Tragic

BACKGROUND

Introduce your business and what you do there.

I’m the CTO for an entertainment company called Skybound Entertainment.

OPPORTUNITY / CHALLENGE

What challenge were you trying to address with Tragic?

It’s challenging to hire engineering talent for a small entertainment company that’s not in the technology space, and we needed engineers for multiple projects we were working on. We hired Tragic because they have engineers with a broad scope of talent. 

SOLUTION

What was the scope of their involvement?

We work on a project basis, map out all the deliverables, and Tragic acts as the operational engineering sector for our organization. One of the bigger projects they’ve worked on was rebuilding our insider’s application, which consists of a large database program and SSO across multiple platforms we use. They rebuilt that program to a more robust and scalable solution for us. They did a lot of frontend design work for this application. 

At the same time, we migrated our entire web platform from Rackspace where it was non-scalable, to a full AWS platform that is highly scalable. They are currently working on building a data warehouse in AWS, which uses the Amazon Redshift product. It’s allowing us to build out frontend data analytics for the organization. 

Key technologies include WordPress, Tableau, and SQL. 

What is the team composition?

Our main point of contact is Rich (Founder & Technical Strategist), but we also work with Todd (Director of Technology) and a frontend lead developer. 

How did you come to work with Tragic?

They were a referral from another company we work with. 

How much have you invested with them?

We’ve invested close to $1 million with Tragic so far. 

What is the status of this engagement?

We started working with them in January 2019, and our work is ongoing.

RESULTS & FEEDBACK

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

We measure success in a project delivery cycle, and they hit their deadlines. Success to us is based on whether or not we can execute a project or solve a problem, and they are consistently able to do that. 

How did Tragic perform from a project management standpoint?

They have strong project management skills, and we communicate via Slack and Microsoft Teams.

What did you find most impressive about them?

They are capable of pivoting, agile, and have excellent communication skills. They are efficient, and have the ability to change course based on what we find out during a product cycle. They also bring in a wide range of skills that they’re continuously working to evolve. 

Are there any areas they could improve?

We can’t think of anything that they could improve upon. 

Do you have any advice for potential customers?

Make sure you have strong communication and ongoing interactions with them because they do a great job with collaboration. 

BACKGROUND

Introduce your business and what you do there.

I’m the founder of FreeFashionInternships.com, a platform that connects aspiring college students and recent graduates who want to get fashion internships with companies offering those internships.

OPPORTUNITY / CHALLENGE

What challenge were you trying to address with Tragic?

I needed a company that could update our site’s design and backend. The goal was to make the site look authoritative and more legitimate.

SOLUTION

What was the scope of their involvement?

We started the engagement by creating a scope of work for everything that I wanted, after which they came back with suggestions on what would be the most ideal and beneficial to me. After we had approved everything, we moved into the design phase. They sent some ideas on how we could refresh the site’s design and took some design measures to ensure that the site looked legitimate. From there, they started implementation and updated the site’s backend to reduce bugs.

This was the second iteration of our website, but they’ve offered me monthly maintenance support for the site, so we still have an ongoing partnership.

What is the team composition?

I worked with Rich (Founder) and a project manager from Tragic.

How did you come to work with Tragic?

I found Tragic through a referral years ago. I've actually had the pleasure of working with Tragic before, so they have been my partners in this business for quite some time.

How much have you invested with them?

I’ve spent around $8,000 on this specific project.

What is the status of this engagement?

We started working together in September 2017, and the engagement is ongoing.

RESULTS & FEEDBACK

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

I don’t have any metrics to share.

How did Tragic perform from a project management standpoint?

Tragic has performed well in terms of project management. They’re incredibly organized, communicative, and great to work and collaborate with. It's incredibly difficult to stick to a budget, especially when working on a website that hasn't been updated in four years. Nevertheless, Tragic has done a great job — they were able to handle communications and any roadblocks they hit incredibly well, so nothing ever felt like a surprise. I was clued in as to what was going on without being overwhelmed with communication, which was impressive.

We typically communicate through email.

What did you find most impressive about them?

I love working with Tragic. They’re exceptional at what they do, and they always deliver on their promises and pay attention to the goals that we set at the beginning of the project. They genuinely feel like a part of my team, which is not something that I usually experience when working with vendors, and I work with a lot of vendors. I would recommend them to anyone who is looking to bring on a team that is effective, forward-thinking, and always eager to help their clients meet their goals.

