AppsGarden

Introduce your business and what you do there.

I’m the director of a fitness club chain. We also operate kids’ play centers.

What challenge were you trying to address with AppsGarden?

The average age of our fitness centers is 10 years, which means that they require attention and maintenance. We don’t have a big budget for this, so we started looking for ways to save money. Previously, we had a maintenance department for each center, and it was hard to control the money we were spending. In the past, we had a manager who had a deal with a service company and who reported problems to us as bigger than they actually were. We couldn’t know whether the managers were being honest with us, whether they were reporting problems accurately, and whether they were sourcing the best contractors possible for air conditioning, electricity, and the fitness equipment.

What was the scope of their involvement?

AppsGarden built our app for Android devices. It’s used by center managers to report problems to us. They can take pictures and record video, which are sent straight to us, so we’ll know exactly what is happening. Then, we send the data to the maintenance people we have contracts with. We can control that entire process through the app. Every repair remains in our history so we can see which machines or systems are causing the most problems, control maintenance expenses, and also control the managers.

What is the team composition?

We had one main point of contact in the form of their project manager. If there was something I couldn’t understand, he directed me to someone else in the team who could explain the issue clearly.

How did you come to work with AppsGarden?

I found them through a reference. I contacted AppsGarden and described what we were looking for.

How much have you invested with them?

The cost of their work was slightly over $40,000.

What is the status of this engagement?

We started working with AppsGarden in October 2017. The project took around five months to complete. As with every product, we identified items that we could add or improve, so we contacted AppsGarden later on two occasions.

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

We can now control that entire area, so we’re quite happy about that. The app they built helped us save money.

Based on my overall experience, AppsGarden was helpful, and I’m truly happy about the collaboration and the final product. We’ve stayed in touch, and I believe we’ll assign them another project in 2019.

How did AppsGarden perform from a project management standpoint?

I’m completely new to IT, but they put me in touch with different team members, who clarified my concerns in layman’s terms. I was afraid that the process would be too difficult for me, but I’m happy about the final product. It’s easy to use, which is the main thing for us.

I mainly had contact with a single person; he was always helpful and open. We used the phone and online tools like Skype and email for communication.

What did you find most impressive about them?

“Impressive” is a strong word, but I appreciated their professionalism.

Are there any areas they could improve?

I can’t think of any weak points.

Introduce your business and what you do there.

I’m a sole trader in Dubai who mainly works with IT companies. They tell me what kind of back- or frontend development they want done for apps, and I find a firm to do it.

What challenge were you trying to address with AppsGarden?

One of my clients needed help with a mobile app that could share receipts and invoices. He wanted to introduce it at the Gulfood exhibition, the world’s largest annual food trade show.

What was the scope of their involvement?

My client already had the API and backend built, so he just needed AppsGarden to build the rest. I coordinated the entire project, passing information from my client to AppsGarden. They built the app to log in and out of the designated warehouses and interact with the cash register. It can download and display the inventory of the warehouse and scan barcodes and EAN codes with the phone’s camera. It also connects via Bluetooth to printers to print receipts and invoices.

What is the team composition?

I interacted mainly with a sales manager, who handled the whole project.

How did you come to work with AppsGarden?

We met at an IT conference in Poland. A friend recommended I meet with them.

How much have you invested with them?

I spent about $30,000.

What is the status of this engagement?

The partnership lasted from October 2017–January 2018.

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

My client was happy with their work. He hasn't had any problems with the application; it’s worked exactly as planned.

How did AppsGarden perform from a project management standpoint?

They’re highly professional. Everything went smoothly and was straightforward. They had excellent customer service. Other companies I’ve worked with were much more of a headache.

We initially used Skype to communicate but then switched to phone and email. They responded quickly and stuck to our schedule.

What did you find most impressive about them?

They work hard, communicate well, and take pride in their work. They finished when they said they would, and they charged the price we initially set. They did a great job with the app; I would definitely recommend them.

Are there any areas they could improve?

They’re a fairly new company, so they could improve the portfolio of apps they’ve worked on. In general, I was satisfied with them, though.

Do you have any advice for future clients of theirs?

Compare them to other companies to get the best price possible.

Introduce your business and what you do there.

I’m the CEO of a small software company that specializes in native iOS and Android backend and frontend solutions.

What challenge were you trying to address with AppsGarden?

We needed to build a desktop and mobile applications for a client, a retail telecom network. The client needed a staff training and skill verification app for their team of 4,000 salespeople that distribution their SIM cards. We could assess the app’s quality but we didn’t have the expertise to build it ourselves.

What was the scope of their involvement?

The mobile app was built for Android and iOS. The client didn’t specify coding languages in the requirements so AppsGarden decided to use Java and Swift. The app has video and text chat functions, with built-in screenshot and video recording abilities. It also provides knowledge quizzes and content sharing.

The desktop app was built for the company’s competence center. It was developed for Windows using .NET and C++. It also has quiz, video call, and screenshot functionalities.

We had some comments for them throughout the process, mostly about the use of our code repository. After the first iteration, they were able to do what we asked for without any issues.

