Filed Under: Partner Spotlight
It’s always fun to introduce people you love to one another. Each month, we feature a member of our Root + River studio so you can better get to know them. Studio Partners are individual professionals and companies we have developed fabulous working relationships with and to who we relish referring our clients and friends. They support the Root + River beliefs and standards and are believers in intrinsic branding.
THE HUMAN: Heather Locke, Chief Support Officer, Hammersmith Support
THEIR ROOT BELIEF: Building and maintaining a website should be a pleasant, easy experience.
WHAT THEY OFFER: Hammersmith is a full-service web development company, providing web development, design, hosting and maintenance services.
HOW LONG WE’VE WORKED TOGETHER: Heather began working with Emily Soccorsy after meeting her in the Scottsdale/Arcadia chapter of the W Source and she later built the Root + River website in 2020.
HER THOUGHTS ON UNSELLING SELLING: Heather won’t take on a client when she suspects everyone will not feel the project is a success, instead opting to work with people who will ultimately define the experience as a win-win. One of the warning signs that it may not be a good fit is if the potential client won’t accept an initial Zoom meeting. This meeting is where Hammersmith defines the client’s needs and pain points and the subsequent proposal. They offer a variety of ways to work with them, as well as a range of packages. And if the fit doesn’t feel right, Heather simply responds, “we aren’t the right team for you.”
WHY WE LOVE HER: We responded immediately to Heather’s feminine perspective and approach to web design and execution. She is excellent. She gets to know the client and their goals and then uses that insight with her knowledge of design and tech to create a beautiful website. It becomes a true reflection of whom they serve.
Heather makes it a seamless process. It is easy to work alongside them and the end result is beautiful. The agency is women-led and women-powered and they are relatable. So many web developers overcomplicate things, but Hammersmith keeps it simple and the result is simply better. Their sites have soul.
YUMMY DETAILS: The Hammersmith root values are customer service, transparency and giving back. But they began out of a desire to turn working with a website development agency into a pleasurable experience. “So many web developers act like they know more than you. Women in tech get talked down to quite a bit, and we wanted to make it a pleasant, non-painful experience. Building a website shouldn’t be something you dread. We make it easy.” They distance themselves from the bravado so prevalent in the tech space. “We are approachable.” And while they attract people to whom it is important that they are women-owned, mostly their clients want a personal experience.
Managing over 140 sites on a monthly basis, they believe web support should be proactive, not reactive. “From a technology and security perspective, we are on top of it.”
