Reliable Bits

BACKGROUND

Introduce your business and what you do there.

I’m the founder of an online bedding retailer. Our startup has been in business for about nine months.

OPPORTUNITY / CHALLENGE

What challenge were you trying to address with ReliableBits.io?

We wanted a company to build our website. We wanted a custom frontend and a WooCommerce backend. Previously, we worked with another company that didn’t deliver what we needed.

SOLUTION

What was the scope of their involvement?

We originally developed a site for Shopify, but it didn’t work out. They switched the whole site over to WooCommerce at no extra charge. They did custom coding for the frontend. I think they designed everything within a Sketch file. The backend is not fully customized, but they did help with a bundle that pulls multiple SKUs from out platform. They also helped with an intricate function that lets users select product colors directly off of the product page. That took us some time to develop, but turned out great.

What is the team composition?

Most of our conversations went through Deepak (Product Lead, ReliableBits.io). I occasionally spoke with the account person and one of the developers.

How did you come to work with ReliableBits.io?

Two friends independently recommended them.

How much have you invested with them?

We’ve spent about $8,000-$8,500 in total.

What is the status of this engagement?

We started working together in December 2017 and finished the site in February 2018. We hired them again to make revisions and streamline the site. They projected a month-long project, but it only took a couple of weeks.

RESULTS & FEEDBACK

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

The site looks really good and users love it. It loads quickly and the user experience is smooth. They made some really useful suggestions that helped our conversions.

How did ReliableBits.io perform from a project management standpoint?

Their project management was great. They were extremely flexible and always willing to communicate. We could speak on weekends or late at night to accommodate my schedule. They hit all of their milestones early or on time and let me report bugs through a program they use. We could resolve them without needing to talk much.

What did you find most impressive about them?

After a failed project with another web developer, we were so pleased with ReliableBits. The difference is like night and day. Everything is on time, their scheduling is good, and they communicate with us. They set expectations correctly and were willing to work within our budget.

Are there any areas they could improve?

I can’t think of anything they should improve. I’m very happy with them.

Do you have any advice for potential customers?

Listen to Douglas (Managing Partner, ReliableBits.io). When he gives e-commerce advice, he knows what he's talking about.

BACKGROUND

Introduce your business and what you do there.

I’m a technology partner of a iOS and Android app that allows salons to take digital bookings. I oversee all the technology involved with the product. The legal entity is actually in North Carolina, but we have salons all over the place.

OPPORTUNITY / CHALLENGE

What challenge were you trying to address with Reliable Bits?

We wanted something more than just a development agency—we wanted a partner. It was important that the team understood the business and its objectives. Knowing how a mobile platform could benefit the beauty and salon industry was a must.

SOLUTION

What was the scope of their involvement?

Reliable Bits used Swift for iOS, but I’m unsure what they used for Android. They showed me the pros and cons of either going with Angular or React, but we ended up going with React for the responsive dashboard which we built a lot of functionalities into. There’s a color database and a 3-D hand image that allows customers to see what different shades will look like before booking an appointment. The hand feature was particularly challenging. The dashboard is easy to use and my team or partners are able to go in and add a new shade without having to mess with custom code, which is really great.

There’s also a booking functionality that lists available times. Each salon can control their times from their own internal dashboard via the app. We wanted to make sure that the app wasn’t completely manual and that some things were automated as we continue to scale and onboard clients. We have a Google and Apple map integration to provide directions to salons.

What is the team composition?

I had one primary point of contact along with two product managers who provided weekly updates. They gave daily updates towards the end of the project regarding different builds so I could test them. Their designer involved me early on in the process, providing detailed notes and explaining what was in the actual product. I felt very involved, which I loved. We now have three other partners and about ten people total on both teams.

How did you come to work with Reliable Bits?

I went through an exhaustive search and found them through Google. The initial introduction went really well and they had worked on some similar, on-demand apps. There was a lot of synergy between us as well.

How much have you invested with them?

We spent around $40,000 for the initial project. We now pay a monthly, flat fee for their ongoing support.

What is the status of this engagement?

We worked on the initial project from from January–April 2016. Reliable Bits is also our technology partner as we continue to scale. 

RESULTS & FEEDBACK

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

One of our partners was able to do 100% of bookings via the app within the first month for three or four of their salons. The training was a smooth process. We’re now aggressively scaling the number of boutiques and salons on the platform. We’ve experienced significant growth in that area, so it’s all been pretty positive.

How did Reliable Bits perform from a project management standpoint?

I’ve worked with many agencies and spent both too much and too little money. I’m still working with Reliable Bits, so that says a lot. Their staff is incredible and dedicated. They didn’t charge me extra for additional features because they understood that the product needed to evolve in order to succeed. They were timely in terms of project management and we didn’t experience any delays. They actually delivered a few days early. They used a tool called buddybuild to send and release notes to us, as well as inform us on what to test or not test. They really kept us informed.

The project managers also gave me visibility through Trello. I could put my own feedback and see each developer’s progress. They were very transparent, which is something I liked a lot. The project manager relayed information from me to their developers and it worked incredibly well. I now feel like they’re a part of my team rather than just someone I’m paying.

What did you find most impressive about them?

We receive incredible value for our money with them considering that some of the apps they’ve built seem like they should be much more expensive. We needed a sleek, beautiful app, but we had a certain budget that we had to abide by. The final product was exactly like the initial design, which was important to us. We’ve been really fortunate to find them and we’re glad to continue working with them.

We also like that they don’t operate on a hourly contract. We’ve worked with development partners in the past who charged hourly, but it ended up getting out of control since some people work faster than others. Reliable Bits has worked with us to create a fixed price.

Are there any areas they could improve?

We had one feature that took longer than expected, but they explained everything to me, so it wasn’t really a problem.

Do you have any advice for potential customers?

Talk to them about their vision and really hear them out. I think everyone should try them because they’re amazing. I feel at ease now because I know that their team will help us if we need it. If the servers crash, they’ll help us get things back up quickly. It’s important to have this kind of comfort with people you work with so you know, at the end of the day, that you got what you paid for.