TMBPartners

Introduce your business and what you do there.

I’m the director of marketing at HomeTown Pharmacy. We provide prescription medications out of retail pharmacies and closed-door long-term care pharmacies.

What challenge were you trying to address with TMBPartners?

We hired TMBPartners to conduct user research for us so they could help us with other marketing and branding initiatives. 

What was the scope of their involvement?

The team surveyed our customers to find out information such as why they were shopping at our stores. After the survey, they compiled all the information, extracting demographics like ages, gender, and other variables. They brought the findings back to us in a final report, letting us know the top reasons why customers were shopping at our stores.

It revealed the discrepancies between what we thought was important to our customers and what was actually important to them, which we were then able to act on in our rebranding project. The team consulted on various initiatives for that campaign, including digital and print marketing efforts.

Since then, we’ve used TMBPartners for various marketing services, like ensuring our branding and communication materials are all consistent.

What is the team composition?

We originally worked with two people, Chanda (Digital Marketing Manager) and Tom (Founder & Creative Director), but now Tom is our primary contact.

How did you come to work with TMBPartners?

I knew Chanda from a previous role, and she called me offering TMBPartners’ services, which was what we were looking for. We ended up sitting down with them and watching one of their demos, and ultimately decided to move forward with the project.

What is the status of this engagement?

We began working with them in June 2018, and the collaboration is ongoing.

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

TMBPartners’ work is pretty good quality. Sometimes, pieces come back with spelling errors, but other than that, we’re really pleased with what they produce. They have great design skills, and their deliverables have definitely had an impact on customer engagement. We’ve seen an increase in our sales since the rebrand, and between 10%–15% of that can be attributed to TMBPartners.

How did TMBPartners perform from a project management standpoint?

They perform quite well. Overall, we’re pleased with their project management style. 

What did you find most impressive about them?

Tom is very forward-thinking. If I call him with a project, he’s always ready to have a collaborative discussion with me about it so we can arrive at a better final product. He’s also proactive and will call us with ideas we’re not even considering at the time.

Are there any areas they could improve?

Sometimes they move so quickly that they return their work with errors, and we have to change details or spelling errors. But other than that, it’s been a good engagement.

Do you have any advice for potential customers?

Give TMBPartners as many details about your project as possible right up front.

Introduce your business and what you do there.

I'm the global marketing communications manager for Burke Porter Group, which is a network of manufacturing companies around the globe. We now own fifteen companies in four continents and we have over 40 locations. So what we do is that we are a growth acquisition company. I support the acquisition integration function as well as a very high level of marketing activity across the group. And that goes anywhere from about marketing, digital marketing to sales support.

What challenge were you trying to address with TMBPartners?

At the time, we were trying to integrate our businesses into the message that our group has, but we were very disconnected. They didn’t understand why we were acquiring them. I was looking for a marketing agency partner to help with overflow work specifically, as well as digital marketing and web dev stuff.

What was the scope of their involvement?

They sold us on their “Your Company, Your Brand” process, which is essentially a brand audit. We immediately entered into an agreement for seven of our brands that needed messaging reset or that needed to improve their marketing.

We continued to expand the partnership, so they started working on content development across multiple different areas. They did everything from copywriting on our website, to brochures and pamphlets.

Eventually, they even began helping us out with our website development work. At first, we’d contact them anytime a new landing page needed to be developed. In one case, we had a product that needed to be relaunched, so they developed a 4–5-page website from the ground up.

Recently, they took over our digital marketing efforts. This is mostly Google Ads, My Google Business, and social media.

They also have a very talented graphic designer that we’ve used for one-off projects.

What is the team composition?

Chanda (Digital Marketing Manager) is our sales rep and she is local to us, and Tom (Founder & Creative Director) is at out immediate disposal as well. We’ve also worked with a graphic designer, who also does some of our content creation as well. They’ve also brought on a contractor who helped with our strategy.

How did you come to work with TMBPartners?

They were relentless. Chanda called me once a week for about six weeks, asking for time to pitch their process. Eventually, I had her come into our office, and we’ve been working together ever since. I have a lot of respect for them.

How much have you invested with them?

The total in 2019 was roughly $275,000.

What is the status of this engagement?

We started working together in January 2019 and our engagement is ongoing.

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

They provide us with a social media and digital marketing report every month, and there were definitely some highlights. Across digital, we were able to increase our user sessions and page views on the website with their marketing tactics by 200% on average. Our followers on social media is also up by about 500%. Impressions are up by 240%, and engagement is up by 90%.

