Embacy

BACKGROUND

Please describe your company and your position there.

Reload is a Berlin-based company that produces zero-emission LCVs. In the company, I am responsible for business development.

OPPORTUNITY / CHALLENGE

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

We needed a website that would reflect our values and the essence of our product. We wanted to simply and understandably tell clients about our innovative technologies and show the result of our work.

SOLUTION

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

My friends told me about Embacy. When I looked at their work at Behance, I immediately understood why these guys were recommended to me. In each work, I saw clean skill, attention to detail and creativity where it was appropriate. It wasn't just design for design. No frills or embellishments, only an original idea that conveys the essence of the product and helps it stand out. This is exactly what our company needed, so we agreed to work with Embacy.

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

We started our collaboration with a detailed filling of the brief. Then I discussed the concept of our brand several times with the project manager. Based on this information, the guys from Embacy have developed several visions. We chose the best one in our opinion and slightly modified it. The team moved from page to page, paying particular attention to copywriting and detail. The whole process took four weekly sprints. Two more weeks took the website layout on Webflow and after that we got access. No, I would say otherwise. Together with access to the website, we got a great result!

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

Throughout our collaboration, I talked with five members of the team (COO, business developer, project manager, account manager and designer). They were young, energetic and very professional guys who worked smoothly together and at a fast pace. I didn't notice any contradictions between them, it was really great teamwork!

RESULTS & FEEDBACK

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

We got an excellent result! This is a website made on time and without any problems.

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

I was extremely pleased with the workflow. Perhaps, I have not yet met a more transparent system for working with an agency. I must say that their sprint system is very effective. Every morning we called and discussed progress and my comments, and in the evening I received mail about what was done in a day. Even if I didn't like something, the next day I already saw all the fixes and even more. Sometimes it seemed to me that these guys were sitting with me in the same office, our communication was so close. This is really valuable in our day!

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

An incredibly clear and structured framework combined with creativity at such a high speed. It's amazing how quickly these guys came up with really worthwhile ideas!

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

Perhaps I would advise the team to slow down the workflow a bit so the client can keep up with them.

BACKGROUND

Please describe your company and your position there.

Ledger is a Saas platform that offers a single tool to better connect everyone on your team and simplify their work. I am the founder and CEO.

OPPORTUNITY / CHALLENGE

For what projects/services did your company hire Embacy?

Branding, web design, and software re-design. We needed to articulate the core concept of the platform and with it the overall aesthetic and design.

SOLUTION

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

We went through proposals from a few different agencies before settling on Embacy. We discovered Embacy from our search on Webflow. After reviewing their website and understanding their approach, using sprints and focusing on content, we felt like they were a very natural fit for our needs. The approach was never rushed or about getting the deal, everything felt very comfortable. 

Describe the project in detail and walk through the stages of the project.

We started with the branding concepts and web design. Embacy works in sprints, so each week has a dedicated goal. It's a great way of working, as you can stay aligned very easily and the goal posts are always in sight. The first few iterations of the design were rendered within a few days, and we then refined the look and tone until we settled on a concept that felt right. We went through about 4-6 concepts, and then they worked on the website itself and all the content and pages.

The logo was developed in tandem, along with our brandbook, business cards, etc. Once the website was completed, and each page refined, they then developed it on Webflow and handed the keys to us. The website and it's use of iilustrations turned out so good we decided to hire them to re-skin our entire platform. That was about 3-4 sprints, and the process was very similar to the web design. Excellent collaboration and communication the entire time, zooms daily, they worked around my schedule, truly a wonderful experience.

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

Probably about ten, from project managers to designers and developers. Everyone was always up to speed on the project and could speak articulately about it.

RESULTS & FEEDBACK

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

The website and branding project were so succesful we hired them to redesign our entire platform. 

How effective was the workflow between your team and theirs?

100%. I feel like Embacy and their team took the time to really understand the project from the inside out, and took the genesis of the brand and executed it flawlessly. I honestly could not have asked for a better experience.  

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

Their communication and their execution. They were more detail-oriented than any other agency I had ever worked with. They were always refining and tweaking until they feel the design is perfect, they're literally on auto-pilot at times, it's exceptional quality. 

