Cogent Commerce

BACKGROUND

Please describe your company and position.

 I am the Owner of a managed IT services company.

Describe what your company does in a single sentence.

We are a Managed Service Provider. It's our goal to provide any and all IT based service to our clients. A one-stop-shop for IT needs. If we do not have the right resource working for us directly, we will find a contractor to get the job done. Our primary focus is online commerce and B2B sales.

OPPORTUNITY / CHALLENGE

What specific goals or objectives did you hire Cogent Commerce to accomplish?

• Design a new website layout for customers Magento 2 store
• Upgrade Magento to the latest build
• Build custom Magento extension to automatically adjust prices based on specific rulesets

SOLUTION

How did you find Cogent Commerce?

Referral

Why did you select Cogent Commerce over others?

• High ratings
• Pricing fit our budget
• Good value for cost
• Referred to me
• Company values aligned

How many teammates from Cogent Commerce were assigned to this project?

6-10 Employees

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

Our customer approached us and wanted an uplift on their existing Magento 2 version. They also wanted to modernize the visual aspects of the frontend of their website. This customer has always made majority of their sales through brick and mortar and they decided to push to have ecommerce be their primary income source. Cogent Commerce was hired to perform these tasks. 

They began by upgrading the Magento 2 store to the latest public build and upgraded all underlying extensions to their latest builds. Once that was complete, they started building mockups for a new frontend design. Once these designs were approved by the customer, they began integration of said designs in the frontend. 

After the design phase was complete, they started working on a custom magento extension to perform specific price modifications based on a custom attribute setup. Our relationship with Cogent Commerce will be ongoing as we will be constantly adding/adjusting this ecommerce platform.

RESULTS & FEEDBACK

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

Each person we worked with would give daily updates on changes that were performed and would inform us of any issues that arose. This kept us in contact with our customer through the process, which gave them a good feeling about the relationship as well. All tasks were completed on time and some well before the set deadlines.

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

Projects tend to always been completed before or right at the deadline. Which is what we expect. This tells me that Cogent Commerce properly scopes out required time needed per project/task.

What was your primary form of communication with Cogent Commerce?

• Virtual Meeting
• Email or Messaging App

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

Each person at Cogent Commerce was quick to respond to questions and understood the issues presented to them the first time around. They seem to have the mindset that it's best for all parties involved to understand the issues and the solution before proceeding with remediation/implementation.

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

None that I can think of at the moment.

BACKGROUND

Please describe your company and position.

I am the website manager of Dive right in scuba

Describe what your company does in a single sentence.

selling diver gear

OPPORTUNITY / CHALLENGE

What specific goals or objectives did you hire Cogent Commerce to accomplish?

• work our magento website
• improve our website
• to design better layout

SOLUTION

How did you find Cogent Commerce?

Online Search

Why did you select Cogent Commerce over others?

• Pricing fit our budget
• Good value for cost

How many teammates from Cogent Commerce were assigned to this project?

2-5 Employees

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

We have been working with Cogentcommerce since last 2 year and they are handling our ecommerce website development for our website diverightinscuba.com. I'm project manager and handle all project activities. 

• Maintenance work and ongoing support 
• Version Upgrdation 
• Security Enhancement and server monitoring 
• SEO changes 
• Performance Optimisation 
• New Feature Implementation 
• Frontend Designing

RESULTS & FEEDBACK

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

We can say they are up to mark according to what we need and desire from their services like website stability, security, performance and everything we need and we are happy as they provide on time support and maintenance to run our business smoothly also we noticed revenue growth about approx. 35-40 % since we are working with them so we can say we got success with the team

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

The team I worked with showcased excellent project management skills throughout our collaboration. They consistently delivered items on time, ensuring that deadlines were met without any significant delays. This level of punctuality was crucial for the smooth operation of our business, as it allowed us to plan and execute our strategies accordingly. Their commitment to timely delivery demonstrated their professionalism and reliability. 

