Categories
Business Digital Marketing Marketing

Why Spectruss is Chattanooga’s Choice Agency 

Why Spectruss is Chattanooga’s Choice Agency 

 

There are a few things that make Chattanooga the city that it is. Some say it’s the walkability, others say the booming restaurant and bar scene, and many say it’s the amazing natural scenery that’s in literally every direction you turn. 

 

You’ve got iconic brands like Chattanooga Whiskey, Hutton & Smith Brewing Co., and Lookout Wild Film Festival. Want to know what all of these brands have in common aside from being a local Chattanooga company? Each of these brands have used Spectruss for marketing or advertising needs to take their company to the next level. 

 

The thing that makes Chattanooga, Chattanooga is that everyone who enters leaves feeling like a local. They feel like they take a little piece of them when they leave. Chattanooga is a city that thrives on locality. From the restaurants, to the attractions, to the parks and the people – it’s home. 

 

Nobody understands that better than Spectruss. Spectruss has been Chattanooga’s Marketing and Advertising Agency for over 11 years. You might be wondering why knowing what it means to be a Chattanoogan is so important as a marketing and advertising agency and the answer is pretty simple…we understand who you are first. 

 

If we understand who you are as a company, creating a brand like Hutton & Smith Brewing Co., for example, becomes second nature to us. Working as geologists from Las Vegas, the owners moved to Chattanooga, TN, and fell in love with the city’s accessibility to rock climbing and various outdoor activities. They came to us at the beginning of the craft beer revolution with a new recipe and a dream to start a brewery. 

 

We were challenged with the concept of creating a brand that could be national, but would remain close to home for the owners. Hutton & Smith was named after the “Father of Modern Geology,” James Hutton and “Father of English Geology,” William Strata Smith. The brand started in Chattanooga with a connection to the rock climbing scene. It started with an understanding of exactly who Hutton & Smith Brewing Co. were and who they ultimately wanted to be. Both the brand and the beer were quickly embraced by Chattanooga’s rock-loving enthusiasts since it’s release in 2014 and you can now find the brand all over the US. 

 

The reality is, one of the things that draws people to our city is the connection to the outdoors. Whether that’s felt through beer, rock climbing, or even films – it’s there. 

 

Since its inception in 2012, Lookout Wild Film Festival has partnered with Spectruss to increase its brand awareness and audience attendance. Our digital marketing strategies and creative branding led to exponential growth for the Lookout Wild Film Festival. Year after year, we strategize on how to meet the high expectations of annual crowd goers. 

 

Each year, we gave the festival a fresh new look to set a new theme from previous years. In 2019, our team redesigned the entire identity of the Lookout Wild Film Festival, including a highly dynamic, attention-grabbing logo and a website redesign.

 

With increased brand recognition, Lookout Wild has attracted major film productions with big brand sponsors such as Redbull, Audi, North Face, and Patagonia. Even though the brand is rapidly growing, it started with Chattanooga. It started with having an understanding of the local audience and the local love for all things outdoors and through that mutual understanding, we took Lookout Wild to new heights. 

 

While knowing Chattanooga sets us apart as a Marketing and Advertising Agency, we’re also experts in the realm of ecommerce sites and website redesigns that are geared to touch other parts of the world. We want your business to grow and expand! 

 

Your website is a crucial part of your business and growth. Chattanooga Whiskey approached us in 2019 when their online presence was failing and in a digital world, you know that can’t be good. Our team worked in overdrive to create a new website for them that was user-friendly and fully responsive. We created their new website with the goal of seamless navigation at the front of our minds. Their online presence has done nothing but soar the last few years. 

 

After building a new ecommerce site for Royal Highnies, their online sales grew 25% and 10% for wholesale orders. While developing the brand new e-commerce site, our team simultaneously built monthly campaigns powered by multiple digital marketing strategies that all funneled to an online pop-up store for consumers to shop. 

 

At Spectruss we aren’t just local experts, we’re industry experts. To check out all the services we offer, visit our website. You can also read more case studies on local brands that we’ve partnered with.

 

Categories
Business Marketing

Rebrand Your Business

Is it Time to Rebrand Your Business?