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

None.

BACKGROUND

Please describe your company and your position there.

We are an Accelerator and Industry Network for decentralized financial protocols and their ecosystems.

OPPORTUNITY / CHALLENGE

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

We had a terribly ugly website and needed to revamp it. Upon hiring a web designer, we realized that we first needed a rebranding. Embacy came in and worked quickly to fill this gap.

SOLUTION

How did you select this vendor?

We searched online using various branding company aggregators. Embacy had branded a company we liked. When they pitched, they showed us a process using Figma that was transparent and live. We liked the process they used previously and wanted to go through it with them.

Describe the scope of their work in detail, including any steps and the final deliverables.

They interviewed me and my colleague about our brand. We setup key words and ideas. We then received 3 different visions and selected one which the majority of our team liked. However, we did not like the illustration style at all, and asked Embacy to offer us varieties of choices regarding the illustration style.

Embacy worked with us, taking our feedback along the way while still pushing back and ensuring that a quality creative vision was produced.

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

We met with 3 people from the vendor team. A project manager, a sales representative and a senior creative.

RESULTS & FEEDBACK

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

We have received excellent feedback from our community regarding the brand. It is usable and being used.

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

They work in sprints with clear objectives. They work in Figma as a tool.

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

We liked that the company used an online design tool that allowed us to follow their progress at every step of the way.

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

We were ill equipped to think of our brand through pairs of adjectives, which was the process they proposed. Ultimately, we knew what kind of visual feel we wanted, but we did not know how to express it. I suspect Embacy could use a different, perhaps more visual way of explaining the decisions we were making early on.

BACKGROUND

Please describe your company and your position there.

Director at an Energy Technology Company

OPPORTUNITY / CHALLENGE

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

Website design. Create a company website to give prospective customers additional information about products and services, as well as to communicate brand strengths.

SOLUTION

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

We selected Embacy because of its award-winning track record and its open, sprint development format.

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

The project encompassed a seven-week sprint designed on Figma and then ported to Webflow. It culminated in the development of a high quality website with a home, about, 3 product pages, careers, and two other periphery pages.

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

The Embacy team consisted of a dedicated project lead aided by 2-3 front-end designers.

RESULTS & FEEDBACK

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

We are delighted by the outcome of the website and consider the project a success. The development process was very much a collaborative process, which ensured our team could build towards its exact preference. Our company has already received a strong, positive response from its target audience and beyond.

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

It's very effective. Check-ins are conducted daily which assists in reviewing the previous day's progress and reaching consensus on the best path forward for the day.

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

Efficiency. Embacy was able to develop a good product with speed. One can watch the designers at work, in real time. There is a short turnaround time between conceptualisation and design delivery.

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

Embacy does a fantastic job so there is not much to be critical of. Nevertheless, it could potentially streamline its handover/transfer process by setting up a systematic sign-off/acceptance procedure.

BACKGROUND

Please describe your company and your position there.

I'm the planning director of Digital Whiskey, a specialist B2B advertising agency that serves the Professional Services sector. I take responsibility for research, media insights, and product development. As part of my role, I also oversee much of our online presence.

OPPORTUNITY / CHALLENGE

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

We wanted to move our site from a WordPress platform that was inappropriate for our needs to Webflow. As part of this process, we needed a rapid redesign and visual guidelines to reflect changes in our business. We're a small, busy agency, and we didn't have time (or budget) for a huge project. We needed results quickly.

SOLUTION

How did you select Embacy and what were the deciding factors?

We had seen Embacy's portfolio of Webflow sites, and felt there was a potential match. We liked their rapid, iterative approach. During the design process, we'd have project meetings each morning, followed by daily updates on Figma.

It's a very intense, hands-on process that would allow us to get designs agreed in a very short period. Costs were also important; we felt that Embacy could help us keep these under control.

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

We had a single point-of-contact with Embacy; in turn, they had a single POC/decision maker with us.

RESULTS & FEEDBACK

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

We are very satisfied with the output of the project

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

Figma -- 2 weeks' collaborative design process Meetings were conducted over Google Meet, and recorded for the team. We had a single point-of-contact with Embacy; in turn, they had a single POC/decision maker with us.