In terms of responsiveness, the team was exceptional in addressing our needs. Whenever we had any concerns or issues, they promptly responded and provided the necessary support. Their quick turnaround time in attending to our requests played a crucial role in keeping our business running smoothly. Whether it was technical support, maintenance, or any other requirement, they were always available and ready to assist.

Furthermore, their proactive approach to problem-solving is highly appreciated. They not only addressed our immediate needs but also provided valuable insights and suggestions to optimize our website stability, security, and performance. Their willingness to go the extra mile and offer suggestions for improvement showcased their commitment to our success and the growth of our business.

Overall, their project management was exemplary, characterized by timely delivery and responsive customer service. They consistently met our expectations, demonstrating their reliability and dedication to our business's success. Their attentiveness to our needs and proactive problem-solving approach made the collaboration a positive and productive experience. I highly recommend their services based on their project management capabilities and their commitment to customer satisfaction.

What was your primary form of communication with Cogent Commerce?

• Virtual Meeting
• Email or Messaging App

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

Cogent Commerce has a team of experienced Magento developers who are experts in all aspects of Magento development. They have a deep understanding of the Magento platform and they are able to develop custom Magento solutions that meet the specific needs of their clients. Cogent Commerce has a very good track records and history of providing Magento development, ongoing support, maintenance, and consulting services. 

They have worked with a wide range of clients, from small businesses to large enterprises, and they have a proven track record of success. Cogent Commerce team is flexible and willing to adapt to the needs of their clients business perspective. They are able to work with on a variety of requirements from small-large, complex projects. Cogent Commerce is cost-effective.

 They offer competitive pricing and they are able to provide their clients with high-quality Magento development, ongoing support, maintenance, and consulting services at a price that is affordable for their clients. Overall, I was very impressed with Cogent Commerce and I would highly recommend them to anyone who is looking for Magento development, ongoing support, maintenance, or consulting services.

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

Cogent Commerce could improve its customer service by Hiring more staff to handle customer inquiries and explore other technology stack to serve more area for e.g latest AI bots and etc and Providing better training for its customer service representatives. Also, Cogent Commerce's pricing is considered to be a little high on hourly contracts so I would say it would be great it they could improve its pricing by offering more competitive rates or providing discounts for long-term contracts

BACKGROUND

Introduce your business and what you do there.

I’m a director at a web design and digital marketing agency.

OPPORTUNITY / CHALLENGE

What challenge were you trying to address with Cogent Commerce?

We hired Cogent Commerce to help with backend web development through their coding, Magento, and custom website building experience.

SOLUTION

What was the scope of their involvement?

Cogent Commerce helps us build websites for our clients. In each project, we provide them with a user flow and wireframes. From there, the team develops the site according to our design. They’ve worked on many projects for us, including Magento and WordPress site builds. 

Additionally, we use them for a series of ad hoc tasks. We provide them with a brief, and they bring back the scope of work and a quote. For example, when a customer has an issue with the backend of their WordPress website, we put that task over to Cogent Commerce, and they fix it for us.

What is the team composition?

We work with three teammates from Cogent Commerce.

How did you come to work with Cogent Commerce?

We’ve been working with them for a long time on many projects.

How much have you invested with them?

We’ve spent around $20,000.

What is the status of this engagement?

We started working together around Q1 2020, and our partnership is ongoing.

RESULTS & FEEDBACK

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

Our measure of Cogent Commerce's success is that the projects are delivered within the agreed-upon timeframe. They've always been on time for both website builds and other tasks. For smaller projects, they always provide a timeline along with the scope and quote and consistently meet that deadline.

How did Cogent Commerce perform from a project management standpoint?

The team responds in really good time. Throughout our engagement, we've communicated through text messages, WhatsApp groups, and Google Meet.

What did you find most impressive about them?

Cogent Commerce's communication is fantastic. Moreover, they're always responsive and get the work done in good time.

Are there any areas they could improve?

None.

Any advice for potential customers?

