Goldfish Code

BACKGROUND

Please describe your company and your position there.

I am the founder of Tech for America, a nonprofit political organization dedicated to using technology to boost voter participation.

OPPORTUNITY / CHALLENGE

For what projects/services did your company hire Goldfish Code?

Goldfish Code built a mobile app for iOS and Android that assists users with the voting process.

What were your goals for this project?

My goal was to get an app live on the App Store and Google Play Store before the 2018 midterm election. I wanted to learn how well such an app would work to boost voter participation. Goldfish accomplished my desired objectives, meeting the target deadlines on time.

SOLUTION

How did you select this vendor?

I requested bids from about 5 vendors from UpWork, all of whom had stellar ratings. Goldfish Code was head and shoulders above the rest because:

1. it offered a fixed price for the project that was lower than all of the other bids and
2. the conversation I had with Bryan showed me how strategically he thinks about the business problem, not just the technical implementation. None of the other vendors offered the same level of strategic problem-solving capability.

Describe the project in detail.

The project was to build from scratch a mobile app that tracks a user's progress from registering to vote, requesting a mail-in ballot, and submitting the ballot. At each step, the app provides resources to complete the step and sends reminders to the user with increasing frequency as each deadline approaches.

What was the team composition?

My main point of contact was Bryan Farris, who served as project manager. We also worked with a designer early on to design the logo and some other graphics for the app.

RESULTS & FEEDBACK

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

We got a 4.4-star rating on the app store and generated significant interest from civic organizations working on voter registration.

How effective was the workflow between your team and theirs?

We had a very effective workflow - Bryan would reply to emails or phone calls very promptly.

What did you find most impressive about this company?

The strategic guidance I got from Goldfish was outstanding. I felt like they were co-founders - helping to shape my vision of what my company could become and thinking through the tactics of how to achieve those goals. I never expected to get that level of deep strategic advice from a development shop.

Are there any areas for improvement?

No need for improvement. I just hope they are able to keep up with the demand for their services, since I expect many others like me will be lining up to use them.

BACKGROUND

Introduce your business and what you do there.

I run a brewery in Charlotte, North Carolina called Protagonist, and I’ve got two co-founders along with me.

OPPORTUNITY / CHALLENGE

What challenge were you trying to address with Goldfish Code?

We wanted to build an app to serve our members that would allow people to track the beers that they like and engage with the community in terms of reviews, tasting notes, levels, and things like that.

SOLUTION

What was the scope of their involvement?

Goldfish was our development partner for the entirety of the project, helping us to wireframe the initial design as well as developing the app from there. They built it on React to be available cross-platform with both iOS and Android, and they used Python for the backend.

What is the team composition?

We interacted directly with Brian (Founder, Goldfish Code), Nancy (Project Manager, Goldfish Code), and Pat (Lead Developer, Goldfish Code), and they had an outsourced team of developers working under them as well.

How did you come to work with Goldfish Code?

I believe we found them on an online job board through a bid to our project posting. Their team and project history seemed like a good fit, so we decided to go with them.

How much have you invested with them?

I believe we’ve spent about $50,000 in total so far.

What is the status of this engagement?

We’ve approached the development process in a few discrete stages, including launching and testing an MVP, but the process first started around April 2019 and is still ongoing.

RESULTS & FEEDBACK

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

Since the app is very much still in the testing stages, most of the user feedback has been regarding features our customers would like to see added, but we’ve had virtually no negative input whatsoever.

The app has no bugs or usability problems, and it’s fully instrumented in terms of the cloud integration, account management, and exception handling. We also have a good level of visibility into the analytics of the app and backend, so I don’t anticipate finding any problems there.

How did Goldfish Code perform from a project management standpoint?

They do a great job with project management. I always feel up to date on the work and can reach them anytime I have questions or issues that need to be dealt with.

What did you find most impressive about them?

