Amplifi Labs

BACKGROUND

Introduce your business and what you do there.

I’m the founder and CEO of an online ad tech company that helps students with registration. We connect great software with student solutions. We have about half a million users and a pretty strong university base.

OPPORTUNITY / CHALLENGE

What challenge were you trying to address with Amplifi Labs?

Throughout the process, they helped us build a number of different backend systems, including a large one to present student-grade distributions to our users. We were at a place where we were looking for a more expanded suite of software, and there were some technologies that we couldn’t build with our in-house developers. Amplifi Labs (Amplifi) was perfect for the whole design and implementation of it.

SOLUTION

What was the scope of their involvement?

Amplifi implemented a class recommendation feature and a whole backend admin system. With this system, we were able to look at user reviews and decide which ones to approve or not approve. They also developed a whole automated system so users could upload course materials.

From our end on the admin dashboard, we were able to make sure if the information was correct and where it was coming from. They did a thorough, extraordinary redesign of our site. They gave us the ability to upload grade distributions and present them not only in a graphic and aesthetically pleasing way, but also in a correct and robust way that provided a lot of new features.

The whole system was built in React Native, which gave us the certainty that it would work across a variety of devices. Amplifi did everything on the backend and frontend, so they used a number of different technologies and did a good job across the board.

What is the team composition?

Initially, we worked with 2–3 project managers who oversaw everything. There were also a number of developers and designers that would join our meetings to show progress over the weeks, so we worked with 10 or more people in total.

How did you come to work with Amplifi Labs?

We did an extensive search to decide which development company we were going to choose. Ultimately, we found Amplifi through a referral. We knew someone who had done a similar project, and they told us how great they were. We had seen other two development shops in the area, and after comparing costs and having this really great review given to us, we just knew they were going to be our people.

How much have you invested with them?

The cost was $15,000–$20,000 for the whole project.

What is the status of this engagement?

We worked with them from December 2019–June 2020. As we've continued to integrate their systems and update certain things, they’ve been there throughout the process, but the final product of their work is finished.

RESULTS & FEEDBACK

What evidence can you share that demonstrates the impact of the engagement?

Our numbers went through the roof thanks to the new features. We were just a user-based review site, and now we have all this objective data. After their systems were implemented, our user growth increased 5–6 times, which was a really strong and positive growth metric.

From our end, their work made our employees’ experience much easier. Amplifi took a lot of guesswork out and saved us countless hours by developing the automated backend of the grade distributions and reviews’ systems.

How did Amplifi Labs perform from a project management standpoint?

It was exceptionally done. All the teams were extremely organized from many different standpoints. We were able to track how many hours a week were spent on certain tasks by the developers, which was useful for us.

They were great in terms of communication. We talked on a very regular basis, and they were quick to respond via email or call. We had weekly or biweekly meetings to determine progress and review what they did and their process. If there was a part of design or development that we didn’t like, they fixed it quickly. Overall, it was a very smooth, back-and-forth process.

Also, they were always there for us if we had any questions or concerns. When it came to transition the tech on our side, they gave us all the resources to fully understand what they built for us, which is pretty rare for a lot of the freelancers we’ve worked with.

What did you find most impressive about them?

Their communication was extraordinary and their efficiency was great. They built time and time again just what we wanted and asked for at a really competitive price. It was a pretty big project and scope, and they hit every point. Altogether, they delivered a really strong service.

Are there any areas they could improve?

I don’t really think so. We expected the project to be much longer and the product not to be as good as it was, so Amplifi provided a strong experience all around.

Any advice for potential customers?

If you’re ever hiring an outside firm, setting up communication channels at the beginning is really important. As business owners and leaders, we have an idea of what we want, but presenting that to developers and designers can be difficult. If they're running with something that isn’t exactly what you want, you’re going to end up having a product that you don’t fully understand or that doesn’t solve the problem you wanted.

Another important thing is giving the team you’re working with the ability to be creative in their approach as well. There were a few times where Amplifi’s project managers gave us ideas for features that we hadn’t thought of exploring. There’s a balance to strike between making sure that they’re doing what you want them to do and giving them a little freedom to create something that you wouldn’t be able to do on your own.

BACKGROUND

Introduce your business and what you do there.

I’m the CEO of Jobvious, an online marketplace that connects car dealerships and specialist installers.

OPPORTUNITY / CHALLENGE

What challenge were you trying to address with Amplifi Labs?

Our company needed development services to build a proof of concept that showcased the project’s benefits, functionalities, and potential. The goal was to raise additional funding and potentially engage later with investors for the full build-out.

SOLUTION

What was the scope of their involvement?

We had already hired the team before they were Amplify Labs to do some development work. They did a great job and set up the framework for us to do migrations, from development through testing, and then to production. 

Originally, Amplifi Labs built for us the messaging infrastructure for our website. They also helped us with CSS and worked on a more refined and functional UI. They developed a full JavaScript stack. It was a single-page platform that ran on AWS. The solution had JavaScript on the frontend running on React; the backend used Express.js and a MySQL database. 

Once we finished our initial engagement, we continued to build more features on the platform, and it was then that when we ran into an issue we could not resolve technically. The team was already familiar with the codebase, so they knew what went wrong. In the end, they fixed the frontend issue right away. 

What is the team composition?

I worked with two people: John (Co-Founder) and Paulo (CTO & Co-Founder), who was one of the lead engineers in the first engagement. 

How did you come to work with Amplifi Labs?

John and I had met at a startup social event. I wanted to accelerate the development of the MVP and I reached out to him. I had a conversation where I also met their CEO, and they gave us fantastic prices; they took into consideration we were a startup and liked our business. We hit it off and developed a good relationship. We immediately worked to get the MVP to a point we could take it to investors. 

How much have you invested with them?

Our company spent approximately less than $20,000. We did the initial engagement in phases, working on a fixed cost basis. We would hit a milestone, gather enough money for another piece, and go for another milestone.

What is the status of this engagement?

Our engagement started in April 2019, and we finished our last contract in March 2021. Once we get more funding, we plan to work with them again. 

RESULTS & FEEDBACK

What evidence can you share that demonstrates the impact of the engagement?

Without Amplifi Labs’ efforts, we wouldn’t have a working product right now. They enabled us to get a functional MVP where we currently have paying customers. The response has been very positive and I’m happy about how it all worked out. 

How did Amplifi Labs perform from a project management standpoint?

The team was great and their communication was excellent. We were on call 2–3 times a week during the initial development; our last engagement lasted around two days. 

What did you find most impressive about them?

They were experts in the technology we required. This was extremely beneficial for us to reach our goals. They gave us advice and checked everything was ready before moving to the next phase. 

Paulo also did a phenomenal job diagnosing the previously mentioned issue. It became apparent that discovering the problem couldn’t have been possible with the company we had been working with. 

Are there any areas they could improve?

They don’t have anything to improve. It’s one of the best vendor relationships I have had within 20 years of software experience.