My advice is to provide a detailed project brief. The more information you can give Cogent Commerce, the faster they can get a project done.

BACKGROUND

Introduce your business and what you do there.

I’m the e-commerce manager at ABC Depot, a company selling building supplies in the UK. We’re a medium-sized company with a website, two branches, and 50 employees. We have a £25 million (approximately $31 million USD) turnover a year and 47,000 items on our website.

OPPORTUNITY / CHALLENGE

What challenge were you trying to address with Cogent Commerce?

We needed help with website development and maintenance.

SOLUTION

What was the scope of their involvement?

Cogent Commerce has been in charge of our e-commerce website development and maintenance, and they’ve developed an API  for connecting our website to our ERP application. Additionally, they help us with Google Ads and SEO, which includes keyword research and blog content creation. 

Regarding e-commerce web development, Cogent Commerce handles every update. For example, if we need to improve the click-and-collect UX on the website, I go to them so that they can improve the process on the website. They also create pages and implement APIs as needed.

Due to the nature of our business, we can’t ship our products everywhere, so we always need to check our visitors’ postcodes first. Thus, Cogent Commerce helped us implement a feature on our website that automatically lets visitors outside of our delivery area know that we won’t be able to deliver.

Initially, Cogent Commerce built our website from scratch using Magento 2, but they’re now going to be helping us build a new one soon. This project will involve design and development, for which I will provide the content and images. They’ll also have to create an API for that website because it will also have to connect to our ERP.

What is the team composition?

I work with three people from Cogent Commerce.

How did you come to work with Cogent Commerce?

I joined this company in December 2021, and Cogent Commerce was already working for us. Still, I audited their services and saw that they had done a very good job. As I’m happy with their service, I chose them again for the new website project. We have a special agreement with them, and we have special priority.

How much have you invested with them?

We’ve spent over £75,000 (approximately $92,000 USD) so far.

What is the status of this engagement?

We started working with them three years ago, around late 2019, and our engagement is ongoing.

RESULTS & FEEDBACK

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

The conversion rate on our Google Ads is very good, especially for our industry. Our competitors usually get a 1% conversion rate, and we’re getting well over 1.5%, which is incredible to me and a credit to them. Our website is also very quick to load, and the UX is great.

As for our SEO, we’re on the first page of Google search results for many of our products, and we’re getting around 1 million impressions per month. Overall, I’m very happy with their services.

How did Cogent Commerce perform from a project management standpoint?

Cogent commerce always delivers on time; whenever I ask for something, they take a couple of days to develop and implement the solution. We use Skype and Zoho to communicate and manage the projects.

What did you find most impressive about them?

Cogent Commerce’s availability is impressive. I’ve worked with other development agencies in the past, and they usually take a few hours to reply and don’t finish their work on time. However, working with Cogent Commerce, we have priority and get first-class service, which is great. Furthermore, they understand our industry, what we’re selling, and what we want from them.

Are there any areas they could improve?

When it comes to optimization, everyone can do better, but we’re working together in this regard. Obviously, I want to achieve a 2% conversion rate and better website speed. Still, nothing comes to mind if I were to mention anything in particular to improve. They’ve been excellent overall.

Do you have any advice for potential customers?

Work with them and try to understand the development process so that you can be on the same page and speak the same language. Additionally, communicate with them properly to get your objectives clear and your questions answered.

BACKGROUND

Introduce your business and what you do there.

I’m the business development manager at Perfulex, a perfume and beauty products retail company.

OPPORTUNITY / CHALLENGE

What challenge were you trying to address with Cogent Commerce?

We needed someone to help with the further development of our website and mobile app.

SOLUTION

What was the scope of their involvement?

We had a website based on Magento 1, and Cogent Commerce helped us further build out the front- and backend. They implemented a new design on the frontend and made all of the required customizations using HTML and JavaScript. 

We also have a mobile version of our site in iOS and Android app form, but it is quite basic and web-view based. It’s not a native application, so the Cogent team is now further developing and customizing it. They’re in charge of the UI/UX design of the app as well.

