PhD Labs

BACKGROUND

Introduce your business and what you do there.

I’m a crop advisor for a fertilizer and pesticide application and distribution company. Our pest control advisors look for pests and pathogens in crops, and I analyze soil and plant tissue samples to determine crop fertilizer requirements.

OPPORTUNITY / CHALLENGE

What challenge were you trying to address with PhD Labs?

We wanted to design a mobile app to support our fertilizer business.

SOLUTION

What was the scope of their involvement?

We only worked on the design phase of the app, with PhD Labs using InVision to share about 40–50 mockups of the different screens that would be included in the app if we went forward with the development. We’re able to see the design to review the flow of the app and what we want in each section and on each page. The app would allow our growers to have a digital version of their fertilizer plan and to record how well they stick to the plan.

What is the team composition?

We worked with three people.

How did you come to work with PhD Labs?

We reviewed numerous companies and found PhD Labs to be the best fit.

How much have you invested with them?

We spent $35,000.

What is the status of this engagement?

The project lasted from October 2018–January 2019.

RESULTS & FEEDBACK

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

We presented the prototype to our board of directors, and they gave positive feedback. They think it’ll be extremely useful to our growers.

How did PhD Labs perform from a project management standpoint?

They had an efficient team that listened to what we wanted and took time to understand how the app could address some of our challenges. We worked together to clarify some of the concepts and translate them into useful mobile app features.

What did you find most impressive about them?

They had an efficient workflow and answered all of our questions and concerns. The prototypes slides were of high quality and met our needs. They had a professional attitude towards the development and turned our idea into a reality that will launch our business forward. We collaborated well, and the people at their company made the partnership enjoyable. They were efficient and had good communication, making more slides than what we agreed upon

Are there any areas they could improve?

They’re expensive, but they exceeded expectations.

Do you have any advice for future clients of theirs?

Know what you want them to accomplish. The clearer you can be, the more efficient the process will be.

BACKGROUND

Introduce your business and what you do there.

I'm the founder of a nonprofit mobile app startup.

OPPORTUNITY / CHALLENGE

What challenge were you trying to address with Phd Labs?

I reached out to Phd Labs to design and develop a clickable prototype of my app.

SOLUTION

What was the scope of their involvement?

Phd Labs helped me with the design phase of my app, creating a prototype that consists of Sketch files imported into InVision. The final deliverable does not consist of any code, but rather serves as a clickable prototype. I may also work with them to develop the app itself in time.

What is the team composition? 

I worked with three people, including Robert (Founder, Phd Labs), a project manager, and a designer. 

How did you come to work with Phd Labs?

I asked fellow members of the Co-Founders Network for recommendations. Initially, I was looking for a developer to build the app itself, but after some initial conversations with Robert and others, I realized I needed to start smaller. I was very impressed by the way Phd Labs presented their ideas and the fact that previous customers had rave reviews about their work.

How much have you invested with them?

The project cost about $10,000.

What is the status of this engagement?

They worked on the prototype from December 2018–January 2019.

RESULTS & FEEDBACK

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

I'm very happy with the custom prototype Phd Labs created overall. I've received a lot of positive feedback through initial user testing, which is my biggest indicator of success thus far. 

How did Phd Labs perform from a project management standpoint?

They performed very well. They were clear in communications, receptive to my feedback and good about setting expectations for a first-time founder of a startup, educating me about the process throughout the engagement. 

What did you find most impressive about them?

Unlike other vendors who generally offered to create the prototype using an existing template, Phd Labs was able to provide a more creative, customized version. They were also very quick to turn around deliverables and provided a lot of helpful feedback. 

Are there any areas they could improve?

Although I appreciated that they didn't require me to complete strict assignments before getting started, a little more preparatory work with me could've reduced some friction since it was my first time working on a project like this. 

Do you have any advice for potential customers?

Be clear about what you want, but also open to suggestions because they can offer a lot of interesting design ideas and expertise. 

