Brainvire

BACKGROUND

Introduce your business and what you do there.

I’m a co-founder of an online marketplace that houses sellers spanning multiple product types for a common customer base. They’re all new products, but they range from seller-made products to reselling known brands. We have authors and people that make their own jewelry, as well as people selling IT equipment.

OPPORTUNITY / CHALLENGE

What challenge were you trying to address with Brainvire?

We were having difficulty with our current developers when we approached Brainvire. The previous developers had built the basic structure of the site, but it became clear that the architecture wasn’t going to work well with loading a large number of products for an equally large seller base.

SOLUTION

What was the scope of their involvement?

We had a prototype for the idea of the marketplace. Brainvire provided a path to go forward by bridging the gap and fixing the previous developer’s issues. They redesigned the entire cloud architecture, and started making seller-based enhancements in order to accept large numbers of product uploads. They built some of the backend seller features, including the administration which makes it easier for users to manage products in their store.

The site is currently live and taking orders. We’re starting a second version with Brainvire which includes multiple upgrades for the site. We want to make enhancements to the bulk upload feature and bulk changes to product lists feature in order to optimize the seller experience. We also want to develop a standard API that we can use as a baseline for integrating manufactured products, which is a major task because we have to meet other API standards.

We’re getting really positive analytical data to direct our marketing attention.

What is the team dynamic?

We had only requested 1-2 people for the project originally, including a full-time developer and project manager. I’ve worked with 8-10 of their team members, and anytime something specific comes up, they don’t hesitate to bring in expert resources. Instead of just letting one of their developers figure something out, they save on time and cost by including their technical experts.

How did you come to work with Brainvire?

We had a common friend, and when he found out what we were doing with the marketplace, he recommended Brainvire. I work in the IT space and have worked with many companies that do development work. We looked into Brainvire’s past projects and talked to their past clients, then decided to engage with them from there.

How much have you invested with them?

We’ve spend around $75,000 so far, and we have $150,000 budgeted for the next round of development.

What is the status of this engagement?

We started working with them in April 2017, and the relationship is ongoing.

RESULTS & FEEDBACK

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

Since Brainvire came on board, we’ve gone from dozens of products to hundreds, and are actually approaching the thousands. We’ve also doubled the number of sellers, which is close to 200 now. I attribute this success to how well the backend works, which permits sellers to easily manage their stores, including products, shipping, and taxes. It’s very user friendly.

How did Brainvire perform from a project management standpoint?

They’ve been great. We’ve used Pivotal Tracker, which is a Scrum based project management tool, to manage features and versions. Brainvire used it regularly, so we had no issues getting up to speed.

What did you find most impressive about them?

They’ve done an excellent job of managing the expectations from a cost and performance perspective, including the addition of features and capabilities that wouldn’t be easily done. They provided a sort of feature map that shows what’s possible, then proceeded with the easier ones first. For the features we’ve decided to go forward with, the development time has moved quickly, from testing to live implementation. The entire process is managed very well.

Are there any areas they could improve?

They came in and had to work with somebody else’s platform, so there were some surprises along the way. They took a risk coming into a project like this, and managed it very well.

However, if they could explain the risks involved with coming into a project that’s under development, that would be a welcome improvement. We knew it was risky, but we didn’t realize the changes that would need to be made.

Do you have any advice for potential clients of Brainvire?

If there’s a mixture of technical features involved, do your research and make sure you understand what you want. This makes it easier when you’re figuring out price and timelines, because you know exactly what needs to be done and how long it will take.

A lot of people in IT get a proposal, and they understand the basis of it, but they don’t dig down into the feature sets and details. This can change a number of things in how the project pans out, and can also change the client’s expectations.

BACKGROUND

Introduce your business and what you do there.

We are a personal security emergency response business for the elderly. I am the general manager.

OPPORTUNITY / CHALLENGE

What challenge were you trying to address with Brainvire?

We needed Brainvire to build a mobile app to help engage our caregivers. It allows them to manage their account with us and gives insights into the activity that the system is performing for the elderly relative or older adult.

