Project Objective: To provide immediate data-recovery services and a website rebuild using the latest security protocols and Internet standards.
Project Background: Kellie Becker was hired as the Enneagram Institute’s director of operations at the end of June 2016. Ten days later, the company’s website went down…for days. But what could have been a major crisis for the Enneagram Institute ended up being a major opportunity instead.
The Enneagram Institute was founded to advance research and development of the Enneagram, a powerful tool used to help individuals, businesses and organizations understand the complex array of interconnected personality types. It developed the Riso-Hudson Enneagram Type Indicator (RHETI), a scientifically validated, forced-choice personality test, which is delivered online.
“Typical personality tests put you into a box,” Becker explains. “The differentiating factor with the RHETI test is we tell you your personality range as well as your personality, which fluctuates depending on your stressors. Your responses and reactions to people may be very different from day to day.”
When the website went down, the Enneagram Institute reached out to Troy Web Consulting for help recovering data from their old site, tightening up security issues, rebuilding the site and getting it back online quickly, sustainably and securely. They got all of that, and much more.
The Challenge: “When we met with the folks at Enneagram Institute, they were offline and business was at a standstill,” says Jon Briccetti, CEO of Troy Web Consulting. “This company relies on the Internet to sell its tests and other products, and downtime means lost opportunities and lost sales. Hundreds of consulting firms couldn’t deliver tests to their clients, and customers were calling. Time was of the essence.”
So the Troy Web team dug in. The first order of business was building a temporary website on Squarespace to let customers know the Enneagram site was “under construction.” Then the real work began. Within days, Troy Web built a new, secure website rich with industry best practices and standards. They also walked the Enneagram Institute through best practices in responding to crisis situations with minimal disruption to its user community.
“Troy Web reimagined our website’s infrastructure – everything that goes on behind the scenes to make it all work – from searching, sorting and exporting test data to responding to customer requests,” Becker says. “Our former website had lots of technical issues; this one has none. Troy Web has the technical chops to get the job done and make it work.”
While Troy Web worked on securing and rebuilding the site and getting the RHETI test back online, the Enneagram Institute took the opportunity to do a deep dive into its client base. They learned some surprising things.
“The reality is that when our website went down, it gave us this huge gift to not only look into what and why it happened, but also who we serve,” Becker says. “We learned that there were a tremendous number of clients all over the world using our product, unbeknownst to us. We serve virtually every industry, from healthcare, schools, and government to finance, entertainment and human resources.”
Troy Web facilitated this examination by providing the Enneagram Institute with analytical tools such as Google Analytics and administrative reporting tools. These allow the Enneagram Institute to see breakdowns of user demographics and monitor when tests are bought or taken.
The Enneagram Institute is using those findings, in part, as the basis of a rebranding effort and to better market to their diverse range of customers and industries. Once they’ve done this, they plan to commission Troy Web to build a business dashboard that will give them at-a-glance access to important data and metrics on their site. They also hope to offer different language options for their website, which will allow even more customers to use their services.
Business Impact: Becker says that less than a year after the website launched, the company has experienced “explosive growth” and in less than a year, the website has helped double test sales and subscriptions. She said Troy Web not only improved their website, but their insights had an “overflow effect” that positively impacted the institute’s business operations and processes.
“Every indicator we have is growth. The number of requests that are coming in for our test, teachers, and expertise has been amazing,” Becker says. “As important is the fact that Troy Web gave us the analytic tools to know how people are using our product, where they’re using it and when. We found out that people are using it around the clock around the world. It’s been a game-changer for us.”
“We immediately responded to the institute’s crisis, shored up their site, and connected them to people and resources they can rely on long-term. Now the Enneagram Institute is prepared for the next time, should there be a next time,” Briccetti says. “We believe in proactive service that is not just about now, but also the long term.”