BACKGROUND

We are a cloud services and digital media company offering several consumer and business applications. My role is senior product manager for the corporate application we offer.

OPPORTUNITY / CHALLENGE

We needed PhD Labs to provide a fresh UI [user interface] design for part of the corporate application. We wanted the end customers to have something that was easy to use and attractive.

SOLUTION

PhD Labs was hired to create a new look and feel for our application and provide the HTML code for the redesign as well. So, there was a major development aspect to the engagement as well.

Other services included in this project were the delivery of responsive UI designs and HTML code to service our tablet user customers. PhD provided mockups for all redesign screens and all of the corresponding HTML code.

RESULTS & FEEDBACK

My team is very satisfied with the work and end product from PhD Labs. They have a solid UI/UX [user experience] team that brings innovative ideas to the table and delivers on promises and expectations. I particularly like how the PhD team builds on your initial concepts and creates an open dialogue to ensure that you are part of the process.

My only small critique involves project schedule. They were generally on time but did deliver a few elements a week or two past the deadline. These delayed items didn't impact the success of the project.

BACKGROUND

Introduce your business and what you do there.

I’m the president of a software company. We’re the creators of Heyoo, which is in development right now for its second version. I’ve come up with a new concept for life organization and created a product that is a social type of calendar. We’ve eliminated email, and it runs almost like Facebook. You can look up anyone in the world and invite them to calendar and plan schedules. We’ve incorporated a new feature, which I can’t talk about until it’s released, but it’s going to revolutionize the way people look at calendaring. PhD Labs has been an important part in making this happen for us.

OPPORTUNITY / CHALLENGE

What challenge were you trying to address with PhD Labs?

We needed a team to take over the development. We already had our prototype built for version 2, but I was looking for a team that was strong in iOS and Android and able to get us to market a little faster. I ran into snags with our other development team, as they were slower and couldn’t pull it off as well as I needed. PhD Labs was pretty strong, and they’ve just been phenomenal in timelines for us.

SOLUTION

What was the scope of their involvement?

We haven’t had anything crazy when it comes to the technical portion. When we were filing the round of non-provisional patents, the development team was able to speak to my patent attorneys, give input, and look at our draft before we finalized. On the technical side, PhD Labs understands the technology of what I’m trying to accomplish. They were able to dive right in without many questions and start development.

The team at PhD Labs provided UX design, backend, and frontend development. Our backend developer was the one who really expedited the project by getting it all done quickly, so our frontend iOS guy could jump on and start coding. It went very smoothly.

How did you come to work with PhD Labs?

I found them by researching on the internet. I needed someone local, in Orange County, California. I didn’t want to go out of state, and I definitely didn’t want to go overseas. I interviewed four development companies, and PhD Labs was the one that ticked all the boxes. They’re local, and they have the team size I needed. They were able to start the project as soon as I needed, and the cost was right. It’s been a very good experience with them.

How much have you invested with PhD Labs?

We’re paying in stages as the project goes on, and it’ll be anywhere from $200,000 to $235,000. We’ve paid $150,000 so far.

What is the status of this engagement?

We had our kickoff meeting at the end of December 2016. I met with PhD Labs a couple of times before that to go over the vision, walk through the prototype, and finalize screens. Their development team started work on the 2nd or 3rd week of January, and they’ve got probably more than half of the software done already, which is phenomenal. We’re doing an iOS and Android version of the app first, and then we might add a web portion on after. We’re looking at a launch date in the first week of May.

RESULTS & FEEDBACK

Could you share any evidence that would demonstrate the productivity, quality of work, or the impact of the engagement?

We’ve had one test release so far. It looks very nice, and we’ll have another one soon. Right now, everything looks very clean, and it’s working. We haven’t released anything to anyone yet on test flight. We’re keeping it very secretive, as we have two new features that will be launched. I’m the only one seeing it right now. We’ll bring on other test users closer to the end of April.

How did PhD Labs perform from a project management standpoint?

