APPSTIRR

BACKGROUND

Please describe your company and your position there.

We are an automotive refinish distribution company. I am the Operations Manager.

OPPORTUNITY / CHALLENGE

For what projects/services did your company hire APPSTIRR, and what were your goals?

We wanted to streamline our ERP systems and reduce whiplash in the supply chain whilst identifying opportunities to grow same customer sales through data mining.

SOLUTION

How did you select this vendor and what were the deciding factors?

We found this vendor online through various searches. We benchmarked them against others with their project track record and felt more comfortable with their team after having various virtual meetings.

Describe the scope of work in detail, including the project steps, key deliverables, and technologies used.

We created a complete end to end solution which enables clients to order items through an application whilst having KPI dashboards monitoring consumption with automatic reorder points. The application was able to feed data into our ERP system whilst having the ability to also feed each respective client’s ERP systems. This also enabled us to benchmark various clients with each other, optimize their client’s costs and generate more sales through product gap analysis.

How many people from the vendor's team worked with you, and what were their positions?

There were four people. A Senior business analyst, a senior project manager, a junior project manager and business development manager.

RESULTS & FEEDBACK

Can you share any measurable outcomes of the project or general feedback about the deliverables?

We reduced the time it takes to gather data and generate reports of product gap analysis. Wherever we implemented this solution we were able to increase same customer revenues by approximately 12.7%.

Describe their project management style, including communication tools and timeliness.

Most communication and project management was done via email, phone calls, virtual meetings and jira. The team was very aggressive in meeting and exceeding punctuality based on timelines set at the beginning of the project.

What did you find most impressive or unique about this company?

We were impressed with their ability to quickly understand my specific objectives and adapt their skills to my needs.

Are there any areas for improvement or something they could have done differently?

The experience was very flawless, keep up the good work!

BACKGROUND

Introduce your business and what you do there.

Black Podcasting is an international company where we feature all of the top black podcasts from the US and other parts of the world. I’m the VP of content.

OPPORTUNITY / CHALLENGE

What challenge were you trying to address with APPSTIRR?

We needed to develop a mobile app, so we hired APPSTIRR.

SOLUTION

What was the scope of their involvement?

APPSTIRR developed an iOS and Android app for us and helped get these on the app stores. The app displays the latest podcast that we upload and allows users to search through multiple categories such as society and culture, women, sports, finance, religion, and the like. APPSTIRR built in those categories in a way that is easy to navigate. 

What is the team composition?

There was a development team, a lead developer, and a managing director. The project manager was my main point of contact.

How did you come to work with APPSTIRR?

I came across APPSTIRR through a referral. After doing my own due diligence, we decided to hire them on the basis of their pricing and ability to provide post-launch support.

What is the status of this engagement?

The engagement began in April 2021. The development was completed and launched in 8–10 weeks, but the team still provides support.

RESULTS & FEEDBACK

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

We haven’t started marketing the app and are still in the process of officially launching it, but we’re very happy with the workmanship of the deliverables that APPSTIRR gave us. The functionality, ease of use, layout, and design were all very good.

How did APPSTIRR perform from a project management standpoint?

I was very happy with how they managed the project. We communicated by phone and email. 

What did you find most impressive about them?

The amount of communication they fostered was impressive. The customer service was high-level; APPSTIRR treated us like we were a Fortune 500 company. 

Are there any areas they could improve?

I can’t think of anything else they could’ve done to make the experience better. I was very pleased with everything. 

Do you have any advice for potential customers?

Be very organized with presenting everything you require. It helps APPSTIRR meet your timeline if there are minimal changes to be made along the way. 

BACKGROUND

Introduce your business and what you do there.

I’m a senior associate at an expert network company. We work with financial firms, finding experts for them to collaborate with.

OPPORTUNITY / CHALLENGE

What challenge were you trying to address with APPSTIRR?

I wanted to create an app for iOS and Android.

SOLUTION

What was the scope of their involvement?

I had no experience in terms of starting my own company or developing an app. APPSTIRR worked with me as if they were a business accelerator. They took me through the process from my first idea through to creating a company and then building the app.