They do a really good job of sticking within scope, budget, and deadlines, which are three qualities that are remarkably rare among development companies. Just having that kind of consistency in expectations with a vendor is incredibly beneficial to our relationship as a whole.

Are there any areas they could improve?

I really don’t think there’s anything they should do better, I’ve been completely satisfied with their work so far.

Do you have any advice for potential customers?

I think our project benefited from the fact that we came in with a really well defined scope for the project. Their team is definitely good with workshopping ideas as well, but in terms of efficiency, having discrete goals in place to work towards will go a long way to help keep the project on track.

BACKGROUND

Introduce your business and what you do there.

I'm one of the co-founders of an innovation lab that builds products and provides strategic services to clients. These can involve building products like iOS apps or hardware or even just providing design, UX, or business strategy advice. We also internally develop our own products and things of that nature.

OPPORTUNITY / CHALLENGE

What challenge were you trying to address with Goldfish Code?

We hired them to do some software engineering. We work with a number of partners for different projects and Goldfish was one of the ones we hired to help us in building an iOS application.

SOLUTION

What was the scope of their involvement?

They did some of the engineering, actually building out the app and helping us test it and deploy it. They also did some infrastructure work like helping us set up the cloud backend.

We do all the design in-house, including the screens, assets, and graphics, as well as the product behind it. We handle defining how the product's features work. Goldfish just did the execution and engineering part of it. They were given all the assets and asked to do the development.

After they helped us with the initial app, they helped us build our website. It was a WordPress website but the development probably is almost all custom JavaScript. It's your typical JavaScript, CSS, HTML world. They're also going to be helping us with our internal product development.

What is the team composition?

I understand their team is actually a lot larger, but I interacted with four people on a consistent basis. Nancy is their project manager, and Brian (Founder & CEO, Goldfish Code) is their salesperson. Pat (Founder & CTO, Goldfish Code) is their lead technical resource and my main point of contact. He and I worked very closely to make sure everything was being built in accordance with what we wanted and that the infrastructure was working. Nancy would help sometimes in project management-oriented work.

How did you come to work with Goldfish Code?

We found them through our network and I scoped out their LinkedIn profile. I also noticed that they were listed on Upwork. They work with a number of labs at MIT, my alma mater, and I was able to look at the projects they worked on. That helped me decide they had the skill set necessary for this project.

How much have you invested with them?

We've spent around $70,000–$80,000.

What is the status of this engagement?

We’ve been working together since May 2019.

RESULTS & FEEDBACK

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

We think of success in broad terms. The way it's worked so far is we ask ourselves: "Are we happy with the output?" We tend to work pretty well together in the sense that we clearly define what we're looking for in the beginning so there are no real surprises at the end.

Sometimes there are bugs or breakages in software, but Goldfish does a pretty good job of fixing those. If we use metrics like satisfaction score or getting the product done on time, I would say it's been pretty successful so far.

How did Goldfish Code perform from a project management standpoint?

It's hard to say how they do across the board. We’re a startup so we're fairly hands-on, and when we hire a partner, they don't work in a black box. We think of all our partners as team members. There hasn't been too much needed from their side in terms of project management because we like to do it ourselves, assigning work when we can and figuring out who should be doing what. But, in the cases where their project manager has been involved, they’ve been helpful.

What did you find most impressive about them?

They're very dedicated to doing good work and they're very smart and easy to work with. You get someone very eager to do the job right. For all those reasons, we've been working together for just over six months, so there's a lot of trust on both sides. When they come back to us with an estimate, there's almost never a negotiation because we trust them to be fair and to get the job done right. If there's a bug or something, we know they'll fix it.

We've worked with other development agencies before who haven't worked out so well. We had a different company do our website last year, and they did really badly. Everything was late, and they didn't seem knowledgeable about how to do things to the point where we had to find solutions for them. It seemed like we were putting more time in it than they were. In this situation with Goldfish, they know what they're doing. We've worked together to figure out some of the problems but I don't worry that they're not going to get their work done.

Are there any areas they could improve?

