Cojo

Introduce your business and what you do there.

We have an AI-powered tool called Grapevine that allows corporate travel agents to maximize their revenue by retargeting customers with travel booking recommendations. I’m the founder and CEO.

What challenge were you trying to address with Fello Studio Ltd?

We needed a team to help us with design.

What was the scope of their involvement?

Fello Studio Ltd initially did several design sprints for us. They did user interviews and then continued to involve users throughout the process. They were very good at making sure that everything was research-driven, rather than just taking an idea and creating a design. They built the prototype MVP. Then, we called them in to create other features as we built the product in iterations.

They used Sketch for the design work, and then they put everything into Marvel. We used Mural to do user testing and jot down notes. The team would upload all of the designs and various iterations to Mural for us to see. Once those Mural design entries are approved, we transfer them to Marvel.

What is the team composition?

We work with two of their team members.

How did you come to work with Fello Studio Ltd?

I was introduced to them by our team consultant. We spoke with other agencies, but Fello Studio Ltd was really well-priced and responsive. I asked other people about their team and I heard very positive reviews, so I was happy to choose them.

How much have you invested with them?

We’ve spent about £15,000 (approximately $21,000 USD) so far.

What is the status of this engagement?

We started working together in April 2020, and we continue to work on projects together. The initial project lasted 4–6 weeks. We’ve also done a couple of two-week sprints since then.

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

We’ve had an awesome experience with Fello Studio Ltd. We’ve shown their work to our current and prospective clients and investors, and everyone’s been super impressed with it. We have gotten everything that we wanted from their designs.

How did Fello Studio Ltd perform from a project management standpoint?

They’ve been excellent in keeping up with project timelines. We did a kickoff meeting, and we’ve since communicated through Slack and video calls. We have regular communication. They really act as an extension of our team. Their follow-up is amazing — they really go above and beyond in that regard. Their post-engagement service is really strong and one of my favorite things about them.

What did you find most impressive about them?

Their communication distinguishes them. They set clear target outcomes from the beginning, and then their follow-up is incredible. Their services were also very well-priced.

Are there any areas they could improve?

They’re honestly really great, so I can’t think of any areas for improvement off the top of my head.

Do you have any advice for potential customers?

Just do it. As long as you agree on a set plan and know what your goals are, you can’t go wrong. 

Introduce your business and what you do there.

I’m the CEO of a startup software company, and we’ve built a platform to enable seamless ordering from shops, like ordering ahead of time from your favorite coffee shops. We started this project four years ago before COVID-19 kicked a lot of things into overdrive. Most of our customers tend to be the local shops that can’t quite stomach the high costs of the larger platforms.

What challenge were you trying to address with Fello Studio Ltd?

We partnered with them in two one-week design sprints. Our expertise is in the backend of our solution, which is what we’ve been building for the past two years, but we’re not as skilled with UX and UI.

What was the scope of their involvement?

The brief was relatively open-ended, meaning we weren’t wedded to a specific design — we wanted them to tell us what the best practice was. The output of the sprints was a number of templates and colors and files that we could plug and play into our solutions.

The first sprint focused on an app that was available on iOS and Android. We already had an app, but we needed help on the look and feel, as well as its flow. Fello Studio did a bunch of preparation beforehand, looking at our major competitors. They had a lot of experience in this field already, but they showed us that they looked at the most up-to-date information that we requested. The second sprint focused on our website.

For both week-long sprints, we discussed their feedback on our existing offering and figured out what we wanted to amend and change. They input those changes into our skins and fonts and then gave us the source material so we could update the solutions ourselves.

How did you come to work with Fello Studio Ltd?

One of the directors on our board had worked with them in the past. We spoke with Jonathan (Co-Founder) and were so impressed from the first meeting that we signed with them. Additionally, the cost was reasonable for the work we needed.

How much have you invested with them?

Between our two sprints, we spent £6,000 (approximately 8,400 USD).