It took about four months from when I came to them with my idea to the point where we were able to launch the app. We had a whole ideation phase where we thoroughly vetted the idea. Then we went on to develop, test, and validate the app. They helped me through all the steps and helped me set up some experiments to test the app.

What is the team composition?

I work closely with two partners who take care of assigning work to their team.

How did you come to work with APPSTIRR?

I found APPSTIRR online. After looking at their portfolio, I reached out to them and all my interactions with them have been good. 

How much have you invested with them?

I’ve invested about $75,000.

What is the status of this engagement?

We started working in November 2020, and the partnership is ongoing. We have reached the final stages of the development.
 

RESULTS & FEEDBACK

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

At the moment, I don't have any specific numbers, but they were able to take my idea and help me turn it into a business. The development’s pretty much ended. They've done everything I asked them to do, but I'm still in touch with them if I need anything. They've been very helpful in that sense.

How did APPSTIRR perform from a project management standpoint?

We communicated with emails, phone calls, and texts. Every time I contact them, they respond very fast.

What did you find most impressive about them?

I haven't used other providers, so I can't really compare them. Overall, they did an exceptional job.

Are there any areas they could improve?

Even though this is kind of difficult for them to do, I would recommend them being a little more attentive to the customer, making them a little more comfortable with that process. For me, the experience was kind of a leap of faith. I'm glad it all worked out properly, but I'm sure that if I chose another provider I wouldn't have gotten what I wanted.  

Any advice for potential customers?

Reach out to them, they’ve been super helpful throughout this whole process. Just start a conversation with them and see how you feel.

BACKGROUND

Introduce your business and what you do there.

I’m a director of a real estate development company where we do all of our sales and marketing in-house. We have offices across London, New York, Dubai, and Pakistan. We develop in Pakistan, but all of our marketing is targeted towards people in the US and the UK. 

We have around 2,000 clients around the world, right across the US, Australia, UK, and the Middle East, with backend offices in Dubai.

OPPORTUNITY / CHALLENGE

What challenge were you trying to address with APPSTIRR?

We had an issue where our clients often had to reach our team to find out what their payment, transfer, or plot status was. We didn’t have a solution for our customers to just log on and get all of the information they needed; they always needed to send an email or call customer service or the sales team member they were dealing with. 

Our company approached APPSTIRR to develop a mobile application that would make our customer’s information accessible to them.

SOLUTION

What was the scope of their involvement?

APPSTIRR developed the app for iOS and Android. We told them what we wanted, and they gave us many good ideas that they implemented after. They added push notifications, a key feature that really helped our business, as well as profile updates where clients can update their information personally. 

They continue to serve as our technology partners whenever we need any changes. For example, we previously used Salesforce, and they helped us create our own CRM system.

What is the team composition?

We’ve worked with 4–5 different people: a business analyst, an account manager, a project manager, and the head of the project management team. 

How did you come to work with APPSTIRR?

I chose APPSTIRR over their competitors because of their smooth pre-sales process. They weren’t pushy about closing the deal; they gave us our time. They also did a great market analysis and researched what software other real estate developers were using. They provided us with good business analysis.

How much have you invested with them?

For the mobile app, our company invested around $60,000. We have now a monthly retainer of $5,000. 

What is the status of this engagement?

The mobile app project lasted from April–November 2019. We have a monthly retainer with them.

RESULTS & FEEDBACK

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

Our customers are using the app, and they are very happy with it. Of our 2,000 customers, about 1200–1300 have shifted to the app. All of these customers are making payments and uploading required files through the app, as well as updating their profiles. The conversion rate of the customers that moved to our digital platform was a key metric for us. 

Through the development of this software, we were able to reduce our in-house resources and therefore a lot of our costs. 

How did APPSTIRR perform from a project management standpoint?

Jira was the main tool that we used for the project management side. We also communicated through email and Zoom meetings. 

What did you find most impressive about them?

The most impressive aspect of APPSTIRR’s team is their delivery and quality of work; they don't make too many mistakes. I’ve worked with other development companies on my other businesses, and there are always software issues, such as bugs.

Are there any areas they could improve?

I can’t think of anything I’d have them improve. They do a good job.

BACKGROUND

Please describe your company and your position there.

