Codesmith Development

BACKGROUND

Introduce your business and what you do there.

I’m the founder of a web app for attorneys and their clients.

OPPORTUNITY / CHALLENGE

What challenge were you trying to address with Codesmith Development?

Over the past couple of years, I’ve worked with two prior development teams but ran out of luck. I needed a new local team to fix some features and build new ones for my platform.

SOLUTION

What was the scope of their involvement?

Codesmith Development fixed bugs and bad code that needed to be rewritten in my web app. The platform’s based in MySQL and was built using PHP and Ionic. Initially, we had a consultation when I told them about the platform’s challenges. I’ve detailed what I want to be done and their team provides an estimate as well as a timeline. Then, they’ve delved into their work on a project-to-project basis. They’ve built new features, fixed bugs, and rewritten code. During the development process, we go back and forth. I plan to engage them for all future development needs. There are plenty of tasks coming down the pipeline.

What is the team composition?

I’ve worked with a project lead and been in touch with Codesmith Development’s owner. I’m not sure how they disseminate work because I’ve mainly communicated with the project manager.

How did you come to work with Codesmith Development?

I think I found them on Clutch. I googled top local Atlanta PHP developers or web app developers and clicked through the top results. I cold-called between 3–4 development firms, eventually deciding on Codesmith Development.

How much have you invested with them?

I’ve spent around $20,000 with Codesmith Development so far.

What is the status of this engagement?

We started working together in March 2019, and continue collaborating.

RESULTS & FEEDBACK

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

They’ve done a great job. Codesmith Development fixed numerous challenges that the prior development teams weren’t able to get right. On top of that, their team’s provided new work that was done to a high-level. There have been minimal issues with any of their work.

How did Codesmith Development perform from a project management standpoint?

Their team’s project management has been great. Typically, I go in on Fridays to talk with them face-to-face. They’ve been available any other time too. As far as communication, Codesmith Development’s been great. Their team has met every deadline and been transparent. If there has ever been an issue or delay, they’ve communicated what’s going on.

What did you find most impressive about them?

Codesmith Development gets work done well. Their team keeps an open line of communication. The pairing of those two qualities is all I could ask for in a partner.

Are there any areas they could improve?

It’s tough for technical people to talk about their work with non-technical people. If there’s one small critique, it would be to provide more information to non-technical individuals. That content’s hard to explain so I don’t hold that against anyone.

Do you have any advice for potential customers?

Be organized and give them all the information necessary to complete their work. Be as clear and concise as possible. That’s where holes enter the process. If I assume something on my end, they might not understand the project’s goals when they’re coding.

BACKGROUND

Introduce your business and what you do there.

I am the senior marketing manager for a sports organization.

OPPORTUNITY / CHALLENGE

What challenge were you trying to address with Codesmith Development?

We hadn’t had a web development agency helping us for a couple of months because our agreement had run out with our previous agency. We needed help with development.

SOLUTION

What was the scope of their involvement?

They are on a monthly retainer with us and provide both web development and SEO support on an ongoing basis. They’ve also created a couple of one-off larger projects that weren’t covered under the retainer.

Technically, they’ve helped us with some things on our backend servers. We store a ton of data when guests come tour our building, and all the content that gets created is stored in our servers and pushed to the guests 2–3 hours after they visit. We’ve had a couple of things break, and Codesmith Development has helped us keep all of that up and running. They’ve been quick to respond, which has been amazing, as we’re open seven days a week. If something breaks and guests aren’t getting their content, it’s a huge problem for us.

They’ve also helped us with quite a few implementations to improve our SEO, like moving different pages around on the site and going in and changing metadata. They’ve also ensured our site looks healthy when Google is analyzing it by working in the backend.

What is the team composition?

There are two main day-to-day contacts, as well as two other folks on the team who help with some of the other larger projects and some of the things with the backend servers.

How did you come to work with Codesmith Development?

They were recommended to us by one of my boss’ former colleagues. We trusted the recommendation and had an introductory call with them. They presented their capabilities and their pricing and we negotiated from there. We reached out to two other web development companies too but ultimately decided that Codesmith Development made the most sense for us. Since we’re a small, nonprofit organization, they were able to work with us on competitive pricing and a monthly retainer agreement.

