LastingSentiments Case Study

No business can ignore the web, even an intricate business like ours which usually requires human-to-human explanation and contact. I’m an analytical guy, so I researched web design companies for three months. We even had false starts with two other companies; they just didn’t feel right. Then we saw a web site that looked great and learned they used Solid Cactus. The rest is history.” — Jim Newton, LastingSentiments.com

LastingSentiments.com grew from the trophy store All American Awards LLC, operated by Jim Newton since 1991. The key to the business is custom imprinting. Most of the products involve some etching on glass, but they also engrave on plaques, wood, acrylic, pewter and sterling silver. All American Awards LLC also does a big business in ad specialties which run the range from signs and banners to imprinted or custom marked giveaways like pens, shirts and hats, etc. LastingSentiments.com went live in October, 2005 with a line of decanters, glasses, picture frames and crystal, all personalized with a message. LastingSentiments.com then added a series of recognition awards. The web site now features 400 items.

“We designed our own logo, but Solid Cactus did everything else,” says Jim Newton. “They designed the site and helped us with the graphics. We filled out the famous Solid Cactus questionnaire to get the ball rolling.” The special challenge for LastingSentiments.com is that so much of their business is specific to each customer. “They have to tell us exactly what they want etched on each product,” says Jim. “This is difficult because we need instructions every step of the way. It’s much easier with humans involved, but the net is there, and we knew we had to learn to use it.” Solid Cactus provided the software to take the place of endless phone calls. “We assumed there would be at least a phone call for every order,” says Jim. “But we only average one phone call for every 25 orders. That increases our efficiency incredibly.”

LastingSentiments.com also knew that just putting up a web site doesn’t guarantee business. “They’ve educated us as to how our site works,” says Jim. “They also assisted with our search engine marketing, which makes the difference between being seen and being lost in cyberspace.”

LastingSentiments.com was up and running for the 2005 holiday season. “We started from zero,” says Jim Newton, “but we were very happy with the results for the 4th quarter. Our sales are steady and steadily growing. We’re already showing a gross margin.”

Web design can be relatively expensive, depending on how long it takes to recoup the investment. “Our new site almost paid for itself by the end of the first quarter,” says Jim Newton. “Now we’re waiting for our natural rankings to improve. As a new store we realize that it takes time, so we’re still in the sandbox, waiting to be grown ups. Still, we’re already making attractive gross margins with no ranking. The future looks good.”

LastingSentiments.com is a young company making its way. But within months of their Solid Cactus redesign, they were operating in the black. The most fertile field for success to grow is a healthy bottom line.