SOLUTION

What was the scope of their involvement?

The only work they’ve done for us as of now is a standalone native iOS and Android app. The goal of the app was to bring some added value to our caregivers. We gave them carte blanche on design somewhat — we had some general branding guidelines and some very high-level flow diagrams, not wire diagrams.

It’s all API driven. They had to connect different APIs to a standalone database and then present that data in a very consumer-friendly UI that was intuitive. They focused a lot on cleaning up the APIs. The UX was important because we really try to live and die by having a really simple experience, whether it’s our call center, sales experience, or on our website. Getting that UX into an app was the first test for us. Brainvire took what we’ve done on the web and brought that into the app very nicely for us.

We engaged shortly after evaluating and documenting a statement of work. We worked on Android first. It was easy to get something out quickly and not have to go through all the roadblocks that come up when working on iOS. We got that done and then we could start testing it, giving feedback, and beginning to building up on marketing.

How did you come to work with Brainvire?

We met them at a Magento Imagine Conference 3-4 years ago and liked Chintan, the CEO. They had a lot of experience with Magento as well as across a range of software, which was compelling for us. We used that first engagement to try out the relationship and felt that they had good communication and good organization. They had a good understanding of what we were trying to accomplish.

How much have you invested with them?

We've spent $25,000 so far.

What is the status of this engagement?

We started working together in December 2015 until June 2016. Currently, we’re evaluating other options to work with them further.

RESULTS & FEEDBACK

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

The app isn’t on market because we had a shift in priorities—instead, it’s still waiting in the wings. We will bring it out, but we were trying to bring in other hardware and software solutions that would better complement it. 

Our director of sales and marketing was really impressed with the design and the UX they came up with, and he’s a real stickler for design. We were also really pleased with the interaction between the different screens and the menu system they came up with. We didn’t need to change it too much. The only issue was just the speed of the APIs, and we were reliant on that outside vendor to enhance that aspect.

How did Brainvire perform from a project management standpoint?

We’re happy with them. There’s pretty good communication and status updates. You could tell they were really trying to learn our business and dive into what we were trying to accomplish. The statement of work was thorough. We used a project management tool that I can’t recall the name of.

What did you find most impressive about them?

From what we gave them and what we ended up with, they did a good job of taking our vision and bringing it into reality.

Are there any areas they could improve?

There are some general challenges when you deal with any offshore vendor when it comes to communication. It’d be great to continue to challenge them to be more fluent in English.

BACKGROUND

Introduce your business and what you do there.

I’m the founder of a California-based nonprofit organization that advocates for people with disabilities. We want to empower them in alignment with the UN Treaty of 2006 that 160 countries have signed. These countries have agreed to do whatever needs to be done to help people with disabilities live independently.

We try to inspire people to make more inclusive decisions for the betterment of people with disabilities. There is a huge opportunity for volunteers to make a social impact in the disability sector. Because the US has a lot of good laws already, our focus is primarily outside the US. If you look at other parts of the world, the quality of life is challenging for people with disabilities. We want to solve that problem by having volunteers on the ground speak up and become the voices in their communities. Volunteers can help improve the accessibility of public buildings and help people get employment or education.

OPPORTUNITY / CHALLENGE

What challenge were you trying to address with Brainvire?

We are a small, young startup that had a website for the first 2 years. Eventually, we thought that a mobile app would be better than a website for getting people engaged, so we decided to have a mobile app developed for Android and iOS.

SOLUTION

What was the scope of their involvement?

Our intention is to display accessible and inaccessible buildings on Google Maps, so we wanted the app to have a GPS feature. That functionality was important for us. If a volunteer takes a picture of a building’s accessibility, the app would populate the address automatically based on the latitude and longitude. Volunteers can crowdsource the pictures, and then that information will be available on Google Maps.