How much have you invested with them?

We’ve spent $33,200 so far.

What is the status of this engagement?

We started working together in September 2018, and the work is ongoing.

RESULTS & FEEDBACK

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

Our rankings for keywords on Google compared to other attractions in Atlanta has improved thanks to Codesmith. They’ve also been good at educating us in what broke, why it happened, and what they did to fix it.

How did Codesmith Development perform from a project management standpoint?

We had some kinks to work out when we first started working with them. They were a new agency for us, and we weren’t quite sure of the best way to work with them. I got on the phone with Joey (President/Founder, Codesmith Development) and we started using Slack to communicate with the main point of contact and developer on their team. We also started using Zoho. It was also helpful that we were both native to the Atlanta area.

What did you find most impressive about them?

Their level of responsiveness is impressive. They answer the phone right away or get back to us right away, especially if it’s an urgent request. They’re also very thorough and have been great at explaining complex and complicated development terms and solutions. They’ve really helped simplify it and break it down.

Are there any areas they could improve?

The only thing would be to implement some of our current project management tools at the beginning.

Do you have any advice for potential customers?

Have those conversations upfront about project management and the level of responsiveness. Outline expectations clearly with them.

BACKGROUND

Please describe your company and your position there.

I’m a sales manager at Admin America, Inc. We’re a third-party health insurance administrator that focuses on Consumer-driven health care plans and Employee Retirement Income Security Act (ERISA) compliance.

OPPORTUNITY / CHALLENGE

For what projects/services did your company hire Codesmith Development?

We needed a partner to help us rebuild our website, delivering more backend control to our team and updating our technology.

What were your goals for this project?

Multiple departments needed easy access to our platform. It was also necessary that several people be able to make changes to the site.  

SOLUTION

How did you select this vendor?

Other groups that have used their services before recommended them to us. We’d also had a past relationship with Codesmith’s president.

Describe the project and the services they provided in detail.

We had an initial in-person meeting with the president of Codesmith and the project manager we might be working with. They reviewed our current technology and identified our wants/needs moving forward. Afterward, they delivered recommendations for improvement and supporting evidence. Once we decided on a direction, they assigned us a project manager to serve as a direct point of contact. Codesmith worked on the entire website, from design templates to backend functionality.

What was the team composition?

We were in contact with Codesmith’s president and a dedicated project manager. We mainly dealt with the project manager, but the president was also available if needed.

RESULTS & FEEDBACK

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

We’ve received lots of positive feedback from end users praising the site’s ease of use. Codesmith delivered the exact product we were expecting.

How was project management arranged and how effective was it?

It was highly detailed and professional. They customized their processes to our needs and were flexible and patient with our internal decision making.

What did you find most impressive about this company?

Their adaptability is their biggest strength. Some of our internal team members aren't well-versed in the IT space, but Codesmith’s president and project manager explain their decisions so we know how they will benefit us.

Are there any areas for improvement?

No, not that I can think of.

BACKGROUND

Introduce your business and what you do there.

I’m the managing partner of and an investor in a software platform for the parking industry.

OPPORTUNITY / CHALLENGE

What challenge were you trying to address with Codesmith Development?

We needed a partner to support our US development team in building the platform.

SOLUTION

What was the scope of their involvement?

Codesmith helped with some of our ideation and design needs, but they mainly handled the frontend development of the platform. Acting as an outsourced scrum master, they were involved in every phase of the project—wireframing, interface design, development, and QA testing. The finished product is an onboarding and payment platform for professionals in the parking industry.

What is the team composition?

I was in contact with the president, but I mainly interacted with our project manager who led a team of backend and frontend engineers.

How did you come to work with Codesmith Development?

A friend who’s worked with Codesmith Development in the past recommended them for this project.

How much have you invested with them?

We spent about $250,000 on their services.

What is the status of this engagement?

We worked with them from 2014–2018.

RESULTS & FEEDBACK

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

All of the feedback on the platform has been great. They delivered high-quality work.

