Visceral

Introduce your business and what you do there.

I’m the executive director at ECOLIFE Conservation, a 501(c)(3) organization based in San Diego. We have two major program areas: one involves designing and building sustainable agriculture programs with aquaponics, and our second is designing and building fuel-efficient stoves in Mexico. 

What challenge were you trying to address with Visceral?

We were due for a website overhaul, but I was particularly looking for an organization that could go beyond that and could really help us define and present our brand. 

What was the scope of their involvement?

Redesigning our website was a year-long process. We had been using WordPress prior to that, and they helped us design the architecture, the content, and branding. We continue to use WordPress, but everything else — the architecture, coding, and other things — was built from scratch. 

We stuck with our current logo; we’re happy with it, so they didn’t change that. They worked more on the website's overall feel, such as shapes and colors that evoke certain feelings. 

What is the team composition?

I think there probably were four or five people throughout the redesign process. Our team worked with a creative person, a project manager, and a developer, and we had a handful of conversations with the CEO, so he knew what was going on. We also have a person on staff who does all the creative work.

How did you come to work with Visceral?

I personally know the CEO. That aside, we were really looking for a company that does good work. I like the fact that they’re a B-corporation — that is important to us — and that they work specifically with organizations that are also doing good work. Their portfolio of previous clients closely resembles us in terms of what we do and our size. 

I also wanted to work with someone locally. I think it’s important to sit down face to face or see their office and whiteboard things out, so I wanted to work with a San Diego-based company. 

We chose them because I’m interested in developing a long-term relationship with a company so that if we want to do tweaks to pages or a big redesign on things, they’re available and on-call to walk us through things. 

For example, if we’re going to have a big fundraiser, we’ll need a new page for that. They either can help us design it, or they’ll just straight up do it, depending on how much time is left in our retainer agreement. That was very important in our decision to pick a company. 

How much have you invested with them?

For the redesign process, it was around $50,000–$55,000. 

What is the status of this engagement?

We started the initial conversations in November 2018 and launched the website in August 2019. We have them on retainer now, and we’re still working with them. I imagine our working relationship will continue.

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

We were obviously pleased with the way that the end product turned out. Three months prior to and after the launch, they provided us with a report on SEO metrics or other deliverables. They told us what was happening with our website and social media and where our redirects were coming from because of the product they created. 

Visceral also took the time to sit down and talk with us regularly and get a sense of who we are, what we do, and why we do it. They were also able to ask the right questions to get to the right answers so that we were very much part of the creative process. They didn’t tell us what to do, but it was iterative, and they helped us arrive at a place we were happy with. 

How did Visceral perform from a project management standpoint?

What I like about working with them is that they made the process really easy for us. Their project management process was phenomenal — I’ve never seen anything like that. It was the project management that made them really stand out to me. 

We set up a shared folder in Google Drive, and we would fill in the blanks. They laid instructions out very explicitly, especially when we’re doing content creation. They also use Smartsheet to track ongoing updates and projects so we can always see that, for instance, we submitted this request, where it was on the queue, or when it would be finished. They’re very transparent. 

If I ever am not sure about something, their team is also helpful. I can just shoot them a text message or an email and ask for updates, even if it’s on Smartsheet. If I don’t have the time to look it up or I’m on the go, they’ll tell us the status. 

As a small nonprofit organization, we’re always underworked and underpaid and wearing many hats, so when a vendor makes our job easier — that to me is pure gold. 

What did you find most impressive about them?

The collaboration was really fun. Designing websites sounds like my worst nightmare, but we felt like we could stand up and describe a process or a feeling or talk through things, and they would come back with a translated version of that — and it was spot on. 

Visceral took a deeper dive into who we are, what we do, and what we want to say to the world. We almost got to a point where we would dread our meeting with Visceral because it was like intense therapy sessions. Through trying to get us to put words to our identity, it felt like they were helping us through an existential crisis. 