We have standup meetings once a week. We started out at twice a week, but that wasn’t necessary because I’m not a picky person. I’ve just been letting PhD Labs do their job. Every Wednesday I have a meeting with the project manager, and maybe the UX/UI guy. I get updates constantly. If I email them with a question, they get back to me within a few hours. The communication is phenomenal. Email is our first choice to communicate, and then we have calls on Wednesdays.

What did you find most impressive about PhD Labs?

I think the communication is definitely a plus. The thing I’m most impressed with is timelines; how fast they’re getting this product out. They knew it was very important for me, as I’ve got people waiting. They stepped it up with timelines.

Are there any areas PhD Labs could improve?

It’s nice that I had something to compare it to, from the first development group I had hired for version one. I got my feet wet with that, and I knew what I didn’t want. When we met with PhD Labs, I expressed all those concerns to them, and they literally blew it out of the water. They exceeded my expectation for this next build. I don’t think there’s anything else I could ask, other than not having to pay for it until the end. Paying along the way is tough because you don't see the product, and you’re paying a lot of money. It’s nice when you finally see it coming alive because then your dollar value goes toward that. I think everything has gone extremely smooth on this second version.

When working with the project manager on the first version, they showed me screenshots along the way. We storyboarded it and did the wireframes. As they released things for testing themselves, I didn’t get to see any of that. I didn’t get to test it along the way. In the end, the app went live, and there were tons of bugs. The way the platform flowed wasn’t what I wanted. The dev team said they couldn’t go back and change it without charging me more. I was disappointed with the outcome in certain ways.

With PhD Labs, I’m a part of it. When they do a release, I get to see it first. If there’s a problem, we can fix it right away. When you’re expressing your vision to someone, and they’re not communicating that to the team in the right way, it’s going to cost you time and money to fix it. I like that I’m part of their team, and they let me see the progress as we go. Once we finally update this in the App Store and Google Play, it is going to be my vision, and that’s huge.

BACKGROUND

Introduce your business and what you do there.

I am the co-founder of the company and app Tending, a social networking app for bartenders.

OPPORTUNITY / CHALLENGE

What challenge were you trying to address with PhD Labs?

I hired PhD Labs to build the app from scratch because I don't have any developers on my side.

SOLUTION

What was the scope of their involvement?

PhD Labs is currently building the app for iOS. After it’s launched, they’re also going to build an Android version of it and take on the marketing for us as well. They’re transitioning their business to more of an incubator model, which will include a marketing component.

Essentially the app is a way for bartenders to connect with their regulars. The bartending industry has a lot of turnover and attrition. With this app, a bartender can build their business and take their clientele wherever they go. On the customer side, bar patrons can use the app to find great bartenders in a specific area. Bartenders can develop a following so that patrons follow their favorite bartenders. Bartenders can check into work and send notifications to their followers like, “I just started my shift,” “Here’s the drink special,” or “If you come in the next hour, margaritas are a dollar off.”

How did you come to work with PhD Labs?

I found PhD Labs after doing some research online about a year ago. I might have found them on Clutch.co, I can't remember. I reached out to several app developers in California and one in Canada. I was trying to find the right fit for the project. After I had finished my research, I decided to look at one more company, PhD Labs. When I met with them, they were a complete match for me, culture-wise. Their executive producer and I clicked right away, and I knew they were the right fit.

How much have you invested with PhD Labs?

I invested about $90,000 into PhD Labs for the app alone.

What is the status of this engagement?

I started working with PhD Labs in June 2016.

RESULTS & FEEDBACK

How did PhD Labs perform from a project management standpoint?

PhD Labs set a lot of two-week sprints that included details on what they expected to get done in that time, and for the most part, they hit every mark. A couple of deadlines were missed by a little bit, but that wasn’t necessarily their fault. As an owner and founder, I understand there are going to be complications, and timelines may not be hit every time. PhD Labs was communicative every time they had issues, so it was never a problem.

What did you find most impressive about PhD Labs?

