GRM Digital:
Adaptability is the key to
our success

GRM Digital is an award-winning, full-service web development and digital marketing agency based in the UK, Netherlands, and Bosnia-Herzegovina.

For the last 10 years, it's been helping organisations reach their full online potential and supporting digital transformation, working in a wide range of sectors. This includes everything from membership organisations such as RoSPA through to brands we might all see in supermarkets such as Cow & Gate.

As Rob Warburton, Digital Marketing Consultant for GRM explains, We're not tied to a specific sector or specialism. What really makes us different is our ability to understand a client's needs and respond with a bespoke solution – whatever the market. In our world, there's no such thing as a one-size-fits-all approach.

We're offering tailored services to enterprise clients, we can't rely on an off-the-shelf product that doesn't flex with our needs – that's why we use Fasthosts.

This has helped the firm go from strength-to-strength and retain clients over long periods. In the world of digital agencies, this is a rarity, with work often being project-based. A number of our customers have been with us since we were founded, says Rob's colleague, Ida Vejzagic, a Digital Strategist at GRM.

This includes Eurotunnel le Shuttle, for which GRM created and maintains the advance passenger information system that allows travellers to add their passport and other data into an online portal to ensure smooth travel to France. If you've ever been on the channel tunnel, it's GRM that helped get you there.

These are the types of clients where GRM can really stand out. They're often larger enterprise businesses with complex needs, continues Rob. As such, we can't be rigid in our approach as a smaller agency dealing with simple web-builds might. We listen to customers and respond in a way that suits them. The result is a long-term relationship where they know they're going to get the right solution, delivered by the right people with the best skills. We're not here for quick wins. We're here to do the best for our clients.

This drive to put clients at the centre of the agency was born out of a gap in the market, spotted by the founders back in 2010 who all came from a Content Management System (CMS) vendor. They could see agencies would struggle to exploit its full potential.

From the start, our approach was to fully understand how the CMS worked and follow the best practice, says Ida. In doing so, clients would get a better service and benefit from a deep understanding of best practice. This is a cornerstone of the business along with the adaptability that clients need. GRM now works with many CMSs, offering a vendor-agnostic approach.

However, its real specialism goes much wider than this, helping businesses overcome their digital transformation challenges. Digital transformation can be a vague term, says Ida. That's precisely because it covers so many different things. But so do we – and that's why we're able to help clients so well.

Ida says that if she had to choose a specific product that has been instrumental to GRM, it would be the CloudNX, a next-generation cloud platform from Fasthosts. As everyone knows, cloud solutions have become the norm. CloudNX is the basis of much of our work.

A flexible partner

GRM's methodology requires an equally adaptable and proactive web hosting provider. If we're offering tailored services to enterprise clients, we can't rely on an off-the-shelf product that doesn't flex with our needs, continues Ida. That's why we use Fasthosts. They're always listening to our feedback and introducing new products, which allows us to offer new solutions and support.

The team is always open to ideas. We've often approached them with a challenge to create something different. The answer is always positive and they've found ways to support us. This normally starts with a proof-of-concept and ends up being an ongoing provision.

GRM has been working with Fasthosts for a decade – since the very start. We have a great relationship with our account manager, Asif Veshmia. He and the team provide exactly what we need to exceed our client's expectations, and if I need help, he's always quick to reply, adds Ida. But it's more than that. He's part of the GRM family and has become a friend. We've worked with Asif for 10 years and he's been on our journey with us, she smiles. In response, Asif says, It's been great watching GRM grow throughout the time I've been working with them. While I'm not part of their business, I'm part of the wider team and I get as much of a kick from their wins as they do.

Ida adds, We've stuck with Fasthosts for such a long time because they've responded to our needs as we've developed. They're also reliable – uptime is excellent – and scalability is never an issue. It's also been great to know that contracts are flexible and if anything went wrong – which it doesn't – we'd have the benefit of great compensation.

Asif and the team provide exactly what we need to exceed our client's expectations

In this way, Fasthosts is less of a vendor and more of a partner to GRM, fuelling the firm's growth and supporting its expansion into new markets around the world. Our clients are often large firms that operate across countries, says Rob.

However, that doesn't mean they're happy to waste money. Fasthosts offers everything these businesses need – and all the products they want – but without the price tag that can sometimes go with a large technology vendor, he adds. They provide the basics right up to cloud hosting with datacentres in multiple countries. This can be crucial for some clients who need their data to be stored where they operate.

As the agency continues to grow, it'll continue to flex, adapt and find new ways to solve real world problems with digital solutions. As it does so, Fasthosts will be there to provide the platform it needs to succeed. Together, they're an unstoppable force.