I am the founder/CEO of a tech startup in Schenectady, NY. I created a completely original five card poker game and I developed it as a web application. It is my intention to use this game to generate revenue to be utilized for expansion of my company into data security and other software development projects.

OPPORTUNITY / CHALLENGE

For what projects/services did your company hire APPSTIRR?

I hired APPSTIRR to develop Switch Poker into a mobile application for both the iOS and Android platforms.

What were your goals for this project?

To have a sleek, original mobile gaming app available in both the Google Play and Apple App stores by November and to focus on getting the necessary numbers of downloads to generate a steady revenue stream.

SOLUTION

How did you select this vendor?

I undertook an extensive online search and compiled a list of 9 Mobile app development companies. After careful review of their websites and the examples/info provided there, I called 4 of those companies to get a project estimate.

The deciding factor for going with APPSTIRR was certainly price; although their list of deliverables was every bit as detailed and thorough as the other companies I contacted. My financial partner was involved in every step of the decision making process.

Describe the project in detail.

I provided them with access to the existing web app and all of the code. We had lengthy discussions concerning the look and feel of the application as well as the significant differences in the game-play that would be implemented on the mobile version.

I was provided with wire-frames for my approval, followed by initial designs for every possible screen view. Every step of the way I had direct contact with the APPSTIRR project manager who not only provided great insight into the requirements of a mobile version of my game, but kept me deeply involved with the project throughout.

Once the designs were approved, we moved on to the coding phase. Work was done ahead of schedule, builds were forwarded for feedback and steady progress has been made toward our final goal. We are nearing the finish line and I am quite excited to download the finished product on both my iOS device and my Android device.

What was the team composition?

I dealt with the project manager directly, and he assured me that there were ample resources devoted to the development. I am not sure of the exact numbers, but I would guess there were at least 6 developers working on Switch Poker at any given time throughout the project.

RESULTS & FEEDBACK

Can you share any outcomes from the project that demonstrate progress or success?

Each and every build that I have received has exhibited clear progress in direct response to any feedback I provided. I think the progress and success can be best measured by the pace of the work and the quality of the performance inherent in each new build.

It is clear that we are going to have a finished product that meets or exceeds my expectations at a cost that was a full 25% less than the next highest project estimate from other companies.

How effective was the workflow between your team and theirs?

My point of contact for this project was Frank Miller. We spoke very often during the early stages of development and it was clear that they shared my excitement and enthusiasm for getting this game to market. We set schedules for progress together every step of the way and nothing was left undone at a time it was expected.

Everything they required was provided in a timely fashion and every expected advancement in production was produced in kind. I couldn't be more pleased with our cooperative efforts. They were more than highly responsive to all of my feedback, both positive and negative.

What did you find most impressive about this company?

I found their desire to please quite refreshing. At every step of the project, it was clear that they did not want me to be simply satisfied with their work--they wanted me to be elated. And more often than not, I was!

The original logo design really blew me away, but the overall beauty of the screenshots was equally impressive. I can only hope that deployment goes as smoothly and has the stamp of quality that has been present in every phase of their work up to now.

Are there any areas for improvement?

If there is another company that could put out this level of quality work at a lower price, I would be utterly mind-blown.

BACKGROUND

Please describe your company and your position there.

I am a physician and educator working at Mass General Hospital and hold a faculty position as an Associate Professor of Medicine at Harvard Medical School. I also created www.Pearls4Peers.com, an online educational resource for physicians-in-training as well as practicing physicians caring for hospitalized medical patients.

OPPORTUNITY / CHALLENGE

For what projects/services did your company hire APPSTIRR?

As Pearls4Peers became increasingly popular since its inception 2015, colleagues suggested an app version for both iPhone and android phones. APPSTIRR was hired to take the website to the next level of portability and convenience by helping develop and activate an app version of Pearls4Peers.

What were your goals for this project?

Offer an app version of the P4P for anyone interested free of charge

SOLUTION

How did you select this vendor?

Internet search for a reputable App developer

Describe the project in detail.

I had obtained appropriate App licenses from Apple and Google already but did not have sufficient expertise to convert my WordPress based website to a functional app version.

What was the team composition?

We contacted a project manager who coordinated the entire process from beginning to the end.

RESULTS & FEEDBACK

Can you share any outcomes from the project that demonstrate progress or success?