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

We were impressed with their intensive design and development process.

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

We had hoped there would be a more sophisticated approach to animation. We're still not 100% satisfied with colour & typography decisions.

BACKGROUND

Please describe your company and your position there.

I am co-founder and CEO of  a fintech startup based in London, UK. We digitise investment legal entities. For example, if you'd like to pull capital for an acquisition, whether investing in a startup, investing in biotech, buying a house, anything really, you can go on our platform and you can create these containers completely digitally.

Which is a user experience competing against the traditional way, where you would have to go see a lawyer and that's just the beginning of it, and overall it's complex, expensive, and most people that would need to use these entities are not doing it.

OPPORTUNITY / CHALLENGE

For what projects/services did your company hire Embacy?

The main task of the first project was to completely redo our website, move away from the color scheme, and the assets that we had, a complete rebranding. After that we were redesigning our platform – the dashboard for the sponsors of the deals and investors participating.

What were your goals for this project?

It wasn't an easy one, because in our team we have a sort of consumer product philosophy, where we want things to look simple, beautiful, and pure, but at the same time, we're mainly a B2B business (we sell to consumers as well, but mostly work with investment managers, like venture capital firms, hedge funds, etc).

So it still needs to look serious, and that's one of the complexities, that it needs to be great, and not boring, but not too funky either, you can imagine how hard it is to work with all that as a designer. And the other complexity was that what we do is quite complex, and we use a lot of metaphors to describe it.

But using just metaphors is too much, at some point you have to tell people what you really do. Essentially, the goal was to balance out all these things and create a website at the perfect intersection of consumer product and enterprise product. As for the interface part of the project we had a difficult task of rethinking the architecture of our system and general UX logic of interacting with our platform.

Only after that we could proceed to create the UI look and feel that would be professional, clear and quite simple that also had to resemble the style we developed during our website project. This required close cooperation between and Embacy team since we were basically rethinking our product in the process.

There were also little things like presentations creation and some additional presentations and illustrations.

SOLUTION

How did you select Embacy?

We've initially met with Anton on LinkedIn, and from there we had a look at Embacy's portfolio on Behance. We were really, really impressed: it was all very metaphorical and really beautiful, you could see how much attention to detail went into it, it was just great.

There are a lot of design agencies in London, and we've got personally introduced to a lot of them. I think people generally prefer to work with who they've met in person, but we've decided to put our faith in the portfolio, and essentially, went with someone we've met online. And it turned out just great.

Describe the project in detail.

I gave quite a bit of detail in an earlier question.

What was the team composition?

I've worked with the project manager Sofya, don't know the size of the team on Embacy's side.

RESULTS & FEEDBACK

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

In general, the main thing is we're all happy with it. Well, not everyone was happy with it, which can also be a good thing. If you release your design or something new and everyone just says, "oh, it's nice", "it's okay", no one is ever going to remember it. Because it's just okay.

A great design needs to be the sort that people love or hate. Well, I shouldn't speak of hate, stakeholders are very measured people. We are a very professional service and we have a website on a black background that looks very futuristic, and some people are just, "that's a little bit too much for me".

But overall we were really happy with the result, and we had a lot of good feedback on it, and some bad as well. But to me, it means that you're holding onto something great.

In regards to the UI/UX work that has been done, not all results we made with Embacy are going into production, but what we got from it is a solid base we can work off. We already started to implement the results and scale the design system in our development of dashboard update.

How effective was the workflow between your team and theirs?

It was great. There was friction sometimes, but mostly because I wasn't super available and I would turn up late sometimes for the status calls. As a CEO, I have quite a few things to do.

I think if we had a full-time product design person or product manager on our team, everything would've been a lot smoother, but otherwise, the workflow was great. I liked the way you could look in Figma and see the evolution of things, and sometimes you see something and want to revert to a previous option, and it was easy to do. It was great.

What did you find most impressive about this company?

Pure skill. The team is just very talented. From the illustrations to the overall design, the team was just very talented.

Are there any areas for improvement?