This is a hard question because we knew they had the skillset to do the things we hired them to do and they are really good partners. If I had to pick something, the only thing I can think of is being more transparent about the tools they use to do PM work, so we can integrate better their workflow.

BACKGROUND

Introduce your business and what you do there.

I’m the founder and CEO of a camera-based group messaging app. It helps people organize plans with their friends.

OPPORTUNITY / CHALLENGE

What challenge were you trying to address with Goldfish Code?

I had been working with a few engineers that I’d recruited to the project and wanted to accelerate the process, so I hired Goldfish Code to support the full-stack development. We needed some help getting us across the finish line and I wanted to have one company responsible for piecing all the different parts of the project together.

SOLUTION

What was the scope of their involvement?

Their team helped with various programming and development tasks to get us up to speed with the Android platform. Everything was architected, but I needed help connecting the APIs on the front- and backend. 

The frontend was written in React Native with Segment SDK to plug-in different analytics. Amazon Simple Notification Service (SNS) and Branch Metrics were used to power the initial user acquisition strategy to share with friends that didn’t have the app yet. 

We used Microservices Architecture on the backend, which is hosted on AWS. The entire platform runs on Javascript, so everything is in Docker containers and our social graph database runs with Neo4j. We also use Hydra as a lightweight, open-sourced library.  

Their team put all of these different pieces together, ensured they communicated correctly, tested and performed QA on it, and published it.

What is the team composition?

Bryan (Founder & CEO, Goldfish Code) was our point person and around four people supported him. Depending on the task, different people worked on the project. Between 1–2 engineers worked on the backend and 2–3 had worked on the frontend. 

How did you come to work with Goldfish Code?

Initially, I was never looking to spend money and was networking with engineers who wanted to work on the project as a side job. Someone I recruited for the project mentioned having worked with Goldfish Code in the past and introduced them to me. After meeting with them, I realized I was ready to spend money and use their services to get us across the finish line with the product. 

How much have you invested with them?

I spent between $30,000–$35,000 on their services. 

What is the status of this engagement?

We worked together from July–October 2018. 

RESULTS & FEEDBACK

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

Overall, they were incredible to work with. So far, I’ve been able to use the product to interview design schools and gather user feedback. Unfortunately, I’m still waiting on a patent for the platform, so we haven’t reached those next steps of selling or going further with the product. 

How did Goldfish Code perform from a project management standpoint?

Working with them was exactly what I wanted because I was able to embed them into our team and my CTO was able to interact with them a lot. This connection was really important because of how involved my CTO was in the entire process of setting up the APIs and servers. Whenever something didn’t go according to plan, like an issue with an animation, there was always someone enthusiastic to help free of charge. 

Everything ran seamlessly. It only took a few weeks to handle the back and forth about operational needs, but then Goldfish Code was off to the races. There was a list dedicated to the tasks we had scoped out for them and they got feedback from the CTO on the different needs of the project. We communicated through Slack every day and they had a clear understanding of our needs. They chipped away at the work week after week and welcomed our feedback.

What did you find most impressive about them?

Working with them to turn this idea into a reality was really refreshing. I’d been trying to get this product across the finish line, so it was amazing to interact with them and get the project done. They were very startup-friendly, helping us build a product from an idea. They might work with bigger companies, but they were easy to work with at our size. 

Unlike other companies looking to make money, this team was different and actually listened to our challenges. I appreciated that they advised us and help prioritize different stages of the project, strategizing the best way to get the work completed. 

Are there any areas they could improve?

No, there’s nothing they could have done better. Although I fell short on achieving the true potential of the product and am stuck at a crossroads, they still went above and beyond for the project. If I couldn’t hire a full-time team in the future, I would definitely use Goldfish Code again.

Do you have any advice for potential customers?

I supplied them with a very specific set of tasks, so I’m not sure if it’d be the same experience going into it blindly. Giving them task-based assignments made them easy to work with and they delivered within the timeframe. 