Similarly, we wanted people to be able to share information on social media. Not everything is accessible in America, though you’d think it would be. Last week, I took a picture of an Italian restaurant in Boston that was not accessible. I can share that information on social media so that others will know that this place is not accessible for people with wheelchairs. If you want to spread awareness, our mobile app is all about actionable advocacy. We allow people to take action by sending emails to the operators or owners of a building.

We have another feature called Pledge. I can send a Pledge request to all of the congressmen and senators who do XYZ for people with disabilities, and that information can be tracked. The way I see Pledge helping people is that more and more will be sensitized to taking action when they receive links from their friends who are also volunteers. That’s how we are spreading awareness. We are not here to do any negative advocacy. We want everyone to feel like they can do something, which is why the mobile app includes the Pledge feature.

As of now, there is no donation option in the app, but we intend to add that in the future. Last August, we never thought we’d be asking for money. However, when we looked at our expenses, we realized that the cost of building this type of app was not small.

What is the team dynamic?

We worked with a project manager and developers. I could pick up the phone and call anyone.

How did you come to work with Brainvire?

I’ve known some of the people at Brainvire professionally for a few years, and they agreed to build the app for us. I said, “Obviously we will need your help because we need to make a very good tool that volunteers will use.”

How much have you invested with them?

I would like to keep that confidential, but you can imagine how much 2 mobile apps would cost. A mobile app could easily cost thousands of dollars.

What is the status of this engagement?

We started talking to Brainvire about the app in August 2016. It has taken almost a year, but we are finished with the first phase of development now. There was a lot of work done in the last couple of months. We released the app last week on Android and iOS.

RESULTS & FEEDBACK

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

The iOS app went live Sunday, so we don't know how many have downloaded it so far. I think the Android version went live on Friday. We haven't reached out to many of our volunteers yet. We first want to make sure everything is working fine, so only a small group of people have it now. I’m actually going to look at the statistics today.

How did Brainvire perform from a project management standpoint?

Good. Every week, they sent a time sheet of the work they had done and did proper issue logs. We communicated a couple of days a week via email, and they responded promptly. I have an advantage because I live in California — my evenings are their mornings, so we can have Scrum calls, Agile, whatever you call it, every day during that critical time.

What did you find most impressive about them?

They do things well. The app looks sleek with a good user interface — in fact, I’m surprised that it came out so nicely. They did a good job on the navigation, and I did not expect that. They must have a good graphics team. The feedback from my 20–30 volunteers during the testing has been good.

Brainvire’s communication skills are also impressive. They’re friendly and professional. They are always willing to take on an issue if there’s a problem on their end.

Are there any areas they could improve?

I can't think of much Brainvire could improve. Our app is not a difficult full-time project. Because we’re a nonprofit, we spend our money as it comes in. The project has taken a little longer than I originally thought it would, but I can’t lay all the blame on Brainvire for that. The capacity planning was not done like it would be in a typical project, though everything went perfectly fine. I wouldn't say they’ve come up short on their side.

BACKGROUND

Introduce your business and what you do there.

We are a company that develops video game accessories and physical skins for controllers and consoles. We also make controller stands. We are an official Xbox, PlayStation, and Nintendo skins vendor. I’m the director of e-commerce.

OPPORTUNITY / CHALLENGE

What challenge were you trying to address with Brainvire?

We needed changes made on our website, new features added, and databases connected.

SOLUTION

What was the scope of their involvement?

I requested some custom changes and integrations on the website, including new features. We do B2B business and we requested some options to do bulk ordering. For the bulk import, they created a PHP system where customers can import an Excel sheet and convert it to order. I can import a PDF and it converts it to orders, too.

It then carries out the bulk import to a Magento platform. Since Magento is a SQL database and we used QuickBooks for accounting at the time, which isn’t MySQL, they had to create an immediate database in the middle to make QuickBooks connect with Magento. So they helped write a script that goes between them, as well as connect it to another site called OraTech for labeling and product packaging.

All of these databases had to be connected. When we update a product in Magento, it updates in QuickBooks and it updates in the main website backend. We use that for our factories in China to create labels and product information. They also maintain the website on a monthly basis.