What is the team composition?

I was initially in touch with one of their salespeople and later collaborated with AppsGarden’s CTO, who served as project manager. We had dedicated Android, iOS and Windows teams. We had some video calls with the developers throughout the process but to a lesser degree.

How did you come to work with AppsGarden?

I posted the work on a Polish freelance platform. AppsGarden approached me and I reviewed their projects. They seemed to be the best option out of the five development companies I reviewed.

How much have you invested with them?

The total cost of the project was around $50,000.

What is the status of this engagement?

We started working with AppsGarden in February 2017. The project was finished in August of that year, but I’m sure that I’ll contact their team for any similar projects.

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

AppsGarden’s work on the mobile end met our standards. They did a great job.

How did AppsGarden perform from a project management standpoint?

Because we’re relatively close to each other, we could call AppsGarden at any time. Their CTO was always available for us. We used Redmine, which is an internal AppsGarden tool. It was suitable for both our sides, as well as for our client who could oversee the work.

They always delivered on time, even on short deadlines, which was very important for us. We discussed the schedule with their team and made adjustments to the client’s deadlines when they were considered too tight.

What did you find most impressive about them?

The whole collaboration was flawless. I have worked with a few other subcontractors who weren’t always a perfect match. AppsGarden spoke the same language as us and we were able to understand each other well. I wish that we’d performed as well for our client as AppsGarden did for us.

Are there any areas they could improve?

We had some differences in the mobile development process given that our teams had different levels of knowledge. But AppsGarden’s quality of code and process management were very good.

Do you have any advice for potential customers?

One of the best pieces of advice I could give is to always have good specifications for the process. We edited many of the requirements given to us by the client that didn’t have enough detail about the app. The specifications we put together allowed AppsGarden’s team to proceed without the need to clarify questions.

Introduce your business and what you do there.

I am the project manager for a software company.

What challenge were you trying to address with AppsGarden?

We’ve worked with AppsGarden on three separate applications, two of which I was the project manager on. The first is a betting app for gaming and entertainment, and the second was a more complex financial app that allows users to easily pay their electricity bills.

What was the scope of their involvement?

We provided AppsGarden with documentation and wireframes for the project, as well as all required graphic design. With those materials, they went on to manage all aspects of the development process using a cross-platform tool. They were both compatible with iOS and Android, but AppsGarden used different technologies to specifically build to the requirements for each app.

What is the team composition?

I primarily interacted with a general director that oversaw organizational and financial matters and a technical lead/project manager that oversaw all communications. I’m not sure how many people were working on the project total.

How did you come to work with AppsGarden?

They were recommended to one of my colleagues by other software companies.

How much have you invested with them?

We’ve spent about $20,000.

What is the status of this engagement?

We started working with them in June of 2017, and we are still in contact. One of our projects is currently on hold due to outside problems.

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

The apps have not yet been added to the App Store or the Google Play Store, so we have not gathered any user feedback. However, we’ve tested their applications internally and have been very happy with their quality of work.

How did they perform from a project management standpoint?

They have been very responsive throughout the engagement. They’ve delivered everything on time, and there have been no budget issues. We use Ryver for internal communication, and they joined our channels to make the process as smooth as possible for us. The tech lead/project manager has also joined in on several calls with our clients, which has been very helpful.

What did you find most impressive about them?

Their tech lead/project manager has reliably comprehended the business needs of our clients while effectively addressing all technical issues. He has been a huge asset to us throughout the process. The communication has also been very good.

Are there any areas they could improve?

There are always areas for improvement, but nothing immediately comes to mind.

Advice for potential customers?

It’s important to provide detailed specifications to avoid confusion and meet all client requirements. There were minor misunderstandings throughout the process that could’ve been avoided with more clarity. Overall, our engagement has been very successful. They’re a great company. I would recommend that people work with Erik, our tech lead/project manager.

Introduce your business and what you do there.

I’m the CTO at a telecommunications company. I’m responsible for all technical issues.

What challenge were you trying to address with AppsGarden?

We needed a mobile application to support the sale of different communication services.

What was the scope of their involvement?

They designed and developed an iOS and Android mobile app and a web application for our salesforce. They used PHP for the web version, and an order management system and a reporting service for the apps. The website is designed to manage access to the application.

What is the team composition?

I interacted with a project manager. One guy works on the technical side and one guy works on the user experience side.

How did you come to work with AppsGarden?

I did research online and considered five companies.

How much have you invested with them?

$200,000.

What is the status of this engagement?

We worked together from December 2016 until September 2017.

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

It’s going well. The project has been launched, and about 2,000 sellers in our network are using the applications.

How did AppsGarden perform from a project management standpoint?

We had a nice cooperation with no problems. Their project management and responsiveness were great, and they finished the job according to the timeline and within the budget. We used Redmine.

What did you find most impressive about them?

They are flexible enough to react quickly to our changing requirements and adjust to suit our needs.

Are there any areas they could improve?

I don’t need anything more from them.

Do you have any advice for potential customers?

No.