What is the status of this engagement?

We worked together twice: in February 2020 and then in August 2020, doing a one-week design sprint each time.

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

In terms of the quality of the design, they listened to our objectives. The app looks and feels like one of the large platform apps, and intentionally so.W e’d put out an amateur version of the app, and Fello Studio took it to the next level. The thoughtfulness with which they approached the project was excellent. I was very impressed with the background work they did beforehand to figure out the industry standard for our type of application.

How did Fello Studio Ltd perform from a project management standpoint?

Generally, they were very good. Both of the projects fit nicely into one-week incrementes, each of which started with 1–2 days of us talking through what we wanted and making sure they understood it, followed by them showing their research. The next two or three days would be for them to do the work, and then we had a wrap-up call at the end of the week.

Both projects were relatively self-contained, so there wasn’t a need for check-ins or milestones like there would have been with longer projects. Neither project ran over — they gave us the full library of the work that they’d done at the end of the week. Subsequently, I’ve spoken with Jonothan a couple of times to pick his brain, and he’s been happy to discuss with me.

What did you find most impressive about them?

I haven’t worked with a huge number of designers, but what you get with Fello is a boutique agency that cares about the success of your business. You’re not going to be passed off to a junior person who will implement stock designs. Fello takes the time to get to know you and your business, as well as your goals.

There’s no pretense with them. I’m very happy with the work that they did; it felt like a fair price. What distinguishes them is that I can call Jonathan up and ask him what he thinks about something, meaning that we could move quickly once we agreed to a schedule. That personal connection is something I wouldn’t get with a large design firm.

Are there any areas they could improve?

Their M.O. is to go out into the industry where you are, look at the best practices, and tailor them for you. You won’t necessarily get anything visionary — like maybe you will by walking into a large design firm — but that’s not what I wanted.

Do you have any advice for potential customers?

The best way to get the most out of Fello is to give them a blank slate. Be open with what it is you’re trying to achieve, and if there is a target metric. Treat them like the professionals they are and let them form their own suggestions. I don’t believe micromanaging them would work as well as letting them work independently, as we did.

Introduce your business and what you do there.

At the time, I was the founder of a startup that linked local sporting groups with the general public.

What challenge were you trying to address with Fello Studio Ltd?

I needed help with design and development.

What was the scope of their involvement?

I had an app made and was looking for further design and development. I did some initial testing and found that I needed to help with some of the product strategy, too. Fello introduced new elements to the app and also completed some prototyping, as well.

The team also created an explainer video for my product and helped me submit my app to the app store. Additionally, they helped me with some legal components, too.

What is the team composition?

I worked with Jonathan and Chris (Co-Founders).   

How did you come to work with Fello Studio Ltd?

I found them through networking events for startups.

How much have you invested with them?

I spent £5,000 (approximately $7,000 USD).

What is the status of this engagement?

We started working together in June 2018, and we wrapped up in April 2019.

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

The feedback from users was great. They made a lot of great suggestions for the app but I didn’t implement them all because of funding. I also saw an opportunity to pivot the app to perform a different service.

How did Fello Studio Ltd perform from a project management standpoint?

They’re really easy to deal with. They delivered everything that I ever asked for on time and on budget, if not earlier. We communicated via email and phone.

What did you find most impressive about them?

Their friendly nature stands out. The team is very honest with costs upfront and they’re easy to deal with. They really went out of their way to help in any way that they could. If they couldn’t help, they were willing to recommend someone in their network that could help.

Are there any areas they could improve?

No, they always turned things around quickly and efficiently. I never had an issue with the advice they gave me.

Do you have any advice for potential customers?

It’s important to establish a brief of what you want to accomplish with them early on. They have a lot of design experience you can draw from.

Introduce your business and what you do there.        

I’m the founder of a startup that allows you to build microsites and bio links for social media.

What challenge were you trying to address with Fello Studio Ltd?

We needed help with design.

What was the scope of their involvement?