It happened a few times, that after something that we've requested, the first design was completely off what we had wanted. It's just hard to transcribe the image you have in your mind and you arrive with something quite different. I think it's just part of the design process that the first draft is never going to be exactly like what you had in mind.

BACKGROUND

Please describe your company and your position there.

I work in an Ed-tech company SkyEng, one of the largest IT-companies in CIS. I’m Head of Employee Service.

OPPORTUNITY / CHALLENGE

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

We hired Embacy to do many projects. The biggest ones were our internal corporate portal’s interface and our external HR portal where we post vacancies and other HR-related information. We also purchased additional services to expand these design systems like e-mail templates, department-specific website and assessment interface.

SOLUTION

How did you select Embacy and what were the deciding factors?

I saw them on Behance and I fell in love! I was fascinated with their approach their work and what it results in. When we got in touch I really enjoyed our communication and after our first project I decided to stick with them.

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

The first one was our HR platform and identity. There we’ve done a websites with several pages and illustrations and we needed it developed quickly so Embacy also built it on webflow for us. It’s very easy to support and we use it till this day. The other big one was our dashboard which we had just a couple of weeks to create.

Embacy did a great job of presenting all functionality and information needed there. We’ve done many screens for several screen ratios. It was an awesome job for such short period of time.

There were too many other ones that I won’t go in too much detail with. Embacy helped out with a variety of tasks: a detailed GUI for our internal system, some landing pages, some extra work with additions to our dashboards and many more.

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

There were several teams I was working with but there was always a designer booked just for my projects and focus on them only.

There was always a project manager, all of the project managers I worked with were always updating me and what’s going on and processed my feedback. And then there were illustrators who made awesome images for both the website and dashboard which we like a lot.

RESULTS & FEEDBACK

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

I can share the end result by following the link https://skyeng.team/

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

The communication was very effective, especially with all of those daily updates. I’m usually pretty busy and the little time I had to discuss project details with Embacy PMs was time well spent and I got what I wanted in the end.

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

The process is what impressed me the most. It’s very effective and design oriented. I had a task I needed to solve ASAP and Embacy did everything in their prover to help and do everything right

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

I can’t name any. Good job, guys!

BACKGROUND

Please describe your company and your position there.

Heartcore is a VC firm and I'm an analyst at Heartcore.

OPPORTUNITY / CHALLENGE

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

We've hired Embacy for the project of rebuilding our website and tweaking the brand and brand assets. The goal of the project was to refresh our brand and website, cementing our position as Europe's consumer-only VC

SOLUTION

How did you select Embacy and what were the deciding factors?

We've run a methodic hiring process and Embacy stood out as the most thoughtful, creative, and understanding agency. We didn't doubt their development capabilities, we had confidence in that. Plus, the different examples of their work on Behance made us believe that they are creative and that they could adapt to different clients.

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

The project was about building a website and brand assets (like business cards and social media headers) that would best tell the world that we're a European consumer-only VC firm

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

On our end, I ran the selection process. Then Yacine, the partner at Heartcore, did the daily check-ins with Karina, the project manager. They were talking on a daily basis, recalibrating every day depending on what was done the day before and what was coming up.

RESULTS & FEEDBACK

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

It's unfortunately too early to share the outcomes of the project because the website isn't live yet. Even if not live, we're very happy about the website mockup and Embacy have captured the essence of our brand in their design.

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

The workflow was great, the daily check-ins were demanding, but the communication was very fluid and on a daily basis, so there wasn't any work going nowhere. And it was great to have a listening team on the other end, who understood even when ideas weren't converging.

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

The most impressive about Embacy was the listening capabilities coupled with high creativity. That is kind of rare.

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

The extra materials were not as high quality as the website, they must've been done with more urgency. Also, if something won't work on Webflow, it would be nice to know it before we get far into the project.

It seems sometimes we've talked about different options only to find out later that they wouldn't work on Webflow. It would be good to know beforehand.

BACKGROUND

Please describe your company and your position there.

I'm the product manager at Deutsch Online, the largest German language online school in Europe.

OPPORTUNITY / CHALLENGE

For what projects/services did your company hire Embacy?

