Purr Digital

BACKGROUND

Please describe your company and your position there.

Make it Clear are a London based UX/UI agency, improving the experience of digital products for over 20 years.

OPPORTUNITY / CHALLENGE

For what projects/services did your company hire Purr Digital, and what were your goals?

As part of the ‘Sneakers Unboxed: Studio to Street’ exhibition in collaboration with the Pensole Design Academy, the Design Museum asked Make it Clear to create an interactive tool to enrich the experience and enable visitors to design their own trainers. In addition, Pensole would also be selecting one lucky designer to have their creation made for real.

SOLUTION

How did you select this vendor and what were the deciding factors?

Development The team at Purr built the platform in Laravel and Vue.js which allowed them to segregate the large vector files used as part of the shoe design. This ensured the files could be compressed and isolated on different pages to ensure that all functions loaded quickly and displayed the shoe material – no matter what kind of device the user was on.

Despite the complex layers and large files, the site was built to load on the user side quickly and ensure that the activity of customising the sneakers felt natural and fluid.

Describe the scope of work in detail, including the project steps, key deliverables, and technologies used.

Make it Clear created the user experience and user interface design, with our partner Purr Digital constructing the platform’s frontend development. The interactive element of the exhibition was designed directly with Pensole in order to be a real-life educational tool for visitors.

Users could select everything needed for a stand-out design such as trainer profile, material, texture and colour. Due to COVID restrictions, the original plan to use shared tablets positioned within the exhibition for visitors to create designs had to be revised and the project pivoted to enable visitors to use their own device, such as their mobile, tablet or computer while visiting the exhibition

How many people from the vendor's team worked with you, and what were their positions?

We worked with 5 members of their team which consisted of their Managing Director, Operations Manager, 3 Developers.

RESULTS & FEEDBACK

Can you share any measurable outcomes of the project or general feedback about the deliverables?

The platform allows users to easily create their own unique designs, then share on social media. The interactive site gives visitors of the exhibition an immersive experience into the trainer design industry. .

Describe their project management style, including communication tools and timeliness.

We had weekly catch-ups with the team and collaborated on ideas via Basecamp.

What did you find most impressive or unique about this company?

They were proactive, friendly and delivered great results. The clients were really happy with the outcome.

Are there any areas for improvement or something they could have done differently?

No

BACKGROUND

Introduce your business and what you do there.

I’m an account director at a communications consulting company. We’re a creative and design agency offering UI/UX and digital designs, campaign and marketing support, as well as strategy and research.

OPPORTUNITY / CHALLENGE

What challenge were you trying to address with Purr Digital?

We don’t do development in-house so we work with partner agencies for any projects that require coding or development. Our agency was approached by a design museum to support an upcoming exhibition of theirs. They wanted to create an interactive tool that’d be a digital implementation of the exhibition and another way of enhancing the experience for museum visitors.

SOLUTION

What was the scope of their involvement?

First, we looked at the UI/UX aspect of the solution and then worked with Purr Digital to understand what’d be the best way to bring that to life. We had to base that on the time and budget we had as well as the aspect of being able to physically set it up in the museum environment so visitors could access it. Purr Digital advised what the best development framework would be and how to bring that onto accessible digital devices at the museum.

We decided to go with a web framework without the backend. There was no CMS, and the solution would only have a frontend build. This would allow museum visitors to use the interactive program and submit an entry into a competition. Purr Digital built the solution using Laravel and React.

What is the team composition?

During the course of our engagement, we worked with Nick (Managing Director), Emma (Operations Manager), James (Lead Laravel Developer), Marc-André (Web Developer), and Szymon (Lead Web Developer).

How did you come to work with Purr Digital?

Purr Digital was introduced to us through another partner agency we work with. When the brief came through to us, we engaged Purr Digital and another agency. We ultimately went with them based on the solution they offered and that they’d complete the project for the budget that was available.

How much have you invested with them?

We invested around £10,000 (approximately $14,000 USD).

What is the status of this engagement?

The engagement was from March–September 2020. The project was paused midway because of the pandemic. The museum exhibition couldn’t be launched during the original timeframe with everything closing.

RESULTS & FEEDBACK

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

Our clients were happy with the final deliverables. They liked how we had applied the physical exhibition branding to the interactive solution. The solution itself is also excellent. It’s easy to use. There are quite a number of things we’re asking people to do but the solution is straightforward and user-friendly. Because of the pandemic, the originally intended implementation of the application had to change. It had to be adaptable.

