Crib Creative was started in 2009 by our current Managing Director, Alana Earl, in her spare room.
Alana cut her teeth as a Leasing Manager for LJ Hooker City Residential and an Agent alongside Shane Beaumont at Real Estate Champions and AREA Real Estate. It was during that time she saw a large gap in the market.
“As a Real Estate agent, I noticed the poor offering by other companies. Photography wasn’t well captured and the all-round service from marketing suppliers lacked. Floorplans and video in real estate didn’t exist. I really wanted to bring it all together,” Alana said.
She hired her first photographer and started writing copy for the properties he captured, and Crib Creative was born.
Alana's strong sense of great client service and her constant drive to push the boundaries and take risks meant Crib grew quickly. She actively looked for ways to innovate and bring international trends to the sleepy Perth market.
By 2016, Crib Creative had grown significantly with over 50 staff and contractors working for the company. The company's service expanded to include portrait photography, video and floorplans. A studio space was set up within their cramped office premises and they hired a full-time videographer, breaking new ground at a time when video marketing was considered a luxury.
After years of trying to persuade her best friend into joining the business, Jess Donnelly agreed to come on board. Jess had a variety of corporate relationship experience and with 15 years of history between them, she was the perfect addition to help Alana grow the business.
Seeing an opportunity with the growing popularity of social media and its potential as a marketing platform, Jess joined to lead the newly formed social media department and later became the Business Manager and a shareholder.
Crib were early adopters in the podcast space starting an industry podcast, The Crunch, as well as an industry web series Off Market. They would consistently deliver industry events showcasing the best of Perth's agents and their secrets. The Crib Creative mantra became to educate and give back to the industry, and their marketing ventures reflected that.
“I was new to the industry and the quickest way to learn was to immerse myself in the day to day of our clients business. Our podcast and web series were a way for me to learn, while giving back to our clients,” said Jess, who hosted both.
Over the next 7 years, Crib matured from a plucky start up company to an established player; navigating Covid, changing market conditions and general business challenges, all while maintaining the early attitude that drove Alana to start Crib.
“Maintaining a high level of customer service and satisfaction has always been a driving factor. We have clients who have been with us from the start and that makes me really proud that they still trust us to work alongside them as an extension of their business.
Our company culture has also been key to our success over they years. This year we offered our staff an additional 5 "Crib Free Days" per year as a bonus and I was proud that we are in a position to do that for our staff. I love our workplace and where we are at. I know, even after 14 years I still enjoy coming to work and doing what we do.“
