Codup

BACKGROUND

Introduce your business and what you do there.

I’m the engineering manager and product lead for TrackStreet. We’re a software company that focuses on crawling data for big brands. We help clients know who’s selling their products and at what prices.

OPPORTUNITY / CHALLENGE

What challenge were you trying to address with Codup.co?

We were building a referral tracking platform. Although we have software engineers, we don’t have team members who specialize in building plugins for WordPress or WooCommerce. As a result, we needed a contractor to help us create a plugin.

SOLUTION

What was the scope of their involvement?

After writing detailed specifications for the plugin, we handed them to Codup. Their team then handled the project from start to finish. They developed a WooCommerce plugin that adhered to our guidelines. Their team also tested the product to ensure it worked. They built the plugin for our specific platform.

What is the team composition?

We worked with about four people including a project manager, a developer, and two QA people.

How did you come to work with Codup.co?

We posted the job on a freelancer's platform and received many applicants. During recruitment, we looked for engineers, a project manager, and a QA team. I also asked applicants to provide a cover letter and examples of past projects as well as complete a coding test. After reviewing 20–30 applications, I narrowed our options to 2–3 companies. CodUp had all of the necessary qualifications. From my interactions with their team, I had a good feeling about them.

How much have you invested with them?

We spent $5,000–$6,000 on this project.

What is the status of this engagement?

We started around May, and the first phase finished in August 2020. While the engagement’s paused, we anticipate re-engaging them.

RESULTS & FEEDBACK

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

Their team delivered a fully-fledged plugin. As the engineering manager, I reviewed their work. The quality of the product was great. I’ve worked with a lot of contractors and agencies; Codup’s definitely one of the best in terms of their communication, the quality of their work, and their ability to follow specifications.

How did Codup.co perform from a project management standpoint?

We set up weekly check-in calls, and they were present on those. I was impressed by their responsiveness. We added them to Slack and anytime we messaged them, we received a response. Our time zones are quite different. Codup went out of their way to align with ours.

They assigned us a dedicated project manager, but I also worked as a project manager. We defined tickets within Jira on our end. Additionally, they had their own ticketing system. Our assigned project manager collaborated with their engineers using that system.

What did you find most impressive about them?

Codup was engaged and responsive. We were impressed by their level of communication. I was also impressed by the quality of their code and their ability to align with our time zone. The overall quality of the product for the price was great.

Are there any areas they could improve?

No, I’m happy with what they produced for the cost.

Do you have any advice for potential customers?

With any outside agency, it’s good to have concrete specifications. By having detailed specifications, you both know what needs to be built.

BACKGROUND

Introduce your business and what you do there.

I’m the operations manager for Profit Prospects. We publish a bunch of financial newsletters, including Investment Whisperer and Oil and Gas Investments Bulletin. We specialize in providing paid research to a subscriber base, and we focus on the management of small- and mid-cap stocks.

OPPORTUNITY / CHALLENGE

What challenge were you trying to address with Codup.co?

Over the years, we’ve had several issues with our payment processor and have tried several different companies.

We originally used Bambora and ended up switching back to them in order to save the accounts for one of our publications. We had set up gateways with another vendor, but we nearly lost another account. When these things happen, our revenue stream just goes dead. We took one bullet, dodged another bullet, and went on.  Once COVID-19 hit, payment processors were looking to get rid of several sectors so we needed to find a new partner.

Meanwhile, we’d used Bambora for a decade, and we had to build a new custom gateway to that, as an insurance policy in case the other ones yanked the rug out from under us. That’s how we got to this project.

SOLUTION

What was the scope of their involvement?

Codup.co gave a time estimate of about a month to build it, and they delivered the product. It took us another 3–4 weeks of testing to actually make it work with live accounts.

What is the team composition?

I worked with their estimator/salesperson initially, and then with a project manager. I spoke to the developer once or twice. We had a couple of spec calls, followed by a lot of emails and chat conversations.

How did you come to work with Codup.co?

