VantagePoint Marketing

BACKGROUND

Introduce your business and what you do there.
I’m the marketing and communications specialist of a company that manufactures food service equipment, decor, and other miscellaneous items for schools, restaurants, and other industries.

OPPORTUNITY / CHALLENGE

What challenge were you trying to address with VantagePoint Marketing?
I needed support for our company's marketing team. When I joined my company in 2016, our marketing department consisted of one person.

SOLUTION

What was the scope of their involvement?

VantagePoint Marketing acts as our marketing team and supports our social media marketing, blog content creation, and SEO. At the beginning of our fiscal year, we meet with VantagePoint Marketing to determine our company's communication and marketing strategies, which have line items such as social media promotions throughout the year.

Each month, I meet with Kristen (Content Specialist) to discuss the products we want to promote and provide the company's calendar for community and product events. VantagePoint Marketing creates a social media calendar based on the provided information and tweaks it according to my requests. I share photos of our on-site installations through Dropbox. Kristen writes the posts, and I publish them because it's easier for me, although she supports me using Sprout Social to post content if needed.
 
We have a section on our company's blog for case studies, and the team creates a calendar of topics. I provide VantagePoint Marketing with my customers' direct contact, and the team is responsible for interviewing our customers and writing the case studies. VantagePoint Marketing has interviewed 20 customers. I approve the content before publishing it on our site and social media. VantagePoint Marketing is also redesigning our website.

VantagePoint Marketing manages our paid campaigns on LinkedIn, Facebook, and Google Ads. The team is responsible for the campaigns' research and provides monthly reports, adjusting the campaigns as necessary. VantagePoint Marketing also has access to our website and guides us through necessary changes regarding content and SEO.

Additionally, the team uses SharpSpring for email marketing and has another tool for the site's chatbot. VantagePoint Marketing has integrated a smart email campaign that sends emails to users depending on their interaction with our website. VantagePoint Marketing creates creative campaigns, too. The team has created our booth's design and concept for a show. 

What is the team composition?

We work mainly with three teammates: Jamie (Account Manager), Dana (Senior Account Executive), and Kristen.

How did you come to work with VantagePoint Mark?

I went to an event VantagePoint Marketing hosted for potential customers. My boss received an invitation through the mail, and I attended the Atlanta event. VantagePoint Marketing shared best practices from their existing clients, and I was impressed by the company. We signed a contract with VantagePoint Marketing shortly after this event. 

How much have you invested with them?
Our budget has varied throughout our engagement and projects. We had an initial quote of $160,000, and now we're around $300,000 yearly. This quote includes the ad spending budget.

What is the status of this engagement?

We started working with VantagePoint Marketing in November 2017, and our engagement is ongoing. We work under yearly contracts and have the opportunity to renew them each year.

RESULTS & FEEDBACK

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

VantagePoint Marketing provides monthly reports with details regarding our web traffic and SEO. The team also provides advertising reports and monitors our ad spending to optimize our budget according to the ads that have better performance; these reports include our campaign results and generated leads. Our website traffic has increased 140% in the past period, and our blog pages are the ones that showed more activity. Regarding social media, I can count on Kristen to draft an entire month's content.

How did VantagePoint Mark perform from a project management standpoint?

VantagePoint Marketing meets deadlines and keeps us on track. The team delivers work fast and is in constant communication with me via Zoom meetings. We also meet each quarter to discuss the quarter's results with a larger team of executives from VantagePoint Marketing and our company since the monthly reports are just for me and my boss. 

What did you find most impressive about them?

VantagePoint Marketing understands our industry and market since they've had previous customers from our industry. Working with VantagePoint Marketing is easy because they know our industry.

Are there any areas they could improve?

I can’t think of anything for VantagePoint Marketing to improve.

Do you have any advice for future clients of theirs?

I recommend working with VantagePoint Marketing because they're a great and persistent partner that helps their clients not miss deadlines. They're in constant communication with me.

BACKGROUND

Introduce your business and what you do there.

I am the VP of business development of a company that manufactures cooking equipment. Our main clients are restaurants that prepare either proteins or vegetables in a fryer.

OPPORTUNITY / CHALLENGE

What challenge were you trying to address with VantagePoint Marketing?
We needed a marketing partner since we're a small company and our marketing department is comprised of one person. 

SOLUTION

What was the scope of their involvement?

VantagePoint Marketing is our marketing partner and has assisted us on several projects, including video creation and email and PR campaigns. We use the team's resources according to our needs to create and execute marketing strategies. VantagePoint Marketing has designed and developed our WordPress website, which went live in May 2020. 

The team has created a plan to update our previous website and delivered various iterations and improvements. VantagePoint Marketing has built a selection guide for users to choose from our variety of products. The team has also created a 360 tool that helps with interactive feature display.VantagePoint Marketing has also created animations, renders, and graphics for ads. 

The team also creates content pieces to explain our products. VantagePoint Marketing has written thought leadership articles. First, the team creates a skeleton, which I review, and they publish after addressing my modifications.

What is the team composition?

