Just over a year ago, we kicked off our first project with eOne Solutions, a leading author of innovative solutions for ERP, CRM, Microsoft Dynamics 365 & beyond. Known for top-tier data integration tools like Popdock and SmartConnect, the eOne team found that the strength of each product’s presence on separate websites led to the overarching brand narrative taking a backseat.
Our task was to sort through this and create a single, compelling story that brings all of eOne under one strong brand, housed on a unified platform. In this piece, we’ll reflect on our partnership with the eOne team, dive into the details of our collaboration, how it all began, what the driving factors were, and how we managed to turn challenges into our biggest superpowers—ensuring a smooth, supportive environment, with eOne always in focus.
eOne’s search for a strategic partner
Before touching on project specifics, let’s go a bit further back in time and give a short overview of how it all started, in the eOne team’s own words. Considering the scale of the project, choosing the right agency partner was key. So we’re taking you behind the scenes of our collaboration, through a conversation with Kristen Juven, Head of Brand and Digital Experience at eOne Solutions, and our main point of contact for the original project and post-project collab!
We knew from the start that we weren’t looking for a short-term vendor relationship. Rather, we were looking for a strategic partner—a company we could view as our extended team. Afternow originally caught our attention through the portfolio work they have on Dribbble. At the end of the day, we eat with our eyes first, so the visual output was extremely important, and the work they displayed made us hungry! As everyone knows, even though it looks good, doesn’t mean it tastes good; so the next step was gaining a better understanding of their processes and getting a feel for their team. We quickly realized they had all the right ingredients.
“Afternow’s approach to understanding what we do, how we do it, and what makes us different—made all the difference.”
Kristen Juven,
Head of Brand and Digital Experience at eOne
A 24/7 collaboration powerhouse
Obviously, this was a high-stakes project for everyone involved—with a lot of moving parts and interdependent project phases. There was little room for error, so we all needed to be on the same page at all times; this meant that establishing clear processes and ways of working was step zero. At Afternow, one of our top priorities is to build an environment of trust, primarily through open dialogue and transparent communication—across the board. That way, we get a much deeper understanding of our clients’ unique challenges, and consequently, detect the opportunities more precisely.
Knowing that Afternow had the processes in place to create seamless communication was a huge differentiator. There’s nothing worse than getting into a project and not having access to the subject matter expert who is creating the deliverable.
“With Afternow, not only do you get a top-tier Project Manager, but you also get access to each subject matter expert as you progress through each asset. It saves time and energy, and honestly, creates a better product.”
Here’s a quick breakdown of what we’re referring to:
Project Management is the relationship and glue that sets the tone and creates the foundation for the project pace and every interaction. Our experience with our Afternow PM has been phenomenal. We feel taken care of, heard, and like a priority. Communication is daily, we interact and chat with our PM just as much as any other internal eOne team member.
As for the subject matter experts, Afternow has many of them, and they are all extremely responsive. Imagine having access to the right talent for the project at hand. Not only do you know you’re going to get a great result, but you can chat directly with them as questions and ideas arise. This saves time and fosters organic collaboration.
We had reservations about the time zone difference. We felt a bit uncertain going into the partnership around efficiencies and possible lost time.
“It wasn’t but weeks into the initial project we started to realize [the time zone difference] was a superpower. Every day our team starts the day with a win!”
We wake up to the work that the Afternow team has completed. As we start our day, they are wrapping up, and that makes for the perfect overlap window… and that is where even more magic happens. We use this time to jump on calls, answer questions, etc. It’s incredibly powerful to have a short period of time that’s dedicated to live communication. By the time they sunset their day, we have the rest of the day to focus on the progress we need to make to keep things moving. Essentially, our team is making progress almost 24/7, and we are each carrying a bit of the load, so not only does it feel manageable, it feels energizing.
Kristen Juven,
Head of Brand and Digital Experience at eOne
Why research & analysis are absolutely worth it
To lay out the groundwork, we first and foremost needed to get a nuanced understanding of the eOne ecosystem. We kicked off with comprehensive UX research, including tools like key stakeholder and user/partner interviews and competitive analysis, concluding with a thorough visual benchmark and data analysis. Based on research synthesis, we established user personas and created a value proposition canvas, which informed visual and verbal identity development, as well as communication strategy, resulting in a website redesign that addresses the specific needs and challenges of users, while aligning with eOne’s business objectives.
In our experience, considering the fast-paced nature of our industry, brands often want to prioritize design over research, eager to have their digital touchpoints up and running as soon as possible. However, we’ve found, time and again, that the true value of design lies in thorough research.