I made a web search and came across a platform for contractors.

The software we’re working on is in a fairly obscure niche. Bambora is  actively maintained and updated, but it’s not very widespread or popular, so the chances of finding a software team that had prior experience working with these software products was slim to none. I put out an estimate, and Codup.co answered back saying they could do it.

How much have you invested with them?

We spent about $5,500.

What is the status of this engagement?

We started estimates in April 2020, and we wrapped up in June.

RESULTS & FEEDBACK

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

It’s not fully implemented into production simply because the markets have been super busy and I’ve had other projects, but it’s been tested to the full functionality. I’m happy with it, and I have an insurance component now.

How did Codup.co perform from a project management standpoint?

They’re in Pakistan, so we always had a 24-hour cycle. There were a few brief hours during the day where we could talk to them in real-time. Overall, I found the communication to be quite good. I paid them out when the project was completed, but they remained responsive during the testing phase.

What did you find most impressive about them?

The highlight was actually getting the software to work.

Are there any areas they could improve?

The sandbox testing was mostly done through a clone of the WordPress site, but the live testing could’ve been done better before the handoff. I had to do a fair amount of testing myself, which was to be expected. The handoff might’ve been a bit rougher in the case of a client without a testing background.  

Do you have any advice for future clients of theirs?

Codup.co works well with people who are familiar with the software development industry. For Codup.co to take the next step, they’d have to adopt a synchronized approach, with a documentation expert and a tester to build cases and scale that to larger projects. This is advice I’d give to any development team; I’m not picking on Codup.co.

BACKGROUND

I’m an IT professional at Optimum Window, a manufacturer of steel windows and doors throughout the U.S.

OPPORTUNITY / CHALLENGE

We were looking for help with integrating our new, upcoming, customer-facing website to a CRM.

SOLUTION

What was the scope of their involvement?

They helped us to integrate our WordPress website to a Microsoft Dynamics CRM. Their work involved making forms to submit information. The team also did some UI modifications to make it more professional.  

What is the team composition?

We work with about three teammates.

How did you come to work with Codup.co?

After doing some research, I decided to work with them.

How much have you invested with them?

We’ve spent less than $10,000.

What is the status of this engagement?

Our engagement began in February 2020, and it’s ongoing.

RESULTS & FEEDBACK

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

I’m very comfortable with the work. Even though we’re in different timezones, they are surprisingly always available during our working times. 

How did Codup.co perform from a project management standpoint?

They provide us with good feedback. Codup.co is very methodical in the way they do things, which is a plus.

What did you find most impressive about them?

They’re very good at keeping track of tasks, which allows us to look back and see the project progress.

Are there any areas they could improve?

No, not really. They’re doing what they’re supposed to be doing.

BACKGROUND

Introduce your business and what you do there.

I’m the operations manager at an environmental nonprofit. We connect with businesses, schools, and individuals for campaigns.

OPPORTUNITY / CHALLENGE

What challenge were you trying to address with Codup.io?

We were in the process of transferring our CRM to Fresh Sales and needed to build some customized features.

SOLUTION

What was the scope of their involvement?

They developed a custom application integrated with our CRM that stored our Shopify data.

What is the team composition?

We initially started working with two people, and we eventually scaled up to five team members. This included a technical consultant, project manager, and CEO. 

How did you come to work with Codup.io?

We attended a conference for Fresh Sales, and that’s where we met the CEO of Codup.io. 

How much have you invested with them?

We invested between $10,000-$50,000 over the course of the engagement. 

What is the status of this engagement?

We began working with them in the fall of 2019, and we put the project on pause in January 2020.

RESULTS & FEEDBACK

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

They did everything that we asked of them and delivered exactly what we wanted. We haven’t been using the add-on, but I can see that it could be of use to us in the future once we optimize it. 

How did Codup.io perform from a project management standpoint?

Communication was good, though there were some hiccups because the team was working for us remotely. They were open to having calls with us every week because it was sometimes difficult to communicate over email. We also used Trello to track the project. 

