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Category: Portfolio
LPF High Performance Coatings
19 January 2012
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Although our journey of developing a social media program for LPF is still in its infancy, the Blue Gurus have been invaluable in getting us to connect the dots and realize the importance of social media in our sales efforts. We have seen measurable results since starting our relationship with Jason and Mic. The Blue Gurus are also trusted consultants to our company having guided us in crafting our IT strategies as well.
- Jim Stuelke, CEO and President, LPF High Performance Coatings
Jason has worked with Jim Stuelke and the team at LPF High Performance Coatings since 2003. Besides being a trusted resource, Jason and Jim are good friends. Looking at the old and new pictures below, you will be able to tell it was definitely time for a new web site!
Jason worked directly with Dana Brown, VP of Sales, to create the new site. Because Jim is a K-State alum, the color purple is incredibly important to him and to the branding of LPF High Performance Coatings.
Now that LPF High Performance Coatings has a site that they are proud of, they are updating their blog weekly and reaching their vendors and customers in new and exciting ways.
Click here to visit lpfcoatings.com
Downtown Council of Kansas City
19 January 2012
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A funny thing happens every time the Downtown Council staff prepares for a meeting with the Blue Gurus. We actually look forward to seeing them, learning from them and being inspired by them. The Blue Gurus are great teachers, particularly when navigating a potentially mind-numbing IT lesson. They make it manageable, affordable, practical and fun! In the two years that we have been working with the Blue Gurus, we have come to count on them as trusted members of our team. They coached us through a complete conversion of our old website into a new WordPress site, and set the bar high as they led us through the ins and outs of launching our LinkedIn and Facebook presence. Jason often tells me that his goal is to get things done efficiently and to have fun during the process. Well, my friend, you are getting it done beautifully.
Mike Hurd, Director of Marketing
The Downtown Council of Kansas City is the perfect example of how doing good work for one company will lead to referrals to other companies that they do business with. Jason did a lot of work for Terri Hurd when she was the VP of Marketing at First National Bank of Olathe.
Terri’s husband, Mike Hurd, is the Director of Marketing for The Downtown Council of Kansas City. So when Terri heard that The Downtown Council of Kansas City needed a new web site, she not only let Jason know, but she set up the meeting too! Three other firms had submitted quotes, and after an hour with The Downtown Council team, Jason earned the business.
The key factors were as follows:
1. The collaborative nature of how Blue Gurus does WordPress web site projects ON SITE over 4-5 half-day sessions per week.
2. Timing – Blue Gurus could get the project done faster than every other company they were looking at.
3. Price – The final price for Blue Gurus was half the cost of what the other proposals were.
Since launching the site, we have worked with The Downtown Council of Kansas City every month on their web site and social media efforts. We’ve added new functionality, changed things around, and made the site better. We think this is an important lesson for all companies. Your site is a living, breathing, “thing” and you need to routinely give it the attention that it deserves. Especially when blogging…and The Downtown Council of Kansas City does an excellent job with a team-based approach to blogging.
Finally, every single person on The Downtown Council team contributed to the final site. They were responsible for their own content and they all learned how to add content themselves using WordPress.
Click here to visit downtownkc.org
Bistro 303
19 January 2012
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Prior to Blue Gurus, Bistro 303′s website was not user friendly. It was idle and unchanged for years. After hiring Blue Gurus, I am able to update and change with ease. And with using their advice on Social Media sites, we have actually been able to grow and improve sales in this ever changing economy.
- Jeffrey Schmitz, Owner, Bistro303
One Spring day, Mic and his wife Missy, as they often do on Saturdays, went to the Kansas City River Market to shop for fresh fruits and vegetables. After they had gathered their goodies for the day, they wanted to grab lunch. They went back and forth on a location and then Missy said, “Hey, let’s go to Jeffrey Schmitz’s restaurant, Bistro 303!” So how did thet know Jeffrey Schmitz? Well, Mic went to grade school and high school with Jeffrey and his sister Lori was in Mic’s class.
So off to Bistro 303 they went. Mic and Jeffrey hadn’t seen each other in awhile so they spent some time catching up. Jeffrey asked Mic what kind of work he was in and during the conversation Mic mentioned that Blue Gurus does WordPress web site projects ON SITE with clients and typically are done in 4 half-day sessions. Jeffrey mentioned that his web site was old, needed to be updated badly, and that he was frustrated that he didn’t have control over the content when he wanted to make changes to menus, etc.
Mic explained that WordPress solved all of those problems. Before Mic and Missy left after lunch (By the way, the Croque Madame sandwich–and all of their food–is delicious!), Jeffrey agreed to moving forward with Blue Gurus for a new web site.
Oh, and one more “small world” note: While working on the project, Mic and Jason (owner of Blue Gurus) discovered that they had both worked for Jeff’s dad at Godfather’s Pizza in Wichita during their high school years! How crazy is that?