What is the team composition?

I’ve communicated with three people from Cogent Commerce. I also had one main point of contact. 

How did you come to work with Cogent Commerce?

I searched for options through LinkedIn, found Cogent Commerce, and chose them. To this day, we’re still glad we went with them. 

How much have you invested with them?

We’ve invested $75,000.

What is the status of this engagement?

We began working together in June 2019, and it is ongoing.

RESULTS & FEEDBACK

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

We noticed that our business has increased by 20% annually, and this is because we were able to rely on Cogent Commerce for the complete development of our platforms. We no longer had to do many rounds of QA on our side. They were relatively fast, and their cost was reasonable.

How did Cogent Commerce perform from a project management standpoint?

The project management is good. They’re really good at making accurate timeline estimates and meeting deadlines, and we always agree on each project task. We communicate over Trello, Skype, and sometimes Zoom.

What did you find most impressive about them?

Their accuracy in implementing the requirements really stands out. 

Are there any areas they could improve?

They may need to have more developers to be able to implement faster.

Do you have any advice for potential customers?

If you’re clear about your requirements, everything else will be fast and accurate.

BACKGROUND

Introduce your business and what you do there.

I’m the director of SCAN, an IT retail company.

OPPORTUNITY / CHALLENGE

What challenge were you trying to address with Cogent Commerce?

We needed someone to provide us with web development and SEO.

SOLUTION

What was the scope of their involvement?

Cogent Commerce is essentially helping us with everything related to web development and online sales. They’re working to improve our site’s performance so we can provide our customers with a more convenient online shopping experience through the Magento 2 e-commerce platform.

Furthermore, they’re also optimizing our presence on Google, implementing a new payment gateway, and providing us with ongoing maintenance and support.

What is the team composition?

Our main point of contact is the web development lead who manages the entire project.

How did you come to work with Cogent Commerce?

We were researching for certified Magento 2 experts and came across Cogent Commerce through LinkedIn. I contacted them after knowing about their experience in the field.

How much have you invested with them?

So far, we’ve invested around $27,000.

What is the status of this engagement?

Our ongoing engagement started in April 2020.

RESULTS & FEEDBACK

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

Since partnering with Cogent Commerce, our sales have drastically increased which I attribute to the improvement of the website’s performance.

Moreover, we’ve seen a 1 million turnover increase in the past two years of working with their team.

How did Cogent Commerce perform from a project management standpoint?

We have a 2–3 hour time difference, but the project has been smooth and we haven’t really experienced any major issues. We mainly communicate through Skype and email.

What did you find most impressive about them?

The best part about working with them is their responsiveness and how quickly they’re able to implement solutions to our issues.

Are there any areas they could improve?

I can’t think of anything they could improve on.

Do you have any advice for potential customers?

I would definitely recommend working with Cogent Commerce because they can provide you with a full range of web development solutions.

BACKGROUND

Introduce your business and what you do there.

I’m the business development manager at Go Supps. We’re an e-commerce nutritional supplement company; we buy multiple products from the US and store them in our warehouse in Connecticut. We ship domestically and worldwide.

Currently, I’m in the regional office in Jordan. We have multiple offices around the world, and I manage the business development from the regional offices here.

OPPORTUNITY / CHALLENGE

What challenge were you trying to address with Cogent Commerce?

We already had our platform, and we needed a reliable company to develop our Magento backend.

SOLUTION

What was the scope of their involvement?

Cogent Commerce has managed and developed further extensions and functionalities for our website. They’ve also assisted us on frontend development and managed our AWS structure. 

For the fronted, they’ve worked on UX/UI. The backend includes all the customizations in terms of additional functionalities or even customizing the current extensions and modules that we have.

What is the team composition?

We have one main contact; he’s the manager of the whole team. We also work with two more people. The manager coordinates with them, but we sometimes communicate directly with others. Additionally, I’m sure that they have more team members that we don’t interact with.