Are there any areas they could improve?

They delivered what they could within the confines of Fresh Sales and our budget. The reason we aren’t using the add-on is because of factors outside of their control. 

Do you have any advice for potential customers? 

They were great in terms of being available for us and were easy to work with.

BACKGROUND

Introduce your business and what you do there.

I am the owner of an online membership site for models. It’s a modeling agency site where aspiring models can be seen by international agents and get signed to top agencies in the industry.

OPPORTUNITY / CHALLENGE

What challenge were you trying to address with Codup.io?

We needed them to develop the backend of our site. We were trying to include a variety of e-commerce features, and a lot of content management functionality as well, so it had to be very customized.

SOLUTION

What was the scope of their involvement?

They helped us move to an entirely new Wordpress website. The site required a lot of backend work to automate notifying members about the reports and notifying us about submissions. There is a lot of communication going on in the backend and we needed to be able to make sure everything related to e-commerce and membership is functioning and talking to each other properly.

What is the team composition?

In the beginning, I only dealt with the leader of the team, so I’m not exactly sure how many people have worked on the project. There are at least two that I know of, but I believe more people were working behind the scenes.

How did you come to work with Codup.io?

We found them through a coding company search website. We entered our project and then people respond, and they were actually the only group that reached out to us that asked really good and detailed questions. At that point, we could tell that they really knew what they were doing.

How much have you invested with them?

We’ve invested a little over $10,000 so far.

What is the status of this engagement?

We started working together in January 2017 and are continuing to work with them on a variety of projects.

RESULTS & FEEDBACK

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

The best piece of evidence we have is that our revenue went up as a direct result of the new site. We don’t really have statistics to compare to, in terms of engagement or click rates, but we’ve been very satisfied with how smoothly the site works and with how everything looks now.

How did Codup.io perform from a project management standpoint?

Codup.io is excellent at project management. We speak 99% through email, but when things became more complicated, I could just hop on a phone call and they would make themselves available. They always keep the project on track and have continued to make progress since launching the site as well.

What did you find most impressive about them?

They really follow through on everything they say they’re going to do. I think their skill level is incredibly high which, combined with their willingness to work on a difficult custom project, means you’re really going to get a great result in the end.

Are there any areas they could improve?

No, I’m going to continue to use Codup.io forever.

Do you have any advice for potential customers?

Just be sure that you make what you want to be done clear and then relax because they are going to get it done.

BACKGROUND

Introduce your business and what you do there.

I'm the global manager of brand communications for our globally-used mobile app and web platforms.

OPPORTUNITY / CHALLENGE

What challenge were you trying to address with Codup?

We reached out to Codup.io to provide development support for some of our BuddyPress and WordPress platforms. 

SOLUTION

What was the scope of their involvement?

Codup.io develops our BuddyPress platforms based on the requirements and style guidelines we provided them. They did some of the stylings of the websites, customizing templates as needed using core languages like CSS, JavaScript, PHP, and MySQL. 

What is the team composition? 

I work with a few key representatives and developers on their team, but they also delegate work to their larger team as needed. 

What is the status of this engagement?

We've been working together since around November 2018 and they continue to maintain, update, and fix bugs on our sites as needed. 

RESULTS & FEEDBACK

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

It's been a very positive experience overall. Codup's team of developers are very skilled at what they do. In addition to their digital IQ and expertise, they also have a high emotional quotient (EQ), making them great to work with all around. We feel very comfortable with them; they're approachable, responsive, and pleasant to work with.

How did Codup perform from a project management standpoint?

They're very clear in communications, keeping tickets and communications organized on Trello. They have a great process that makes discussions and tracking progress easy to follow. 

What did you find most impressive about them?

They're the total package: very competent in their field and easy to work with. They're also reasonably priced. 

Are there any areas they could improve?

Nothing comes to mind. Whenever there's an issue, we let them know directly and they address it right away. 