We've hired Embacy to develop the new identity for the school and to design the showcasing website deutschonline.ru.

What were your goals for this project?

It was important to develop an identity for the school that would stand out among the competitors. It was important that the identity would be flexible and could be easily used in different mediums: social media, our website, YouTube thumbnails, presentations, etc.

We wanted a consistent recognizable style at every point where our students and potential clients would interact with the brand.

SOLUTION

How did you select Embacy?

We've looked over a lot of design agencies (over 200), and met over 20. We've picked Embacy because during our meeting we recognized their expertise. It was important for us to work with professionals, who we could trust in design. Also, Embacy had great cases in the educational sphere.

Describe the project in detail.

The project took 5 sprints (weeks): 1 week to develop the identity, 4 weeks to design the website. At the initial stage, we would meet every day, give comments, and make adjustments.

During the work on the website the first week was spent on the main page, the other three — the rest of the content for the website, adapting to different formats. After the project was finished, there were about two weeks for other adjustments that were previously missed.

What was the team composition?

We've worked with Embacy's project manager Daniel E.

RESULTS & FEEDBACK

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

We've started to use the identity developed by Embacy on our social media and YouTube, which has improved engagement. The accounts have reshaped. We've got positive reviews from our students and noticed a rise in our analytics. Can't speak for the website at the moment, it is not live yet.

How effective was the workflow between your team and theirs?

We've liked their sprint system and the speed at which the project moved very much. Daily check-ins — the perfect rhythm for our team, we always knew exactly what was going on in the project and could quickly react to any change.

What did you find most impressive about this company?

We were particularly impressed by the speed. And we really like that we could rely on their team for the design. The manager helped us provide well thought-out comments and not lose sight of the business goals for the project.

Are there any areas for improvement?

For the improvements, we could note that we wish the team worked on their copywriting skills (we had to put additional work on numerous texts after the project ended).

And there were complications with a big amount of small changes: we've had a big project with a number of pages and in different formats, we had to note the changes on every page at every level. And we wish that the team paid more attention to the mobile version.

BACKGROUND

Please describe your company and your position there.

Simla is a tool for e-commerce and retail. We help people set up line sales in online stores and even offline. It's a B2B SaaS product. I'm the design director at Simla.

OPPORTUNITY / CHALLENGE

For what projects/services did your company hire Embacy?

We've approached Embacy to make a new identity for our product and the visual language for our positioning so we could start on the international level.

What were your goals for this project?

To make a new identity for our product, and we were also interested in Embacy's Webflow expertise. We wanted to try a new tool for our web positioning, make a community, make a/b tests, attract developers, etc.

SOLUTION

How did you select Embacy?

We needed a company that had a great deal of experience with international projects, and that could walk the thin line between sophisticated "festival design" and regular working products that thousands of people use every day.

Describe the project in detail.

We had regular productive calls on the positioning. A well built, consolidated, competently set up managerial process. We could work in comfort. In Figma, we quickly saw different options and directions for us to pick. We got what we had asked for, and then were also presented with more options to pick from. Just generally a competently set up agency process.

What was the team composition?

Sofya Narbut was the project manager from Embacy's side. Everything was on time, quick reactions, good attention to detail. The art director Elisey had good vision and high skills. And the founder of the agency, Vadim Orlov.

A powerful presence, justifies the agency's reputation. Very responsive and very flexible. Don't usually meet people this flexible, but I could say that about everyone at Embacy. Good reactions to feedback, the whole team is very responsive.

RESULTS & FEEDBACK

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

We can't say anything, as we haven't launched yet. But we can confidently start with this solid base that we've got.

How effective was the workflow between your team and theirs?

Art direction coming from both sides could make or break a project. Here it was mutually beneficial to have different angles, different points of view. I could openly air my disagreements, and they could quickly make corrections. It was very effective.

What did you find most impressive about this company?

The responsiveness, the degree of involvement, the painstaking approach. The wish to always match their self-imposed high standard of quality. Managed to make high-quality work in a limited time.

Are there any areas for improvement?

Already told everything personally to Vadim, so I don't want to repeat myself. But it was more in the format of finer details, whatever small things I could think of at the time.