Sometimes there were exhausting conversations because they would ask questions like who we are, why we do this, and why it is important. We hadn’t had those discussions internally before, so I felt like we got more than we paid for. They helped us really identify our team, core values, and goals throughout making a website. 

Working with them wasn’t just making a website. It was really getting into our identity and branding — that was unexpected to me. 

Are there any areas they could improve?

At first, I was a bit shocked by the price even though they gave us a nonprofit discount, which was awesome. Having gone through the process now, I totally think it was worth what we paid for. I thought that was a lot of money for us, but it was completely worth it. 

From my end, it seemed like a really long runway —  I was wondering why it would take 8–12 months to make a website because we needed it in six weeks. Then, as they started to unpack their process, it became clear why it would take that long and why it was important for them to get under our skin and know us —  and that shows in the final product. 

Do you have any advice for potential customers?

They have a very diverse team in terms of points of view and skills, so I would encourage companies to bring their whole team into the conversation. Some ideas can resonate well with people in a team and even with the CEO. 

Instead of having one person interview them, have the whole team come on because I think that would help to flesh out some of their other skills that might not be on paper. 

Please describe your company and your position there.

I am the founder and president of the board of the Economic Justice Fund, a newly formed, nonprofit microloan fund dedicated to providing affordable loans and free entrepreneurship development services to help underserved entrepreneurs build strong, sustainable businesses.

For what projects/services did your company hire Visceral, and what were your goals?

We initially hired Visceral to design and create our new organization’s first website and logo.

After Visceral successfully completed those projects, we elected to upgrade from their ongoing website Maintenance Plan, to their Success Plan, through which they provide reporting and assistance beyond the basic website and plugin updates.

From the beginning, we recognized that, as a new organization, we needed to get this right. We knew that it wouldn’t work to have a website and logo that were merely good enough; for us to introduce our organization in the best possible way, we would need them to be great.

And so our goals for the project were to work with Visceral to create a website and logo that would embody our mission, make a strong, positive impression on potential borrowers, partners, donors, and funders, and serve as the foundation on which we could build our business.

How did you select Visceral and what were the deciding factors?

Before selecting Visceral, we had tried working with a few other web design firms. Unfortunately, their work fell short of our expectations, and we continued to look for a firm.

We actually found Visceral on Clutch. We were especially impressed by their commitment to working with mission-driven nonprofits and also by the positive (and clearly legitimate) reviews they had received on Clutch.

We reached out to Visceral, had a few conversations that confirmed our initial, positive impressions, and decided to hire them.

Describe the scope of work in detail, including the project steps, key deliverables, and technologies used.

It proved to be a big project. The challenge was that Visceral wasn’t simply updating or refreshing our existing website and branding but were creating a digital presence and brand identity for us entirely from scratch.

Moreover, they were working with a client that had never gone through the process before and was figuring out what worked and what didn’t as the project progressed. From the start, the process was highly collaborative.

Visceral created the look and structure of the website, proposed several versions of the logo, presented their ideas to us through a series of reviews, made revisions as needed, and provided all the technical expertise required to get the site up and running.

Our organization provided initial guidance about the nature of our business and our target audiences, wrote all of the content for the site, selected most of the images, and provided feedback on Visceral’s design ideas.

How many people from the vendor's team worked with you, and what were their positions?

Visceral is a collaborative company and included almost all of their team on different aspects of the project. We appreciated the unique skills that they all provided.

Can you share any measurable outcomes of the project or general feedback about the deliverables?

We have received very positive feedback about the website and logo from our board and stakeholders.

Describe their project management style, including communication tools and timelines.

The management of the project was very well organized and efficient. Visceral had a detailed process in place to work through each of the many stages of the process—design development, reviews, revisions, final review, and so on.

They explained each stage and the timing for each at the outset of the project and remained focused on moving the project forward. Visceral also provided specific guidelines (for example, character counts for headlines, subheads, and paragraphs) for the website’s pages, which our writer appreciated.

