Sommer Letter Co. Case Study

When Kyle Sommer of Sommer Letter Co. came to us she knew it was time for expert help, but wasn’t ready for a custom website. In this case study for Sommer Letter Co., you’ll see how we took her website from good to great with our website in a week service.

After the project was complete, Kyle was interviewed by the folks at Clutch, a web design agency directory, about what it was like to work with us on this project. Her interview on Clutch, which we’ve shared below, is an honest account of what Kyle’s experience was like. If you’re curious to know what it’s like to work with us on a Website In a Week project, read on!

Background

Please describe your company and your position there.

I am the owner/artist of a small stationery and gift brand. I primarily sell my stationery and gifts DTC on my e-commerce website.

Opportunity/Challenge

For what projects/services did your company hire Aeolidia?

I hired Aeolidia for their Shopify Website in a Week service. I didn’t have the resources for an entirely custom site, so this smaller, more affordable service seemed like a good way to improve my site with limited resources. My goals were to make the site look more appealing to customers by implementing more color and artistic touches.

I also wanted to add certain features to my site that would require a few custom-coded tweaks. I don’t have coding skills, so I knew I needed access to a developer who could add those features for me. My goal was to optimize the appearance and functionality of my site before the busy holiday season, when I knew I would see an increase in traffic and customers.

Solution

How did you select this vendor and what were the deciding factors?

I chose Aeolidia because they specialize in working with smaller e-commerce brands, and have a lot of experience with creative brands. They have developed websites for many of the artists and creatives I admire.

I also trusted their expertise because I have been a longtime consumer of their blog, and have benefited from the free articles offered there. When I heard they were offering this smaller, more affordable website package, I knew I wanted to work with them.

Describe the project in detail and walk through the stages of the project.

When I booked the Website in a Week project, I was assigned a project manager. She sent me several questionnaires to gather important information about the project, and we had a short call in which I was able to get my questions answered. Aeolidia communicated with me mostly via Slack for this project, and I found having a Slack channel was a really easy way to keep track of all our communication instead of having an endless chain of emails.

I was given some “homework” to complete on my end: brand assets I needed to share, and some checklists to ensure Aeolidia had everything they needed for my project. We then had a scheduled design day in which my designer sent me her designs and I was able to give instant feedback on Slack.

By the end of the day, we had agreed on a finished website design. A web developer implemented a few custom-coded things over the next day or two, and my design was ready to go. I continued to have access to my project manager through Slack for a few weeks after my site went live, which was really helpful for any follow-up questions I had.

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

I believe I spoke with 4 people total. The first was a director of operations who answered when I inquired about services, and put together a proposal for my project. Once I booked, I had a project manager, a designer, and a developer who worked on my website project.

Results & Feedback

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

Qualitatively, my site looks really beautiful. Customers have told me they really like how the website looks and functions. Quantitatively, my conversion rate is looking amazing. It’s more than double what it was before this website update.

How effective was the workflow between your team and theirs?

I found Aeolidia to be extremely organized and efficient with communication. I really enjoyed having a dedicated Slack channel, as well as a project manager to go to whenever I had questions. All the work I needed to do on my end was clearly communicated through detailed checklists with plenty of links to tutorials and helpful resources.

My project manager kept me regularly updated throughout the project, and stayed on top of every detail!

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

I really appreciated having a little team of experts, even on a project at this price point. I think if I had gone elsewhere, I would have worked with an individual to try and achieve the same outcome. With Aeolidia, I had access to a project manager, a developer, and a designer. They were extremely efficient and organized.

I felt that even though my project was brief, I benefited from the many years of experience Aeolidia has in the e-commerce industry. I felt they made design decisions based on data and experience, and my site is better for it.

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

I don’t see any areas that need improvement; my project was a success and I have no complaints.

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