Third and Grove

BACKGROUND

Introduce your business and what you do there.

I work for Brainshark as the senior manager of creative. We’re a sales enablement platform.

OPPORTUNITY / CHALLENGE

What challenge were you trying to address with Third and Grove?

We had an existing website, but we’ve been around for 20 years so it wasn’t the easiest environment to update. One of our goals at the beginning of our work with Third and Grove was for them to make our site easier to update for our marketing teammates that don’t have an in-depth development background.

SOLUTION

What was the scope of their involvement?

Third and Grove redid our homepage and our “Partners” page. We also had a whole slew of solution pages that we needed to get up and running. Third and Grove created a component page where we gave them the different components, and then they created the first three. Then, we were able to go into our CMS and put the rest of the pages up ourselves.

Now, we’re working on a migration from Drupal 7 to Drupal 9, which we kicked off this week.

What is the team composition?

Curtis (Associate Architect) has been the head developer on all of our projects. We’ve also worked with two project managers, one of whom was Jen (Director of Delivery). We worked with her for 6–9 months, and when she transferred to a different role, we started working with Alan (Senior Digital Project Manager). He’s been great.

We’ve worked with their strategy team a little bit too, but we haven’t really needed much work there. We’ve also interacted with Ali (Senior Digital Strategist) and Rob (Digital Strategist), and our account manager is Ashley (Senior Account Manager).

For the Drupal migration, they’ve assigned us a new team, and Vanessa (Senior Project Manager) is the project manager. We haven’t met the lead developer yet.  

How did you come to work with Third and Grove?

We’d used a couple of outside agencies, but we weren’t completely satisfied with any of them until Third and Grove. We didn’t have anyone internally to do web development, and as we were using Acquia, we looked at their list of preferred providers, including Third and Grove. I reached out to 3–4 organizations, and Third and Grove’s focus on testing and technical audits made us feel that they would be a good fit.  

How much have you invested with them?

We’ve spent over $100,000 to date, and our migration project is going to cost around $150,000.

What is the status of this engagement?

We’ve been working together since May 2020. The migration project should finish up toward the end of Q3.

RESULTS & FEEDBACK

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

Functionality is our first priority. On the backend, they’ve made the CMS much easier to use. We now have the ability to change things quickly and not be as reliant on a true web developer.

How did Third and Grove perform from a project management standpoint?

We have a weekly status call with our architect and project manager, and we go through our open priorities and projects. That open communication and being available is critical, as it helps ensure that everyone is working on what they’re supposed to be.

What did you find most impressive about them?

Coming from a non-technical background, one of the parts of our partnership I’ve liked the most is the documentation and instruction that Third and Grove has provided me. It’s allowed me to do smaller tasks that don’t require coding. I can do those myself, which allows us to do them much quicker and more affordably.

Additionally, they have different concentrations within their company, so if you need analytics or strategic help, then they can accommodate that. They also have a design and creative team.

Are there any areas they could improve?

This is a really hard question because they’re a really good partner. When we’ve had questions, they’ve been very forthcoming. I trust them — they’re experts at what they do.

Do you have any advice for potential customers?

Be very open with your requirements. Take advantage — they’re on Slack, Jira, and Confluence, and it’s very easy to communicate with them. They respond in a timely manner. Understand what you need, and they’ll be able to help you.

BACKGROUND

Introduce your business and what you do there.

I’m a senior vice president of corporate communications and engagement at a biotechnology company.

OPPORTUNITY / CHALLENGE

What challenge were you trying to address with Third and Grove?

The challenge began with the design of our corporate website.

SOLUTION

What was the scope of their involvement?

Third and Grove started with a digital audit. Their team identified the pages that performed well and those that didn’t. They showed us how our site architecture could be reorganized to prove a better UX. Their team set priorities based on what consumers wanted and what our site didn't provide 

We collaborated on the frontend design to solve for the UX challenges. Then, they handled all of the backend set up.

As we evolved our relationship, Third and Grove offered other capabilities including social media content creation and publication. They also offered strategic counsel to engage audiences.

Their creative director helped us conceive of ideas and build our social content calendar. They focused on organic content. Their team created and executed on the content, which required animation on occasion.

What is the team composition?