They work on our site’s design and UX. They used Sketch and Mirrorboard for our design sprints. The team works on one-week sprints, which we like because it focuses on one part of our product. At the end of each week, we get an output, designs, mockups, and asset files, which is very useful.

What is the team composition?

I work with two people from their team.

How did you come to work with Fello Studio Ltd?

I was recommended to them. I also worked with them in a previous business venture. When I started my new company, they were the first vendor I called.

How much have you invested with them?

We spent £12,000–£18,000 (approximately $16,700–$25,000 USD).

What is the status of this engagement?

We started working together in November 2019, and we wrapped up in January 2020.

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

Their work saved us a lot of time on our end. It’s hard to offer any KPIs because we were in the early stages at that point. The quality of work is exactly how we imagined.

How did Fello Studio Ltd perform from a project management standpoint?

The project management was fantastic. Because they were delivering things to us daily, we could provide feedback just as quickly. They delivered everything on time at the end of each week. They’re very timely and we checked in daily.

What did you find most impressive about them?

They know how to go from a problem to a solution in one week. They’ve really mastered the design sprint method they use. It appeals to us because it’s very well defined and timeboxed. It’s quite unique.

Are there any areas they could improve?

They could start off every week with some market research and go a bit wider on potential solutions earlier.

Do you have any advice for potential customers?

Do a trial week to learn how you work together. Get them to work on a big challenge, that way you’ll get the most out of the week. It’ll be worth the money.

Introduce your business and what you do there.

I am the founder and CEO of Permanence Labs, a startup studio. We offer a SaaS product called 1Brand, which aims to be the source of truth for the world’s brands. It is a brand operations tool that makes branding work easy for marketing agencies. 

Our tool is targeted at small businesses, schools, nonprofits, and government agencies as well as small marketing agencies who need to organize and operationalize their client’s brands.

What challenge were you trying to address with Fello Studio Ltd?

We were looking for development and design help.

What was the scope of their involvement?

Fello Studio Ltd developed our initial marketing website. Their team also designed the UX our web app, including innovative features to generate digital brand guidelines automatically based on the client’s existing brands. 

They essentially created an entire design language for us, as well as numerous features for the app. Currently, they are helping us solve UX issues and design more polished experiences when required. The team works in Sketch, Marvel, and Figma.

What is the team composition?

Our main points of contact were Jonathan (Co-Founder & Client Services) and Chris (Co-Founder & UX Designer).

How did you come to work with Fello Studio Ltd?

Fello Studio Ltd was referred to me by a LinkedIn contact. When I mentioned offhand that I was looking for UX help, he pointed me in their direction.

How much have you invested with them?

We have invested around $30,000.

What is the status of this engagement?

Our ongoing engagement began in February 2019.

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

Fello Studio Ltd comes up with really innovative solutions. They provide design directions based on principles that I give, and I’m able to sort through the options and choose what fits our needs best. They always return with a polished and cleaned up version with the exact functional requirements needed. It’s a really quick and innovative process.

How did Fello Studio Ltd perform from a project management standpoint?

Fello Studio Ltd utilizes design sprints, which have worked very well. I’m able to capture the problems we’re looking to solve without being prescriptive, and they react well to that. Taking a focused amount of time to solve problems has led to really great results so far.

Whenever I approach them with a problem, we have an orientation call to talk through it and define what success looks like. Due to the time difference between our teams, we usually see results on the first day of the sprint for us to provide feedback on. Our teams use Miro to collaborate.

What did you find most impressive about them?

The quality of their work blew us away. They are able to consistently remain on brand and come up with creative solutions. Fello Studio Ltd delivers great results.

Are there any areas they could improve?

No, everything has been great. 

Do you have any advice for potential customers?

Leverage them for product and UX strategy, not just designs. They’re able to consult on both for no extra cost, and we found that to be very helpful. Having access to a strategic and customer-focused perspective on your product is invaluable, take advantage of that.