Go in knowing what you’re looking for, agree on the rate and hours, and determine what the buffer for your project is. If you run into a bump, they’ll know what to do in that situation if you have good communication upfront and you won’t be disappointed.

BACKGROUND

Introduce your business and what you do there.

I’m the owner of Trade-In Tech, a B2B wholesale platform. We work with verified consumer electronics wholesalers, retailers, and distributors to connect them with clients globally.

OPPORTUNITY / CHALLENGE

What challenge were you trying to address with Goldfish Code?

We hired Goldfish Code to design and manage part of our platform, but we ended up using them for the entire development of the project.

SOLUTION

What was the scope of their involvement?

Goldfish Code designed and developed our web-based platform. They also built our mobile app for iOS and Android devices. They used Kubernetes and custom-built our platform. 

Within it, Goldfish Code built several features to enable users to communicate, use the integrated marketplace, and process payments. They created the subscription-based programs on our site, along with the chat rooms, profiles, directories, and blogs. Their team is responsible for email marketing and analytics work as well. 

What is the team composition?

Around 10 people in total have worked with us, but I communicate with three people mainly. 

How did you come to work with Goldfish Code?

We vetted quite a few companies through Upwork. Goldfish Code has a great reputation, so we chose them.

How much have you invested with them?

We’ve spent between $30,000–$40,000. 

What is the status of this engagement?

We started working together in March 2019 and our engagement is ongoing. We’ve wrapped up all the current tasks, but we have future development needs lined up with them. 

RESULTS & FEEDBACK

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

Every single deliverable has been immaculate. All of the tasks we’ve asked them to do have been accomplished and done well, which is the most important thing. They help our company be much more efficient, allowing us to expand.

How did Goldfish Code perform from a project management standpoint?

Their communication level is unheard of in their industry—I’ve never met a group of developers with better social skills than Goldfish Code. They’re efficient and the communication between every teammate is very easy. They also provide reports and updates about their progress, so I’m always notified about any issues and changes. Everything has been organized and maintained well.  

What did you find most impressive about them?

It’s hard to find a team as reliable, consistent, and dedicated to their work as Goldfish Code is. They’re able to scale with us, too. For example, within the first few days of launching we brought on nearly 500 members and they were able to handle that process with us. They expand their support, which is exactly what we need. 

Are there any areas they could improve?

I have no complaints with them at all since they’re doing very well. However, all developers in the industry need continuous improvement when it comes to quality control since no code will ever be perfect. In general, though, they’ve always met the highest standards. 

Do you have any advice for potential customers?

Giving them video explanations instead of text documentation made a huge difference for us. It’s more accurate, efficient, and answers more questions. Every teammate working with them needs to be upfront, too. Don’t just say you need a mobile app, give them clarity about the features and tools. 

BACKGROUND

Introduce your business and what you do there.

I'm the VP of marketing at a data operations platform. We help businesses scale their insights and revenue through automated workflows and quick experimentation. We also worked together in my previous role as a senior product marketing manager at Microsoft.

OPPORTUNITY / CHALLENGE

What challenge were you trying to address with Goldfish Code?

We needed to outsource development and design services.

SOLUTION

What was the scope of their involvement?

In my previous role at Microsoft, they helped me build an internal FinTech product tool for enterprise sellers to be able to identify the most important FinTechs. They also helped me build a sales navigator tool, with fast, high quality engineering work.

In my current role, they help more on the design side and create some of our design experiences with Adobe.

What is the team composition?

I've worked with their extended team, which included my main point of contact and two of their partners.

How did you come to work with Goldfish Code?

I found them online three years ago. I interviewed them and we had a really great call. They were really patient with our procurement processes at Microsoft, and we decided to move forward from there.

What is the status of this engagement?

We began working together in 2017, and our engagement is ongoing.