I worked with Justin (Co-Founder & CEO) and Adam (Creative Director) directly. They assigned two different teams to our project. One team of 1–2 people helped us with web development. Their social creation team included the creative director and a business manager. Two other people created and executed on the content.

How did you come to work with Third and Grove?

When I came to the company in 2018, Third and Grove already worked on a different project. The gentleman who liaised with them at the time recommended that I interview them and consider them for our web development needs. We brought them on for the project and expanded our partnership.

How much have you invested with them?

We’ve spent between $50,000–$100,000 over the course of our engagement with Third and Grove.

What is the status of this engagement?

We started this project in August 2018 and finished it in April 2020.

RESULTS & FEEDBACK

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

Our engagement with Third and Grove was a great working experience. They were agile and responsive to unexpected challenges as well as opportunities that emerged. Their team responded quickly and turned around creative solutions with a pleasant attitude. They felt like an extension of my team. I relied on them. 

How did Third and Grove perform from a project management standpoint?

A project manager sent us schedules of work that was done using Google Docs and other shared communication tools. We had clear timelines and expectations. We also used Sprout Social to establish our social media channels, manage our content calendars, and approve content to then publish. We were able to work together and the process was relatively seamless. The project management was smooth.

What did you find most impressive about them?

They took a brief and delivered on the brief clearly without a lot of revisions. If there were changes, they were happy to make them quickly.

Are there any areas they could improve?

No, they were a great team.

Do you have any advice for potential customers?

Set clear expectations for your goals. Work with clear project specifications in a time-bound way. You're not going to get the best value from Third and Grove through general support month over month. They give the best value when they have clear directions and deliverables that you can revisit. When plans change, be clear about what’s changing and why. It saves time and confusion.

BACKGROUND

Introduce your business and what you do there.

I'm the vice president of marketing and corporate communications for the Cooperative of American Physicians. We provide medical malpractice coverage and other full lines of business and personal insurance to physicians and medical groups. We also offer risk management and practice management services and support.

OPPORTUNITY / CHALLENGE

What challenge were you trying to address with Third & Grove?

We engaged Third & Grove once we decided that we wanted to make significant design, navigation, and content presentation improvements to our website.

SOLUTION

What was the scope of their involvement?

To start, we held strategic discussions of our objectives and what business problems needed to be addressed. After reviewing the existing architecture, we began a thorough design generation process. We prioritized having a site that was attractive and navigable. Third & Grove served as the backbone of the design process in that they created the wireframes and designs on their own. We tasked Third & Grove with making a more useful and attractive public-facing site in addition to a more robust members-only section.

What is the team composition?

We had a team of 5–6 people led by Justin (CEO, Third & Grove) and Anthony (Founder/Chief Innovator and Strategy, Third & Grove).

How did you come to work with Third & Grove?

I met one of their sales representatives at an industry conference, and we kept in touch. We included them in our RFP to 10 agencies. We interviewed four finalists and ultimately chose Third & Grove because we were impressed by their technology background.

What is the status of this engagement?

We worked together from July 2015–July 2016.

RESULTS & FEEDBACK

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

Since our website’s launch, we’ve seen an increase in organic traffic, and we have a much-improved lead generation engine. Early on, we also received very positive reviews from users who found it much easier to locate content on the new site, and who found the new design to be markedly improved.

How did Third & Grove perform from a project management standpoint?

I think the defining characteristic of a company is how they respond when they run into the most challenging pieces of the relationship. In that regard, Third & Grove was excellent. The management team is incredibly attentive and empathetic – a distinct advantage in working with them. We worked with two different project managers during the engagement, which required getting a new person up to speed, but by and large, Third & Grove succeeded in guiding us through the process.

What did you find most impressive about them?

Their comprehensive and skilled approach and capabilities allowed us to produce a great site. They’re excellent strategists, designers, problem solvers, and architects. We’ve been able to maintain a healthy relationship with them as we sometimes rely on Third & Grove to provide website maintenance. We’re continually evolving the site. They left us with the abilities to make some edits as necessary, but we’re also able to call on them if we need any extra assistance.

Are there any areas they could improve?

We had occasional challenges, but Third & Grove addressed them quickly whenever I had concerns.  

Do you have any advice for potential customers?

We found it worthwhile to develop a relationship with the leadership team.

BACKGROUND

Introduce your business and what you do there.

I'm the director of engineering and web operations at Benefit Cosmetics.

