DesignHammer

BACKGROUND

Please describe your company and your position there.

CED is a nonprofit company that connects entrprenuers with the resources they need to be successful. As the Marketing Manager I am in charge of all marketing aspects for CED, including, design, social, branding, strategy and more.

OPPORTUNITY / CHALLENGE

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

we hired DesignHammer to work with our company alongside a hand-picked team made up if a designer, and conversion copywriter to achieve the look and feel we desired for our site. Our goals we to create clear CTAs, white space, and a better UX.

SOLUTION

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

We previously worked with DesignHammer as they had helped us with our past site. Our deciding factor was their willingness to work with our handpicked team and our budget.

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

WordPress Website, Custom Responsive WordPress Theme Based upon Final Design Concepts (including up to 4 page/post templates), Configure Integrations as Defined by the Project Plan, Configure and Style of Up to 3 Custom Post Types, Configure Appropriate Form Solution, Content Migration.

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

Michael Nicholson, Stephen Pashby, Amanda Hart,

RESULTS & FEEDBACK

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

The website is far easier to use now .

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

The team uses Teamwork for communication as well as weekly to bi-weekly check in project calls.

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

Their willingness to work with you to make a great website.

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

email communication can sometimes take longer to get responses when needed.

BACKGROUND

Please describe your company and your position there.

The company is a AAA Professional Baseball Affiliate of the Tampa Bay Rays. I was the director of media relations and promotions.

OPPORTUNITY / CHALLENGE

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

DesignHammer designed and maintained durhambulls.com when minor league teams had independent sites.

SOLUTION

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

We wanted to use a local company with people that were enthusiastic about making our website an industry leader. We were very impressed with DesignHammer's team and their commitment to our success.

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

The team at DesignHammer built the Durham Bulls website, developed and taught us how to use the admin site, made updates and redesigns and helped us develop streaming ability when most minor league teams couldn't stream their games.

They were always available to ensure our site was working great!

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

We worked directly with the CEO, but he also had two team members that worked with us regularly based on the project. I don't recall who did what, but they were always responsive and easy to work with.

RESULTS & FEEDBACK

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

For years we had one of the highest-trafficked sites in all of minor league baseball, though I no longer have access to those numbers.

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

The team at DesignHammer would meet with me in person when necessary and over the phone often to make sure they had a great understanding of what we needed.

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

The way they made us feel like their most important client. My sense is they made everyone feel that way.

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

Not that I recall. I liked working with them very much.

BACKGROUND

Introduce your business and what you do there.

I’m the senior director of live events and marketing at the Carolina Theatre of Durham which is a management organization and nonprofit that manages the historic Carolina Theatre in downtown Durham, North Carolina.

OPPORTUNITY / CHALLENGE

What challenge were you trying to address with DesignHammer?

DesignHammer developed our Drupal website back in 2012 and they are currently working on relaunching our website.

SOLUTION

What was the scope of their involvement?

We were looking to get off the Drupal platform and move to WordPress and they were able to come in and get the project launched. We originally selected a different vendor to do the design but as we got deeper into the process we needed to look elsewhere to make sure we could launch the site and DesignHammer stepped right in. They were able to take everything we had done previously and make it completely functional and work to our exact specifications. We continue to work with them for hosting and maintenance for a lot of our web services. They came in and did a code audit, made some fixes, and implemented design functionality. 

What is the team composition?

I’ve communicated with four different people from their team.

How did you come to work with DesignHammer?

After choosing WordPress as the platform we wanted, we had a vendor selection process.

How much have you invested with them?

We’re well over the $25,000 threshold and that is divided among different areas including the monthly retainer for maintenance and hosting.

What is the status of this engagement?

We began working together in December of 2012 and the collaboration is currently ongoing.

RESULTS & FEEDBACK

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

For all of the work that they’ve done, we’ve had minimal complaints and queries about the changes implemented, and we have a lot of different types of users, which really speaks to the usability of the site. This tells me that the functionality, design, and experience have all been very good. 