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

We were impressed by many things: Visceral’s commitment to serving nonprofits that are dedicated to making a difference in the world; their talent and skill; their willingness to listen and to find solutions that worked for us; their patience and flexibility; their professionalism; and their determination to do great work.

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

Visceral did great work for us, and they got this right. There may be areas where they can improve, but we didn’t find any. We recommend Visceral highly.

Introduce your business and what you do there.

We collaborate with nonprofits, foundations, and companies to solve complex social problems.

What challenge were you trying to address with Visceral?

We were undergoing a rebrand project. Visceral helped us create a new website design and brand collateral to provide the world with a clean, concise, and powerful outward-facing TCC brand story that matches our dedication to facilitating social change in the world.

What was the scope of their involvement?

We had already established the brand’s key elements, including our positioning and differentiators from competitors. Visceral came on as a web design partner. They had web knowledge as well as strategic insight into the social sector and industry.

We first settled on the site’s information architecture. Then, using our seven brand personality traits and a data-driven perspective, Visceral created a design that was both visually appealing and strategic.  They also created a resource library with an easily searchable database. The team also rebuilt an e-commerce component for a specific assessment tool and smoothly placed it under the recently launched WordPress umbrella. 

Lastly, Visceral designed pieces of brand collateral including our business cards, PowerPoint template, and folders.

What is the team composition?

Depending on the project stage, we worked with 5–6 people. The team included a project manager, a designer, a web person, and a point of contact for website metrics.

How did you come to work with Visceral?

One of our employees had a contact who recommended 3–4 organizations for our project, including Visceral. We led an internal vetting process to determine which vendor best met our needs and criteria. Despite minor time zone differences, Visceral stood out by having worked with social impact and social sector organizations in the past—including some of our clients and partners. We highly valued a partner with industry familiarity. Visceral also met our technical and expertise requirements.

What is the status of this engagement?

Visceral completed the bulk of the work between August 2017–December 2018. They currently maintain our website for us. We have a certain number of hours per month in which they can provide support.

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

The new web design has since launched, and it meets our users’ needs in usability and accessibility. Visceral managed multiple stakeholders’ expectations through thoughtful and patient engagement. Professional and flexible, they delivered the rebrand despite delays created on our end.

How did Visceral perform from a project management standpoint?

Visceral acted as an extension of our team for all matters related to the website. Highly responsive, the team used a Smartsheet to report bugs and issues and managed the project through Google Docs and Google Drive, making commenting and material consolidation easy and version control painless. When our first project manager left, their team handled the resource transition smoothly. 

They provided flexible support, customizing their style to our work approach and communicating with us in a personalized manner. Visceral never questioned the need for an in-person meeting and walked us through every step as needed. The team also listened to us, but they pushed back when they knew a better way to accomplish our goals. Their integrity allowed us to have open conversations that ultimately strengthened our partnership.

What did you find most impressive about them?

Visceral led an excellent approach to solve problems. They were intentional, detail-oriented, and strategic from start to finish. We never felt obligated to have all the answers for Visceral to fix our issues. 

Are there any areas they could improve?

We occasionally encountered personality differences on the team—especially between resources—but both sides learned to shift their conversational styles accordingly. We’re overall thrilled with the engagement.

Do you have any advice for potential customers?

We negotiated a flat rate to accommodate our limited budget, kept us from worrying about the number of calls and meetings we had. Visceral highly valued the partnership and was willing to work with us and our needs. Clients should share that value and be prepared to compromise on their own end to create a mutually beneficial situation.

Introduce your business and what you do there.

Founded by former Google CEO and Alphabet Executive Chairman Eric Schmidt, Schmidt Futures is a philanthropic venture facility that focuses on impact investment. I help operate some of our key philanthropic programs.

What challenge were you trying to address with Visceral?