OPPORTUNITY / CHALLENGE

What challenge were you trying to address with Third & Grove?

We wanted to move our original CMS to Drupal. We didn't have any Drupal experts in-house, so we were looking for a contractor to help us.

SOLUTION

What was the scope of their involvement?

We provided them with the wireframes and designs, and then, their Drupal experts helped us re-platform our CMS. In addition to redesigning our website and moving it to Drupal, they made it mobile responsive. Since then, we've had an ongoing relationship where they augment our team based on our needs. They've also trained our team so that we could start to take on more responsibilities internally.

What is the team composition?

We've worked with 6–8 of their team members.

How did you come to work with Third & Grove?

We got to know them when they were working for us under a different subcontractor. Soon, it became clear that Third & Grove was a better fit for us, so we decided to work with them directly.

How much have you invested with them?

We've spent between $500,000–$1 million.

What is the status of this engagement?

We started working with them in February 2015 and the relationship is ongoing.

RESULTS & FEEDBACK

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

The feedback on the website has been overwhelmingly positive. We were able to expand from four to 42 websites globally and incorporate translation. Our CEO is also very happy with the results and the amount of traffic we're seeing across the globe.

How did Third & Grove perform from a project management standpoint?

In most cases, they were working in a staff augmentation capacity and provided us with technical resources. The team they've assigned to us has been great in terms of communication. They come to our office for one week once or twice a year to meet other members of our team, which helps us build a stronger relationship.

What did you find most impressive about them?

They've been very flexible and understood all of our needs. They're great communicators, so it's been easy to add them to our team.

Are there any areas they could improve?

Some smaller projects that we worked on could use better project management.

BACKGROUND

Introduce your business and what you do there.

Wen Huang: I oversee product development initiatives at the AppleTree Institute for Education Innovation, an education nonprofit that creates instructional solutions for over a dozen schools and hundreds of teachers.

Chavaughn Brown: I’m the chief of research and innovation. I oversee the different program areas and research that goes into creating our instructional model, as well as the various tools and services that support it.

OPPORTUNITY / CHALLENGE

What challenge were you trying to address with Third and Grove?

WH: Essentially, this started as a Drupal rescue project. We’d contracted with a Drupal development firm to build a new platform for our core product—an instructional model—on a D8 site, but they dropped the ball in a lot of ways. We were also trying to migrate from AWS to Acquia.

SOLUTION

What was the scope of their involvement?

WH: After they got us onto Acquia, Third and Grove (TAG) helped us do a site audit regarding both technical development work and our UX. We then addressed the potential weaknesses and red flags that process identified. We still had the site our original vendor was going to create, so we didn’t have to start from scratch. Working with our internal team, TAG translated that vision into specific tasks and deadlines.

Moving forward, we’ve relied on TAG for UX, UI, and user research work, as well as to rebuild large parts of our platform to make it more stable and secure. They also helped design and develop new functionalities and improve the suite of tools and resources we can offer.

What is the team composition?

WH: We’ve had two project managers and one main developer and architect. Depending on the type of work we were doing and the urgency of the deadline, we’ve worked as few as five and as many as seven people (designers and developers). 

How did you come to work with Third and Grove?

WH: We found them on Drupal.org and vetted them, along with a few other firms, for the initial rescue project. We liked working with them, so we continued the relationship.

How much have you invested with them?

Both: We’ve spent $200,000 so far.

What is the status of this engagement?

WH: We’ve been working together since December 2017.

RESULTS & FEEDBACK

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

WH: We just relaunched the new website, so we don't have a lot of quantitative evidence yet, but TAG has been instrumental in getting us to this point. We launched a pilot in January and, internally, people were pleased with the performance and functionality. We took the feedback from that process and refined and tweaked some pages and features to make it even more user-friendly.

Since we launched the broader network in August, we’ve gotten even better feedback. There are still bugs, but TAG has been extremely responsive in helping us address them. We’re confident in continuing to work with them and using their design team, who, at this point, understand quite well what we’re trying to do.

How did Third and Grove perform from a project management standpoint?

WH: We talk to our project manager and our lead developer every day, but otherwise, we communicate mostly via Slack and have a weekly check-in. When we were in the design phase a few months ago, we had direct access to their design team on Slack, so everyone is easily accessible.