We launched the site in June and their work has been a way for us to present a really clean and fresh look with improved functionality and responsiveness to our audience in the middle of this pandemic. Projects like this were able to be addressed because of DesignHammer. Back in 2012, they started thinking in advance about mobilizing our site and that is exactly what we’ve needed during this time because now our mobile traffic is more than 60% of our overall traffic.

How did DesignHammer perform from a project management standpoint?

Their project management has been great; they’re very responsive. DesignHammer is quick to make any fixes needed and clean up code. They created a seamless and easy workflow resulting in no errors.

What did you find most impressive about them?

They made excellent suggestions that got us to a point where we were comfortable launching the site. They understand what our needs are and are able to really iron that out, and for not being in a performing arts business model, I think it speaks to their effectiveness. The bulk of this work was done in a virtual setting which is very impressive. Because of the setting, everything could have turned out much differently but it didn’t because of DesignHammer’s close attention to detail and the work they put into it.

Are there any areas they could improve?

No, I can’t think of anything.

Do you have any advice for potential customers?

Know your own organization and what you need to ask them to deliver.

BACKGROUND

Introduce your business and what you do there.

I’m the CEO of an organization that provides education and resources to the 501(c)(6) associations in the state of North Carolina. 

OPPORTUNITY / CHALLENGE

What challenge were you trying to address with DesignHammer?

We wanted to be able to better understand our web traffic and figure out how to improve engagement with our site. Specifically, we needed to increase attendance at conferences and events, which members register for online. 

SOLUTION

What was the scope of their involvement?

DesignHammer helped us collect and analyze our website analytics so that we could figure out what areas needed to be improved. They provided recommendations to us based on their findings, such as the bounce rate of certain pages. Based on this information, we restructured our site to make it more user friendly and easier to navigate. This involved reorganizing and removing content from the site. 

What is the team composition?

Our main points of contact were David (Managing Partner) and Stephen (Account Manager). 

How did you come to work with DesignHammer?

They are members of our association, so I had come to know them over time. After discussing their business alongside what I needed for the site, we decided to work together. 

What is the status of this engagement?

We started working together in early 2019, and the engagement is ongoing. 

RESULTS & FEEDBACK

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

They’ve been a tremendous partner, continuing to work with us as our business evolves. The team has been phenomenal. 

How did DesignHammer perform from a project management standpoint?

They’re as good as anyone I’ve ever worked with. They spent a lot of time understanding our company, so they can provide the best solutions. Their work is very thorough. 

Occasionally, we meet in person, but most of the time we talk over the phone or via email. 

What did you find most impressive about them?

They’re unique in their ability and desire to understand us. Many other consultants don’t spend as much time seeking to understand the businesses they work with. The team is kind, responsive, and detail-oriented. 

Are there any areas they could improve?

No. 

Do you have any advice for potential customers? 

It’s important to be engaged with them. You’ll quickly understand the depth of their knowledge and the care they have for their customers. I highly recommend working with them. 

BACKGROUND

Introduce your business and what you do there.

I’m the group creative operations director at a digital content marketing agency that works with B2B technology companies. 

OPPORTUNITY / CHALLENGE

What challenge were you trying to address with DesignHammer?

We’ve been working with them for four years. Originally we engaged with them because we had multiple enterprise-level Drupal websites that we were working on for our clients. It wasn’t an in-house skill that we had, so we hired DesignHammer to assist us.

SOLUTION

What was the scope of their involvement?

After completing the Drupal sites, they then began helping us with a variety of other projects, including simple ones, such as creating a traditional landing page, or complex ones, such as developing an assessment ROI calculator. 

The most recent project they’ve worked on is building an open-source, web-based, Angular app from scratch that utilizes our client’s API. It was a complex product so they had to figure out ways to build elements in a flexible and dynamic way, making necessary changes as the API changed. It was beyond our experience as a content marketing agency so DesignHammer set up everything and helped lead us in a lot of those conversations. 

Although they were more than capable, we ended up building the wireframes and design ourselves because we have the expertise and it was easier. They also write up specific, holistic project plans so that we know exactly what’s in the scope, what’s driving the cost, and what factors might jeopardize the budget and potentially require an uplift. We white-label some of the projects that we work on with them, and for others, we introduce them as our development partner. 

