As Internet marketing professionals we have the opportunity to work with clients located virtually anywhere in the world, but at Emphasize we like to stick close to home. We all live in Calgary, Alberta, and the vast majority of our clients live here, too. We think we can supply the best services to clients we meet, spend time with, and really get to know in person.
It is an integral part of our company culture to remain in close contact with our clients at all times. Marketing, and most especially Internet marketing, is based on good relationships, and we cultivate ours carefully. We schedule regular (usually monthly) meetings with company representatives where we discuss everything from search engine optimization (SEO) services to analytics to new products and the future of the business. Internet marketing involves a lot of tools and applications, and we’re happy to show you how they all actually work. We want to build trust and ease your mind about your marketing investment. We believe that it is our responsibility to keep lines of communication as open as possible to encourage the constant flow of ideas for improvements and approaches.
And while we are vigilant about treating our clients with respect at all times, we also do our best to treat each other the same way. As we only have a small number of employees, and each is absolutely integral to the workings of Emphasize, if one of us is not feeling valued and may not be putting their best effort forward, it matters tremendously towards the final quality of our work. Fortunately this has not happened yet, but we are well aware that it can, and so have put a few guidelines in place for us all to remember each and every day.
Emphasize Life
We were first inspired by Hubspot to look at Internet marketing differently, and to stop obsessing about SEO and keywords and start utilizing the techniques of inbound to offer both ourselves and our clients more control over the processes and results of marketing campaigns.
We were secondarily impressed by HubSpot’s dedication to their employees and their well-being. HubSpot supports a healthy work/life balance, and we do as well. We figure, why not make work as enjoyable as possible?
Other aspects of HubSpot’s Company Culture Code that we love:
- Power is now gained by sharing knowledge, not hoarding it.
- Although our duties at Emphasize are fairly specific, none of us consider ourselves the sole expert on anything. We know that four heads are always smarter than one.
- You shouldn’t penalize the many for the mistakes of the few.
- Mistakes happen, and although they can be frustrating, at Emphasize we try to remember that those errors occurred in between lots of stuff that happened just like it should – or even better!
- Results should matter more than when or where they are produced.
- Since we’re located in Calgary, business property is very costly. We decided to forego that expense and put the funds back into our company. We all work from our homes, which requires diligence in communication, but we all enjoy the flexibility that comes with not having to be creative at certain hours of the day only.
- Great people want direction on where they’re going – not directions on how to get there.
- Some of the most fun we have at Emphasize is when we get to sit down with a client and brainstorm ideas. We are constantly impressed with the insight they have into their own businesses, and use their direction as a starting point for all our work. And as there is a starting point, there must be an end, and we make sure to clarify goals for every project.
Great Company Culture Can Earn Excellent Results
At Emphasize, we want to create and live within a management style that encourages our people to push themselves into becoming more and more skilled at what they do. Employ means “to hire”, but it also means “to use”. Inbound and Internet marketing is not the kind of industry where anyone can afford to become stagnant. Our purpose, our mission, is to always drive remarkable results to our clients. And to reach that goal we know we have to be a bit remarkable ourselves. We are grateful to be involved in a business that demands the best out of us, so that we can ultimately offer our best to you.