Gomeeki

BACKGROUND

Introduce your business and what you do there.

The Brisbane Broncos is a professional rugby-league club in Australia. I am the chief commercial officer of the organization, overseeing sponsorships, marketing, ticketing, merchandise, and digital communications.

OPPORTUNITY / CHALLENGE

What challenge were you trying to address with Gomeeki?

Our team has a big digital footprint in Australian sport, in terms of our site traffic and numbers on Facebook and other social media outlets. But our direct value could be higher. We wanted a partner that could provide us with a fan-engagement app to give us direct contact with our members, as well as facilitate direct commercial opportunities.

SOLUTION

What was the scope of their involvement?

Gomeeki developed our iOS and Android app in its entirety. I determined the strategy and scope of the project, and our digital manager handled this side in more detail.

They helped figure out how our loyalty program could be linked to a points system. We wanted a social community on the app, allowing users to post comments and have access to a daily newsfeed.

The app features a loyalty scheme that rewards members for their interactions. They can buy tokens to unlock elements and receive points for purchases.

What is the team composition?

I worked with Shaun [CEO, Gomeeki].

How did you come to work with Gomeeki?

In Australia, the Brisbane Broncos is one of the biggest football teams. I had many companies approach me about digital work that could potentially make our club a lot of money. The NRL [National Rugby League] has rules about what we can and can’t do, and I’ve had meetings with different companies about how we could commercialize, see direct revenues from our numbers. I'd seen what Gomeeki had done for another club at a basic level. They had a model I believed in and considered to be the best way forward. We started to look at how we could work together and bring it to life.

What is the status of this engagement?

We started working with Gomeeki in June 2013. The app was launched in June 2017.

RESULTS & FEEDBACK

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

We learned a lot in the first six months after launching the app. The biggest thing we’ve gotten out of this is that some of the work and technology we’ve put together (including the loyalty system) is being considered by the NRL for their own app. There are other companies interested in buying what we’ve produced as well. From this point of view, it’s definitely been a success. We still have a great deal of work to do and are bringing in new clubs, thanks to the value it offers: having a link to fans and engagement on regular basis.

How did Gomeeki perform from a project management standpoint?

Unlike making a website or a generic app, we were building something that hadn’t existed before: a unique sports-engagement and loyalty program. Considering we weren’t making a cookie-cutter app, the management process has been very successful. Gomeeki is a professional team, and they put in a lot of time and resources to make sure we got the app to where we wanted it.

What did you find most impressive about them?

Shaun’s approach to things. He is the boss but remains involved in everything they're doing. We’ve gotten real ownership from their side, and they care about what’s being produced.

Are there any areas they could improve?

The digital world operates 24/7, and we constantly need new and exciting content, which requires staff. It's has been our biggest lesson from the process. It’s not really about Gomeeki, but rather a general consideration about how the digital world works.

BACKGROUND

Introduce your business and what you do there.

They've done work for two of my companies. One of them is an online food business known as Aussie Farmers Direct. We deliver fresh food to people's doors after they've ordered it on the internet. The other business is called Get Wines Direct. It sells wines and delivers it online.

OPPORTUNITY / CHALLENGE

What challenge were you trying to address with Gomeeki?

Shopping for groceries on an app is not an easy thing to do. The large SKU [stock keeping unit] range means it’s not a pleasant experience. I went to Gomeeki with the idea to create something completely different and they took on the challenge.

SOLUTION

What was the scope of their involvement?

I came up with the concepts and went to them with the idea. It's never been done before. We took the time to storyboard and sketch out how it would look. We wireframed it and worked out the key components of technology, a lot of which were around image compression and the ability to display things quickly for a good user experience. We made a full working mock-up without it leading into any of our backend systems to make sure we were happy.

We created the various API to link input, so they could supply the physical products and link their quantities. There's a link to allow payment processing.

The first version we did was all on iOS. I couldn't tell you about the backend algorithms that they used to drive the suggested selling components. They invented the graphics rendering tools themselves. They then re-coded it because they had built the first version 3 years previously. They reskinned it in Swift, and we did an Android version too.

What is the team dynamic?

I deal with Shaun Dobbin [Co-founder and CEO, Gomeeki]. My team dealt with others more who were also really good. I worked closely with their team based in Manila.

How did you come to work with Gomeeki?

I found them at an award's ceremony. We interviewed 5 different app companies that we put to tender. We had an internal team of about 14 people. I also own a software company in Denver, so we had a few options. 

However, their presentation was far above everybody else's. They understood and improved our concept and they had a solid plan to execute it. Their pricing was fairly reasonable; they weren't the cheapest, but they weren't the most expensive.

How much have you invested with them?

I've spent over $1 million.

What is the status of this engagement?

I've been working with them for 4 to 5 years.

RESULTS & FEEDBACK

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

The app's market size is up about 23% on the standard desktop or mobile experience.

How did Gomeeki perform from a project management standpoint?

They were excellent. We had biweekly calls to see where we were at. They used project management software so we could see all the items. They'd push it to us for testing and we'd push it back with any problems or issues. It was pretty seamless. They had a team working in 2 countries, we had a team working in 3 countries, so there were 5 countries involved.

What did you find most impressive about them?

They aren’t too big that they’ve lost that personal touch. There's a lot of teams out there that will come and show you their services without telling you if they can build it for you. You never meet the sales guys again, and they're the ones that made all the promises. They stood by the whole thing from start to finish to make sure it was done. 

He had many other clients that he was managing at the time, but there was nothing that was ever too small or too big. I could always ring them, and they'd answer the phone. Whenever we've had problems with the app, they've responded quickly, fixed it straight away or pushed an iOS update accordingly. They're just a very good company to work with.

Are there any areas they could improve?

They've been awesome to deal with, and that’s why I've had a relationship with them for over 5 years. I can't tell you anything they could improve on.