They’re highly responsive to our timelines, meaning we can dial resources up (or down) when we need to, as well as have daily calls if they’re necessary. We trust them to communicate our questions, concerns, and requests back to their internal team effectively and manage our expectations going forward, regarding timelines and potential roadblocks.

What did you find most impressive about them?

WH: Not only do they communicate and work effectively with our internal team, but they've been an amazing thought partner throughout the engagement. We're an education nonprofit, so technology is not our expertise, and their software engineer has been invaluable in helping us make the decisions we need to make. We've often relied on him as our technical lead.

CB: Though they’re obviously Drupal experts, they've made a considerable effort to understand our needs and help us work towards our mission. They seemed genuinely interested in the education space we operate, and when they came down to visit, they were interested in seeing classrooms and playing with kids to learn the why behind our product.

Are there any areas they could improve?

WH: They’ve been great throughout the relationship, but there were a few points of confusion around deadlines and priorities, especially as we were nearing our big launch date. Both sides worked proactively to address the anticipated issues, and we were able to resolve them quickly without delaying any of the big releases.

BACKGROUND

Introduce your business and what you do there.

I'm the manager of communications and marketing at HIROC. We're a not-for-profit organization providing healthcare liability insurance across Canada.

OPPORTUNITY / CHALLENGE

What challenge were you trying to address with Third and Grove?

We had an outdated website, which was developed in 2010.  In the past few years, we've grown and made a name for ourselves. We’re now known as a trusted advisor on the healthcare landscape and with governments across the country. We also have many new tools and resources available. However, what we've heard from our subscribers and website visitors is that they couldn't find things easily on our website. So we started looking for a company to build a more robust and user-friendly website for us.

SOLUTION

What was the scope of their involvement?

We wanted to move to Drupal, so we gave them our technical requirements and they got down to work. They manage both design and development. The search functionality is the key for us, but we also rely on their feedback in terms of other website improvements.

What is the team composition?

We have one main project manager and we also work with 4–5 other members of their team.

How did you come to work with them?

We put out an RFP and got a lot of feedback from within Canada and the U.S. Third and Grove had a lot of expertise in the industry, so they stood out among the competitors.

How much have you invested with them?

Our budget spans over $100,000.

What is the status of this engagement?

We started working with them in December 2017 and the relationship is ongoing.

RESULTS & FEEDBACK

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

They're true experts in their field and that is reflected in their designs and how they handle the backend development. We've been impressed with the sitemap they created and their attention to detail. 

How did they perform from a project management standpoint?

They've been guiding us through the entire process, helping us stay on time and on budget. They're very transparent and collaborative, so we haven't had any issues with communication. If there is a problem, we let them know and they get back to us within a few minutes. We talk to them weekly, usually via email, phone, or video calls.

What did you find most impressive about them?

They're innovative and knowledgeable. They're always striving for excellence and want to make sure their clients are happy. They're aware of the industry trends and best practices, so we find their recommendations and suggestions very valuable.

Are there any areas they could improve?

I can't think of anything.

Do you have any advice for potential customers?

Lean into their expertise and trust the team – they know what they are doing. Collaborating with TAG has been a seamless process and I always feel kept in the loop, which is very reassuring in a large scale initiative like this.

BACKGROUND

Introduce your business and what you do there.

Boston Herald is a newspaper organization. I am the vice president of digital operations. I oversee the business end of things for our digital division.

OPPORTUNITY / CHALLENGE

What challenge were you trying to address with Third & Grove?

We needed to outsource all of our web development and design for our website. We were in the process of redesigning our site to become responsive so that we were mobile-friendly. We were also in need of day-to-day support from a development standpoint.

SOLUTION

What was the scope of their involvement?

They took our website and transformed the entire site into a responsive design. That meant designing of the pages, all of the development work and all the coding. The site is built on Drupal 7. In the beginning, we already had designs made up from our in-house web designer. We based the design off of that. Since that project, we have had other projects where we used Third & Grove’s design team. They assist in our analytics and are in charge of setting all of the ad tags on the site. We’ve used them to set up our accelerated mobile pages for Google. They’ve set up a store for us where we sell back copies and posters. We use them for ongoing maintenance of the site. We have a long-term support contract with them where we get a certain number of support hours. We provide them tasks that have to be done, and there are also occasionally urgent issues that arise because we need to be up all the time.