We are only about one year old and were looking for two things: first, to establish an online presence for our first signature program, a fellowship; and second, to establish our brand and online presence more broadly. In order to reach out to a science and tech focused target audience, we deliberately highlighted our desire for a minimalistic, sleek and modern looking image.

What was the scope of their involvement?

They developed three WordPress websites for us: the first was for our fellowship program; the second served as a basic framework for the overall Schmidt Futures site; and the third was another iteration of the full Schmidt Futures site.

The fellowship site had all of the bells and whistles, so they trained us on how to update it and provided us with collateral—including stock images and logo options—to use while moving forward. In the end, however, we didn’t use their logos and worked with dedicated logo designers.

The “skeleton” site they built was a teaser—more or less an introduction to the Schmidt Futures brand as a whole. The more fully fleshed-out version of the site launched in April and they’re working now to build it out further as we continue to develop our online presence.

Over time, Visceral’s scope of work has expanded beyond web design and development into consulting us on ensuring brand consistency and boosting brand perception.

What is the team composition?

On the creative side, we worked directly with one person on the substance of our sites. For project management, there was a client specialist who helped iron out the contract, kept everything on track, and managed the website projects overall.

How did you come to work with Visceral?

We spoke with them, as well as about four other firms, and, ultimately, chose them for three main reasons: first, they clearly understood the audiences we were looking to attract and the look and feel of the site we wanted to achieve; second, their pricing and timing were in line with our expectations; and third, they received a high recommendation from a trusted partner, another Eric Schmidt-led organization.

How much have you invested with them?

We have invested about $75,000.

What is the status of this engagement?

We began working together in July 2017. The first site was delivered about three months later and the final site was completed in April 2018; both of them are now live. We have an ongoing services agreement with them so that, for a couple of hours every month, Visceral provides routine web maintenance and fulfills any requested upgrades. If future projects arise, we may very likely work with them again.

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

For the fellowship site, we wanted to reach a science and tech academic crowd, so their designs were deliberately minimalistic and sleek—exactly the aesthetic that we felt fit the program.

Overall, feedback on their work has been universally positive. Many on our internal team, some external partners, and even Eric Schmidt himself have complimented their designs. Both site looks fantastic and represent our vision of the brand well.

How did Visceral perform from a project management standpoint?

They did a fantastic job of establishing timetables that helped the teams ultimately meet aggressive launch date targets. We communicated largely through email and phone calls and used a Gantt chart and Google Docs to help with workflow. Whenever issues arose, they responded within 24 hours.

What did you find most impressive about them?

I was most impressed with their combination of creativity and ability to understand our needs. They effectively invented new ideas and came up with original design approaches that we would have never thought of. We requested particular features and gave somewhat nebulous feedback that they were able to translate into changes that ultimately captured our vision.

Are there any areas they could improve?

For larger organizations with more robust websites, Visceral may need more scale; for our needs, they were an extremely good fit.

Do you have any advice for potential customers?

Our experience has been universally positive. I believe that it is important to know going in what your own expectations are. Right from the beginning, Visceral was very solicitous of information; they delivered to us very detailed questionnaires to fill out so that they could get a sense of what we were looking for. Be an active participant in the design process.

Please describe your company and your position there.

The Green & Healthy Homes Initiative (GHHI) is a non-profit dedicated to breaking the link between unhealthy housing and unhealthy families. I serve as a program manager, managing grants and handling special projects, such as our website development and maintenance.

For what projects/services did your company hire Visceral?

We originally worked with them to create our current website. We then worked with them to develop a new, updated website, which is still in progress.

What were your goals for this project?

Our goals were to create and manage a website, then more recently, to develop a new one.

How did you select this vendor?

I wasn’t at GHHI when they were selected, but I think they were selected due to their excellent reputation and their history of non-profit work.

Can you go into detail about the services they provided and the scope of the project?

