JustCoded

BACKGROUND

Introduce your business and what you do there.

I’m the business director at Effection, a small, independent digital studio based in London.

OPPORTUNITY / CHALLENGE

What challenge were you trying to address with JustCoded?

We were looking for a team to build the digital products that we were designing. The main help we needed was around web development.

SOLUTION

What was the scope of their involvement?

They helped with web development. In some instances, they were coming up with solutions for us as well. All the sites we did with them were WordPress sites. Most of the sites are simple: They’re not transactional websites.

We managed the website from our side in terms of the scoping, user experience, and user interface. Once it got into wireframes and positioning, we’d get JustCoded involved and get their thoughts and feedback. We handed them the wireframes and designs and they built it.

After that, we’d hand it to them for development in which they worked in sprints. We had some occasions with very tight deadlines. There was one instance where we had seven websites that all needed to be launched before Christmas.

What is the team composition?

There were a project manager and an account director.

How did you come to work with JustCoded?

Initially, we met their business director at a conference. She seemed incredibly knowledgeable about web building. We tested it with a couple of web projects and they were incredibly efficient. They are a very finely tuned business and are able to advise things that were out of our realms of knowledge. We initiated a really good relationship with the key members of that team. Due to the success of working with them, we ended up scaling up the work that we did.

How much have you invested with them?

We’ve invested $20,000-$30,000.

What is the status of this engagement?

We started working together in November 2017 until March 2019.

RESULTS & FEEDBACK

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

The quality of their work is really high. They’ve always delivered. They were excellent at helping us get projects launched in time and staying within budget.

How did JustCoded perform from a project management standpoint?

We had a great project manager who would inform us of each sprint. They’re incredibly efficient with timing. When they quote the project until delivery, they’re quite spot on. They make sure to stay in budget and give full reports. They communicate throughout the process. We work in Sketch and InVision. They were very good at checking in and making sure they were supporting us or allocating resources.

What did you find most impressive about them?

They manage their processes very well. They have such a good process in place that you feel very confident in the project and how they’re approaching it. They’re great at helping us if we need to quote early stages for a client before they’ve seen a wireframe. They can give us some guidance, which is quite important for us because we’re a small company. We share new business plans so they can see what’s in the pipeline.

Are there any areas they could improve?

After a project has gone live, there’s a lot of tweaking that goes on with a client. We need to respond to those for our clients quite quickly. Once a project was live with JustCoded, it was quite hard to get them booked. All of those tweaks then incurred more costs. That was our only challenge.

BACKGROUND

Please describe your company and your position there.

I am the Strategy & Marketing Director for a startup neuroexperience company in Singapore called Rebel & Soul. We have a proprietary neuroscience methodology that we apply to create memorable brand experiences.

OPPORTUNITY / CHALLENGE

For what projects/services did your company hire JustCoded?

We used JustCoded for the UX and design component for our website. Not only did we need an entirely new site, but we needed a new look & feel too!

What were your goals for this project?

We needed a new brand identity that stood out and a design that was simple, easy to use and educational from a users perspectives (as we were creating a new industry niche)

SOLUTION

How did you select this vendor?

We came across JustCoded after doing an extensive search both locally and globally. Dealing with JC was easy from a clients perspective - they use all the right tools and processes, and create a team and workflow whereby everyone is working on the project together.

Describe the project in detail.

Once we selected JustCoded, there were a series of discovery meetings whereby JC seeked to understand our brief in further detail as well as the strategy for the business. We

What was the team composition?

Web lead went through to Bus Dev Manager who was super helpful, knowledgable about JC the work they do and the process moving forward. Once I confirmed we wanted to move ahead I was assigned an Account Manager whom got all the documentation ready, and was also responsible for billings.

Once all documentation was approved, I was then passed over to the Project Manager who led the project. I had bi-weekly sprint calls with both the PM and Designer which was really time consuming, but super helpful to have everyone on the call. Meant the entire project moved quickly!