When you think about your company brand, you really want to picture the entire customer experience. From your logo, website, social media, messaging, storefront, and everything in between…what does your brand look like to your customers? Is it consistent and easy to recognize? If not, it’s probably time to rebrand your business.

Your brand has the power to set your company apart from the competition, promote recognition, connect with customers, and create strong business value. However, if your brand isn’t consistent, it can provide a confusing message and ultimately cause your company to fall short of its full potential.

Here at Spectruss, building stronger brands is what we do best!

We worked with The Plastic Surgery Group to rebuild a stronger, more cohesive brand for their company. Through detailed strategic planning, we successfully helped rebrand the company as RefinedLooks Plastic Surgery and Spa. Check out some of our work below!

 

Behind the Brand

The Plastic Surgery Group, Chattanooga’s first and largest plastic surgery practice, has led the way in plastic, cosmetic, reconstructive, and noninvasive procedures for over 60 years. After a year of working with the Plastic Surgery Group’s new medspa, Refine Aesthetic Studio, our team at Spectruss encountered challenges with operating multiple practices with different names and proposed a strategy to restructure the entire practice.

Rebrand Strategy

Our team began working on a strategy to help rename the practice as one brand to strengthen their identity and better reach their current and future patients. The new brand name, RefinedLooks Plastic Surgery and Spa, was born. The practice’s hand reconstruction and therapy center, Hayes Hand Center, was kept separated from the new name to minimize confusion and preserve its integrity.

New Logos

We designed a brand new logo for RefinedLooks Plastic Surgery and a variation for the Spa using elements that were inspired by the aesthetics of their offices and reminiscent of their past identity. Our team also worked on establishing a more prominent presence at their location by adding new outdoor signage at the exterior skin of their building as well as in the interior.

Website Redesign

A brand new website consolidating the practice into one was also designed, re-imagined and built by our team. The new site highlights the practice’s doctors, team and features a newly organized structure of their procedures and new services that lacked prominence from their previous site.

E-Commerce Store Revamp

RefinedLooks previously had two separate websites with two different e-commerce stores offering the same products. This not only spread their marketing efforts thin but also created inconsistent branding and an inefficient business process for the practice. By eliminating one of the two e-commerce sites, our team helped funnel all marketing promotions into one site to better track, process customer orders, and improve overall efficiency.

Videography

Our team also extended our videography services to RefinedLooks to bring their practice to light for current and potential clients. This brought a better understanding of all the procedures and services that are being offered at the practice.

Consistent Branding

From a brand new identity to print and web materials, we ensured the new branding was prominent and consistent across all marketing materials. By rebranding the Plastic Surgery Group and Refine Aesthetic Studio to RefinedLooks Plastic Surgery and Spa, our team helped strengthen the practice’s aesthetic brand, improve marketing strategies, and set up the practice for exponential growth opportunities.

You can check out the new website at refinedlooks.com!

 

Let us help rebrand your business. Contact us today to get started.

Categories
Business eCommerce Marketing

Why Web Analytics are Crucial for a Successful Business (Video)

A strong online presence is crucial for the growth and success of your business. So how do you ensure your website is performing at its best and you are getting the best possible ROI on your digital marketing efforts? It all starts with web analytics.

Tune in to the video below as CEO of Spectruss, Sam Silvey, discusses the importance of website analytics, the key data to focus on, and how you can use it to prove a return on investment for your business.

The Best Platforms to Use

Over 55% of the top 10,000 websites in the world use Google Analytics, making it the most highly recommended data measurement platform for businesses today. Not only is Google Analytics free to use, but it also gives your company the ability to analyze in-depth details about the visitors on your website.

In addition to Google Analytics, HubSpot is another extremely useful analytics tool that manages tracking codes to collect important website user data. By bringing all your Google Analytics and HubSpot data together, you can analyze and report across the entire customer journey, ultimately allowing you to devise a successful strategy for your business.

Know the goal for your website

As mentioned in the video, the goal for your company website is to direct traffic towards your call-to-action, whether that be filling out a contact form, buying a product, or clicking a phone number. Once you have a clear call-to-action for your website, your company can then move towards maximizing conversions.