They were responsible for designing the website and then maintaining it. More recently, they built a developmental website on WordPress, which we created as an update to the current site.

What was the team composition?

They often had two to three people working on the project.

Can you share any information that demonstrates the impact that this project has had on your business?

Our first website won several awards related to design. We received overwhelmingly positive feedback from various stakeholders.

How was project management arranged and how effective was it?

The project management was mostly on an ad-hoc basis, in which we would ask them for help on an hourly rate if there was something we needed designing or if there was something we couldn't figure out.

What did you find most impressive about this company?

They were always available and consistently went above and beyond. Even after we recently ended our contract with them, I’m able to reach out and get help, for example when we encountered a malware issue on our website. It speaks to their professionalism that they are consistently looking to help us.

Are there any areas where they can improve?

Their price point is a bit high, but it is very much a “you get what you pay for” situation.

Please describe your company and your position there.

I’m the head of special projects at Harbor Freight Tools for Schools, which is a charitable program of The Smidt Foundation, aiming to support excellence in skilled trades programs in U.S. public high schools. 

For what reason(s) did your company hire Visceral?

After a few years of working under the radar, we realized that we needed a website. One of our partners said that if we don't exist digitally, we don't exist at all. One of our executives heard about Visceral’s excellent work with nonprofits and other cause-minded organizations seeking to serve and empower the world.

What were your goals for this project?

We wanted a website that captured the core values of Harbor Freight Tools: excellence in execution, humility, and community. We knew that we wanted our website to be professional and beautiful in order to elevate the perception of skilled trades and career and technical education programs. We wanted the website to highlight great programs, teachers, and students and to remove the misconception of skilled trades as something "less than" the "college for all" mentality. 

How did you select this vendor?

When we saw their work, we were amazed by the simplicity, elegance, and beauty of each website—all for such an affordable price. After we reviewed their portfolio, we realized that Visceral captures the essence and purpose of each organization through their designs. When started to discuss working together, we appreciated their flexibility, responsiveness, and ability to listen to our needs and hopes, especially regarding Harbor Freight Tools' security concerns. Visceral was willing to collaborate with our IT team and responded quickly to all of their questions. Thus, after our initial conversations with Visceral, we decided to pursue working with them.

Describe the project in detail.

Visceral was responsible for the creation and design of the website. The Harbor Freight Tools for Schools team filled in and provided the content, including pictures. Harbor Freight Tools is responsible for hosting the site on a server of ours. The process was challenging because our programs do not fit into easy categories, so we had to navigate around that by creating "Our Strategies" tabs instead. I served as a liaison between all parties and coordinated with Dana [Project Manager, Visceral] on getting materials to the Visceral team and figuring out the nature of partnership in terms of website security. I currently do some content updates, thanks to the great teaching and simple training by the Visceral team during the handoff.

What was the team composition?

We worked primarily with Allegra [Production & Strategy Lead, Visceral] when setting up the contract and statement of work. We then worked with Dana, Matthew [Creative Director, Visceral] and Austin [Senior Web Developer, Visceral] in creating the website. We primarily spoke with Dana. Matthew handled the design of the website, and Austin originally spearheaded many of the technical aspects, including working with our IT team.

Now, as we continue to build and maintain the website, we work with Travis [Developer, Visceral]. The transition has been incredibly smooth. We’ve had an excellent collaboration with Visceral. 

Can you share any outcomes from the project that demonstrate progress or success?

Starting right after the website’s launch, the word "beautiful" is often brought up in reference to our platform. People are amazed how the professional design and photos really capture their attention. Through the new site, we’ve been able to announce and highlight our first Harbor Freight Tools for Schools Prize for Teaching Excellence, share our programs, and act as an online hub for resources.

How effective was the workflow between your team and theirs?

The process really epitomized collaboration, adaptability, and excellence in execution. I enjoyed working with them, even though we didn’t meet in person until November 2017. The relationship has been incredibly personable and professional. Our communication has primarily involved email and Google Docs. They keep to the schedule, manage our expectations, and are upfront with all communications.