I was most impressed by PhD Labs’ collaboration, communication, and inclusivity. They’re easy to talk to, and they’re open to input. We began the project with what they call an app camp, where we spent a whole day mapping out what we wanted to do with the app regarding the layout. That whole process was great. PhD Labs' UX [user experience] designer, Jason Martinez, is amazing and a real genius regarding the understanding of what the UX should be. David Ray [Product Designer, PhD Labs] is really artistic and another great collaborator. They all seem to be artistic-minded and creative, and I appreciated that.

Are there any areas PhD Labs could improve?

The only thing I can think of that PhD Labs could improve involves asking for the financials and breakdowns of costs, why they cost what they do, and getting the billing done in a timely manner. Part of that has been our fault too; PhD Labs would bill us on time, but then we wouldn't be ready to pay a certain part of the bill. I think both sides could have done better on the financial part of the project.

BACKGROUND

Introduce your business and what you do there.

I'm venturing into the landscaping industry. I live in Sandy Utah and my company is small for now. The landscaping industry is huge though and produced about 78 billion dollars in 2016. I believe Scapegoat will up that number. We are mainly targeting residential landscaping, property maintenance, and snow removal while bringing the industry up to date.

I am the founder and managing member of Scapegoat. Right now, my responsibilities are acquiring funding, web design, structuring the core business, and finding possible partners.

OPPORTUNITY / CHALLENGE

What challenge were you trying to address with PhD Labs?

My challenge was to create something new that solved multiple problems in the residential landscaping industry.

I saw the opportunity to solve that problem with a mobile application that makes the whole hiring and paying process much simpler, quicker, and more fun. My target market is homeowners and property managers that don’t have time to maintain their yard or yards and don’t have the time to meet landscapers for the arduous bid process.

SOLUTION

What was the scope of their involvement?

My solution was a simple mobile app called Scapegoat. PhD Labs is handling the entire development of the app and it is still in process.

How did you come to work with PhD Labs?

I think PhD Labs was the fifth app developer I talked to and they were by far the most impressive. They specialize in startup companies and they were willing to help me realize my vision.

What is the status of this engagement?

The estimated time for completion was four months.

RESULTS & FEEDBACK

Could you share any evidence that would demonstrate the productivity, quality of work, or the impact of the engagement?

So far, I am totally impressed with PhD Labs. They understand app programming on another level completely. The staff members excel at their jobs and I have been nothing but excited about working with them. Their design process is called “app camp”, and it helps people like me that aren't tech geniuses to fully see the scope of the process, including every button and menu it will need, and so many other things that you don't think of unless you are a pro.

What did you find most impressive about PhD Labs?

They have lived up to everything they said they would do and then some. I can't wait to keep working with them as the app keeps growing.

BACKGROUND

Please describe the restaurant and your role.

We’re an American-type bar and grill. We try to go for a hometown feel and really connect with our community. We have another restaurant that we’ve had for 20 years; it’s a ‘50s-style diner that has kind of that cheers atmosphere. When we opened the restaurant here three and a half years ago, the goal was to create that same kind of feeling but broaden it into a different direction, theme, and style restaurant. It’s larger in capacity than the diner, but that’s kind of the goal. I am the manager here, and responsible for our mobile outreach efforts and web site marketing.

OPPORTUNITY / CHALLENGE

Can you talk about how you selected PhD Labs to work with in the first place?

About three and a half years ago, social media was definitely not talked about as much as it is today. One of their resources came in a couple of times and said, “Hey, I feel like this is really important, and we’d really like to help you out.” We got to discussing things a little bit, and got to know each other and kind of going off with the relationship that we kind of had forged just pretty quickly, I said yes.

We’d talked about a variety of things that we wanted to work on, and I checked some of their references on what they have been doing, and the direction that they wanted to go with as a company. We kind of put together a program, so to speak because there are some industries out there where your website or social doesn’t need to be too managed, but definitely in my industry it’s something that you need to be constantly on top of. There’s a little bit more attention to detail, and a little bit more managing that goes on, and that’s something that they offered that a lot of other people say they do, but I don’t think they follow through with.