After you have identified your call-to-action for your website, you must then discern how much that conversion is worth to your company. Known as a conversion value, assigning a numerical value to specific conversions is crucial for determining their impact on your business. This gives you the clarity to optimize and make decisions based on real ROI data.

Understand your website traffic

Monitoring the traffic to and on your website helps your business better understand your online visitors, potential customers, and interactions with your site. Google Analytics is a great platform for tracking this important data, giving your business the ability to pinpoint exactly how your website is performing, and in what areas it can be improved.

In order to make your website more successful, you must first analyze how traffic navigates on your website. Tracking data from product purchases, abandoned shopping carts, bounce rates, page clicks, and session duration gives your company a clear picture of where the drop off is on your site, what content your potential customers are looking for, and where you want to spend your ad budget to drive more traffic.

Collect data from mobile, tablet and desktop

With content consumption drastically increasing on mobile phones, it’s more important than ever to ensure that your website is optimized on all devices. In fact, we are now seeing up to a 60% conversion rate take place on mobile phones. Comparing conversion data from mobile, tablet, and desktop versions is extremely important for reviewing inbound traffic and identifying the success or failure of how your website is performing across all devices.

Manage advertising spend to identify what converts best

Now that you have been collecting and analyzing data, it’s time to start advertising to drive more traffic to your website. Return on ad spend (ROAS) is one of the most important metrics for digital advertising. Essentially, ROAS answers the fundamental marketing question, “If I put X amount of money in a marketing channel, what will I get back in return?” Using the website analytics collected from your digital ads helps you to know if your ad budget is actually providing a return on investment.

If you’d like to learn more about how to make your website perform the best it can and really prove a return on investment, give us shout! We’d love to talk with you.

Categories
Business eCommerce

What E-commerce Platform is Best for Your Business? (Video)

In this new digital age, many companies are shifting their focus towards selling products online. In order to maximize your online success, choosing the right e-commerce platform for your business is one of the most important decisions you will make.

Watch in the video below as Sam Silvey, founder and CEO of Spectruss, discusses the best solutions for building your e-commerce business.

As Sam described, there are many ways to move your business online. With so many e-commerce platforms available in today’s market, choosing the right one for your business can be challenging.

Our Experts at Spectruss Recommend:

As mentioned in the video, WooCommerce uniquely offers the capability to build on top of WordPress – which accounts for 60% of all content management systems. WooCommerce offers complete website control, source code ownership, and customization options that other platforms simply do not have. With over 3.8 million companies using the WooCommerce platform, it’s clear that this is the preferred choice.

For companies looking for a more affordable option with less barrier to entry, Shopify is the recommended platform. Shopify boasts over 500,000 active online stores, accounting for over 20% of all e-commerce websites. In addition, our experts at Spectruss can launch new websites using this platform in as little as 72 hrs (with rush delivery request). However, businesses using Shopify are limited to the platform’s themes, plugins, credit card processing system, and hosting fees. Despite the limitations, this platform remains a good option for budget-friendly businesses looking to launch a store quickly.

Platforms such as SquareSpace and Wix are advertised as cheaper options, but these platforms are limited in their functionality. For example, Wix promotes itself as a free, self-build website platform – but we advise caution. The fees to unlock “premium features” that come standard on professional platforms can be significant. In addition, lower visibility and website traffic due to subpar design may cost thousands in lost revenue. According to our CEO and founder of Spectruss, “I would personally not invest in Wix or SquareSpace”.

While some may choose to cut corners with self-build websites, smaller platforms, and less secure software, this approach can create problems in the long run. Building an online presence that maximizes your ability to reach customers, grow your business, and offer a seamless user experience is critical for a return on investment and long-term success .

In short, if you are looking to start a new e-commerce site, or looking to update an existing site, Spectruss suggests building with WooCommerce or Shopify. If you need help designing and developing your e-commerce site, our experts at Spectruss are ready to help. Give us a shout at 423-800-8633 or send us an email at info@spectruss.com to schedule a free consultation.

