Nexeo

BACKGROUND

Introduce your business and what you do there.

I am the co-founder of a company called Drop the Keez, a rental assistance company in Los Angeles that provides full management services for rental property owners to provide benefits to their guests. Their services include check-in and check-out assistance, cleaning services, premium linens, interior design, and live support during guest visits.

OPPORTUNITY / CHALLENGE

What challenge were you trying to address with Themis Web Technologies, Inc.?

I wanted to build a website for the company that I co-founded in early 2017. After that, I wanted to create a Logistics Platform to perform route optimization tasks as a separate project.

SOLUTION

What was the scope of their involvement?

They took care of every aspect of development for multiple projects. Stephan implemented a number of features including a responsive website, an administrative portal, GPS and OCR integration, and more. He used a variety of tools and languages to accomplish specific tasks, ranging from User-Interfacing to Optical Character Recognition and Geocoding. Stephan also provided web hosting services and provided technical support whenever needed. For the layout, we supplied Stephan with the desired artwork. 

What is the team composition?

Stephan is the owner and founder of Themis Web Technologies and is a one-man shop. He handles the entire development process and can handle any type of development project. We also hired a third-party graphic designer. 

How did you come to work with Themis Web Technologies, Inc.?

I met Stephan at a networking event. We stayed in touch and met up a couple of times. I was very impressed with his background and portfolio. After performing a standard background check, I gave him a simple website to create for my employer at the time. When our company was created, I hired him again to develop the website.

How much have you invested with them?

We spent around $10,000 for the first website, and approximately $8,000 on the Logistics project. His standard rate is about $85 per hour.

What is the status of this engagement?

We started working together in March 2017 and wrapped up our engagement in November of last year.

RESULTS & FEEDBACK

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

I worked with an outside marketing organization to promote my website, and they told me from the beginning that the SEO optimization of the website would be easy because of the cleanliness of the code. Because of the code organization and cleanliness, our company is visible on Google search results. This made our return on investment even higher than predicted.

How did Themis Web Technologies, Inc. perform from a project management standpoint?

Stephan’s work is exceptional and better than I expected. I had bad experiences with outsourced projects in the past, and since we are both in Los Angeles, I can stop by his office whenever I need to. His communication is very smooth and clear, and we primarily communicate through phone and email. Since we are only a few miles away from each other, we meet in-person often so there is no need for project management software.

He is very responsive no matter the time of day. I called him at 11:30 in the evening once when there was a problem with the website and he responded right away. He worked through the night to ensure that the website was live and running smoothly in the morning.

What did you find most impressive about them?

Stephan is an expert developer and is open to advancing his knowledge. For example, I was looking into developing another project on an alternate platform that Stephan did not have experience with. Since then, he has been learning about that platform.

Are there any areas they could improve?

I would only recommend that he hires more staff, which would allow me to give him more projects to complete.

Do you have any advice for future clients of theirs?

I recommend conducting market research and devising development plans before reaching out to Stephan. This way, the time spent with him is maximized, and he can provide all the technical aspects of the project up front.