How did you come to work with Brainvire?

I started with them about a year and a half ago when I was the marketing manager at a different company. They helped me with a website. It was an importer of wheel accessories and TPMS [tire pressure monitoring system] sensors from China. They helped me set up the website, API integrations, Wal-Mart integration, and customization with JavaScript. At the time, we used eBoundhost, and I asked them for software company referrals. They gave me 3, including Brainvire, and I contacted all of them. I read more about Brainvire and started with them. A month and a half later, they came and visited the office and the relationship started.

How much have you invested with them?

Around $25,000 by now.

What is the status of this engagement?

It’s been a year and a half since I started working with them. My current company started working with them in February.

RESULTS & FEEDBACK

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

I use a page load time Chrome extension to measure the performance of the website. It was running at 11-13 seconds per page load. After their work, it went down to 2-3 seconds. They helped with the images and solved some caching issues on the server. They also fixed some of the JavaScript that the previous developer did.

How did Brainvire perform from a project management standpoint?

I worked with the team on a weekly basis, mostly by email, and we used Trello to manage the project. I request changes to the site and they come up with the solution. They’re honest and on top of it. I worked with other developers in India and the U.S. in the past, and I was having a lot of problems. I would be paying an hourly rate for something that would never get done. With Brainvire, every week I get an Excel sheet with every project and how many minutes it took. They round up or down to 15 minutes in the course of an hour. I get to see exactly how much time they spend on what, and how much it costs me per project or per task. Everything has to be approved. We agreed on 40 hours per month; if it goes over, I have to re-approve.

They’re quick. They had 24-hour support right at the beginning because of what I needed. Of course, they’re in a different time zone. I’m in Pacific time zone. So up until 9:00 in the morning, they are still in the office and I can get a hold of them. Then they’re out of the office all the way until probably 5:00 or 6:00 in the afternoon and I can get a hold of them again. They offered to have a resource working during my business hours for an extra fee.

What did you find most impressive about them?

They’re a growing team. I’ve met the owner; I’ve met the project manager. I talked to a lot of people in their office in India. They’re big. They can handle small and large projects, whether you are just with them for 1 person to help you fix an issue or to update a website, or for a massive project. For my project, a company in the U.S. gave us a proposal for $15,000 and a 3-month timeline. Brainvire came up at 2 weeks and quarter of that price, and they delivered on time and on budget.

Are there any areas they could improve?

Using Skype, we sometimes had issues because of the connection. It would be nice if they had a direct U.S. number or 1-800 number instead of calling using Skype or WhatsApp to communicate. Emails were great, but sometimes you just want to talk on the phone and explain what the issue is.

BACKGROUND

Introduce your business and what you do there.

I’m a strategy consultant for a few companies in the agricultural industry. I get their digital projects developed and out to the market. I've worked as a consultant for the last 8 months. For the 6 years prior to that, I worked as a business manager to a global agricultural brand developing that business across Asia/Pacific region.

OPPORTUNITY / CHALLENGE

How did you come to work with Brainvire?

Initially, I was looking online for some Symfony, PHP developers in India. Brainvire is one of many companies that came up on Google. I had email conversations with all of them. Some of them were declined immediately, others I tried to get a feeling of whether they would be able to deliver what I wanted. I shortlisted two companies after a few emails and phone calls. I had Skype conversations with them for a week to give them the project brief and to understand what they could do. Brainvire came back with a better response than the other people. Then I gave Brainvire a small chunk of work to really test them and they did an exceptional job. That’s when I said, “Let’s work on a long term basis.”

SOLUTION

What was the scope of their involvement?

The project is a web based program applicable in the agriculture industry. It allows veterinarian clinics to record the activity of their veterinarians and their farmer-clients. It also enables the setting and automation of some actions. In simple terms, it’s like a calendar or a planner. It’s much more complicated than a planner though because you set up a clinic and each clinic has several registered veterinarians, and each vet has several registered farmers all in relational databases. Each farmer is unique. Every farming operation is different. Each farmer's setup has basic actions based on what’s relevant to that farm. There’s also a copy function so if you can replicate preset actions for one farm when registering a new one if they're similar. The initial developers who worked on this program couldn’t get it going and couldn’t develop all of the features that we wanted. They gave up and that's when Brainvire came in to help us bring all these features to life.