Our primary contact is with two teammates from VantagePoint Marketing, and I'm unsure how many professionals have worked on our project overall. I've worked with teammates from different departments throughout our engagement, including the design and PR departments. 

How did you come to work with VantagePoint Marketing?

Our company's engagement with VantagePoint Marketing precedes my time working here, and I believe the team was contacted through a referral because they’re focused on the restaurant industry.

How much have you invested with them?
We spend around $350,000 yearly with VantagePoint Marketing.

What is the status of this engagement?

We’ve been working with VantagePoint Marketing since August 2016, and our engagement is ongoing.

RESULTS & FEEDBACK

What evidence can you share that demonstrates the impact of the engagement?
Our sales have increased after VantagePoint Marketing launched our website, and we continue to see an increase of 5%–10% year-over-year. The team's work quality meets my expectations. VantagePoint Marketing is a full-service marketing provider.

How did VantagePoint Marketing perform from a project management standpoint?
VantagePoint Marketing has an excellent communication flow and provides continuous updates. We have weekly Zoom meetings to review work, and the team informs us in advance when the timeline is modified for some reason. We also communicate via email and phone calls. We track work in a Microsoft Excel file that is over four pages long.

What did you find most impressive about them?
VantagePoint Marketing's biggest strength is their support and understanding of our business.

Are there any areas they could improve?
I can't think of anything for VantagePoint Marketing to improve — they're constantly looking for ways to move forward.

Do you have any advice for future clients of theirs?
I recommend potential customers listen and review VantagePoint Marketing's work. The team has a very good process and rigor, but clients must be consistent and keep reviewing data to find the tools that work better for their brand.

BACKGROUND

Introduce your business and what you do there.

I’m the CEO of Diversified Foodservice Supply, a leading distributor of aftermarket parts for commercial restaurant equipment, as well as supplies for food service operators.

OPPORTUNITY / CHALLENGE

What challenge were you trying to address with VantagePoint Marketing?

We needed help with rebranding our company.

SOLUTION

What was the scope of their involvement?

VantagePoint helped us rebrand our company, which included a new logo, positioning, and website. Their team also helped us with all of the PR efforts and communication around the new branding. After that, we worked with VantagePoint on a second project to develop and launch a private brand for our aftermarket parts assortment.

For both projects, VantagePoint worked with internal and external resources to understand where we were and where we wanted to go. Then, they got back to us to confirm that we agreed with their understanding of our goals.

After that, VantagePoint worked with their internal team on the creative process to come up with different options for both our company’s rebranding and the private brand we were launching. They then presented those options to us, and we decided which option we wanted to lead with for each project.

After deciding on both brands, VantagePoint put the final pieces into place and assisted us with the internal and external launches. Along the way, their team also did internal and external surveys to validate the direction we wanted to go in and ensure that our people felt identified with it.

As part of the launch strategy, VantagePoint produced promotional videos and created press releases. Moreover, they secured a podcast for us on the private brand’s launch. They also provided us with social media content that our internal social media specialists used mostly for LinkedIn, as well as with other content for our trade websites.

In addition to that, VantagePoint updated our website with the new branding. Although they worked with some of our old website’s content, they designed and developed a completely new site for us. After that, they handed it over to us for us to administer. It is just an informational website.

What is the team composition?

We worked with a project manager and a couple of other people from VantagePoint.

How much have you invested with them?

We spent around $200,000.

What is the status of this engagement?

We worked together from August 2020–December 2021 on those projects. However, we’re still working with VantagePoint on other projects.

RESULTS & FEEDBACK

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

After working with VantagePoint, we’ve experienced a double-digit increase in our brand sales, as well as an overall improvement in the perception that our brand has in the marketplace.

How did VantagePoint Marketing perform from a project management standpoint?

VantagePoint was very open to feedback, and if they disagreed with something, they came back with data to have a discussion around that. This facilitated a healthy conversation about the right path forward, ultimately leading us to the right place.

I was very happy with VantagePoint’s communication and deadline management; thanks to them, we launched when we wanted to launch. We communicated via phone calls and email.

What did you find most impressive about them?

One of VantagePoint’s biggest strengths was their knowledge of our industry. They knew the equipment space and the service technician space, and they had a good understanding of where and how to communicate with the target audiences.

In addition to that, VantagePoint’s creative process and work were of really high quality. Moreover, their team was very collaborative, engaged, and professional, which was very positive.

Are there any areas they could improve?

No. My collaboration with VantagePoint was very positive, and they did what we needed them to do.

Do you have any advice for potential customers?

If you’re looking to hire a new marketing agency or switch from the one you have right now, I highly recommend working with VantagePoint. They’re very collaborative, smart, and creative, and they’ll deliver high-quality and professional work to you. On top of that, their fees are very competitive.

BACKGROUND

Introduce your business and what you do there.

I’m the VP of global sales for a commercial faucet manufacturer for locations such as restaurants, hospitals, schools, healthcare facilities, and other commercial businesses.

OPPORTUNITY / CHALLENGE

What challenge were you trying to address with VantagePoint Marketing?