What did you find most impressive about this company?

The people at Visceral are committed to making the world a better place, and they work hard to make that happen. 

Introduce your business and what you do there. 

I'm the executive director and principal investigator at National CyberWatch Center. It is a cyber security education and research consortium focused on improving the quality and quantity of information security workforce, primarily in the U.S.

What challenge were you trying to address with Visceral?

We were transitioning from a nonprofit that primarily had a regional focus to one that was scaling up activities with more of a national focus. As such, we wanted to go through a rebranding effort. This included a refresh of the logo, collateral materials, website, and brand guidelines, etc.

We had worked with different agencies over the years on different iterations of a logo, but nothing that was comprehensive. We needed to create brand guidelines that would ensure a consistent brand and look and feel across all of our materials, including our online social media presence and collateral materials. We produce a number of publications, so knowledge management is a big part of our service portfolio. Templates for various types of reports all integrate with those brand guidelines. We had used different companies over the years for these various aspects.

What was the scope of their involvement?

On the technical side, since we're in the business of information security education and research, it was critical to work with a firm that understands the security implications of setting up a website, custom code, or using a backend content management system that has various third party plugins. Visceral brought a lot of technical depth just on the application web app server side, which was very attractive.

Initially, we sent documents back and forth to help shape the conversation. They wanted to get a sense of our design philosophy, industry, and goals. After those initial iterations, Visceral came up with brand guidelines, a new logo, color schemes, and ensured a consistent look and feel across our online presence. They redesigned a whole new website. We’re focused on information security education research, and so our sites looked like they were designed by an educator. It was important for the materials to look professional. That process required wire-framing, organization, and editing. They've integrated some database functionality so we can easily identify various documents or organize materials in a library.

They also created various hard copy collateral materials, including letterhead, envelopes, and business cards. They came up with templates for the various reports that we publish, including white papers and research reports. We'll do an annual report to our various stakeholders and they created a consistent template for the cover of the white paper.

We continue to use them for ongoing website support on a monthly basis, particularly if we want to add a new structure to the site. For instance, we purchased a digital certificate, which they then implemented. Somebody is also dedicated to our team and interfaces with us to help us with anything we need.

How did you come to work with Visceral?

We had partnered with a marketing and PR communications firm in D.C. and they have used Visceral in various projects, which is how they were brought to us. Originally, the rebranding was meant for a different legal entity that we were forming. However, in that process, we realized that we weren't as ready as we thought for this new legal entity. The work was valuable because it made us look more carefully at the current National CyberWatch Center. We decided to shift gears and rebrand the existing nonprofit, and then use it to drive any other legal entities moving forward. Since then, we have continued to work with Visceral.

How much have you invested with them?

We have invested between $800,000-$1,000,000 per year.

What is the status of the engagement?

We started working together around 2014 and the collaboration is ongoing. 

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

In terms of the quality of the materials, it speaks for itself---the brand is consistent across all of the online print and digital offerings. The e-textbooks that we use in college curricula are now aligned with the National Center brand. It looks good and professional and speaks volumes to the quality of the work. In the academic space, generally speaking, there's not a lot of effort put into this. We do a lot of work in the federal space and obviously in higher academia, and one of our big pivots is towards the commercial sector. You have to get it right the first time and make a good impression. We do various kinds of analytics on the site, but that's only tangentially related. The significance is more anecdotal. Each year, people consistently provide positive feedback on the re-brand.

How did Visceral perform from a project management standpoint?

There are two co-founders that we can call or email anytime. They have differentiated strengths. One handles the web development, the application development, and server-side, and the other does more artistic and graphic oriented work. I have dinner with them once a year when they come to D.C. We had a dedicated project manager, depending on the project, which was fantastic.