SOLUTION

Can you talk about more specifically about the scope of their work? Was it like website building?

We first launched the website, a preliminary one, just to get us up and running while we were building the bigger frame. We had talked about building an app for the restaurant, and we did build one, but seeing that website design had changed in the last three years.

Now, we’re switching it up, we got the app to maintain it on a financial standpoint. For me, it’s just not as cost effective as changing to a mobile website platform. It allows me a lot more functionality at a fraction of the cost. We actually closed down the app, and then we actually currently are in the redesign of a new website for us right now to try to change up, refresh the look, and relaunch it to give people a lot more of that functionality. As for social, we do monthly meetings, and we do weekly meetings. Weekly meetings are pretty quick. It’s just kind of a synopsis of what we want to achieve for the week: Is there anything special going on, or is there anything that you guys shouldn’t do? Like, obviously don’t promote something that I’m going to run out of or that isn’t cost effective for me. We also meet monthly to cover the larger game plan on any type of special events or functions that we may have going on or holidays that we may have going on, things of that nature. We also host a fantasy football league that gets tied into social media.

We also do a huge St. Patrick’s Day celebration that we tie into social media. We have, in previous years, done Christmas parties. Anything that we can try to get people built around interacting online is what we try to do.

Can you give me a general sense of the size of their initiative with the cost estimate?

Everything obviously is priced for what it is that I want to do, then they kind of give me a breakdown, and we move forward with that. Some items you can kind of go on the cheap end, and maybe get for a couple thousand dollars. I think that, now, if I was a new customer coming on board, they would dissuade me of that kind of price point. I don’t think that’s where they really want to focus their energy on, and I understand that. I think that, since I’m an existing client and they enjoy doing business with me, they’re probably a lot more flexible on that. I know that the new revision website is probably going to be since it’s going to have a mobile platform, and it’s going to have a few other options that we’re going to try to do, it’s going to be in the $5,000 to $8,000 dollar range. Social media is kind of an ongoing contract. It’s how much attention I want us to spend every month, and how much advertising dollars I want to put on it. If I don't have the marketing dollars this month or I’m not going to have them in a couple of months, I can pull back a little bit during this time, and maybe spend a little bit more on the bigger events or on slower months when we need to push to try to really drive people and sales.

December is a really busy month for me, so being online and spending a lot of money socially is probably not the best use of my dollars. Whereas, come January and February, when my sales drop tremendously, that’s a better time. We kind of pull back in December, and then ramp back up in January. You know, working with them for as long as I have, it gave me a lot of that flexibility. I know social is not their main driving force and not something that they’re primarily advertising that they work on right now. It does take a little bit more time, but they’re definitely good at it.

RESULTS & FEEDBACK

Could you assess their performance?

I think they’ve been great. You know as well as I do that there are glitches in programs, there are problems in code, and there are all kinds of things that pop up that need to be addressed, and I think that they do as good of a job as anyone else. I can’t expect them to have it fixed immediately, but I definitely know that they’re on the ball doing it. I know we have a variety of different ways that we communicate with each other. They definitely are on the ball, and responding back to me on what’s going on, and when they are going to try to get it fixed. We definitely set a date and time on all of their tasks. I would say that they’re excellent on that end of their service. 

Is there anything else unique or special about them?

I think that the last couple of years they’ve really been able to bring on a few individuals that are pretty creative. I’ve been able to sit down and talk about some of the projects they’re working on. I think that probably the two biggest things I’d say is that they’re really passionate about what they do, and I think that’s important just because it’s hard to find people that actually are passionate about what they do and I think you can see that in the work, and the quality that comes out of people. I think the other thing is they’ve been able to hire the last couple of years a couple of really talented people that have great fun imaginations, and have that same drive for passion in what they do. It’s hard maybe to instill passion on a project that’s not your own, and I think they’ve been able to find a couple of core people in their team that can do that. 