Categories
Design eCommerce Marketing

Spectruss Builds Custom Platform for New Medical Spa, Refine Aesthetic Studio

The Client

Refine Aesthetic Studio, an affiliate of Plastic Surgery Group, is a new premier medical spa located in downtown Chattanooga, TN. Our team at Spectruss used creative design and e-commerce web development to build a custom website for Refine Aesthetic Studio.

We also manage their digital marketing, advertising and social media platforms to help build brand awareness and increase online visibility. Other creative work includes event planning, PR, promotion and creative packaging.

Check out our work in the video below!

Web Design

Our creative team was eager to design a beautiful platform for Refine Aesthetic Studio that would readily attract clients. We thoughtfully chose color schemes, images, and layouts that would provide a visually appealing online experience and successfully portray the company’s overall brand image.

Ecommerce

We built a custom website with ecommerce capability to offer online ordering for Refine Aesthetic Studio’s skincare lines. Our goal was to create a convenient online shopping experience for clients to easily purchase their favorite skincare products. Designed to be responsive on all platforms, customers can use any device to shop on Refine Aesthetic Studio’s site.

Social Media

Social media is an effective platform for your business to gain exposure and build customer relationships. Our team managed Facebook and Instagram platforms for Refine Aesthetic Studio to build brand awareness through engaging content that showcased their services, products, and upcoming events. In just one month, Refine Aesthetic Studio saw significant social media growth.

Print

Using print materials is a great way to present potential customers with valuable information about your business in a small, portable form. Our creative team designed visually engaging literature to help build a recognizable brand and promote the offered services for Refine Aesthetic studio.

Photo + Video

From headshots to Instagram stories, we captured quality content to utilize on Refine Aesthetic Studio’s website and social media accounts. Our team will come to your business to create engaging videos and take beautiful pictures that will showcase your company brand.

Paid Advertising

Paid advertising is an excellent way to increase business growth by driving traffic towards multiple online platforms. Our team created and implemented advertising strategies to reach a specific target market and grow brand awareness for Refine Aesthetic Studio.

Event Planning

Our creative team organized events for Refine Aesthetic Studio from start to finish. We designed promotional materials, creative packaging and sent out a press release to local news outlets to help drive foot traffic to the new medical spa.

Interested to see what Spectruss can do for your business? We’d love to chat! Give us a call at 423.800.8633 or email us at info@spectruss.com.

Categories
Design

Q & A: Justin Aragon, Creative Director at Spectruss

Ten questions with Justin Aragon, Creative Director here at Spectruss

 

Tell us how your background in architecture has shaped your career?

“Architecture is built for permanence. My architectural training and knowledge of the classics have helped me identify and incorporate the qualities of timeless design to every project. Staying relevant over time is very important to me.”

How does working at Spectruss excite you?

“Working with an enthusiastic team, great clients, unique projects and leading the creative side of the business excites me every morning!”

In your opinion, what differentiates Spectruss?

“People usually come up to me and say… “I can tell when you guys did it.” We’ve built a more modern identity that separates us from others.”  

Describe your creative process.

“Developing a strong concept and letting that blossom effortlessly.”

During the creative process, what should others keep in mind?

“Step 1: Question everything. Step 2: Have an answer. Step 3: Slay.”

What does strategic design mean to you?

“Flawlessness. In reference to the previous question: If you have an answer or a reason for every design decision then you’ve developed a superb strategy!”

Can you give us a tip for success?

“Show… Don’t Tell.”

Do you have any inspirations?

Less is More – Mies Van Der Rohe”

Are you seeing any trends?

“I only like trends that have an ability to become a classic. But I always feel like the trendy thing to do is to not be trendy.”

Any advice?

“Give white space a chance!”

 

 

Categories
Projects

Website Launched – CityScope Food and Drink

This week here at Spectruss, the popular local magazine CityScope gets an online face-lift for their “Food and Drink” magazine. CityScope is a Chattanooga-based magazine with many annual and seasonal magazine releases to multiple scenes around the local area, including:  Football, Business, Home & Design, Health, to name a few.

With the launch of the new website through Spectruss, the team at CityScope now has easy control of their front-end website appearance through a personalized WordPress back-end. This is the first website rollout for what will be several websites to embody their brand. The new website features a content management system that will allow CityScope to plug in their own content and take control of what appears on the website.