Originally, the interactive was intended to be living on iPads at the exhibition. Because of all the requirements around COVID-19, it was no longer appropriate to have a shared tablet with numerous people touching and interacting with it. Now, people can bring their own devices to the design museum and access the interactive web solution individually. Purr Digital was able to pivot and roll with that very well.

How did Purr Digital perform from a project management standpoint?

We were very happy with project management. Emma was always very available. She joined weekly calls to help us stay on track. There were a number of things internally that needed to be resolved with the museum in terms of IT setup as well as getting into their backend environment and hosting server.

Emma was extremely helpful in facilitating all of that. A lot of the deadlines were stressed by shifting deadlines on the client-side in terms of the exhibition building and so forth. Overall, communication channels were open, and we utilized Basecamp. We spoke frequently.

What did you find most impressive about them?

They’re very collaborative. Purr Digital was open to feedback. They discussed any points and tried to find solutions together with us. We really appreciated them building in flexibility for the changes as a result of the client feedback.

Are there any areas they could improve?

This is a very minor thing but my feedback would be on improvement on timing. Certain things should be shared with the partner agency before it’s surfaced to the client. For example, there were certain times when we were looping the client in too early into the process. We needed to first resolve things ourselves before looping in the client.

Do you have any advice for potential customers?

Include as much detail as you can in the brief. Articulate what success means before the project starts. That way, Purr Digital can come back to you with the right approach. Describe the problem you have and then be comfortable to trust them to suggest the solution to you rather than starting off with the solution and mandating the agency to go and make it. Feel comfortable and trust their expertise enough to know that they’re utilizing the best technologies and implementations.

BACKGROUND

Introduce your business and what you do there.

I’m the operations manager at Materials Market, a startup in the construction industry.

OPPORTUNITY / CHALLENGE

What challenge were you trying to address with Purr Digital?

We’re looking to create a platform for construction materials that connects buyers and suppliers in the UK market. We hired Purr Digital to create a site that acts as a request for quotations site. We had a basic business plan that we wanted to implement within the website for users.

SOLUTION

What was the scope of their involvement?

It was a bespoke process. The team at Purr Digital built everything on Ruby on Rails. We offered a few wireframes initially, but they also provided more detailed ones once the page development began. They also did frontend design work.

What is the team composition?

We were assigned two developers. James (PHP Developer, Purr Digital) did all of the backend design, while Kate (Developer, Purr Digital) was in charge of all the frontend work.

How did you come to work with Purr Digital?

We were searching online for digital agencies within the UK and London. We contacted nine different agencies. We got a really good feeling from Nick (Managing Director, Purr Digital), their owner. He was confident in his team and its operations. He also expressed how our ideas would be implemented, and I felt comfortable with his approaches.

How much have you invested with them?

We’ve invested about £20,000 (approximately $26,000 USD).

What is the status of this engagement?

Our engagement with Purr Digital started in October 2019. We want to continue working with them on the next version of the site.

RESULTS & FEEDBACK

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

Purr Digital was able to implement all of the features we wanted, creating an operational platform. The site isn’t live at the moment, but it’s wrapping up within the next few days. We’ve done beta testing in-house. Everything is functioning how we wanted to.

How did Purr Digital perform from a project management standpoint?

Their project management style is excellent. Their team was always thorough about what was achievable during our timeline. If we had any issues with the site, they were still willing to listen and find a way around them, even if they didn’t know the solution right away. I couldn’t recommend them more highly. As for project management tools, we had everything based on Trello.

What did you find most impressive about them?

This is the only time I’ve used a digital company when building a website. I’m really excited about Purr Digital’s work.

Are there any areas they could improve?

To be honest, I don’t think so.

Do you have any advice for potential customers?

Have a clear idea of what you want. If you’re able to show that through graphs or wireframes, that might be the best approach. We had a thorough business plan and wireframes when we submitted the project. Purr Digital was able to start quickly with the development because of that. We knew how we wanted the site to function and were able to express that. They were able to implement things much more quickly than if we were still deciding what we wanted.

BACKGROUND

Introduce your business and what you do there.