RESULTS & FEEDBACK

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

I appreciate how they're able to work at the corporate level, down to the startup level as well. In my previous role, how they impacted the sales team was very impressive, and the feedback was always positive. In my current role, we've enjoyed a high level of success at the events we've been at, which is how we measure Goldfish's impact.

How did Goldfish Code perform from a project management standpoint?

Project management is one of their greatest strengths. They make everything super lightweight and easy to communicate. They also have a very fast turnaround. Even if it's just touching base, they really excel from other providers.

What did you find most impressive about them?

They're genuinely invested in our success. Oftentimes, with other vendors, you see that they start strong, and over time the quality drops. I've always seen Goldfish's team prioritize quality and hold themselves to a higher standard, which is rare.

Are there any areas they could improve?

I don't think there's anything with me they should improve on.

Do you have any advice for potential customers?

With any vendor, you have to be clear about what you need, what your branding is like, and the internal expectations of your company. It's important to have a clear vision of what you want so the vendor can hit that target. I don't think having a perfect delivery is the goal, it's more having a vendor you can communicate with.

BACKGROUND

Introduce your business and what you do there.

I run a mobile auto glass replacement company that has multiple locations in many cities.

OPPORTUNITY / CHALLENGE

What challenge were you trying to address with Goldfish Code?

When we change windshields, we have to fill out pre- and post-inspection forms. We needed their help to create an online, electronic method of completing these forms.

SOLUTION

What was the scope of their involvement?

They developed digital pre- and post-installation inspection forms for internal use, creating the solution in the form of an app. Taking my vision from scratch, they constructed an iOS and Android version of the product.

I wasn’t sure what was possible, so we worked together to figure out the most efficient process of creating the result we wanted. At this point, both versions are completed and launched. Even now, he is still providing edits as technology becomes more and more important in my industry. We’ll continue to need to improve both apps.

What is the team composition?

There were a total of four team members working on the development work.

How did you come to work with Goldfish Code?

I discovered them on UpWork and hired them based on their profile.

How much have you invested with them?

We spent just under $20,000 with them.

What is the status of this engagement?

Starting out in June 2018, we wrapped everything up in November 2019.

RESULTS & FEEDBACK

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

As we developed the app, I contributed edits and suggestions. He would adjust his work and send me a working prototype. They helped me with a lot of ideas that improved the quality of the app in the end. The work quality was great, and they fixed bugs effectively as they came up. 

How did Goldfish Code perform from a project management standpoint?

It was collaborative from start to finish. They mitigated harm from the errors and issues I created. The team made excellent recommendations as we proceeded through the development of the app. They truly educated me and guided me in the process.

What did you find most impressive about them?

This is my first time working with a tech partner, and his team was there for me throughout the effort. Their responsiveness to texts, calls, and emails was very impressive. Even if I needed help with something on a Sunday evening, they were able to provide assistance. I was sold on the quality of their services from the start.

Are there any areas they could improve?

I can’t think of anything because they were key in showing me what was and wasn’t possible in the development. They supported us from start to finish.

Do you have any advice for potential customers?

I should’ve been more forthcoming with the exact look and feel of what I wanted. If you’re going to work together, put all of your ideas out there from the start. I wish I would’ve done more of that early on.

BACKGROUND

Introduce your business and what you do there.

I’m the president of Keyport, Inc. We create streamlined access solutions for the modern lifestyle, including consolidating keys, pocket tools, smart tech, and other features into one device.

OPPORTUNITY / CHALLENGE

What challenge were you trying to address with Goldfish Code?

We hired Goldfish Code to build a mobile app that integrates smart tech into our devices. For this, we’re creating a small Bluetooth module that works with our existing devices to connected various tools.

SOLUTION

What was the scope of their involvement?

Goldfish Code is building our app for iOS and Android, creating it from scratch. They used our initial directives to produce the designs. From there, we’ve created the rest of the screens and gave them to Goldfish Code to code.  

What is the team composition?

Brian (Founder & CEO, Goldfish Code) and Pat (Founder & CTO, Goldfish Code) work with us. We have one project manager along with a team of 2–3 in Vietnam who support us.  