Project management can be tricky. I’ve worked with companies where things can get lost, but Visceral communicates clearly and follows up. Since they are currently just supporting us on our website, if there are any issues, we will usually contact them by e-mail. During the re-brand, we would use various video conference/teleconference solutions. Initially, since they were a substitute to our previous marketing partner in D.C., there were also in person meetings.

What did you find most impressive about them?

The quality of the work, and the expertise. They have a small shop, and you feel as if you can call anyone anytime. They are passionate about the work they do. They are selective about the clients they work with, and I like that their projects tend to have a social element. In general, they are very nice people.

Introduce your business and what you do there.

We are a national membership association for grants management professionals who work in funding organizations. We have more than 3,400 members who work across the life cycle of grants and ensure that operations and processes are effective and efficient. We are headquartered in Washington, D.C.

As communications director, it is my role to effectively convey the mission and vision of our organization.

What challenge were you trying to address with Visceral?

We changed our name and brand after 20 years and were looking for a partner to help us bring that brand to life through a new logo.

What was the scope of their involvement?

Following an RFP process, we chose Visceral to create our logo and brand guidelines. They began their work with a discovery period and kickoff questionnaire, asking questions about our current (old) brand and the new brand we were creating, the image and reputation we wanted to project, and key words we wanted to apply to our brand. They ended up providing 40+ logo options. We ended up choosing the logo we now use because it represents our brand in a powerful and striking way, has multiple interpretations, and is unlike anything else in use in our sector.

How did you come to work with Visceral?

Visceral was recommended by our brand consulting firm. After an RFP process, we chose Visceral because of their work with others in philanthropy, their clear description of their process, and the strength of their design work. 

How much have you invested with Visceral?

The financial investment has been more than $10,000.

What is the status of this engagement?

The project began in December 2016 and was finalized in February 2017.

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

We could not be happier with the results of our work with Visceral. They created a logo that is powerful and successfully conveys our new name and brand. 

How did Visceral perform from a project management standpoint?

Visceral provided a project timeline that outlined each step in the process, and that timeless was referenced during each of our meetings. Any changes to the timeline were noted, and we finished exactly on time with the schedule. We had a dedicated project manager and often communicated by both email and phone.

What did you find most impressive about Visceral?

Visceral does a great deal of discovery work up front to understand the goals and objectives of the project, including not just technical elements, but more subjective brand elements like thoughts and feelings that the material is meant to evoke. I am impressed by how much research they did on our sector and our organization to fully understand our audience and stakeholders, and by how they were able to walk us through the material and provide a greater understanding of our brand options without losing us in technical jargon. I would definitely recommend and use Visceral again.

Introduce your business and what you do there.

SV2 is a community of more than 200 individuals and families who have come together to learn about effective giving and pool our resources to support innovative social ventures.

When I worked on this project with Visceral, I was the Director of Communcations & Community Operations and I was responsible for internal and external communications including our website.

What challenge were you trying to address with Visceral?

We had a stale, boring, text-heavy website that did not do a good job of telling our organization's story. Coming out of our last strategic plan, our organization was innovating in a number of exciting ways but our website did not convey this energy. Furthermore, it was hard for those who were looking for us (prospective partners, prospective grantees, etc.) to find us and quickly understand who we are and what we do.

We wanted to build a new website that would be bold and refreshing to match our new brand and programmatic efforts. And we wanted a site that shared a good amount of information in a tailored way to help people learn about our organization.

What was the scope of their involvement?

We were thrilled to hire Visceral, and every step of the process was delightful. They helped us with wireframes, design, and development. And they even helped us find a very reasonable and talented copywriter who did some light editing of some of our most important pages. We've also signed a maintenance contract for several months for analytics and continuous improvements to the site. 

How did you come to work with Visceral?

We had a number of conversations with Allegra Poggio, the Production Director at Visceral. We loved her responsiveness, how thoroughly she answered all of our questions (and we had a LOT of questions), and how thoughtful her responses were.