We just resolved a pictorial timer. Some actions could be words and some actions are connected to scientific graphs. It’s a program with five actions in it. The five actions have five graphics. All this has to be connected tightly and working together because they’re all time synchronized. One of the biggest troubles the previous developer had was getting all the actions to work together and sync with the provided dates and times. It’s a messy task. That’s one of the things that Brainvire has helped to make work.

Another example is the grouping function. We wanted to be able to group different actions on a particular farm. We never got that working with the previous developers. In the previous versions, it was working when you were trying to group 2 or 3 actions, but when you got over that, it usually didn't work. Brainvire designed some new feature so that you could literally bundle up any number of actions. There’s also a time function to it. If you change the first action date, it will consequently change all the dates on all the actions based on the previous set time difference. It is a very messy task, but Brainvire was able to figure it out and make it work. We are still on the development phases. We are 99% done with the version 1 of the program. Once it goes live, they’re going to maintain it, and eventually version 2 and version 3.

How much have you invested with them?

$7,000-$8,000.

What is the status of this engagement?

We started working together in March 2017 and the work is ongoing.

RESULTS & FEEDBACK

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

We have 15-20 people ready to test the program in about mid-September so I'll better understand the impact then.

How did Brainvire perform from a project management standpoint?

They’re quite good because we’ve got a very good relationship. I tell them my idea and what the user experience should be when they’re going through a particular phrase, but I am unable to describe that in a technical way. That’s not my background. There are a couple of guys who I interact with regularly who go back and write down the technical side of it. First, they write whether it’s going to work. Second, they write how it’s going to work. Then they put a timeframe to it. Some of the tasks could be two days and some of them could be 20 days. There’s not one major project. It’s a group of several tiny projects. Once they give the timeline, it moves fairly quickly. Most of the time they deliver the timelines they have promised. Sometimes it goes for another two days more than the originally agreed timelines, but that’s okay because things don’t work as planned all the time. There are no big project management hurdles with Brainvire. We don’t use a project management tool.

What did you find most impressive about them?

The main thing is they were able to fix those bugs in the program that the previous developer wasn’t able to do. They made it work. If they could keep delivering the existing level of service, I would be very happy.

Are there any areas they could improve?

They could be even stronger on the technical side. I don’t know how many people were working on my project and I’m happy, but if there were more people working on my project, maybe there could be a better way of doing things in terms of how they could implement my ideas into the project.

BACKGROUND

Introduce your business and what you do there.

I’m the chief commercial officer at a company that creates and manufactures customized gift products. 

OPPORTUNITY / CHALLENGE

What challenge were you trying to address with Brainvire Infotech?

We needed Brainvire to develop and maintain a platform that manages our whole manufacturing/production process. 

SOLUTION

What was the scope of their involvement?

We’ve built custom software that is tailored to our needs. It manages our whole back office. Since we provide customized products, there are many factors involved in our manufacturing process. Brainvire developed a platform to manage this entire process from A to Z. We’re an e-commerce business, so we primarily use Magento and PHP. The back office handles everything for the actual orders through a Magento-based site. It runs our entire ordering process from when an order comes in until it’s manufactured and shipped.

The types of products we sell require many stages. Over time, we’ve built on the system in order to automate a lot of the manufacturing steps. We currently have multiple Magento e-commerce stores. Brainvire has been working on the website itself in everything from doing maintenance to adding features and new designs.

How did you come to work with Brainvire Infotech?

I believe they targeted us. At the time, we weren’t happy with our current developers. They approached us at the right time, and we gave them an opportunity. I wasn’t a part of the company at the time, but I heard that’s what happened. We gave them some small projects to start, and our relationship escalated from there.