What is the team composition?

Regularly, we work with about six people from their team. Two of them are account managers and four of them, varying developers. 

How did you come to work with DesignHammer?

We were looking for someone to help us with the Drupal websites I mentioned earlier. After doing some research on Google, I found them and noticed that they were based out of Durham. I reached out to and interviewed them, along with three other companies. We ultimately chose to work with DesignHammer because they were local — we’re based in Raleigh — amongst other factors.

What is the status of this engagement?

We started working with them in June 2016 and our engagement is still ongoing. 

RESULTS & FEEDBACK

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

The project has been complex and challenging because the API is always changing, but DesignHammer has been able to make adjustments on the fly. The team has also spent a lot of time on the code. We feel comfortable with them and we even let them talk to clients directly if needed, so we don’t have to be the middleman.

How did DesignHammer perform from a project management standpoint?

They’re really good at pivoting when needed or communicating when a pivot needs to occur. The team is also always open to discussing how certain changes will impact the project timeline and whether we should prioritize any of them. A lot of the time, we don’t work in the agile method, although I know they can. They haven’t missed a deadline, at least not one that they haven’t told us about in advance. 

DesignHammer is also really good at explaining why something is running behind schedule, and it’s usually not because of them. Most of the time it’s out of their control. They’re always clear about what’s going on and give us thorough and constant project updates. Depending on the project size, they use an in-house project management tool that they built themselves years ago, and it works really well. 

What did you find most impressive about them?

Everyone on their team, from developers to account managers, is incredibly smart and wants to do good work. They’re easy to work with on top of also being open, communicative, and transparent. If they can’t take on work, they let us know. They don’t want to overload their own team and I respect that. That’s an important aspect when it comes to having a partner.

Are there any areas they could improve?

One of the things that has improved over the years, and will need continuous improvement, is their ability to work with an agency like ours. It can be difficult because, sometimes, clients don’t give us the information we need, and we also have very short timelines. DesignHammer was a little bit more used to running things a lot more black and white when they started. 

They’ve now learned to work with us to navigate the grey areas and understand that it’s inevitable, especially in the marketing world. As per their request, at least once a month, we discuss our relationship, instead of discussing the project, which I truly appreciate. I’d still like to see continued improvement in this area.

Do you have any advice for potential customers?

Bring them in early because they are a truly valuable asset. If not, they are also open to digging into the trenches to make sure that they do their research thoroughly so that they can do the work. They do this to make sure that you don’t run into any problems down the line.

Expect them to be planners and expect them to write up everything so that everybody is on the same page in terms of expectations. Sometimes that can be overwhelming, but, if you trust their process, it’ll work out. 

BACKGROUND

Please describe your company and position.

I am the VP of Customer Experience of Typefi.

Describe what your company does in a single sentence.

We automate publication design.

OPPORTUNITY / CHALLENGE

What specific goals or objectives did you hire DesignHammer to accomplish?

• Improve traffic to the website
• Create clear journeys for visitors
• Clarify information structure

SOLUTION

How did you find DesignHammer?

Online Search

Why did you select DesignHammer over others?

• Close to my geographic location
• Pricing fit our budget
• Great culture fit

How many teammates from DesignHammer were assigned to this project?

2-5 Employees

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

Planning the new website including: 

• Card Sorting
• Tree Testing
• SEO Research
• Technical Planning 
• Full Design of the new website to meet our branding 
• Technical development of the website 
• Project Management

RESULTS & FEEDBACK

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

We've now got a clear narrative for visitors of our website. Our leads from the website are now much more targeted to our value proposition rather than random queries.

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

One of the best project management experiences I've ever had. Stephen came to every meeting with a clear agenda, prepared, and kept us on track.

What was your primary form of communication with DesignHammer?

Virtual Meeting

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

The project management was great. Their ability to understand what we're all about was even better, and the best thing was they could talk to all stakeholders about how best to achieve our desired outcomes.

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

Nope