Click here to visit Bistro303.com
Kansas City Internal Medicine
19 January 2012
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Working with Mic and Jason (aka the initial two BLUE GURUS) has been an exceptional experience. Jason’s vision and technical ability together with Mic’s vision and detail focus have both been key assets to the development of not only our web site, but now our social media business strategy. I consider Blue Gurus an integral part of our team and am grateful to have had the opportunity to work with a company that truly considers their work a passion and partnership.
- Lori Mallory, CEO, Kansas City Internal Medicine
This is one of Mic’s favorite client stories…and rightfully so. One day he was reading the online edition of the Kansas City Business Journal and came across a guest blog post written by Lori Mallory, CEO of Kansas City Internal Medicine.
Mic noticed that the blog was written very well and was very informative. He also noticed that Lori’s email address was at the top of the post. So Mic sent an email to Lori complimenting her writing style and suggesting that she should be blogging regularly for her company too. The two exchanged a few more emails and then decided to meet. Mic and Lori hit it off instantly.
During the conversation, Lori mentioned that the first thing that KCIM needed was a new web site. She had a $30,000 proposal on her desk from another local company. Mic explained that Blue Gurus does WordPress web site projects ON SITE and that we would get the bulk of the work done over 5-6 half day sessions at her office for about a third of what the other company quoted her. Lori asked for a proposal and a day later we got the signed contract and dove into the project together.
Updating Your Web Site Is Easier (And More Cost Effective) Than You Might Think: Shapiro & McMullen Case Study
20 March 2011
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 Before - Click to enlarge |
 After - Click to enlarge |
Recently Jason was contacted by Tony Shapiro, owner and Partner at Shapiro & McMullen, P.A., a law firm in Leawood, KS. Tony, like many business owners today, was interested in upgrading his web site.
He had a bid from another company, but was referred to Blue Gurus by a friend so he wanted to hear what we had to offer. He had a budget in mind and wanted to get it done sooner rather than later. So how did it turn out?
In THREE weeks, Blue Gurus created a brand new web site for Shapiro & McMullen, P.A. and came in $500 UNDER budget!
We understand that taking the time (and spending the money) on a new web site can be a daunting task for business owners that are busy spending hours every day doing what they do…running their business. The good news is it’s not as hard as you think nor does it have to cost you an arm and a leg.
Take a look at the simple steps below to see how you can quickly go from thinking about getting a new web site to having a new web site you can be proud of and that represents the brand and personality of your business.
Blue Gurus’ Web Site Process (generally speaking, of course!)
1. You contact us and provide a high level understanding of why you are wanting a new web site and what features you are wanting. This also gives us a chance to look at your existing web site (if you have one) and find areas where improvements are needed.
2. We talk to you about our process, which includes having us ON SITE (this benefit is NOT the norm, btw) at your place of business once a week, in 4 hour blocks of time, for somewhere generally between 3-5 weeks depending on the scope of the project.
3. We provide a contract that gives you a fair and reasonable estimate of time and cost.
4. You return the signed contract and we work with you (or the person you designate) to schedule all of the time to do the work.
5. At the first meeting, we spend the first hour talking about the site map (i.e. what sections you want to include on the new web site: About Us, Services, Contact Us, etc.) and how the rest of the process will go. Additionally, Jason works with you to pick a theme in WordPress that best matches the look, feel and functionality you are looking for. He also sets up the hosting and begins doing the technical “heavy lifting” that goes into creating the new web site.
6. At the same time, I work with you (or the person you designate) on content. This includes you providing pictures, text for each page, bios for employees, links to include, etc. Basically whatever you want to appear within the framework of the site, you provide to me and I will make sure it gets in there. I can also help create or edit content, however this obviously adds to the cost of the project.
(OK, THIS PIECE IS REALLY IMPORTANT, SO PAY ATTENTION! The content piece is CRITICAL to our ability to stay on time and on, or below, budget. On the Shapiro & McMullen project, we worked with Office Manager Ashley Watson, who was fabulous and on the ball every step of the way. When we asked her for content, she got it to us. When we needed her opinion, she gave it to us. When we had questions for her, she was always available and provided great input. Without her executing near flawlessly on behalf of Shapiro & McMullen, the process would have taken longer and wouldn’t have come in under budget. The “content person” is the client’s most critical role on any new web site project.)
7. Once you have provided me with all of the necessary content, I input it into the site that Jason created. Once all content is entered into the sites, Jason “flips the magic switch” and the new site will be live in 24 hours or less!
As a reminder, this is an honest high level overview of how our process works. There are always little things that come up along the way, but we diligently work through them together.
If you are thinking about getting off the fence and upgrading your web site, contact us today. We’d love to help get this checked off of your TO DO LIST once and for all!
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