What is the status of this engagement?

We started working together April 2016, and our partnership is ongoing. 

RESULTS & FEEDBACK

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

The backend that Brainvire developed for us allows us to do our work in an efficient way. That lets us focus more on bringing in revenue and expanding our channels of income.

How did Brainvire Infotech perform from a project management standpoint?

Overall, we are very happy. We communicate on a daily basis. I have direct contact both with the team leader and the developers themselves. When there’s crisis, we have ways of getting in touch with them, and they’re quite responsive. We use JIRA to collaborate, for the most part.

What did you find most impressive about them?

They’re consistently available, which makes them stand out compared to other companies. They make every effort to be there for me when I need them. 

BACKGROUND

Introduce your business and what you do there.

I am the business development head of SpinNPress, an app-based laundry service. We have our own processing unit and 3 stores in Mumbai. 

OPPORTUNITY / CHALLENGE

What challenge were you trying to address with Brainvire Infotech?

We asked Brainvire to develop the entire platform of our app. We use 3 different platforms that work in tandem. Our business is app-driven and has multiple integrations in terms of the backend of our factory, the customer app, and the app for our pickup and delivery staff. 

SOLUTION

What was the scope of their involvement?

When offering our services to customers, we didn’t want to be limited to 1 platform, so the app was created on both Android and iOS. Initially, we discussed the concept and decided on a plan of action. Once the build started, the work went pretty quickly, and the apps were built simultaneously.

We required apps for the backend of the business, our customers, and the delivery staff. Our top priority is for everything to work seamlessly. The customer manually puts in an address to specify their location, and we currently use Paytm for electronic payment.

How did you come to work with Brainvire Infotech?

We were referred to Brainvire by someone who had worked with them previously. After meeting with Brainvire, we were convinced we wanted to work with them because they were structured and thorough in explaining how the project would move forward.

How much have you invested in them?

We have invested around $45,000–$50,000.

What is the status of this engagement?

We started working with Brainvire in May 2015, and the relationship is ongoing. 

RESULTS & FEEDBACK

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

On the Android platform, we have had over 500 downloads. We have around 1,200–1,300 registered customers. In terms of garments, we have seen a steady rise of 15%–20% per quarter on average.

How did Brainvire Infotech perform from a project management standpoint?

I am very satisfied with the work Brainvire has done. They have been extremely responsive, stuck to our timelines, and are available for support whenever we need. I’ve had a single point of contact throughout the entire project who coordinates with her team to ensure the work is completed. This has been working brilliantly for me.

What did you find the most impressive about them?

The app needed to function seamlessly through the various platforms, and Brainvire delivered what we asked.

Are there any areas they could improve?

Based on my experience so far, I am quite satisfied with everything they’ve done.  

BACKGROUND

Introduce your business and what you do there.

I am the CTO of Vavni, a product engineering services company. We provide services related to IoT [Internet of Things], cloud applications, and big data analytics. Our customers are people who are creating new products. They bring us a critical problem to solve and we provide a solution. We work with companies like Cisco and those that have a bunch of products in the market. Those are the products we launch in the market. Basically, we provide the engineering services to our customers’ brand in both software and hardware.

OPPORTUNITY / CHALLENGE

What challenge were you trying to address with Brainvire?

Our focus is in IoT, cloud applications, and big data. There was a piece of a software that was generally out of our realm, which was a Windows desktop application on a WPF [Windows Presentation Foundation] framework. We didn’t have all the necessary resources in-house, so we started looking for partners and selected Brainvire to provide that small piece of the software for us.

SOLUTION

What was the scope of their involvement?

The software is a cloud-based, real-time image capture and green screen replacement tool. There are 3 pieces of the software Brainvire was looking at. One is that of the centralized client admin side, which manages inventory, people, and products.

The second process on the POS [Point of Sale] side is the desktop application, which manages actual images, modifies those images, and optimizes them for the user. A user would walk up to the desktop after snapping a picture to see the green screen modified image. They would then be able to put in any kind of background, and make a purchase.