RESULTS & FEEDBACK

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

We are, for the first time, seeing lots of web leads coming through via contacts, credentials and whitepaper downloads. This is as a result of our new brand in market and external marketing efforts, but the new website was the catalyst for who we are out in market today. We're seeing lots of traction and intrigue around the 'neuroexperience' niche we have created.

How effective was the workflow between your team and theirs?

As mentioned above we caught up twice a week. The time difference was a little tricky to manoeuvre and meant I did extra long hours on the two days we caught up, but all in all is was a very efficient process and workflow.

What did you find most impressive about this company?

They helped us push our design boundaries by getting us to think differently. We were also impressed with the efficiency of their process and their knowledge of the industry/new tech/new design trends

Are there any areas for improvement?

The only area for improvement is sending over rough schedule (so I can manage internal stakeholders/diaries) and requirements more in advance. Upfront I felt I was constantly chasing for the information JC needed from us - as I wanted to ensure we had everything ready to go at kickoff. I Managing my time and requirements upfront. Unfortunately for me it was a lot of scrambling in the beginning to try and meet requirements and deadlines.

BACKGROUND

Introduce your business and what you do there.

The company I work for is called Paal15 and it’s a strategic marketing agency. My role within the company is as the creative director.

OPPORTUNITY / CHALLENGE

What challenge were you trying to address with JustCoded?

The last two projects we did with them were website development related, so we design complete web-based experiences and needed someone to develop the code to run everything.

SOLUTION

What was the scope of their involvement?

Our team develops the graphic design of all the pages and any elements that need to live on the website, such as custom animations or interactions that will occur there. We define those requirements, and then they develop that into working code.

We use Scratch for designing the websites and Principal for prototyping animations and they help us translate that into a workable WordPress website from both the front- and backend. They handle everything from making sure the website is responsive, to ensuring it functions on any kind of web browser or device the user might have.

What is the team composition?

I’m not sure how many developers from their site actually worked on the project, but we worked with one account manager and project manager. He was focused on ensuring overall timelines and scope, and the financing side of things. We were also involved with one project manager who is also quite knowledgeable on the development side as well, who we would talk with about actual details of the design and development.

How did you come to work with JustCoded?

We were searching for a new development partner and looked at a lot of agencies, but liked JustCoded in particular because of their presence in the financial technology space, which is one of our core audiences. We started talking and realized that they would be able to be both things for us, from both the web development perspective and also from a platform development and application perspective as well.

How much have you invested with them?

We’ve spent around €18,000 (approximately $20,200 USD) in total.

What is the status of this engagement?

We worked with them from February–June 2018.

RESULTS & FEEDBACK

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

From a technical perspective, there is a very good level of functionality and reliability in all the features they’ve added to the site. I think for us it was really important that they understood our vision of what we were trying to achieve. They did their job very well in that regard and really worked with us to try to bring that to life.

How did JustCoded perform from a project management standpoint?

It feels like they’re invested in the relationship and actually doing the work right, so they structure the whole process from start to finish in a way that really allows us to manage the project from our end and be confident that they would deliver. We had a call with our project manager twice a week and would communicate more frequently through email, Skype, and Google Sheets to make sure that all of our questions were being answered.

We had occasional moments where there was some lack of clarity in terms of delivery time and budget, but in the end, it worked out very well. They modified their development process to a more agile method during our work with them. That gave us a lot more flexibility in being able to adjust as we went, but it also cost a bit of clarity at times on when we would be done.

What did you find most impressive about them?

One of the things I appreciated was their commitment to focus on UX during development. They framed the whole project around trying to deliver better experiences and better best practices and were a lot of help in that regard. Rather than being handed the design, they tried to be as involved in the process to improve their understanding of what we wanted the site to be able to do in the end.

Are there any areas they could improve?

The only thing I’d like to see improve is for them to establish a clearer project timeline and budgeting process.

Do you have any advice for potential customers?

I would give the advice to ensure that the scope and all of those decisions have been completely finished before you start so that you don’t end up with any surprises down the line, both on your end and theirs.