When we asked about our company value, we found that the consistent response between our employees, investors, and customers was our people and innovation. So,  after the brand audits, we launched a new campaign to empower employees.

I have nothing but good things to say about them. Compared to other agencies, they’ve been very candid and honest about what we need. They have our best interests in mind. They’re not trying to tack on additional discovery or another strategy session. They do the work themselves, and that brought us value almost immediately.

How did TMBPartners perform from a project management standpoint?

They have a quick turnaround, and it really stands out. When we need something in a pinch, I can trust that they have my back. They always treat us like a high priority. It feels like we’re their only client. I’m not used to that, so they’re a huge value.

Tom has been able to build trust with my CEO and CFO, so they value branding much more. They understand our strategies and the long-term goals of our company. They’ve really become an extension of our team.

What did you find most impressive about them?

Having a direct connection to their CEO is extremely valuable. He has a lot of expertise, after 30 years in marketing. I probably speak to him about once a day.

Are there any areas they could improve?

Not really, they’re pretty much a perfect partner.

Do you have any advice for potential customers?

The candid and honest feedback between both parties is what had made this relationship what it is. It’s important to invest in developing that relationship.

Introduce your business and what you do there.

I’m the VP of marketing and artist relations for Fishman Transducers. We design and manufacture products to amplify string instruments, namely guitars.

What challenge were you trying to address with TMBPartners?

After 30 years of specifically making products for acoustic instruments, we decided to introduce a line of electric guitar pickups. We needed help with launching the product line by a major trade show.

What was the scope of their involvement?

In launching the new product line, we wanted to make sure our messaging, positioning, marketing, and branding assets were correct without compromising our core brand attributes. TMBPartners created graphics and collateral pieces for the launch at the trade show. Some months later, when the product went to market, they created additional collateral, do everything from design work to ad copy to web assets and digital advertising.

Within a year, we brought in TMBPartners as our marketing and branding partner for the entire company. They took over every product family and came up with new tagline for our brand. It was important for them to have more holistic view of business so that there was no disconnect in our messaging. In the end, we felt we made the right call by turning all of our marketing over to them.

What is the team composition?

Thomas (Owner/Creative Director) is our primary contact. He’s got a great team that he’s been building over years; they specialize in everything from social media to graphic design to campaign development. We also worked with a colleague who’s a veteran of major companies in our industry. He brought content and continuity to nuances in industry, which was valuable in developing our ad copy and marketing strategy. We work with them both on a regular basis.

How did you come to work with TMBPartners?

I met them through our industry colleague. He was a friend and associate to the founder of our company. We brought him in as we were developing the product line. When it became time for marketing, branding, logos, and photography, our colleague recommended TMBPartners as an agency he’d been working with. 

We’d been working with another marketing group for six months, but TMBPartners was a lot closer to what we need. We needed an agency that could create something in a very short period of time while understanding the sensibility of the industry and product line. TMBPartners really nailed it. 

How much have you invested with them?

We’ve spent about $100,000 per year

What is the status of this engagement?

We started working together in December 2013, and the trade show took place in January 2014. Our partnership is ongoing.

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

Overall, I can’t point to how our business has grown because of them. Our measurables are the dashboard analytics for social media and website traffic. However, the main KPI we use with TMBPartners is the successful launch and growth of products we brought to market since we been working with them. 

We also look at their turnaround of quality marketing materials and successful marketing strategies in a timeframe that works for us. We’ve done packaging redesign and similar projects that we’ve had good feedback; they’ve come up with things that are imaginative, inspirational, and broadening to our branding. 

How did TMBPartners perform from a project management standpoint?

Their name speaks to their marketing style; they’re a partner to our marketing department. TMBPartners has taken a deep dive in understanding our business, customer, product line, and legacy. They have helped redefine that and continue to make it relevant. We can call for a meeting tomorrow and have it done remotely via video conference.

When I work with them, it doesn’t feel like they’re doing processes for the sake of the process. It’s lean, nimble, and quick. Compared to other agencies, I’ve spent less money and gotten more output of better quality with TMBPartners.

What did you find most impressive about them?

After all this time of working together, I can confidently advocate for TMBPartners in our budgeting process. I never want to try someone new or different. They really work well for us. 

Are there any areas they could improve?

While they can handle some website stuff — they’re a full-service agency — some things I prefer to handle internally. However, I can’t think of anything specific. 

Any advice for potential customers?

They’re easy to communicate with. They get inside your business to understand the dynamics of your industry and organization. They’ve done an amazing job navigating the different personalities, environments, politics, and roadblocks that we have.