Imagemakers - Custom Technology + Brand Experience

07/06/2023

IM Diary: Virtual Summer Picnic Day!

When your team works virtually everywhere and it’s time for a summer picnic, what do you do? Get online and get it done!

Last week we held our 2023 Summer Picnic, with team members joining in the fun from afar. So, what does a virtual picnic look like? For starters, we picked up the tab for lunch, and while we ate, we all shared our exciting summer plans and upcoming vacations.

After we ate we played Guess Who and Pictionary, complete with exciting prizes for the winners. See some of the quick draw Pictionary visualizations below to see how the team handled the virtual challenge. Afterwards, we gave our team the rest of the day off to enjoy time in their own summertime fun way.

So what can we take away from this? When you operate in a virtual or hybrid world, being intentional about building meaningful connections is important. While it may be different, you can find ways to bring people together and have fun. It’s also important to pause in the hustle and flow of work to celebrate and share how much we appreciate working together.

06/29/2023

User Experience (UX) plays a critical, yet somewhat misunderstood role, in the success of companies, government entities and NGOs. To help us understand and advance the discipline of UX research, strategy and design, we’d like your perspective.

Please cast your vote in the poll below by choosing the appropriate reaction, and feel free to add any comments to share your expertise and experience on the subject!

Thanks for helping us shed light on the prevailing perceptions of UX’s role in today’s landscape. Feel free to tag colleagues or peers who might be interested in participating.

QUESTION:

Which statement best reflects the current state of knowledge regarding the role of UX in business?

👍 UX is widely recognized as an essential factor and priority in business success.

❤️ There is some awareness of UX, but its significance is not fully understood or prioritized.

🥰 UX is largely overlooked or undervalued in many businesses.

😮 Not sure what the relationship is between UX and business success.

06/08/2023

User experience is an important, yet somewhat hard to define discipline. Broadly defined, it is the overall experience a person has when interacting with a product, system or service. User experience covers perceptions, emotions, attitudes and behaviors - before, during and after an interaction. That can be hard to capture and analyze, which is where UX research comes in.

So how do you determine what to invest in user experience research for your company? And why should you make the investment? We’ve gathered five stats that show the clear business value of user research for organizations, covering key benefits that produce a positive ROI. 👉 https://www.linkedin.com/pulse/unleashing-power-ux-research-five-statistics-prove-its

04/27/2023

Can great UX lead to a 4X the purchases? Yes, it can.

Good online functionality can be hard to come by, especially when dealing with a catalog of timely, frequently-changing continuing education courses. When Johnson County Community College's Workforce Development & Continuing Education’s division wanted to enhance their customer's course selection experience, they turned to Imagemakers for help.

After years of mailing comprehensive catalogs to their community, JCCC wanted to create an online experience that would allow interested students to browse, search and select courses that met their needs. They were seeking to create an online experience that produced clear, intuitive results; reduced friction; and offered a modern user experience. They also wanted a site that would respond to and route customers based on their search input. JCCC needed an “intelligent" search engine. They had researched third-party search tools, but they don’t always deliver all that JCCC needed, and those that do can be slow and difficult to customize.

Imagemakers was able to deliver on every one of JCCC's functional requests. We built a website that integrated custom search technology to provide site users with a fast, aesthetically-pleasing search experience that allowed them to find what they needed hassle-free. As a result, JCCC saw 4 times as many course registrations through the new site than they saw through other registration means.

04/20/2023

In one of our recent posts, you saw that Imagemakers President and CEO Dan Holmgren spent a few days with our team of developers in India. He also spent several additional days exploring India with the goal of looking at life from outside his normal perspective. To see different ways that people live.

Dan meditated with a holy man, toured Calcutta, experienced funeral pyres on the banks of the Ganges, and so much more. With a UX background, Dan also realized that menu design matters greatly when you are hungry and can’t read the menu. Also, he has learned throughout his travels that the people who have the least seem to be the happiest. The most content.

Imagemakers believes so greatly in fostering cultural knowledge and understanding that we implement a “Culture Shock” program for our employees. We will reimburse you for costs associated with traveling to visit a culture that you have never experienced. Every time an employee has ventured out via this program, they have come back rejuvenated and with much more understanding of the value of diversity.