The third piece of software is something which collects all the images and puts them in the cloud. The first 2 pieces of the software, we completed. Brainvire helped us developed the system and linked it to our cloud in the background, so all postings and purchases are on our servers.

What is the team dynamic?

I worked primarily with the project manager. We encourage the development team to be a part of those meetings because it’s also a weekly feedback opportunity, so everyone can stay on top of what’s expected of them. There were 2-4 resources on the engineering team, but on average there are 3 full time resources working on the project.

How did you come to work with Brainvire?

We found them through a mutual friend. Brainvire has experience working on a POS system in the past. That was the main reason we selected them. There was a personal referral as well as proof of past POS experience.

How much have you invested with them?

Around $20,000.

What is the status of this engagement?

We started working together in January 2017, and work is ongoing. We’ll be finishing up pretty soon.

RESULTS & FEEDBACK

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

It’s going through beta testing at the moment. There’s 1 test engineer, 1-2 developers, and the project manager, who is working part-time. Once it’s released to end-users, this software will have approximately 200 users. It’s not major in terms of the number of users, it’s major in terms of transactions. That number may be pretty high. It could be around 10,000 transactions per day.

How did Brainvire perform from a project management standpoint?

We had a very good ride with these guys. Initially, I was apprehensive about 2 different teams working together on a complex software like this; a lot of collaboration is required. In my experience, that doesn’t always go well.

We discussed these things in the very beginning of the project and tried to identify possible issues. However, Brainvire understands my expectations. We both have to be very resilient when changes come through or modifications need to be made, and Brainvire has been very flexible in that regard.

We enjoyed the relationship. We were able to gel rather quickly, because one of my team members is in India, and so is Brainvire. That worked out very well. They’re able to talk to each other, between teams, before coming to management. Brainvire understood our working style and understood that we wanted to make the collaboration as efficient as possible. Their management did a great job—they understood the requirements, they put the right people on the team, and it worked out. They had their weekly deliverables and we never had any hiccups.

We wanted them to manage themselves, understand priorities, flex as needed, and come back with deliverables, and they did. Their contributions in software design and development were exactly what we needed.

What did you find most impressive about them?

They own the project completely and that’s what I like about it. These guys, at some point in time, were working around the clock for us. A sense of ownership and resilience are the 2 things we definitely enjoyed about Brainvire.

Are there any areas they could improve?

In general, I never had any complaints with these guys.

BACKGROUND

Introduce your business and what you do there.

I’m a partner of The Healing Tree. We have a retail store, offer wholesale, and do online retail for health products such as personal care, joint care, pet supplies, tea, and herbs. 

OPPORTUNITY / CHALLENGE

What challenge were you trying to address with Brainvire Infotech?

We need them to create a website that has subscription features and a recurring revenue model. If somebody subscribes to our site for $40 a month, they get 4 products monthly. We have an affiliate program, too, so if they share our site on social media and someone else joins, they get paid a share monthly as long as those members stay active. Normally, with the affiliate program, they get paid once per sale, but this is a monthly payment. 

SOLUTION

What was the scope of their involvement?

We had an existing website that Brainvire Infotech built on using Magento. I wanted a subscription program and a backend where members could log in to track earnings on their order history and share their unique link for others to join. I gave them information in a text document, along with Photoshop designs of the look with notes for different functions. They executing my outline. Once the site was live, we did user testing and made changes based on that feedback. The first stage took 3 months. Now, we’re in the second stage making changes.

How did you come to work with Brainvire Infotech?

I was referred to them by another web developer in Poland who didn’t have time for our project. Brainvire sent me their portfolio, which was similar to what we were looking for on our website.

How much have you invested with them?

We’ve spent about $9,500.

What is the status of this engagement?

We started our partnership in April 2017, and the work is ongoing. 

RESULTS & FEEDBACK

Could you share any evidence that would demonstrate the productivity, quality of work, or impact of the engagement?

We haven’t launched the site yet. The launch is supposed to take another 220 hours. We don’t have a date yet. Based on our timeline, their work has met my expectations.