Spectruss is now beginning development on the “Moth Ball by CityScope” website, which is a great benefit event put on by CityScope and the women of Chattanooga. With that underway, Spectruss is excited to add another great website to the Chattanooga website design community.

For a firsthand look at the new site, head over to: cityscopefoodanddrink.com.

Categories
Design

Spectruss Lead Designer Justin Aragon Interview

This week we highlight lead designer of Spectruss, Justin Aragon. In this interview, we learn about his design aesthetic to his personal web design treasures!

 

What is your greatest strength when it comes to designing website layouts?

When it comes to designing website layouts, you have to think of who you’re designing it for first. Listening to the client’s vision is a major strength to have and being able to translate an abstract idea to visual communication. Every web design project we work on is custom designed for each client. From the navigation, sizing, text placement, typography, photography, video, film, graphic elements, animations… etc., everything is designed accordingly to best represent who the client is. It is also important for me as a designer to produce unique designs every time. It keeps me creative, playful, push envelopes and maybe raise some eyebrows too!

 

Do you create all the components to the website? (icons, imagery, art)

Yes! I’m very observant… which every designer should be. I look at websites every day. My eyes recognize when certain graphic elements or iconography have been used before in multiple projects by different agencies. Even when I’m driving around the city, it frustrates me when I see the same topography and icons on billboards and posters here in Chattanooga. I like to give our clients designs that they can only call their own. I have Illustrator files that scroll forever full of custom-designed graphics that I consider one of my prized possessions.

 

When working on a project, what is your average turnaround for completion?

Every project has a different timeline, so it’s difficult to give a specific number. It also varies on what kind of project it is. We’ve worked long term with clients on fully functioning custom-designed websites, to as short as two weeks, to twenty-four hours! The average would probably be around three to four weeks. Ideally, we like to have a week for the design phase, another week for edits, and go to the programming phase on the final week.

 

What part does branding and brand identity play in your creative process?

Branding is everything! Branding dictates the overall direction of how to represent your clients. Branding a new company is probably the most creative part of being in this business. We’ve worked with several local clients here in Chattanooga, and it feels really great when people recognize your work just by looking at a signage, logo, and visiting a website. When I moved back to Chattanooga from Architecture School in 2011, there was a growing population in the creative community… which was awesome! But I also noticed that everyone was producing very similar trendy designs. Trends can only last until there is a new one. I’m a huge fan of timeless design that remain significant over years and years. I always keep in mind when designing a logo or any kind of branding that the overall visual appeal would become an instant classic and does not come with an expiration date.

 

Do you favor the idea of working with a company to focus their branding and improve upon it before beginning the website process?

When clients come to us, they are either looking to start from the beginning or unhappy with their current appeal. It is always good to suggest improving certain elements of their brand before further producing major work. When we work with a company that already has their branding established, it is our job to use what they currently have and build the rest of their Identity effectively. Limits can be great. It can be your friend sometimes. When I was studying architecture, I hated working around building codes, but you’ll realize how efficient your designs become. It’s the same with any type of design. You have to be able to work within certain parameters.

 

How would you best describe your design style? (modern, vintage, etc.)

Like I hate labeling my relationships, I don’t necessarily put a stamp on my forehead and say I only have one specific style. I guess I can answer the question in two parts:

Being in the creative industry, you have to be able to tackle different styles. For web design, it is always important to be cutting edge. Since websites are now the new storefronts, you always want your appeal to be fresh and interesting regardless of style, because you are one click away from the x button. If “Advanced” is a style, I would say as a company that we integrate design with the most current technology in our work.

In my personal time, I still do a lot of designing. I’ve been working on conceptual furniture, playing around with new silhouettes for men’s fashion, and currently building ideas for the Millennial House. I could describe my personal aesthetic as modern minimal. I like simple bold statements, solid contrasting gray tones, and honesty of materiality. When you’ve been working all day with information overload on client projects, it’s nice to come home to clean lines, smooth surfaces and pure simplicity because it will always be beautiful. A very small hint of my personal style can be seen in my professional work, but I always make sure that the work remains egoless and not about me.