How did you come to work with Cogent Commerce?

We’d been working with another company based in India. We noticed that their speed and accuracy were of lower quality. We searched on LinkedIn, Google, and all the other channels we had.

We found that Cogent Commerce could provide us with what we needed. We had a testing stage with them, and they were excellent, so we signed the contract with them.

How much have you invested in them?

So far, it’s around $50,000.

What is the status of this engagement?

We started working with them in January 2020, and our relationship is ongoing.

RESULTS & FEEDBACK

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

As a business development manager, I need to ensure that each requirement that we post is taken care of. The first thing we measure is the speed of development, and the other metric is accuracy.

We use a simple dashboard tool to post all requirements — we post all of the requirement details, like snapshots and images. From my side, I’m responsible for evaluating if something will be finished on time and supervising the QA process.

Additionally, we have to ensure that everything is done with a high level of accuracy. We can’t have any bugs or issues when running something on our development server. After the green light, we go to the live server to implement the same functionality.

How did Cogent Commerce perform from a project management standpoint?

They’re great. The team is swift and accurate. We use Trello as our project management tool, and we post all the requirements there. Our main communication tool is Skype; we use it to send messages and have calls.

What did you find most impressive about them?

The two main factors are that they’re very accurate and fast.

Are there any areas they could improve?

Maybe if they had more team members, they’d be able to go faster. They’re already fast, but it would be good to distribute the work amongst more employees for more complicated projects.

Do you have any advice for potential customers?

If you have clear requirements and communication, Cogent Commerce will take them and implement them skillfully. Also, they’ll deliver on time most of the time.

BACKGROUND

Please describe your company and position.

I am the Project Manager of Just Chaps

Describe what your company does in a single sentence.

Selling Equestrian products globally, at trade shows and online

OPPORTUNITY / CHALLENGE

What specific goals or objectives did you hire Cogent Commerce to accomplish?

• Update website design
• Improve user experience online
• Increase sales due to improved website

SOLUTION

How did you find Cogent Commerce?

Linked I

Why did you select Cogent Commerce over others?

• High ratings
• Pricing fit our budget

How many teammates from Cogent Commerce were assigned to this project?

1 Employee

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

We undertook a complete website design overhaul as part of the company’s 10 year anniversary using Magento 2.

RESULTS & FEEDBACK

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

Analytics report of the before and after website performance

Analytics report of the before and after website performance

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

We have continued to be impressed by Sanjays approach to the work he does for our company. The time difference and language difference are never a problem, he is solution focussed and very personable. They were passionate about wanting the best for our business and therefore we trust him now implicitly. He is extremely quick at responding and his knowledge seems to know no bounds!

What was your primary form of communication with Cogent Commerce?

• Virtual Meeting
• Email or Messaging App

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

The ability to operate across the globe. The virtual meetings have always worked very well, the language ability is very impressive

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

Perhaps a portfolio

BACKGROUND

Please describe your company and your position there.

I’m the Website/Marketing Executive of SCAN, an IT retail company and project manager

OPPORTUNITY / CHALLENGE

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

We needed someone to provide us with web development and SEO.

SOLUTION

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

We were researching for certified Magento 2 experts and came across Cogent Commerce through LinkedIn.

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

Cogent Commerce essentially assists us with all aspects of website building and online commerce. They're striving to increase the performance of our site so that we can deliver a more comfortable online shopping experience for our consumers using the Magento 2 e-commerce platform.

Additionally, they are enhancing our Google visibility, creating a new payment method, and providing continuous maintenance and support.

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

We only worked with one person from the team.

RESULTS & FEEDBACK

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

Since partnering with Cogent Commerce, our sales have drastically increased which we attribute to the improvement of the website’s performance.

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

The project has gone off without a hitch, and we haven't had any serious complications. Communication is excellent.

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

Working with them is the best because of their responsiveness and ability to apply answers to our problems fast.

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

I cannot think of anything major that needs improvement