The custom web design and digital marketing experts located in Tuscaloosa, Alabama expanded to meet a growing need in storytelling centered around the customer experience. The expansion furthers The Nine’s footprint to serve as an activator and hub for global B2B and DTC growth.

The Nine announced the acquisition of Crossland Communication, a brand content agency based in Pensacola, Florida in a move that marks a commitment to center the customer experience in building fully engaged positive, powerful and impactful online experiences.

“Over the past two decades, we have seen a need for high quality content,” said Robby White, founder and CEO of The Nine. “For the brands and businesses we work with, content improves everything from lead generation to SEO.”

Through the merger, The Nine integrated a breakthrough technology, Vox Verba, an AI-assisted marketing tool that intersects web development and digital marketing with the customer’s story.

“We unlock business intelligence from your customer reviews and testimonies with machine learning and AI to find powerful messages and stories,” shares Andrya Allen, The Nine Partner. “When you listen and integrate those insights across your business, you accelerate customer growth.”

By listening to your customer’s voice, we develop clear and confident key messages, traits and characteristics, storylines and assign unique brand positioning for your brand using a typology that segments into over 1,700 brand identities. Vox Verba provides voice of customer and brand insights for direct to consumer brands ranked some of which are in the global top three of online stores on the DTC Power List.

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The acquisition expands The Nine’s client base from broad national clients to international and venture-backed startups and expands services to include global market consulting, corporate training and team development while adding another location in Pensacola, Florida with the talent and resources needed to best serve our clients.

With designers, developers and marketers collaborating together, The Nine is able to produce millions in revenue across industries for clients. Current clients include billion dollar corporations with B2B and B2C markets, ecommerce brands ranked in Shopify’s top 1%, international consumer goods companies, as well as intergovernmental and not-for-profit organizations.

Under Allen’s leadership, Crossland Communication hosted workshops for TED speakers, innovators and creatives in business growth and marketing across six countries with training and development opportunities in global coworking spaces. Since starting in 2015, the brand content firm developed and managed go-to-market strategy and product launches for high growth brands including recognition, features, awards and press partnerships with TED, Healthline, Sony, Quickly and European startup programs.

Allen is a featured speaker, panelist and published researcher for organizations like the National Communication Association, the Advertising Federation, the Florida and Alabama Public Relations Associations and the world’s largest group of social advertisers with Facebook Ad Buyers. Firm partners are top accelerators, Fortune 50 companies and resource hubs for startups ranging from investment firms to international food producers.

Partner results include increased revenues, new acquisition channels, viral video consumption, highly engaged audiences and brand voice that speaks with both intimacy and clarity.

In addition to the expansion, The Nine announced breaking ground on a partnership with Stillman College, a private Presbyterian and historically black liberal arts college, to bring technology courses, workshops, seminars, pitch opportunities, technology learning lab for students with onsite work study and internship placement. The partnership will host competitions and events to serve students and community members through the launch of The Hatchery, an up and coming incubator for innovators that need resources to reach their objectives.

“We were reactionary marketers prior to engaging The Nine to help us.  Together, we came up with a strategy, and from there the number grew exponentially.  Our monthly sales grew 681%, revenue 827%, and orders over 400% during the first year of working with them.” W. Michael Wilson, Vice President of Marketing and Packaging at Afflink, a division of Performance Food Group. Wilson continues, “And the best part is we accomplished this on the same ad spend as before.  Simply put—our business wouldn’t have survived without The Nine.”

As a community expert and educator, The Nine offers digital training and courses to founders and their creative teams. The Nine invites executives and marketing teams with plans for customer acquisition growth to the Nine Foundations Series for Digital Marketing. The series walks you through the foundational steps of generating leads, search engine optimization, ecommerce and content marketing.  Join The Nine on August 6th at 10 am online for an interactive, hands on workshop with actionable tactics for building a strong marketing foundation.

“Our digital marketing process will transform your marketing budget into a measurable investment in your company’s growth,” added Paris Vega, The Nine Partner, “The Foundations course is the first step in that process.”

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