We needed help with our brand building. As a company with 75 years in business and the inventors of the pre-rinse unit, we wanted to maintain our stance as a leader in the food-service-oriented faucet industry.

Additionally, we serve the plumbing industry with products for hospitals, schools, and lab facilities. However, we were the second or third-best company in that segment, so we wanted to position ourselves as the leaders, surpassing the current leader.

SOLUTION

What was the scope of their involvement?

VantagePoint helps us with our brand building ongoingly. Whenever we have a new idea, we meet with them to convey what we’re looking for in the marketplace. As they know the market as well, they also come to us with ideas and current best practices they learn along the way to create new opportunities. Years ago, their team helped us come up with our tagline.

VantagePoint is also in charge of all our ads placement in different publications, whether they are hard copies or soft copies. Moreover, they’re in charge of social media management and content creation for our LinkedIn, Instagram, and Facebook accounts.

For this part of the project, VantagePoint comes up with content ideas, designs the creative assets, and places the posts on our social media channels. Additionally, they support our internal team so that they also post content on our social media. We have 6–8 internal teammates posting content at different times, so VantagePoint coordinates the process to spread our message to our greater audience.

Some time ago, VantagePoint helped us create a marketing campaign for an event we participated in. This event was targeted at supermarket chains, so many supermarket stakeholders also participated. All participants stayed in the same hotel for the event, and VantagePoint helped us design a package gift box that we left outside their hotel rooms. Inside this box, there was a small grocery cart filled with candy so that we could spread a feel-good message about our company.

What is the team composition?

We’ve worked with various people from VantageMarketing over the years. Around 6–8 years ago, we worked with Angie (Former Senior Account Manager), but she eventually had to move to a different location. We worked remotely for a while, but she was then taken away from our account.

Then, we started working with Amy (Former PR Manager), who took Angie’s place. Amy recently left the company, so we recently started working with Autumn (PR Manager). In addition to them, we’ve also worked with Henry (President & CEO) and 3–4 other people from VantagePoint who take care of different aspects of the project.

How much have you invested with them?

We spend around $400,000–$450,000 per year, including advertising costs.

What is the status of this engagement?

We started working with VantagePoint around 2004, and our engagement is ongoing.

RESULTS & FEEDBACK

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

Recently, we launched a campaign to announce our 75th anniversary on social media, and the results regarding likes and impressions were very strong for a while. Once we saw the numbers declining, we realized that the campaign was already exhausted and that our message for the 75th anniversary was clear, which allowed us to move into a new campaign.

As for the gift box campaign, a lot of the stakeholders who received the gift commented on it. When they came to our meeting, they already had an idea of who we were; our gift allowed us to stay on top of their mind since the day started.

Moreover, VantagePoint has helped us create a very successful hashtag campaign. Thanks to it, we’ve received great engagement from different stakeholders, and people have commented on our strong social media presence.

How did VantagePoint Marketing perform from a project management standpoint?

VantagePoint is good at sticking to schedules, and they mostly deliver on time. They use collaboration tools to work with our marketing team, but I’m not aware of which ones.

What did you find most impressive about them?

VantagePoint’s strength is social media marketing — they’ve helped us get our name out there and be industry leaders in social media posting and messaging.

Are there any areas they could improve?

It would be great if VantagePoint had someone internally with experience in the food service industry. Over the years, they’ve had turnovers, so our challenge has always been having someone knowledgeable in the industry. Whenever we’ve needed to work with a new main point of contact, we’ve needed to teach them about the industry all over again. A person with industry experience could help facilitate the onboarding process next time.

Do you have any advice for potential customers?

Strive to create an intimate partnership with VantagePoint. They’re great at providing excellent insights, and they act as a true partner.

BACKGROUND

Please describe your company and position.

I am the Director of Marketing of Polar King International.

Describe what your company does in a single sentence.

We are a manufacturer of outdoor fiberglass walk-in coolers, freezers, and refrigerated trailers.

OPPORTUNITY / CHALLENGE

What specific goals or objectives did you hire VantagePoint Marketing to accomplish?

• Brand Awareness
• SEO
• Industry Analysis

SOLUTION

How did you find VantagePoint Marketing?

Referral

Why did you select VantagePoint Marketing over others?

• High ratings
• Great culture fit
• Referred to me
• Company values aligned
• Familiar with the market

How many teammates from VantagePoint Marketing were assigned to this project?

2-5 Employees

Describe the scope of work in detail. Please include a summary of key deliverables.

All projects we have or continue to work with Vantage Point come with deliverables that are always on point and on time.

RESULTS & FEEDBACK

What were the measurable outcomes from the project that demonstrate progress or success?

Gave direction for growth and or stated problem was addressed.

Describe their project management. Did they deliver items on time? How did they respond to your needs?

• Professional
• They have great awareness of the market.
• punctual with all deliverables
• Great culture fit for our company

What was your primary form of communication with VantagePoint Marketing?

• Virtual Meeting
• Email or Messaging App

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

Personal connections with an abundance of useful market information.

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

Not at this time.