How did Codesmith Development perform from a project management standpoint?

They customized their work ethic and development process to accommodate our needs. Overall, their agile nature is one of their biggest strengths. We communicated primarily via Slack.

What did you find most impressive about them?

They were flexible and adaptive in their approach to staffing a team.

Are there any areas they could improve?

No, I can’t think of anything.

BACKGROUND

Introduce your business and what you do there.

I'm the former director of IT for an office space company.

OPPORTUNITY / CHALLENGE

What challenge were you trying to address with Codesmith Development?

We initially engaged Codesmith to develop new features on our co-working space platform and then eventually to rebuild our entire booking system, since our previous platform was failing constantly.

SOLUTION

What was the scope of their involvement?

Codesmith built a new social media feature on our existing platform initially and then eventually redeveloped our backend booking system. They developed custom code to make this happen. In the process, they also transferred existing data from our old site to the new platform.

What is the team composition? 

We worked with two to four people at any given time, including a project manager and a few developers. The president was also very involved in brainstorming sessions at the start of a new project. 

How did you come to work with Codesmith Development?

I was drawn to their website after doing an online search for developers. After meeting them, I liked their focus on building solid code since our previous site was failing constantly. Now that we've worked with them a couple times, we're very comfortable with their team and culture, as well as the fact that they've become students of our business in order to deliver the best product. 

RESULTS & FEEDBACK

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

Our employees are very happy with the platform they've built; It's significantly faster and more reliable than our previous version. We haven't had any complaints, which is a good sign that the site is running effectively. Their efforts have helped improve internal efficiencies and freed up more time for us to focus on the business. 

How did Codesmith Development perform from a project management standpoint?

They've been great. We mostly communicate through their online project management tools, and they've been on top of everything from start to finish. They've even made themselves available outside office hours when I've needed assistance.

What did you find most impressive about them?

They have a strong team of smart and trustworthy people. I like how they've taken the time to understand our business so they can deliver the best solutions for us over the years.

Are there any areas they could improve?

No.

BACKGROUND

Introduce your business and what you do there.

I’m the managing director for The Ardent Companies, a real estate acquisition and asset management firm based in Atlanta. I run the commercial development side of our team.

OPPORTUNITY / CHALLENGE

What challenge were you trying to address with Codesmith Development?

We acquired nine office buildings in a 45-acre campus in Atlanta that previously had three different owners. We wanted to create an app that our tenants, guests, and managers could use to communicate in another way besides traditional emails from assistants.

SOLUTION

What was the scope of their involvement?

Codesmith Development designed and developed our app for both iOS and Android. They built prototypes that our management team reviewed. There was a lot of back-and-forth between their team and ours.

The app serves as a communication platform that we can use to push notifications to tenants such as travel advisories or road closures, special events, or deals for the various amenities we have like fitness centers and cafes. It also provides navigation throughout the campus. It helps ridesharing drivers find our designated drop-off and pick-up spots. It has information on the campus shuttle which takes tenants to mass transit.

What is the team composition?

Their president was our primary contact. We had a team behind the scenes that scaled to what we needed.

How did you come to work with Codesmith Development?

Codesmith Development is a tenet in one of our buildings. We interviewed several parties and felt that they were the best to work with. Their pricing was reasonable and their responsiveness in the process proved that they were listening to what we told them. We decided to give them a shot.

What is the status of this engagement?

We worked together from March to October 2018.

RESULTS & FEEDBACK

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

We just released the app so won’t know about its impact for a while. We've been pleased with the number of people who download it and the feedback on it has been very positive so far.

How did Codesmith Development perform from a project management standpoint?

We communicated via email, phone, and text. The team was always very responsive. For example, we had an issue come up about three weeks ago. Somebody alerted me to it and I let Codesmith Development know. They responded within an hour.

What did you find most impressive about them?

Their willingness to listen to the client and the nimbleness they showed as we got into the project. This was new for us—a new app and a new project. There were a lot of twists and turns but they didn't complain and stayed professional.

Are there any areas they could improve?

Nothing that jumped out.