How did Brainvire Infotech perform from a project management standpoint?

They’re thorough. When they don’t understand something, we have a Skype call to clarify. If the solution is simpler than that, we communicate through email. Their availability and responsiveness are excellent. Their founder, Chintan [CEO, Brainvire Infotech] will even come to Los Angeles to visit me every few months. He’s brought some of his team as well. I rarely get to meet a CEO of another company. He stands by his work, and that’s why he’ll meet me face to face.

What did you find most impressive about Brainvire Infotech?

They’re able to adjust to my needs. We started the project in a certain direction, and they completed everything. But, when we go to the mobile site, we needed to make changes. Based on the user testing, we go back and request other changes. They’re able to adapt as we identify areas for improvement. The changes cost more money, but they’re part of the process because we can’t know everything in advance.

Are there any areas they could improve?

When I make a design and give it to them, sometimes what they upload from the coding isn’t quite right, and things aren’t aligned. I’ve asked them to fix this. 

BACKGROUND

Introduce your business and what you do there.

I’m the founder of CGETC, an e-commerce company started in 2003. We sell electronic and home living accessories online in the U.S. and Canada.

OPPORTUNITY / CHALLENGE

What challenge were you trying to address with Brainvire?

We have multiple websites and brands. I was looking for IT support for the Magento store as well as IT support. They complement internal resources that we have.

SOLUTION

What was the scope of their involvement?

They’re working on managing our Magento e-commerce store. They do all the programming and development related to the Magento store. The second thing they’re doing is our ERP system. We have a proprietary ERP [enterprise resource planning] system in-house, and Brainvire is maintaining and developing functions and features for the ERP. The programming language is PHP, and the database is MySQL.

Our Magento store currently has 27,000 active SKUs. It’s been running since 2003, so it’s sizable and has a history to it. The ERP communicates directly with the Magento store. Our ERP system encompasses the overall aspects of our business. We don’t just do Magento web store business, we also do Amazon, eBay, Walmart, and various other marketplace business as well. Our ERP system ties all the marketplaces into one.

How do they interact with your team?

We email requests and they email back. We also communicate via Skype, calls, and messages. We have regular Monday morning meetings at 7:00 a.m. PST which is 7:30 p.m. their time. They’re really good with keeping meetings and updating us on progress.

How did you come to work with Brainvire?

They reached out to us via email. We get a lot of solicitations like that through email because we have multiple websites. The difference in their sales pitch is that the person that contacted us came to our office for an in-person meeting. Putting a face behind a foreign IT resource company was a game changer for me.

How much have you invested with Brainvire?

We’re spending at least $10,000 a month.

What is the status of this engagement?

We started working with them in March 2017, and the relationship is ongoing.

RESULTS & FEEDBACK

Could you share any evidence that would demonstrate the productivity, quality of work, or the impact of the engagement?

I feel like we haven’t worked together long enough to see the impact. My trust level is manageable with them because they pulled through on due dates. We’ve had times where we had to go back and explain more and make modifications, but it’s to be expected when doing this size of a project; plus, we haven’t worked together very long.

How did Brainvire perform from a project management standpoint?

We use Asana for project management. We have a project manager that coordinates with their developers. The developer and project manager get on the call with us over Skype to discuss the issues, etc. If there are occasions where the developers don’t understand, we coordinate with the project manager.

What did you find most impressive about Brainvire?

Their communication and special attention from the management is impressive. The CEO, Chintan Shah, keeps checking in. He didn’t just pass us over to one of the project managers and forget us. I really appreciate the personal touch.

Are there any areas Brainvire could improve?

Because of the time difference, there are times we can communicate but there are also times when they’re offline. I haven’t discussed it with them, so I don’t know if they have 24-hour support available or not.

What tips or recommendations could you share that might increase the likelihood of success with Brainvire?

Know your expectations, goals, and due dates. Outsource teams do as well as you want them to. You have to be clear with your expectations and due dates.