Is there anything that you might suggest for them to improve or something you might do differently looking back?

That’s a good question. I don’t know if I would definitely say anything they need to improve on. I know that they have improved on some areas. Communication was one, but now they’re so on top of it that it’s almost not an issue anymore. That was something that they even admitted. That was maybe multipronged in the sense of just talking to me about how long it was going to take for a project to be completed. They’ve streamlined that process, and now there’s a date, and it’s usually done on that date, if not before. Their communication has become much better. That has definitely changed over the three years of working with them. 

BACKGROUND

Please describe your company.

I don’t want to reveal proprietary information, but I have PhD Labs working on an app for my company.

What is your role and responsibilities?

[I am the] president and owner of my company.

OPPORTUNITY / CHALLENGE

What was your goal for working with PhD Labs?

I had an idea, and don’t have much IT [information technology] background, except as a user and with my family as well. We came up with an idea. I approached PhD Labs and presented it to them. They analyzed it in a short time, did some extensive background, gave me their analysis, and made a proposal if I wanted to proceed. I decided to proceed, and they’ve been great. I’ve received weekly updates from the project manager. I felt their responses have been very professional, and they’ve had good feedback themselves on suggestions to make it more successful.

SOLUTION

Can you provide a ballpark dollar figure for the size of the work that they’ve done for you?

It’s currently a six-figure project.

When will the work be completed, or is it ongoing?

I hope the initial viable product will be launched in the next six months. We can make some modifications as needed, and they’ve been very good on quickly making some adaptations as necessary. Then, there will be ongoing updates and evolution of the product.

RESULTS & FEEDBACK

Is there anything unique about them that really makes them stand out, compared to other companies?

I think their value is that they seem very productive, successful, and qualified. Yet, they haven’t grown too big, too quickly. I still have a good personal relationship with them, where I can pick up the phone, text, or email them anytime, and I get a quick response. With some companies, I feel like I’m just a number, and I don’t get good feedback. With them, from the beginning I felt like I had a very good interaction. I trusted them, and I feel like any questions, comments, or issues I have, I can reach them easily and get their response quickly. I’m not just a number in the queue, waiting for some attention.

Looking back on the work so far, is there any area that you think they could improve upon or that you might do differently?

That’s a great question. So far, it’s all been positive. Of course, having an exciting idea, I get impatient, so I’d like it to be faster than six months. I think six months is pretty quick, especially from the research I’ve done and talked to other companies before I signed with them. I could be quicker, I guess, but I know good work takes time, so I accept the six months. So far, I really don’t have any criticism, except could it be done faster.

BACKGROUND

Please describe your organization.

We’re a new startup company. We’re self-funded. We’re building mobile apps that design a new way to educate people.

What is your role and responsibilities?

I’m the chief operating officer.

OPPORTUNITY / CHALLENGE

What was your goal for working with PhD Labs?

Our aim is to build our first product successfully. We’re also evaluating a second product with them. Our first product deals with helping to create balance to the addiction that kids have with the Internet.

SOLUTION

Please describe the scope of their work.

It involved mobile app development and consulting. They’re also involved in our website development.

What was your process for selecting PhD Labs with which to work?

We found them doing some Web research and compared their presence on Clutch to some other online sources.

Can you give a sense of the size of the initiative in dollar terms or a personnel work-hour figure?

That's confidential.

When was the work completed?

It’s ongoing.

RESULTS & FEEDBACK

Do you have any statistics or metrics to track improvement from the project?

It’s a little early to have metrics. We’re doing some planning to be able to capture comments and feedback prior to launch. We have a prestigious PR [public relations] agency taking us to market.

Are you satisfied with their performance?

We are extremely satisfied. Other agencies we use are very impressed with the professionalism of PhD Labs.

Is there anything unique or special about PhD Labs that really makes them stand out compared to other online marketing companies?