I’m the director of JAQ Internet Services. We’re a start-up that’s devising a mobile app for airports. The platform works as a preorder and prepayment system for food, beverage, and duty-free outlets, as well as a delivery system for passengers affected by delayed or canceled flights to receive vouchers.

OPPORTUNITY / CHALLENGE

What challenge were you trying to address with Purr Digital?

We needed a partner to deliver a technical solution and a software platform for our mobile app.

SOLUTION

What was the scope of their involvement?

Purr Digital directed the design, putting the whole platform together. Using up-to-date development standards, they provided the technical solution to create our native mobile app and web backend.

Their team built several key features. The first being the preorder and prepayment system, which can address several different payment processes at airports. Not every single restaurant has the same process, but from the one platform, we’re able to cater to the different outlets’ requirements. They developed a web backend that allows real-time monitoring and administration and a POS system, which could be deployed at outlets if integration isn’t possible.

What is the team composition?

We worked with a managing director, developers, and several other teammates from different disciplines—probably ten in total.

How did you come to work with Purr Digital?

A colleague highly recommended them. We’d visited a few different firms, but really liked the feel of Purr Digital’s team. Their managing director talked the talk, and offered a very cost-effective price point, which was important to us as a startup.

How much have you invested with them?

We’ve spent about $100,000 with them so far.

What is the status of this engagement?

We met the team back in October 2016, and our collaboration is ongoing.

RESULTS & FEEDBACK

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

We deployed the platform with full advertising for a limited test run in the second largest airport in Denmark, which sees over 4 million passengers in the space tested. We were getting over 35% conversion in the regions that received about 400 transactions over two weeks' time. We’re very satisfied with the stability and usability of the product they delivered.

How did Purr Digital perform from a project management standpoint?

Excellent—they did a fantastic job. No one on my team is highly technical and Purr Digital guided us through the whole process.

What did you find most impressive about them?

Their team has made constructive suggestions for features that we didn’t even think about, which has been quite crucial actually. They’ve acted as though they were an extension of our own technology team.

Are there any areas they could improve?

No, we’re very satisfied with the product.

Do you have any advice for potential customers?

Trust them; they have good advice. Do research to review their deliverables based on generalized market performance and trends.

BACKGROUND

Introduce your business and what you do there.

I’m a managing director at an events & cinema distribution business.

OPPORTUNITY / CHALLENGE

What challenge were you trying to address with Purr Digital?

We were looking to create a B2B site that connects cinemas with content and content owners with cinemas. There wasn’t a tangible resource for the industry where people could view available content for distribution or for content owners to understand where they could put their work and what cinemas would take. We hired Purr Digital to create a digital destination for the industry.

SOLUTION

What was the scope of their involvement?

Traditionally, films get on the big screen through Hollywood connections and producers, and audiences go out to watch them. Events cinema is a tad different. It’s generally non-traditional content that can be anything from a live concert to the MET opera to an American football or basketball match. It can be broadcast live or pre-recorded, and it’s often on a global basis.

The development was a joint process. Purr Digital created the wireframes, while we worked hard to figure out how our idea could be created and what it would look like from a user perspective. Their team built a data tool for various genres of content. The tool was designed to aid smarter distribution by taking information from Facebook and Twitter to enable the scope of an audience for a particular event. For example, if a distributor is planning an Iron Maiden event for fans in the UK, they can use the tool to decide what cinemas to put it in based on the amount of fans and their locations. Now, they’re working on a consumer site which we use as our central ticketing destination for all of our events.

What is the team composition?

Nick (Managing Director, Purr Digital) oversees the project. We engage with him, a project lead, and two or three developers. Their broader team is also a resource for us.

How did you come to work with Purr Digital?

About three years ago, a friend who had worked with them recommended Purr Digital to me.

What is the status of this engagement?

We started working with Purr Digital at the end of 2017.

RESULTS & FEEDBACK

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

Users have commented on how deep and useful the B2B site is. Feedback regarding the data tool has also been positive. While it still needs development and work, it could help the future of cinema. For the consumer site, we drove 60,000 users in the first month and retained about 35–40% who have come back to the site.

How did Purr Digital perform from a project management standpoint?

Their project management style has been great. As with these projects, not everything is perfect, but Nick’s always open and honest. He eventually delivers on what he said he would. It’s been a pleasant experience, considering we rely on them quite heavily. We use Asana and have a lot of conversations through Skype. Since they’re near us, we’ve been lucky to have a couple face-to-face interactions as well. They also have a useful 24-hour help desk, so if we have any problems with the site, we can notify them there, and it will get fixed quickly.

