What Placemaking Group does

Placemaking Group is a privately held, full-service digital marketing and web development agency founded in 2007 and headquartered in Oakland, California, serving small businesses and organizations across the San Francisco Bay Area. The firm operates under the DBA "Placemaking Group Digital and Design" with a team of 1–10 staff organized around two principals (Barbara Irias and Dianne Newton Shaw), a creative director, a graphic designer, a programmer, an SEO/PPC specialist, and program support. Its core offering centers on custom website development — covering marketing websites, ecommerce (including Shopify), mobile apps, and custom database/portal builds — built on WordPress, Drupal, Laravel, PHP/LAMP, Ruby/RoR, and Microsoft .NET stacks.

The firm's service portfolio extends beyond web delivery into inbound marketing services: brand and marketing strategy, graphic design, content marketing, search engine optimization and paid ads, social media management, email marketing automation (MailChimp, HubSpot), video production, ADA accessibility compliance, customer experience services (journey mapping, chatbots, customer portals), and case study development. The technology stack integrates Shopify, Google Analytics, Google Tag Manager, Facebook Messenger, Facebook Pixel, and Calendly. AI capabilities are limited to third-party chatbot deployment rather than proprietary model development.

Placemaking Group monetizes through two streams: project-based professional services for website and design engagements, and recurring monthly digital marketing retainers offered in three published tiers — GET STARTED at $800/mo, GROWTH at $2,700/mo, and GO FOR GOLD at $4,900/mo — each requiring a 12-month commitment plus an onboarding fee equivalent to one month. Distribution is consultation-led via free website consultations, complimentary competitive assessments against two named competitors, Calendly-scheduled appointments, and a portfolio of quantified case studies across manufacturing, healthcare, nonprofit, government, professional services, construction/real estate, and ecommerce verticals. The firm shows no disclosed funding, no parent company, no subsidiaries, and no M&A activity.

Name

Placemaking Group

Legal name

Placemaking Group

Website

https://placemakinggroup.com

Company type

Private

Founded year

2007

Operating status

Operating

Headcount range

1–10 employees

Short description

Placemaking Group is a privately held Bay Area digital marketing and web development agency founded in 2007 that builds custom websites, ecommerce stores, and mobile apps for small businesses across healthcare, manufacturing, nonprofit, government, real estate, and professional services verticals, monetizing through project work and tiered monthly retainers.

Ownership category

akta.pro rank

Product category

Digital Marketing Services

SIC

Services-Advertising Agencies (7311)

akta.pro primary industry

Creator Content Production & Co-Creation Studios (BPAFAHAD)

akta.pro secondary industry

Content & Creative Studio for Creators (Concepting/Production) (MPAAAHAD)

Keywords

• Web development services
• Digital marketing agency
• Search engine optimization
• Content marketing services
• Brand strategy services

Headquarters

HQ city

Oakland

HQ country

United States

HQ region

North America

Offices1 record

Markets served

GTM type

B2B

Offering type

Services

Cost components

Personnel, Operations, Marketing or Sales, Technology or R&D, Others

Revenue model

1. Website Design and Development: Custom website development services including marketing websites, ecommerce solutions, and mobile applications. Revenue generated through project-based professional services.
2. Digital Marketing Services: Ongoing marketing services including SEO, paid ads, social media management, content marketing, and marketing automation. Recurring revenue from monthly retainer arrangements.
3. Digital Marketing Packages: Tiered monthly marketing packages (GET STARTED at $800/mo, GROWTH at $2,700/mo, GO FOR GOLD at $4,900/mo) providing comprehensive lead generation and digital marketing support

Pricing tiers

Go-to-market motion1 record

Distribution channels3 records

Marketing channels9 records

Core offering

Placemaking Group is a full-service digital marketing and web development agency that designs and builds custom marketing websites, ecommerce stores, and mobile applications, and delivers integrated inbound marketing services (SEO/PPC, content, social media, email automation, brand strategy, graphic design, video, and ADA accessibility) for small businesses and organizations. Revenue comes from project-based web development engagements plus recurring monthly digital marketing retainers.