UPDATED REVIEW

This review was updated by the client on January 14, 2020. The original star ratings were: Overall – 4, Quality – 4.5, Schedule – 3.5, Cost – 4, NPS – 5. New content is below:

RESULTS & FEEDBACK

How did JustCoded perform from a project management standpoint?

Based on their performance on our latest project, they’ve improved across several categories. They’re now more able to clearly communicate the schedule to us by keeping the timelines realistic. It’s easier to understand when something would be completed, which allows us to communicate and manage schedules with our clients, too. Some things were even done earlier than expected.

BACKGROUND

Please describe your company and your position there.

I’m the CEO of Squared Research Ltd., a capital markets research firm that provides news and analysis on currency, commodity, index, and stock markets. The team is composed of professional traders that deliver an analysis of market moves, the daily live coverage of US, European, and Asian markets, live trading signals, and other analysis using chart formations.

OPPORTUNITY / CHALLENGE

For what projects/services did your company hire JustCoded?

Jointly with ADSS Securities, an UAE-based investment back, we were creating a global web portal for financial instruments information, trading news, charts, indicators, and analysis.

What were your goals for this project?

The goal was to build an efficient web portal.

SOLUTION

How did you select this vendor?

ADSS Securities had several great past experiences with them, so they selected them for this project.

Describe the project and the services they provided in detail.

JustCoded created the interactive financial information portal with multiple sections and plug-ins. Our analysts use the portal to report every day on the latest changes in the currency, stock, and commodity market, providing timely technical analysis and a close examination of promising investment opportunities with live currency quotes.

What was the team composition?

JustCoded provided a project manager and a small team of developers that worked with our team and ADSS team.

RESULTS & FEEDBACK

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

JustCoded achieved our goal efficiently and in a timely fashion.

How was project management arranged and how effective was it?

The project manager efficiently scheduled and coordinated daily calls with our teams. Sometimes it was challenging because of the time differences between the involved parties, but everything went smoothly without any major issues.

What did you find most impressive about this company?

Thanks to the JustCoded team, we had a great project from beginning to end. The developers were on call to explain the technical aspects of the project and developments.

BACKGROUND

Introduce your business and what you do there.

Fuseideas is a marketing and advertising agency that does a variety of work for our clients. My title is engineering director. I lead the engineering team that builds websites and other technical projects.

OPPORTUNITY / CHALLENGE

What challenge were you trying to address with JustCoded?

We needed assistance with frontend development on a big project. It was a large amount of work, and we didn’t have enough staff or time to go through a hiring process for more developers. After a lengthy vetting process, we hired JustCoded to complete HTML, JavaScript, and CSS work for the frontend of the site.

SOLUTION

What was the scope of their involvement?

After discussing the specifications and the task at hand, we provided JustCoded with the designs and details. We frequently talked to make sure that they understood everything that was needed. They would take the design and turn it into HTML, implementing JavaScript and CSS where needed.

Following that, we integrated their work into the CMS to get it working with our backend functionalities. Whenever we needed more work, we would pass it back to them, describing what we needed for the JavaScript or CSS aspect. They would make those changes before moving on to the next element. There were about 20 different templates that had different activities with various images and videos. They also performed some QA work and testing towards the end of the project.

What is the team composition?

Sabina (Business Development Manager, JustCoded) was our initial contact, and Vadim (Account Manager, JustCoded) was our project manager. Two developers changed at various times due to their availability.

How did you come to work with JustCoded?

JustCoded sent emails that advertised their services, which we kept and ended up going back to. After getting in touch with them, we tested them out, viewed their skills on their company website, and asked for samples of previous work. They seemed skilled in what we were looking for.

What is the status of this engagement?

We worked together between March 2018–2019.

RESULTS & FEEDBACK

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

I was satisfied with the work JustCoded completed. The client was even happier. The site launched on time, and we’re currently in maintenance mode. We’ve taken over on the frontend side now that the heavy work is done. We certainly didn’t stop working with JustCoded because of anything negative; we didn’t need their labor anymore.