What did you find most impressive about them?

Purr Digital is approachable and flexible. Their team is efficient and effective at development work.

Are there any areas they could improve?

No, there are none that I can think of.

Do you have any advice for potential customers?

At the start of the project, it’s important to ensure everyone is clear about the scope, time it’s going to take, and cost.

BACKGROUND

Please describe your company and your position there.

I am the founder of Pearl Lemon.

OPPORTUNITY / CHALLENGE

For what projects/services did your company hire Purr Digital?

Our SEO agency needed a bespoke tool built to help us meet the needs of our clients.

What were your goals for this project?

The goal of our project was to develop a robust SEO tool I could deliver to clients. We needed to get it ready to launch within 12-16 weeks 

SOLUTION

How did you select this vendor?

I found Purr Digital through my network. They came highly recommended.

Describe the project and the services they provided in detail.

At the beginning, we outlined the specifications. Purr Digital ran an analysis of competitor tools on the market and made recommendations based on their experience.

 The team handled the end-to-end development and build. Our tool includes features for on-page SEO and keyword rank tracking.

What was the team composition?

Four people from Purr Digital worked on my project. The team included the head of web development, one engineer, and an account manager. From time to time, the founder also got involved.

RESULTS & FEEDBACK

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

In short, Purr Digital made an excellent impact on our company.  Our clients love the bespoke tool they helped us create, as do we. On the basis of their deliverable, we locked in another two retainers with the team at a total value of £27,000 (approximately $34,200).

How was project management arranged and how effective was it?

We used Slack, Google Hangouts, and WhatsApp to communicate and manage the project.

What did you find most impressive about this company?

I was most impressed by the quality of the build and how little time it took Purr Digital to understand my needs and deliver the end product.

Are there any areas for improvement?

Nothing comes to mind, to be honest.

BACKGROUND

Please describe your company and your position there.

I'm the Managing Director of a Consulting Company

OPPORTUNITY / CHALLENGE

For what projects/services did your company hire Purr Digital, and what were your goals?

We had a project need that would enable a manual business process to be automated

SOLUTION

How did you select this vendor and what were the deciding factors?

Nick as the team researched and suggested an optimum product and development service

Describe the scope of work in detail, including the project steps, key deliverables, and technologies used.

From Planning through development, testing and roll out.

How many people from the vendor's team worked with you, and what were their positions?

The project was seamless to me, I worked with a team, but unclear as to how many or who there were.

RESULTS & FEEDBACK

Can you share any measurable outcomes of the project or general feedback about the deliverables?

Process optimization achieved, now looking to further areas of improvement

Describe their project management style, including communication tools and timeliness.

All cloud-based todo management and Agile workflow

What did you find most impressive or unique about this company?

They have the good product knowledge and swift communications. They're also attentive.

Are there any areas for improvement or something they could have done differently?

No, all good

BACKGROUND

Please describe your company and your position there.

I'm the director of transformation at Oryon, which consists of three brands: Oryon Imaging: Affordable diagnostic imaging, Oryon Develop: CPD, educational, events for allied health professionals, and Oryon Connect: A service that helps customers find the best practitioners for their concern and guides them through their healthcare journey.

OPPORTUNITY / CHALLENGE

For what projects/services did your company hire Purr Digital?

Rebranding that consisted of building a complex site including three sister brands. 

What were your goals for this project?

Bring 3 companies closer together; rebuild the site and to make sure its functioning; gain new customers benefiting from the restructuring of the three businesses. The intricate part was including the Salesforce community element. It was essential not to have any downtime on community during working hours.

SOLUTION

How did you select this vendor?

Previous experience.

Describe the project and the services they provided in detail.

Web structure advising, web development integration with Salesforce from the WordPress side, liaising with Salesforce developer. Continuous support.

What was the team composition?

Director, Project Manager, and Developer at Purr side.

RESULTS & FEEDBACK

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

The site is fully functioning, the domain reputation is growing, and the structure of the site (including integrations with Salesforce) work very well.

How was project management arranged and how effective was it?

Effective, regular updates. We worked on Asana.

What did you find most impressive about this company?

Their dev skills and time management stood out to me. 

Are there any areas for improvement?

No.