04/13/2023

Switching from Google Universal Analytics (UA) to Google Analytics 4 (GA4) can be a significant transition for businesses, but it’s one that’s well worth it. As we discussed in Part 1, Google is fully switching to GA4 on July 1, 2023. The new platform offers advanced tracking and analysis capabilities that make it easier to understand customer behavior and improve business outcomes. Here in Part 2 we will discuss how to switch from Google UA to GA4, as well as how to use the analytics. https://www.linkedin.com/pulse/part-2-how-make-switch-from-google-ua-ga4-imagemakers-inc

Switching from Google Universal Analytics (UA) to Google Analytics 4 (GA4) can be a significant transition for businesses, but it’s one that’s well worth it. As we discussed in Part 1, Google is fully switching to GA4 on July 1, 2023.

03/30/2023

When individuals from different cultural backgrounds come together to work towards a common goal, it is essential that they possess an understanding of each other's customs, values, and communication styles. This understanding can help prevent misunderstandings, conflicts, and miscommunications that can hinder productivity and ultimately harm the success of the team.

Dan Holmgren, Imagemakers’ President and CEO, spends time with our US-based developers every day. But it’s rare that he gets to spend time with our team of developers in India! Dan recently spent a few days with the India team connecting, running strategy workshops, sharing what gets everyone excited, and what causes fear. Nitin and the rest of the team also taught Dan some Hindi and the basics of cricket. A lot of great food was consumed and relationships strengthened.

Imagemakers is proud to foster successful professional relationships all across the world. These relationships help us better understand those around us and help us deliver better end products to our clients and those who use them.

03/08/2023

On this , we are excited to look back at the exciting opportunity we had to work with Willoughby Design and Guild Collective to create a brand and website that represented KC Current and all that they stand for. Now, after two seasons, the KC Current is breaking barriers with the building of the first ever soccer complex built specifically for professional women's soccer. We are proud of the amazing work this Club has accomplished in such a short period of time and are grateful to have been a part of their launch.

The Current opens their 2023-2024 season on March 25th against the NC Courage. Good luck, ladies!

View the original post here: https://www.facebook.com/imagemakersinc/posts/10159653023767350

03/02/2023

For marketers, using analytics to monitor website traffic and engagement is a critical function. A major change in the analytics world is happening, something that all marketers should be aware of. This article is part one of a two-part series and will discuss the what and why behind the change and when you should make the switch.

https://www.linkedin.com/pulse/making-change-from-google-ua-ga4-imagemakers-inc/

03/02/2023

Do you have a passion for bringing great digital experiences to life? We're hiring a digital project manager to join our growing team. Come join our fully remote team and let's shape the future together. Click below to apply.
https://jobs.gohire.io/imagemakers-wje0ioed/digital-project-manager-119089/

02/06/2023

Global partners.

Imagemakers is a proud member of ICOM, a global network of independent agencies focused on delivering the best in advertising, marketing and digital solutions. The network consists of 80 owner-led agencies working in more than 60 countries around the world.

ICOM agencies are chosen based on their expertise and performance in their respective markets. Imagemakers provides a rare mix of brand, UX and technology talent, delivering digital experiences that get high marks for usability and performance.

Last year, Dan Holmgren, CEO of Imagemakers, led breakout sessions focused on digital tools at ICOM's international conference in Paris, France. Agency owners from Norway, Malta, Spain, Estonia, Germany, the Netherlands, Portugal, Australia, the UK, the US, France, Ghana, and many more countries joined in. The opportunity to share our perspective was met equally with the opportunity to learn from other agency experts. Both what they are seeing in their areas of focus, and globally, from a technology user perspective.

The ICOM network provides connections that are invaluable in serving our clients doing business around the globe, and opens the door to a world of possibilities.

01/26/2023

Unexpected.

Government departments and programs are often viewed as overly complicated and bureaucratic, making building public trust in a politicized environment difficult. The Lieutenant Governor of Kansas and Secretary of Commerce, David Toland, is committed to creating an inspiring, innovative and collaborative environment at the Department of Commerce.

To help set the tone, Imagemakers was engaged to redesign the Department of Commerce's website experience. They wanted visitors to view the agency and the state in a positive, non-bureaucratic way. They wanted to highlight successes seen throughout various regions and communities across the state, as well as promote the potential to thrive in Kansas.

As a gateway for the experience, we developed a theme: The State of Unexpected. We did this to highlight world-changing companies and innovators from Kansas. The “Made In Kansas” section showcases these success stories. We also added a Regions section that features the college towns, artistic havens, suburban communities, and mid-sized urban centers that make Kansas unique.

The Kansas Department of Commerce also wanted to make it easier to search for information on programs and incentives that Kansas has to offer. We created an incentive finder tool that helps companies and communities easily access programs designed to help them grow.

We were able to pull all of this information together in a captivating website that feels less like government and more like a modern, thriving experience that you want to be part of.

Take a tour through The State Of Unexpected at https://www.kansascommerce.gov/