Too early at this time to comment. However, I expect increased visibility and accessibility to P4P as a result of having the app version available as well.

How effective was the workflow between your team and theirs?

I feel that I received personalized attention, despite the fact that compared to some of the other projects that this company appears to accept, mine was relatively small. The project manager kept me informed every step of the way, many times by phone. I appreciated his patience with me and my demands.

What did you find most impressive about this company?

Even though I am sure mine was a relatively small job for APPSTIR, I felt they took their job just as seriously. Personalized attention and reliability are attributes I appreciate highly and APPSTIR did not disappoint!

Are there any areas for improvement?

Since this was my first time involved in app development, not sure if it could have been done in a shorter period of time.

BACKGROUND

Please describe your company and position.

I am the Co-founder of an information technology company

Describe what your company does in a single sentence.

Tech/app

OPPORTUNITY / CHALLENGE

What specific goals or objectives did you hire APPSTIRR to accomplish?

• App development

SOLUTION

How did you find APPSTIRR?

Clutch Site

Why did you select APPSTIRR over others?

Pricing fit our budget

How many teammates from APPSTIRR were assigned to this project?

1 Employee

Describe the scope of work in detail. Please include a summary of key deliverables.

Website and web based app development

RESULTS & FEEDBACK

What were the measurable outcomes from the project that demonstrate progress or success?

They created nice Canva slides but no functional app and pulled the project before completion. They never delivered a website like we paid for which was in the scope of work.

Describe their project management. Did they deliver items on time? How did they respond to your needs?

Project manager, Danial, was a complete horror to deal with. Skipped meetings and was not fully present when he did attend the meetings. We complained abouthim multiple times but the CEO refused to give us someone else.

What was your primary form of communication with APPSTIRR?

Virtual Meeting

What did you find most impressive or unique about this company?

Nothing.

Are there any areas for improvement or something APPSTIRR could have done differently?

Everything! Professionalism, integrity! They scammed us.

BACKGROUND

Please describe your company and your position there.

CEO of a mobile app

OPPORTUNITY / CHALLENGE

For what projects/services did your company hire APPSTIRR, and what were your goals?

We hired them to finish building a mobile app

SOLUTION

How did you select this vendor and what were the deciding factors?

They did not finish our app by the finish date or at all! They asked for more money mid project then tried to bill us the balance before the app was done which was against the contract. They never finished our app, they took our money and gave us nothing for it. They kept changing people we were working with for no reason. They do not return calls or emails. They blatantly lie. I believe this company is a scam and the good reviews are written by them. They are located in India not NY as they say.

Describe the scope of work in detail, including the project steps, key deliverables, and technologies used.

They were supposed to code our app. They wasted a lot of time working on screens we already provided them just to look like they were working on our project. They play games to waste time so it’s hard for you to get your money back.

How many resources from the vendor's team worked with you, and what were their positions?

We had 5 different people, they kept changing people on our project for no reason. They did not care about our project. They were extremely unprofessional.

RESULTS & FEEDBACK

Can you share any measurable outcomes of the project or general feedback about the deliverables?

We lost a lot of time and money by using them.

Describe their project management style, including communication tools and timeliness.

They were not responsive. They don’t return emails or calls. When you finally get to talk to someone they make up excuses.

What did you find most impressive or unique about this company?

Nothing, I think they are scammer’s

Are there any areas for improvement or something they could have done differently?

They could start with being honest and fulfilling their contract.

BACKGROUND

Please describe your company and your position there.

I am the founder of hockey now. I am the only employee.

OPPORTUNITY / CHALLENGE

For what projects/services did your company hire APPSTIRR?

I hired them to design me an app.

What were your goals for this project?

To create an app

SOLUTION

How did you select this vendor?

Found them on google

Describe the project in detail.

It’s an app that allows hockey players to sign up for local pickup games.

What was the team composition?

There was one person who was the contact the whole project that made communication easy.

RESULTS & FEEDBACK

Can you share any outcomes from the project that demonstrate progress or success?

No outcomes yet

How effective was the workflow between your team and theirs?

Very good communication

What did you find most impressive about this company?

Efficiency

Are there any areas for improvement?

None