As a company looking to move quickly on every initiative, it was tempting to want to skip the first few phases (research, exploration, analysis, etc.); but knowing that we were truly looking for outputs that didn’t require a “refresh” in a year or so, we opted for the journey that would set us up for scalable success.
“It’s easy to say now that we’ve been through it, the research and analysis phase was absolutely worth it. Not only did it make us feel comfortable that Afternow understood us, but it was also key in building trust.”
Why? Because we knew that Afternow could truly be a strategic partner without us having to hold their hand. Knowing we went through comprehensive research meant their team could bring new ideas and perspectives to the table. Thus, adding value in ways we hadn’t explored.
It was also extremely helpful to have a blueprint of our target market, a kind of “documentation” of sorts. Internally we always talk about our partners, customers, and solutions, but it was extremely valuable to document it and have a playbook to refer back to. It has also been helpful in our onboarding efforts, it provides insight and context to new team members.
Kristen Juven,
The beginning of the project might move a bit slower than you hoped, but the efficiencies and value it adds in the long run are worth it.
Head of Brand and Digital Experience at eOne
Mastering the art of juggling
Just like eOne streamlines how productivity apps work together, we faced the challenge of simplifying their complex product offerings to make them understandable and engaging for their audience. That’s where our full-cycle capabilities combined with our holistic approach had to take center stage. So, we set down the path where flexibility and agility in decision-making were the major driving factors.
Across project phases—from communication strategy, copywriting, and branding to UX, UI, and website development—our subject matter experts stayed heavily involved, with different insights and perspectives helping ensure that eOne’s vision is taking the right shape. Different milestones came with their own set of challenges; but through close collaboration and open dialogue, we’d consistently find common ground. By exploring potential scenarios, and discussing pros and cons, we maintained the alignment on immediate actions and long-term objectives.
“Pivoting is a critical skill in any project; without that ability, the project is bound to be a circus. Suffice it to say the Afternow team has a Master’s in juggling!”
At any given time, we were working on a handful of initiatives—and those initiatives involved numerous team members on both sides (eOne and Afternow).
After starting a project we would often find ourselves needing to make amendments to what we had set out to accomplish. Whether it was an eOne request because our requirements changed, or an idea the Afternow team brought to the table—they were always willing to talk through and drive every change home.
Where this makes the biggest mark is really in the 40,000 ft view—meaning, all the changes could have had us spinning in indecision, but Afternow made it comfortable to talk through and quickly create a plan to keep moving forward. What would have otherwise been numerous hurdles, turned into creative pivots with positive unexpected outcomes.
Kristen Juven,
Head of Brand and Digital Experience at eOne
When you have a well-oiled machine—you don’t turn it off!
The new eOne digital space has been up and running for some time now, but that wasn’t the end of our collaboration. We’re currently focused on developing an extensive library of assets for their internal team, customers, and partners. The initiative aims to ensure that eOne’s digital presence stays cohesive and scalable.
When you have a well-oiled machine, you don’t turn it off! We had created such a great relationship and the work Afternow delivered continuously spoke for itself, so it was a no-brainer to continue to evolve our collaboration. Their team of subject matter experts is extremely talented so as our needs continued to grow outside of the website, we knew they had our back in helping us achieve great results in creating new assets. It’s been fun to watch our collateral ecosystem rapidly grow, and the best part is, it has been invaluable to our sales team.
Kristen Juven,
Head of Brand and Digital Experience at eOne
Lessons learned
Just like in life, the same goes for business: no project is perfect. Even though we can agree on both ends that we did the best within the given circumstances, in hindsight, we could single out some points in the processes where we may have taken a different route.
Looking back, we’d change how slow we moved internally. At the start, we felt there could have been a bit more urgency on our part to make decisions, set meetings up, etc. We might also have benefited from a few more team meetings during the branding phase.
As we’ve started to get into the various projects outside of the branding and website wheelhouse, perhaps we could work on providing a bit more clarity given the new project landscapes (as they are new to us).
But in all honesty, what we’ve accomplished in this partnership to date has been extremely critical in this time of growth for eOne… and we look forward to continuing to tackle future projects together.
Kristen Juven,
Head of Brand and Digital Experience at eOne
Wrapping up
Given the depth of our collaboration with eOne Solutions, it’s clear that our journey together is much more than a series of projects—it’s about a strategic partnership that can leave a mark. Our holistic approach, driven by a profound understanding of client needs and industry dynamics, enables us to develop assets that do more than just look good; they deliver tangible value to both our clients and their audiences.
This partnership only reinforces the power of combining strategy, creativity, and technology to create meaningful digital experiences. It’s a commitment to not just meeting the immediate needs but fostering long-term strategic collaborations that drive growth and innovation. Together with eOne, we’ve set a new benchmark for what’s possible when we work smarter.
