to go in. One of the first things I noticed about him upon our first meeting was that he listened, asked thoughtful and targeted questions, and had a grasp on our goals, which resonated with me.  

Are there any areas they could improve?

There was the stage where we neared the first big edit of the website. This needed a lot of time and attention to review every single detail and nuance of the site.  Often times, this can present an issue with the communication of what we mean to say versus what the other party understands. So Alex and I decided the best way to communicate changes would be to create an Excel spreadsheet.  This spreadsheet included every URL page-by-page, with notes for edits so it would be clear for the developers on the changes to be made.  

It was a big spreadsheet with big and small changes.  Due to the size, we needed to crosscheck with the spreadsheet several times because things weren’t complete when noted as such. We needed to go back a few times to vet the site and spreadsheet, which was time-consuming. Ultimately, Alex took a lead role to get the changes complete.  

This was a point of frustration shared with Thinkbound, even though I appreciated the enormity of the task and the level of detail needed.  A final review on their part before sending the returned document as complete would have mitigated the back and forth.  That being said, they did tend to everything in a timely manner.  This is my only criticism, and we must take the nature of remote work into consideration. All-in-all, they came through, and I was very pleased.

Do you have any advice for potential customers?

The best advice is to have an understanding of what you want.  Our team researched and looked at examples of what we needed and wanted before the engagement. The second phase for us was putting pen to paper.  This does two things; helps them quote you on the project as well as assist them to formulate an approach and plan for your project.  For us, by providing Thinkbound with information and details, they were able to get to know and understand our company and spend more time on the creative aspects like the messaging and the look and feel of our site.  It gave them a launching-off point and solid ground to start from.

Introduce your business and what you do there.

I’m the president of Eypex Corporation, an automotive lighting and fastener supplier.

What challenge were you trying to address with Thinkbound Inc.?

At the time, I was starting a new company. All I had for brand materials was a name; we had a clean slate otherwise.

What was the scope of their involvement?

Thinkbound Inc. helped build the pillars of our brand identity and promise: peak technology, peak commitment, and peak experience. They also created our website. The site has parallax scrolling, which was something I requested. Thinkbound Inc. incorporated that into the designs of the home page and each subsequent page. 

Before building the website, we’d go back and made changes to our website for SEO after the fact. For this project, before we even made a page, we had an entire vocabulary of keywords and phrases as well as how we want to integrate our brand promise into our site from the start. That way, we could efficiently build the site’s SEO without shoehorning things that don’t fit naturally into our content.

What is the team composition?

Alex (Founder / Director) has always been my point of contact. I’ve used him almost exclusively. 

How did you come to work with Thinkbound Inc.?

I think Alex met one of my employees while they were on vacation. The employee came back and told me about him, encouraging me to give them a call. When I did so, I found that Alex had a very easy delivery when he spoke. 

From the beginning, he acted as more of a partner than as a vendor we’d be paying to do something. He put himself in our shoes and thought about what we’d want and what our stakeholders would want for a given product. His team also will push back on our ideas if they think it can be made more sustainable and impactful; they won’t deliver a bad product to us just because that’s what we asked them to build. 

How much have you invested with them?

We’ve spent under $5,000.

What is the status of this engagement?

We started working together in April 2012. Everything has been completed, but it’s ongoing because we want to keep things fresh for our customers. I prefer to start over on products rather than iterate. Our current site is about 1½ years old, and we’ll be looking to rebuild it in about six months. 

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

We’ve gotten good internal and external feedback from our customers. We haven’t focused on SEO because we’re still identifying our target market. I’ve done 7–8 projects with Thinkbound Inc. over the past 9–10 years. They now have a good understanding of my sensibilities. We can talk about the foundations of messaging, branding, and identity rather than just the product we want.

How did Thinkbound Inc. perform from a project management standpoint?

Thinkbound Inc. set up a temporary site that I can share with my team and get input with stakeholders about what they like and don’t like. Other developers I’ve worked with wanted to develop in secret and launch without checking with us first. I appreciated Thinkbound Inc.’s collaborative approach that allows me to collect feedback from multiple people. 

What did you find most impressive about them?

They’re very accessible. Thinkbound Inc. has grown a lot since we started working with them, but they still have an entrepreneurial, direct point-of-contact interface. I can send them a text in the middle of the night to ask for changes, and I’ll get a response by morning. That direct access and responsiveness make working with them incredibly easy and efficient.

Are there any areas they could improve?

I’m not signed up for any newsletter or blogs that they might have. I like suppliers who tell me what’s happening in their industry, especially when it comes to tech. The more they can share with us about how we can evolve and grow in a specific area, the better. 

Any advice for potential customers?

Have an open mind. No one knows your business better than you, but if you’re going to use experts, let them be experts. You should use Thinkbound Inc. to better understand your customers and be as effective as possible in your space. Take their advice.

Introduce your business and what you do there.

I’m the founder and president of ibid4storage.com and selfstorageauction.com. We’re an online marketplace for delinquent auction units. We sell self-storage units that are in default all across North America, Australia, and South Africa. I started the original company in Canada and Thinkbound Inc. developed another platform for us.

What challenge were you trying to address with Thinkbound Inc.?

I wanted to find a reputable firm that could manage, maintain, and update my current website. This came after several failed attempts with other web design companies.

What was the scope of their involvement?

Thinkbound Inc. worked on my existing website and developed innovative features. The new website is more efficient and SEO-friendly. They organically built SEO into our platform by updating the site behind the scene. At this point, they're continuously making improvements.

What is the team composition?

Alex (Marketing Director, Thinkbound Inc.) is my contact for the company.

How did you come to work with Thinkbound Inc.?

An employee introduced me to Thinkbound Inc., and I hit it off with them right away.

How much have you invested with them?

I’ve invested over $15,000.

What is the status of this engagement?

We began working with the company in 2014 and have an ongoing partnership. They continuously perform site maintenance and updates.

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

Our main site has gone from averaging 5,000 users to over 150,000 unique visitors. With the consideration of our other sites, the total is approximately 300,000 visitors.

They’ve done a great job at getting us to rank high on an organic basis versus having to compete on a paid one. The company has taken the site to a functionality that is above and beyond what it was when we originated in 2012.

How did Thinkbound Inc. perform from a project management standpoint?

They’ve been receptive and responsive when it comes to making sure everything works right. If something doesn’t work right—they fix it. Thinkbound Inc. takes pride in their work and has been great at communication and meeting deadlines. Our partner makes sure everything is done properly, is transparent, and is owned by us.

What did you find most impressive about them?

They value their work and deliver the best quality at the best price. The company helped us survive cyberattacks without incurring crazy expenses to overhaul the site. Thinkbound Inc. truly became our partner rather than just a third-party software management company.

Are there any areas they could improve?

No, they’re a growing company that has done a great job at listening and progressing.

Do you have any advice for potential customers?

If you’re looking for a one-stop-shop that can do everything, is transparent, and becomes your partner, this is the place to go.