BACKGROUND

Introduce your business and what you do there.

I’m the president of a company that designs and develops websites and offers online marketing services.

OPPORTUNITY / CHALLENGE

What challenge were you trying to address with Codup.io?

We had been working with a team of developers on a difficult project, but they didn’t complete the work due to its complexity.  Because of this, we needed to find a team on short notice to pick up where they left off on the website development project.

SOLUTION

What was the scope of their involvement?

Codup.io has provided support for dozens of our clients’ websites. The majority of the work is focused on the front- and backend development, including WordPress installation, updates, and configuration. They develop new plugins, custom Post Types, and provide frontend design services that we occasionally collaborate on. 

We’ve also recently gone through major updates to our hosting platform, upgrading about 70–80 sites to a newer version of PHP. This process included ensuring all of our sites were compatible and on correct versions of WordPress. 

More specifically, they’ve built sites for our clients that have secure document repositories, allowing end-users to see private documents. They’ve created membership systems, both directories and complex subscription systems. Another tool they’ve built is a complex contest submission systems that are integrated with backend databases. Their team has also done Salesforce integration on several sites. 

What is the team composition?

At least nine team members from Codup.io work with us.

How did you come to work with Codup.io?

I found them online. We began working together on a specific project that a prior development team dropped the ball on. After they successfully completed that one for our client, we decided to start using them for larger, more complex tasks. 

How much have you invested with them?

We have invested $80,000–$90,000 thus far. We have them on a monthly retainer. 

What is the status of this engagement?

We started working with them in May 2018. Their work is ongoing.

RESULTS & FEEDBACK

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

We’ve been able to give them more work over time because of their success in completing projects for our clients. They’ve been the perfect fit for our needs and feel like a part of our team. 

I’m confident that our collaboration will continue because of the work they’ve been producing. 

How did Codup.io perform from a project management standpoint?

The Codup.io team is fantastic to work with. They work during our hours, and we haven’t had any issues with timezones or language barriers. We use Skype and RocketChat for communication and Jira for support tickets. They’re always available for us. They provide a dedicated project manager and we have multiple weekly calls.

What did you find most impressive about them?

They’re a fantastic team and I’d highly recommend them to anyone looking for those services. They’re absolutely our go-to team for our outsourced development needs.  

Are there any areas they could improve?

There’s nothing I can think of.

BACKGROUND

Please describe your company and your position there.

We provide preparation for various standardized tests, including the GMAT, GRE, SAT, PTE, and IELTS. I am looking after the company as the principal as well as the resource development manager.

OPPORTUNITY / CHALLENGE

For what projects/services did your company hire Codup.io?

We hired Codup.io for web development. We needed a well-functioning website with a learning management system (LMS) to start with. Later on, we added their services for SEO and digital marketing. They are still looking after our SEO and marketing.

What were your goals for this project?

We started from zero, so we required an online presence that would project our image professionally. Our goal was to have a website that ranks higher on organic searches and has enough engaging content. It needed to be easy to use to keep visitors on the site for longer periods of time.

SOLUTION

How did you select this vendor?

We selected Codup.io following a thorough vetting process after creating an initial list of possible solution providers. This list was created using the Internet, our friends, some experts, and more.

Describe the project and the services they provided in detail.

They developed the website from scratch, did all the design work, and coordinated with us to improve the look and the functionality of the final product. Later on, they worked on SEO and digital marketing, which is still ongoing.

What was the team composition?

Certain individuals were with the project from the beginning and are still working on it. Others came and did their part as and when required.

RESULTS & FEEDBACK

Can you share any information that demonstrates the impact that this project has had on your business?

We have a good product as a result. We got good reviews from our stakeholders, and they liked the site in comparison to other competitors.

How was project management arranged and how effective was it?

The initial project was managed professionally. We had a dedicated project manager who was a one-person contact for all of our needs. When the team grew with time, this project manager kept on coordinating all efforts in the right direction.

What did you find most impressive about this company?