How did you come to work with Third & Grove?

The original agency that we were working with out of New York changed their business and was no longer supporting Drupal sites; they introduced us to Third & Grove. They had an office in Cambridge, so we met with them. Justin [Emond], the owner, was great. He’s very knowledgeable and personable.

How much have you invested with Third & Grove?

We spent between $50,000 and $200,000 for the website project.

What is the status of this engagement?

We started working with them in June 2015, and the work is ongoing.

RESULTS & FEEDBACK

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

Our mobile traffic has increased. Prior to this, the experience was seeing the desktop version on your mobile device. We’re now about 50% mobile and 50% desktop and tablet.

How did Third & Grove perform from a project management standpoint?

We have a dedicated account manager who is our point person. We do the majority of our communication via email daily and have a standing weekly meeting. We have shared docs that list what items need to be worked on and where they are in the process. Our account manager gives us a timeline for every item so we know how long it will take. Then we can prioritize what we want done first based on the hours we have. They’re very responsive and easily accessible.

What did you find most impressive about Third & Grove?

This is our first time outsourcing development because we’ve always had in-house developers. It’s been a pleasant, successful experience.

Are there any areas Third & Grove could improve?

No. I don’t have anything to compare it to. We’ve been very happy with the quality of work they do and the timely manner in which they get things done.

BACKGROUND

Introduce your business and what you do there.

I’m involved in marketing and web strategy at a research institute. I drive demand generation to commercialize IP that’s developed for the US federal government.

OPPORTUNITY / CHALLENGE

What challenge were you trying to address with Third & Grove?

Our site was originally a reflection of our internal structure as opposed to addressing external client needs. When I was brought in, the design elements had been approved, however, the project was behind schedule.

SOLUTION

What was the scope of their involvement?

To rightsize the site redesign, Third & Grove reassigned a fantastic project manager to our account. Together, we reviewed the progress and challenges on the rollout and put a game plan and timeline together to push over the finish line. Before I was involved, a web strategy team at Third & Grove developed the design, including navigation and content organization. Their production team then helped us map our existing content to the new design with as much automation as possible. The final part of the scope involves ongoing maintenance and support.

This project was a redesign using Drupal/Acquia as the backend. Third & Grove has experience in wire designs. If you provide the objective, they can come back with a good design. Before the redesign, the site wasn’t optimized for mobile. Now, we have an adaptive design. They give great guidance on design elements to ensure that the site can adapt to different devices.

Third & Grove partnered effortlessly with our internal creative services teams on both imagery and copy. On top of all of these services, they also connected us with an SEO agency to drive more traffic to our site.

How did you come to work with Third & Grove?

The engagement existed before I was hired.

How much have you invested with Third & Grove?

We spent between $300,000 and $400,000 on the redesign.

What is the status of this engagement?

By the time I got involved, the project was six months past the deadline due to internal challenges at our company. After I was assigned to the redesign, they provided an exceptional project manager, which reset the project. That demonstrated their willingness to stick with us as we worked out our internal challenges.

RESULTS & FEEDBACK

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

The redesign is very different compared to our older site, so I don’t have a point of reference to compare results. That said, as part of the redesign, we wanted to understand who was visiting our site so we could appropriately tailor the experience. Our business is primarily government-oriented, but we have few government domains visiting the site. The site wasn’t a major factor for those sales. The site plays a greater role for commercial sales though.

Third & Grove partnered with us to develop an executive dashboard that we use to track engagement and business outcomes. In general, the bounce rates have dropped on the home page, and we’ve seen increases in engagement and leads.

How did Third & Grove perform from a project management standpoint?

Melissa [Senior Producer, Third & Grove] has been critical to our success. If we had challenges, she would let me know as soon as possible, and we’d figure out a plan together. I refer to her as our quarterback for the leadership role she’s played.

What did you find most impressive about Third & Grove?

They work well internally between the web strategy and analytics. Everyone recognizes that Melissa’s the project manager, and we route all of our work through her. That’s been very effective. Third & Grove works cohesively with our team.

Are there any areas Third & Grove could improve?

When I joined the project, it was clear that we were off track collectively on the redesign. Regular communications between the management team at my company and with Third & Grove could have mitigated the situation. We’ve since established strong communication ties.