Product overview

Placemaking Group is a full-service digital marketing and web development agency serving small businesses in the San Francisco Bay Area. Their offering is a unified service portfolio centered on custom website development as the foundation, complemented by interconnected marketing services. The core offerings include Custom Website Development (including ecommerce solutions and mobile apps), combined with Inbound Marketing services (Brand Strategy, Graphic Design, Content Marketing, SEO/PPC, Social Media, and Email Automation). Specialized offerings include Customer Experience services (journey mapping, chatbots, portals), ADA Accessibility Services, Video Production, Case Study Development, and Lead Generation Digital Marketing Packages in three tiers ($800-$4,900/month). They also offer Microsites/Landing Pages for campaign-specific needs. The portfolio functions as an integrated marketing department-as-a-service model, where websites serve as the hub for all digital outreach including social media, advertising, and email marketing.

Differentiator

Problem solved

Functional benefit

Products and services

• Custom Website Development
• Ecommerce Website Solutions
• Mobile Apps
• Inbound Marketing Services
• Brand and Marketing Strategy
• Graphic Design Services
• Content Marketing
• Search Optimization and Paid Ads
• Social Media Services
• Lead Generation Digital Marketing Package
• Customer Experience Services
• ADA Accessibility Services
• Database and Portal Development
• Video Production
• Microsites and Landing Pages
• Chatbot Implementation
• Email Marketing Automation
• Case Study Development

Quantifiable outcome

• Fidelity Roof experienced 1900% increase in request-a-quote form completions after website redesign
• +4 more outcomes

Named customers10 records

Segments5 records

Ideal customer profiles5 records

Technology focussed No

API detail

Has API

No

API docs

API detail

Core technology

AI maturity

App detail

Integration8 records

AI capability2 records

Feature5 records

Scale indicators3 records

Recent moves6 records

Expansion highlights5 records

Direct peers

• WebFX: Large digital marketing agency specializing in SEO, web design, and lead generation for SMB and mid-market clients. Comparable in offering an integrated web-plus-marketing stack with documented ROI outcomes and tiered monthly service packages.
• Thrive Internet Marketing Agency: Full-service digital marketing agency offering web design, SEO, social media, and PPC across SMB and mid-market segments. Comparable in service breadth, recurring retainer model, and target customer profile.
• Ironpaper: B2B digital agency offering web design, inbound marketing, and lead generation for SMB and mid-market clients. Comparable as a results-oriented B2B-focused web and marketing agency with recurring engagement models.
• Big Drop Inc: Custom web design and digital marketing agency serving SMBs and mid-market clients with branding, web development, and inbound marketing services. Directly comparable in full-service agency positioning and SMB focus.
• Huemor: Web design and development agency offering custom websites, UX/UI design, and digital strategy for B2B and B2C clients. Comparable as a design-led web agency serving similar mid-market clients.
• EIGHT25MEDIA: Web design and digital marketing agency focused on SMB and mid-market clients with custom websites, branding, and inbound marketing. Closely comparable in size, scope, and SMB-targeting go-to-market.
• Lounge Lizard: Web design and digital marketing agency serving SMB and mid-market clients with custom websites, branding, SEO, and PPC. Directly comparable in service portfolio and customer profile.
• Straight North: Digital marketing agency focused on lead generation, SEO, web design, and PPC for SMB and B2B clients. Comparable in offering tiered marketing packages and outcome-driven lead generation services.
• Blue Fountain Media: Digital agency offering web design, branding, and marketing services to mid-market and enterprise clients. Comparable as an integrated web-and-marketing competitor, though typically operating at a larger scale than Placemaking Group.
• SmartSites: Full-service digital agency offering custom web design, SEO, PPC, and social media for SMBs across the U.S. Closely comparable in service mix (website + marketing), customer segment (small and mid-sized businesses), and project-plus-retainer pricing model.

Market position

Strengths5 records

Weaknesses5 records

Competitive moat3 records

Key risks6 records

Key highlights6 records

Customer concentration

• Xx.com/placemaking_web
• Facebookfacebook.com/placemakingWeb
• LinkedInlinkedin.com/company/placemakinggroup

Revenue estimate

Valuation estimate

Number of profiles

Profiles7 records

Funding overview

Funding rounds

Investors

Funding detail is available on the Subscription and Enterprise plan.Contact sales →

M&A

Investments

M&A and investment is available on the Subscription and Enterprise plan.Contact sales →

Frequently asked questions about Placemaking Group