They do a great job of consulting in terms of the early design work. Mobile is a strong space for them. They are very strong with the initial design stages. They call it an app camp where they take the idea and build around it and agree what the minimum target is in order to go to market.

What advice would you give to future clients of theirs?

Take advantage of their design skills and clearly understand the product that you want to build.

Looking back on the work so far, is there any area that you think they could improve upon or that you might do differently?

This is the first project that we have ever developed using agile development methodology. We’re more accustomed to traditional development styles. We’re still sorting out the pros and cons of the different approaches.

BACKGROUND

Please describe your company.

We are a German company with three main businesses. One is industrial uses. We do consumer products like Loctite, and we do home products like laundry, such as Purex, and Dial soap. We also do hair care products, which is more of our German line. I work on the industrial adhesive side out of Bridgewater, N.J. I’m in the eBusiness department.

What is your role and responsibilities?

My role is more in systems. I manage all of our marketing and data systems, making sure they are working properly, and that we’re providing the service internally that we need to service our customers. I do the strategy for our marketing product data. I also do mobile application work and a lot of web apps as well.

OPPORTUNITY / CHALLENGE

What was your goal for working with PhD Labs?

One of the projects that I worked with them closely on was our online training system. They built a system that allows us to train our channel management partners, as well as our internal employees, on our products, services, and offerings. They built that from scratch, and they’ve done a lot of enhancements to the systems as we have found needs, that we needed to add to the system. We also worked on a project with them that was basically a product selector for our customers. They can go online, answer a few questions, and come down to four main products that may be useful to them before contacting one of our specialists. The selector is designed to increase sales and let them find the technical information they’re looking for right away.

Is there any mobile app work involved?

We are getting ready to start mobile app work, but we have not begun our project with them for mobile apps. We’re planning to turn the product selector into a mobile app so that when our sales reps are out visiting customers, they have that information readily at hand.

SOLUTION

What was your process for selecting PhD Labs to work with?

We worked with them before, so it was due to the good work they’ve done with us in the past. They were one of the top names that came up when we were deciding to move forward with this project. They are very easy to work with, and the turnaround on their products is very fast. It’s good work. We rarely have any issues or have to go back and forth. We sit down and plan and come up with a strategy, and they’re able to put something together for us. They understand the concept and design of where we want to go with our project. We work well together.

Can you provide a ballpark dollar figure for the size of the work that they’ve done for you?

With the online training system, in the past year and a half or two years, we’ve spent more than $100,000 in enhancements. The product selector was a $25,000 to $35,000 project in the beginning.

When was the latest milestone completed for that work?

Another enhancement just went live this week with our online training system, and that was more of a security-hardening enhancement, just to tighten up the system and make sure that only people that have access are allowed in the system. That’s another enhancement that just went live this week.

RESULTS & FEEDBACK

How has PhD Labs performed so far?

Very well. I have a great working relationship with them. Their team gets back to me right away, and they’re very helpful.

Do you have any stats or metrics to track improvement from the project?

We have stats on our training system. They created an enhancement for us that allows our channel distributors to do single sign-on to our training system. That has increased use by thousands. We went from having maybe 1,200 users to more than a couple of thousand users, just by that enhancement alone. That’s been working very well; they customized it for some of our big distributors, and it’s been a great success for us so far.

Is there anything unique about PhD Labs that really makes them stand out, compared to other companies?

They grasp the concepts; they ask the right questions, and they come back with a design that surpasses the expectations that we had in the beginning. They do nice neat and clean work. If they have any questions while they’re trying to work on the architecture and infrastructure, they come back, ask the right questions and they develop a product that’s great. I’ve had nothing but good experiences so far.

Is there any area that you think they could improve upon or that you might do differently?

Not really. I’m in contact with the people I need to deal with every day, so I would like to see them more just to get together and jointly strategize. Maybe I can learn what they’re doing on their side of things, and they can understand what our outlook is for the next two years. That way, if they come across things that they think may be helpful for us, and they can let us know. Other than that, I don’t see anything else that jumps out at me.