Are there any areas they could improve?

No, I don’t have anything negative to say about them.

Do you have any advice for potential customers?

Make sure that you understand and clearly communicate what you want out of the project and what your ultimate goals are, but also be open-minded to any suggestions or pushes they have to help you meet those goals.

BACKGROUND

Please describe your company and your position there.

I’m the CEO of San Diego Sports Acupuncture, a premier acupuncture clinic that focuses on the treatment of injuries related to sports, work, aging, postural misalignment, and improper movement patterns.

OPPORTUNITY / CHALLENGE

For what projects/services did your company hire Tragic Media?

We needed web design.

What were your goals for this project?

We wanted to create a dynamic online presence for my acupuncture clinic and have one of the best-looking websites in the industry.

SOLUTION

How did you select this vendor?

Richard (Owner, Tragic Media) has been a good friend of mine since we were at The University of California together. It was an extremely small project compared to what Tragic Media normally tackles. I don't think they would take on a project this size any longer, but since I'm friends with the owner, he was willing to help me out.

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

They designed our website and have refreshed it once. Richard was flexible on costs with me for the first iteration, back when I was just starting my acupuncture practice. After I got the business going, I paid him for the second iteration, which was well worth it. Tragic delivered on all fronts and also took their time working on the creative aspect to help me get exactly what I wanted when I was unable to really articulate my needs.

The website has approximately 10 pages, multiple calls to action, integration with my scheduling program, and a blog that I can update. Aside from building the actual website, they helped me interface with the developers so they could translate my ideas into something they could work with. I'm very happy with the end result.

What was the team composition?

Richard chose and managed the team for me for the entirety of the project.

RESULTS & FEEDBACK

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

Since hiring Tragic Media to build my website, my acupuncture clinic has become one of the most successful practices in an already very saturated environment. I'm extremely proud of what they've helped me build and the livelihood it has provided for me for the past six years.

They've done a phenomenal job and are ready to update the website yet again, though several time constraints on my part have prevented me from moving forward with it.

How was project management arranged and how effective was it?

I communicated directly with Richard and he would interface with the team. It felt extremely efficient and well managed on my end.

What did you find most impressive about this company?

I was impressed by the level of customization in their work. Tragic Media can make exactly what you want and will work hard to deliver on every detail and aspect until you’re satisfied. I know for a fact that they coded everything from scratch. They even built tools so that I could manage the website without having to know anything about programming.

Are there any areas where they can improve?

Nothing comes to mind. They went the extra mile every step of the way.

BACKGROUND

Please describe your company and your position there.

alwaysAI is San Diego, CA-based startup offering an end-to-end Computer Vision platform. I was brought on to head up the marketing department, evolve their brand presence, grow their developer community, and establish alwaysAI as the premium provider of Computer Vision in SoCal.

OPPORTUNITY / CHALLENGE

For what projects/services did your company hire Tragic?

alwaysAI hired Tragic Media to implement a state-of-the-art, headless, Content Management System to empower the marketing team to take control of the publication of content. Additionally, we were in need of more experienced technical strategy and sophisticated front-end development than our team could provide.

SOLUTION

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

Tragic Media is very established in the San Diego tech community, and I had personally worked with them and knew the quality of work and expertise.

Describe the project in detail and walk through their service package.

The project was to implement an advanced Content Management System that would allow us to scale our content footprint rapidly.

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

I worked with Rich R., CEO + Technical Strategist, who is an absolute hero at navigating non-technical people through complex scenarios. Other members of my team and I also worked with a Project Manager and a Senior Developer, over the course of the project.

RESULTS & FEEDBACK

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

Once the CMS implementation was complete, the marketing team was able to make updates to the website without relying on technical staff. As a result, the marketing department became much more agile and produced a more enhanced and engaging digital experience for its 30k community. Since we were able to scale our content so rapidly it resulted in a tremendous increase in traffic to the website, increased time on site, lower bounce rates, and even more demos scheduled with the sales team.

How effective was the workflow between your team and theirs?

The workflow was very effective. We used a combination of Jira for project progress and issue tracking, Google Meet/MS Team for video conferencing, Slack for spontaneous/impromptu questions etc. There was never a time when I felt I could not reach out to their team or I was not getting responses timely.

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

Tragic offers the ultimate trifecta of value, speed, and expertise.

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

I am very happy with the results of the project. I look forward to the next one!