How much have you invested with them?

We’ve spent over $40,000, so far. 

What is the status of this engagement?

We started working together in July 2019 and our engagement is ongoing.

RESULTS & FEEDBACK

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

We haven’t released the app to the public yet, but things have gone very well in beta testing. They’ve also been meeting our budget and quality needs, too. 

How did Goldfish Code perform from a project management standpoint?

They’ve been great at managing the project—communication between our teams has been excellent and they’re responsive to our needs. Whenever issues arise, which they inevitably do in large projects, they’re good at working with us to find a solution. We work in an agile methodology. 

What did you find most impressive about them?

Their ability to solve problems in a rational way and find solutions that work for everyone is great. They also offer a great level of communication. 

Are there any areas they could improve?

There’s nothing specific I can think of; we’re very happy with them. They should continue to do what they’re doing and we hope to use them for maintenance of the app, too. 

Do you have any advice for potential customers?

The more prep you do the better. If you provide details, they can be more effective at their job. Getting the most work done upfront to finalize the idea will help them stay on target and on budget.

BACKGROUND

Introduce your business and what you do there.

I'm the founder of Kingmaker Data, a political campaign management platform offering data-driven voter targeting, analytics, and volunteer mobilization tools to help conservative and nonpartisan campaigns optimize strategy and maximize electoral impact.

OPPORTUNITY / CHALLENGE

What challenge were you trying to address with Goldfish Code?

We needed help building our web and mobile platforms.

SOLUTION

What was the scope of their involvement?

Goldfish Code has built our web and mobile platforms for iOS and Android. The team has also provided ongoing support and maintenance. The web-based dashboard and mobile apps have been launched in 15 states.

What is the team composition?

We work with 5 or so teammates from Goldfish Code.

How did you come to work with Goldfish Code?

We worked with them previously.

What is the status of this engagement?

We started working with them in January 2022, and our engagement is ongoing.

RESULTS & FEEDBACK

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

Goldfish Code has brought our ideas to life. The team has launched a new mobile app and made expansive system-wide upgrades.

How did Goldfish Code perform from a project management standpoint?

Goldfish Code delivers on time. We communicate via email and messaging apps.

What did you find most impressive about them?

Goldfish Code takes the time to get the project right.

Are there any areas they could improve?

I don't think there's anything they can improve on.

BACKGROUND

Introduce your business and what you do there.

I’m the owner of a company that develops tools to streamline the corporate income tax workflow.

OPPORTUNITY / CHALLENGE

What specific goals or objectives did you hire Goldfish Code to accomplish for TAXplanations?

We needed to build a next-generation corporate tax application.

SOLUTION

Can you describe the scope of work Goldfish Code handled for your corporate income tax workflow tool?

Goldfish Code has built an end-to-end application from user and client management to a complex calculation framework that helps companies determine the tax outcome of changes in the corporate structure arising from mergers and acquisitions (M&A) or internal reorganizations. The team has handled everything from login to reporting in Word and PowerPoint.

What is the team composition?

We’ve worked with an unknown number of teammates from Goldfish Code.

How did you come to work with Goldfish Code?

We found them on Upwork. We chose them over other options because they had high ratings, their pricing fit our budget, and they were a great culture fit.

What is the status of this engagement?

We started working with them in March 2019, and our engagement is ongoing.

RESULTS & FEEDBACK

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

Each sprint has demonstrated significant software capabilities. We’ve seen improvements in workflow efficiency and accuracy metrics, including more than a 50% reduction in time to produce deliverables and significant improvements in accuracy.

How did Goldfish Code perform from a project management standpoint?

Goldfish Code has delivered on time and within budget. We primarily communicate via email and messaging apps.

What did you find most impressive or unique about them?

They really “get it” and are committed to hitting deadlines and delivering value. Overall, they’ve been excellent.

Are there any areas they could improve?

No.