What was the scope of their involvement?
They conducted a website redesign. We had a time-limited engagement to start. We liked their team, so we expanded the engagement to a long-term partnership and consider them our marketing department.
The previous website was rudimentary. It had only 3 or 4 static pages with a modest amount of dynamic content. Timelapse transformed it into a functional website with various engagement tools, resources, on-demand webinars, press releases, news, use cases, and white papers. It’s taken months to get all that content, but that has nothing to do with Timelapse. We’re a small company, and a lot of the information is tied to only a few people. Getting access to the customer stories and project backgrounds is challenging. Over 6 months, we’ve transformed our online presence.
The front page of the site is our sales façade. In the background, we offer another web-based service. Our primary users are prospects who want to learn more about our company. Hospitals and investigative sites around the world use the tools that we provide, as well as biotech firms, pharma companies, and CROs [content research organizations]. Most of them paid no attention to our front page. Pharma and biotech companies pay for our service. Hospitals have no interest in understanding the website; they just use the tool.
What did Timelapse do to market your company?
The original engagement to rebuild the website spawned this longer-term engagement. That relationship produced a set of ideas for our overall marketing effort, including collateral such as use cases and customer stories, materials for social media, a webinar series, and a coordinated effort to build a database of contacts. That was a fundamental part of the engagement.
We needed to create a database of contacts in our target market in Europe and the US for direct mail and email. We also use it to support our regional presence, which has been quite effective. We often attend massive conferences, and the restraint of travel expenses means that we often don’t meet the right kind of client. Instead, we’re finding more local conferences in San Francisco and Boston. This seems to be a more effective marketing environment because people can drive to an event. Timelapse has also supported that effort.
How did you come to work with Timelapse?
Our founder, Jim, was a speaker at an event that Oliver [CEO, Timelapse] organized for another customer. That relationship developed into another conversation. At the time, we knew that we needed a new website. Jim and Oliver are both based in San Francisco, so it was easy for them. Eventually, the relationship was handed to me. I may be multiple time zones away, but I don’t feel out of touch. They are responsive, and we’re aligned in what we’re trying to achieve.
How much have you invested with Timelapse?
We’ve spent between $50,000 and $100,000 over the course of our relationship.
What is the status of this engagement?
We started working together in April 2016, and the relationship is ongoing. We have them on a monthly retainer now.
Current and prospective clients have reacted positively to the new visual identity, driving marked web traffic increases. Combining organized planning with creative design, Timelapse adhered strictly to deadlines while also fostering an atmosphere conducive to delivering on aesthetic goals.