The results were excellent. The JavaScript code was quite complicated and suitable. The designs were also great. If we come across another similar project, we would have no problem working with JustCoded again.

How did JustCoded perform from a project management standpoint?

JustCoded did a fantastic job of communicating with us. Vadim was proactive, keeping us in the know over any contract renewals, holidays, or vacation time. Sabina was prompt in setting up meetings. She was always willing to get on the phone and talk at any time.

I’m based in Europe, so I’m used to not communicating with native English speakers. But for people in our Boston office, it’s not something they regularly deal with. Sabina lived in the US for a period of time, so communicating with her was seamless. Everybody understood what was expected from both sides of the deal. They were simply easy to get along with.

What did you find most impressive about them?

It’s nice that some of them are more design-oriented whereas others are more JavaScript-oriented. Their team works together seamlessly, automating the entire process. They also got along well with our development team. Unfortunately, a number of times the client decided to change aspects of the project and work had to be scrapped. Sometimes people get frustrated at redoing their work, but their team was open. JustCoded rolled with the punches, working hard to deliver their best work.

There were times when we were waiting on approval for certain pieces of work. Instead of sitting around, their team would let us know that they would be finished with a task and needed something else to work on. They were proactive about making sure work was getting done. They didn’t sit around and get paid for nothing.  

Are there any areas they could improve?

JustCoded is a smaller company with a lot of other work to do, so I understand that this happens. But we had a great set of guys in the beginning that ended up changing and were put on another project. The continuity was a bit troublesome. New developers had to learn and get comfortable, which may have slowed down the process, even though the work was still delivered quickly.

If we were to go back and work with them on another project, I would stipulate ahead of time that we would work with the same people throughout the project. I believe that produces higher quality work and processes.

Do you have any advice for potential customers?

Be open to communication. Sometimes it’s difficult when you’re not sitting in an office and can’t walk over to their desk and relate what you need. JustCoded is a distance away from us, and even farther from our team in Boston. You have to get on the phone rather than assuming somebody understands what they need to do. Make sure they truly understand. That’s a general guideline I would recommend to anybody who is working with a consultant or anyone externally.

BACKGROUND

Please describe your company and your position there.

I’m the head of digital customer experience for a shared workspace real estate company. We’re home to one of the most creative, exciting, and forward-thinking working communities in the UK.

OPPORTUNITY / CHALLENGE

For what projects/services did your company hire JustCoded?

JustCoded assisted in developing, migrating, and implementing a new WordPress site. They also helped extend the multi-siting and multi-language capability of our CMS as well as launching a regional landing page.

What were your goals for this project?

The project had a drop-dead deadline, and we needed to carry out the work during the Christmas season. Also, the solution had to work seamlessly with the existing website and database, and it needed to work with a less-than-perfect codebase.

SOLUTION

How did you select this vendor?

We have been working with JustCoded for several years now, and the professionalism and care that they’ve put into their work have been outstanding. JustCoded is definitely a partner to do repeat business with.

Describe the project and the services they provided in detail.

They created a responsive design for our new website, provided multi-language and multi-region support, and further developed our CMS.

What was the team composition?

I liaised with Uliana (Project Manager, JustCoded) but am unsure how many developers were allocated to the project.

RESULTS & FEEDBACK

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

They delivered the project on time for launch.

How was project management arranged and how effective was it?

Uliana was exceptionally good at coordinating the project, providing accurate estimates and delivering the work without requiring tons of documentation. The balance between asking for clarification and working independently was perfect. When the development team had questions, they would reach out through Uliana.

What did you find most impressive about this company?

I was impressed by their quality and speed.

Are there any areas for improvement?

No, I can't think of any.

BACKGROUND

Introduce your business and what you do there.

I’m one of the co-founders of a business, design, and go-to-market agency, working especially with tech companies.

OPPORTUNITY / CHALLENGE

What challenge were you trying to address with JustCoded?