We had a video conference with the rest of the Visceral team to virtually meet each person who would be potentially working on our project, and we loved their energy, expertise, and creative talent.

We also loved that they worked with social impact organizations and could bring that expertise to the table. We realized we could save so much time by not having to explain some of the key parts of our sector. They had a great knowledge of the ecosystem from their experience working with clients which was a boon.

We loved their creative work and their team's vibe. It felt like they would be true PARTNERS instead of finger waggers who would condescendingly tell us "how" things need to be done. We felt like they "got" us (our organization is a different kind of beast) and they were willing to listen, tailor our process and approach to fit our organization, and creatively and collectively problem solve.

What is the status of this engagement?

The project took probably took 8 months from start to finish, but that was mostly because we needed to build in time for feedback and alignment building at several key points.

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

They created a site that we are so very proud of now, and we regularly receive compliments every week from prospective partners and other colleagues who mention how beautiful the site is. It's everything that we hoped it would be - and we think it's evokes the feeling that we were hoping for (and more).

How did Visceral perform from a project management standpoint?

Visceral covered the agreed scope and deliverables within budget (and as mentioned previously, it took 6 weeks or so longer, but that was due to our own internal processes).

What did you find most impressive about Visceral?

I cannot recommend Visceral highly enough - they were a DELIGHT to work with AND I would hire them again in a heartbeat (and as I mentioned, we're still on a maintenance contract with them).

They honestly felt like an extension of our team throughout the project. There were so many times when I was able to ask them "We're struggling with how to do X" and they could recommend a set of highly relevant solutions based on their work with other social impact organizations.

Introduce your business and what you do there.

Based in Buffalo, NY with a second office in Syracuse, NY, the Health Foundation for Western and Central New York is an independent private foundation whose mission is to improve the health and healthcare of the people of western and central New York. The Foundation invests in and partners with organizations and communities to spark lasting positive change in health and healthcare, with a special focus on young children, vulnerable older adults and the systems serving them.

As communications director, I lead all communications, public and media relations efforts and am responsible for conceptualizing, developing and implementing internal and external communications strategies to effectively and consistently communicate the Foundation’s mission, work and impact.

What challenge were you trying to address with Visceral?

The Health Foundation’s previous website was designed in 2009. Outside of minor changes to aesthetics and functionality, no major alterations to the site had been made since that time. Six years later, technology had evolved, as had trends in the look and feel of websites. The previous site looked dated, and presented significant challenges to users looking to find information quickly.

As part of the Foundation's strategic communications plan, our goal was to redesign the website to help us directly, succinctly, and proactively tell the Health Foundation’s story to best communicate our mission, vision and goals to key audiences.

What was the scope of their involvement?

Visceral redesigned our website, and they managed research and planning, including information architecture and templates, production, testing, launching and support of the website. We shared responsibilities for copywriting. 

How did you come to work with Visceral?

We were referred to Visceral through the Communications Network and solicited a proposal through an RFP process, along with several other firms nationwide.  Visceral's proposal was thorough, detailed, and specific to the needs of the Health Foundation.  They took the time to learn about the Foundation which was incredibly valuable. The team was very responsive and very organized - I knew exactly where things were at throughout the process, and the Visceral team was easy to reach (even with a time zone difference) if I had any questions. 

What is the status of this engagement?

The project, from start to finish, was originally slated to run from January through September 2016, and we were able to complete the project earlier than expected, in August. 

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

Early analytics, along with anecdotal evidence, show that our new website is now attracting the correct audience who is interested in the content of our site. Our bounce rate has decreased significantly. We have been told by many people how much they love our site now and how much easier it is to find the information they are looking for. 

What did you find most impressive about Visceral?

We could not have asked for a better partner throughout this process than Visceral. We stayed on budget and on schedule. Though by its nature website redesign is a time-consuming project that involves a lot of work, the process itself could not have gone more smoothly.