I am impressed by their easy communication and good understanding of our requirements. They are also available whenever we needed them.

Are there any areas for improvement?

Having more staff to cater to a growing business will definitely improve their services.

BACKGROUND

Introduce your business and what you do there.

I'm the manager of a fixed wireless internet provider company.

OPPORTUNITY / CHALLENGE

What challenge were you trying to address with Codup.io?

We've engaged Codup.io for multiple development projects over the years.

SOLUTION

What was the scope of their involvement?

Codup.io has worked on different development projects, including a dispatching app for our trucks and an auto order form platform that allows customers to order services online and choose installation dates. They're also working on integrating Freshchat and text messaging support for our customers. Most of their work has involved PHP and Python, as well as platforms like Laravel and CodeIgniter.

What is the team composition? 

I'm directly in touch with the owner, who told me that all 27 of his coders touch every project at one point to ensure everyone on their team is familiar with everything the company is working on. 

How did you come to work with Codup.io?

We were already working with them when I came on board, but I believe our owner found their company and reached out directly. 

What is the status of this engagement?

We've been working with them for six years and counting.

RESULTS & FEEDBACK

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

Codup.io has helped save the company a significant amount of time, resources, and money over the years. Our customer support staff is minimal thanks to some of the tools and automation they've provided. 

How did Codup.ioperform from a project management standpoint?

They've performed very well in the time we've worked together. Initially, their services left a little bit to be desired, but they've structured projects very well as our relationship evolved. We can go to them with any problem and they're good about taking direction, as well as understanding and interpreting what it is we need. We typically communicate by phone and email, but we also have access to their code. 

What did you find most impressive about them?

Even though we're working with an overseas developer, the owner speaks English very well and we've had him visit our offices. He's been a godsend; he's great about taking whatever directive we have and translating back to his team. 

Secondly, as a coder myself, I've been very happy with the quality of their work. They build their code to scale. 

Are there any areas they could improve?

Not really, but I would like to see them expand their understanding and management of Linux to help take more work off my plate. 

Do you have any advice for potential customers?

As for working with any developer, it's important to go into a project with the long-term vision in mind and make sure the code is scalable. It creates a headache having to go back later and redesign a platform that wasn't built with the future in mind. 

BACKGROUND

Introduce your business and what you do there.

I'm the owner of a web development and digital marketing agency. 

OPPORTUNITY / CHALLENGE

What challenge were you trying to address with Codup.io?

We were looking for a vendor to help our in-house team with an e-commerce project.

SOLUTION

What was the scope of their involvement?

Codup.io customized the backend of a WooCommerce platform for one of our clients, while our in-house team was in charge of the frontend. Our client wants to add new features and make iterations to the website on an ongoing basis, so Codup.io continues to help us with the project.

What is the team composition?

I mostly worked with a project manager, but there was a team of people assigned to our project.

How did you come to work with Codup.io?

We found them through a third-party website that lists WordPress developers. They were really trying to understand every single angle of the project, which demonstrated their expertise. We had some less expensive alternatives, but I chose Codup.io because of their ideas and their approach.

What is the status of this engagement?

We worked with Codup.io between January–February 2019.

RESULTS & FEEDBACK

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

Codup.io successfully executed a very specific and technical vision that our client had, giving our client a lot of new opportunities. They also filled in the gaps that our in-house team had in backend programming (we focus more on the frontend development). That allowed us to scope out more complex projects and include them as part of our business model.

How did Codup.io perform from a project management standpoint?

They're very competent and met all of their deadlines. Our project manager always responded promptly despite the fact that they're in a different time zone. We mostly used email, phone, Google Hangouts, and UberConference to stay in touch. They were very flexible and accessible.

What did you find most impressive about them?

They're very skilled and have a thorough approach to any project.

Are there any areas they could improve?

No. I've worked with a lot of different vendors and Codup.io is the only company that delivered everything on time.

Do you have any advice for potential customers?

Be as specific as possible about your goals and know exactly what you want from their team.