We’ve worked with them on several projects, ranging from websites, web apps and mobile apps to some bigger projects. One of those involved developing a platform to service a couple of our customers. It allows them to identify and asses their risks and to see how they can assign project management tasks to relevant stakeholders and monitor their progress.

SOLUTION

What was the scope of their involvement?

We provided them with some basic ideas, wireframes, and definitions of everything we wanted them to do, and they helped with translating and optimizing them into a more user-friendly flow and interface. They gave us good suggestions, which we discussed and considered how to design the platform in a way that delivered our goals with the best experience. Their help in designing the look and functionality was invaluable.

What is the team composition?

We worked with the CEO in the beginning to get the rough outlines for the project and then with someone who managed the project. Two others helped us with wireframing, user flows, and parts of the project management. Finally, a couple of other members gave us information about the organizational and finance side, including the scope, time logs, and the start and end of sprints. There were 5–7 people in total.

How did you come to work with JustCoded?

One of my co-founders was introduced to their CEO, based on a reference from someone that has worked with them before. We engaged with them for this project because of the good experiences we’d had with smaller projects in the past, and because we’ve developed a good relationship with the CEO.

How much have you invested with them?

We spent around $100,000.

What is the status of this engagement?

This project ran from May 2018–March 2019. We’re currently working with them on several other website-related projects.

RESULTS & FEEDBACK

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

They helped us improve the quality of our end product. I can't measure it in terms of the number of visitors or better performance, but they added to the quality compared to what we initially came up with.

How did JustCoded perform from a project management standpoint?

They’re flexible and try to find solutions for whatever problems we run into during such a project. They provide us with options and the pros and cons of each so that we can make a decision. The team is nice, friendly, and informal. They might have used project management tools internally, but we received overviews in the form of Excel or Google spreadsheets.

What did you find most impressive about them?

I really liked their mindset—they're always thinking of opportunities for how they can help us, going outside of the box. I’m impressed by their management team at the C level, who are always looking for new business opportunities. They’re open to feedback, manage expectations upfront, and sell their product as a solution that includes everything we need.

Are there any areas they could improve?

No, I have nothing negative to say.

Do you have any advice for future clients of theirs?

No, I can't name anything specific.

BACKGROUND

Introduce your business and what you do there.

I’m the founder of Creative Debuts. We sell and rent artwork from emerging artists. We also do corporate projects by commissioning artists through our rental system.

OPPORTUNITY / CHALLENGE

What challenge were you trying to address with JustCoded?

We wanted to have a platform where artists could create free portfolios of their work. Additionally, we wanted the platform to function as an online marketplace. Lacking the technical expertise to complete the project ourselves, we needed an experienced development firm to build the website.

SOLUTION

What was the scope of their involvement?

JustCoded built out our platform using WordPress. Another firm worked with us on the website’s design elements, but JustCoded supported that process as well. However, their primary responsibilities involved the construction and implementation of code. They created an efficient online shopping portal using WooCommerce. That integration enables artists to upload their work and run a personalized store of sorts. That feature is optional, so users can just use our site to host their portfolio if they’re so inclined.

Overall, the platform is all about user-generated content. Artists get to upload that work, show off their talents, and connect with other art aficionados. That kind of networking allows artists to meet new clients as well. We’re a bridge between our artist community and opportunity.

What is the team composition?

Their project manager acted as our primary point of contact.

How did you come to work with JustCoded?

We hired a third-party provider that subcontracted JustCoded to build our website. However, that provider was unorganized and removed themselves from the engagement reasonably quickly. JustCoded was committed to delivering what they promised, so we ended up working with them directly. It was quite a rollercoaster experience.

How much have you invested with them?

We spent around £50,000 (approximately $64,000 USD).

What is the status of this engagement?

This project took place from August 2016–January 2017.

RESULTS & FEEDBACK

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

JustCoded delivered a presentable, modern, and intuitive platform. The new website is live, and it’s definitely a step in the right direction for us. We’re proud of the platform and are confident it will serve as a foundation for future developments. We’re always looking to increase web traffic or the number of artwork uploads, but this project was more focused on moving our brand forward. JustCoded helped us get to a point that sets us up for growth. We measured their success by the platform’s functionality.

How did JustCoded perform from a project management standpoint?

Their ability to communicate and establish project timelines was adequate, but could likely be improved. They’d provide outlines whenever we wanted something changed, but those could’ve been delivered faster. Considering how the previous agency left the project, I can’t hold much against JustCoded.

What did you find most impressive about them?

What did you find most impressive about them?

JustCoded has the experience and work ethic to build things properly. Other developers and engineers have looked at our website and ensured me that it’s structurally sound. The previous agency left the project in shambles, but JustCoded did what they could salvage what we’d put into it. They were considerate of our situation and handled everything immaculately.

Are there any areas they could improve?

The website could have a more efficient user journey, but that oversight is primarily due to the previous agency’s proclivity to miscommunicate.

Do you have any advice for potential customers?

Communicating project expectations from the onset will help eliminate challenges further down the road.

BACKGROUND

Please describe your company and your position there.

I’m the production and operations manager for a full-service web strategy, architecture, and design company.

OPPORTUNITY / CHALLENGE

For what projects/services did your company hire JustCoded?

We hired them to help us complete the frontend development for a project with a very aggressive schedule.

What were your goals for this project?

Our project had to be executed within a short timeframe, so we needed a team that could commit to our schedule. We also take development seriously. We needed to work with a company that met our standards for clean, well-formatted code and web accessibility.

SOLUTION

How did you select this vendor?

We got a recommendation from a former employee. After our initial phone calls, we were impressed by the team at JustCoded. They were very amenable to following our accessibility and coding standards.

Can you go into detail about the services they provided and the scope of the project?

They built about a dozen frontend templates for us, some of which required a fair amount of JavaScript. They also oversaw the management of the project and performed the QA testing.

What was the team composition?

We worked with a project manager, two front-end developers, and one QA analyst.

RESULTS & FEEDBACK

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

Their work allowed us to meet our commitment to our client. They kept up with our aggressive timeline, delivering clean code that met all our standards. Additionally, because their hourly rate is lower than hours, we were able to complete the project within its allotted budget.

How was project management arranged and how effective was it?

Their project manager was delightful to work with. He kept us in the loop, communicated often, and really seemed to enjoy the project.

What did you find most impressive about this company?

This is the first overseas contractor we’ve worked with that communicated well, asked great questions, and delivered excellent work. They were also pleasant and fun to work with, which was a nice bonus. I’d definitely work with them again or recommend them to others.

Are there any areas where they can improve?

We had to work with them on ensuring that we had enough time for back-and-forth during the QA process.

BACKGROUND

Please describe your company and your position there.

I’m the CEO of Kobo Funds, an online investment network that runs a digital platform connecting talent to capital. We assist companies with capital raising and corporate finance utilizing a worldwide network of executives.

OPPORTUNITY / CHALLENGE

For what projects/services did your company hire JustCoded?

We needed to develop a new platform using Difitek’s APIs (a cloud-based back office for online investing and leading).

What were your goals for this project?

We wanted to build a new web environment connected to our existing system.

SOLUTION

How did you select this vendor?

They were recommended to us by Difitek for their knowledge of Difitek’s APIs.

Can you go into detail about the services they provided and the scope of the project?

They managed and executed the entire process, from functional design and development to product release. They adapted Difitek’s infrastructure to fit our hybrid Fintech-professional network environment and enabled it to interface with our website via open authorization (OAuth).

What was the team composition?

We worked with a project manager, a web developer, and a QA resource.

RESULTS & FEEDBACK

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

We successfully launched our new platform.

How was project management arranged and how effective was it?

We worked through a single point of contact but the CEO was always available if we needed to solve a highly complex issue.

What did you find most impressive about this company?

The reliability of the code post-release is outstanding.

Are there any areas where they can improve?

They could expand their graphic design capabilities.