Definery

Please describe your company and your position there.

I'm co-founder & CEO of Parsnip (https://parsnip.ai), a consumer app that teaches techniques & knowledge while you cook ("Duolingo for cooking"). Long-term, we're building an AI assistant & data platform that gives superpowers to home cooks and minimizes the cognitive load of meal planning, grocery shopping, and preparing food.

For what projects/services did your company hire Definery?

We needed to build a novel consumer product that contains a lot of information (recipes, cooking techniques, grocery shopping, meal planning and gamification) while simultaneously being simple and approachable to users.

Not only is this a challenging design problem, but Parsnip also needed to stand out in a crowded market of food/cooking apps & websites.

On top of that, as a new startup we also needed to build our logo & brand identity.

What were your goals for this project?

In terms of concrete deliverables, we needed a web & mobile app, help with market & user research, and coherent logo/branding materials across different media.

But beneath all that, we needed some "je ne sais quoi": a design team that could grok a complex & novel consumer product, think from a product perspective, apply their extensive experience with digital products to point out our unknown unknowns, and solve problems we didn't even know we had. These are invaluable superpowers for any startup—and precisely where Definery excelled.

How did you select Definery?

I had worked with them before in a previous company, and was very impressed with the talent of the team and their ability to execute.

Describe the project in detail.

We brought Definery on at a very early stage, where we had a clear plan for the product but were pretty open-ended about specific details, and hence a lot of room for creative juices to flow—or uncertainty to run amok.

Definery surpassed our expectations by first conducting a thorough market survey of both similar products in the food space as well as similar concepts from other consumer verticals, level-setting the team.

Then, they split into two parallel tracks to explore the visual identity of the company & UI, as well as architecture and UX wireframes for potential product features.

Finally, these two threads melded seamlessly into beautiful web & mobile app designs, logo & branding (and even a mascot!), and a comprehensive UI library for our engineering team.

Along the way, Definery also helped with content & product strategy guided by their extensive startup experience, and pivoted effortlessly as we built prototypes and learned new information.

What was the team composition?

We were fortunate to be able to work with the whole company, with the team size scaling up/down depending on our immediate needs. This included Almitra, the immensely talented managing partner; the creative team producing such beautiful visuals that our jaws drop week after week; and the mastermind UX team that seems always one step ahead of us on how to improve the product.

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

So far, we've received a fully designed mobile & web interface, a landing page in WebFlow, and a fantastic brand identity with a mascot for our product. But more importantly, Definery has become our partner and grasped the soul of the company, masterfully communicating the ethos of our product through its design: approachable yet informative, likable but not kitschy, authentic but not amateur. All along the way, the team has shown remarkable ability to incorporate new information and adjust course when needed. We are incredibly excited to launch our product with all of the creative passion that Definery has poured in.

How effective was the workflow between your team and theirs?

It has been easy to establish a workflow with Definery, as the team are very adaptable to the tools and communication needs of their clients. We used a shared Slack channel as our main form of communication, and Notion as a long-form documentation platform. We were pleasantly surprised by how deeply they dug into and grokked the product concepts and ideas we sent to them. Definery is also very good at iterating and improving their work in response to feedback, and capable of incredibly fast response times when required.

What did you find most impressive about this company?

The first thing that will strike you about working with Definery are the people. They have a really energizing, people-first culture, and a cohesive and close-knit team that really enjoy working together. Hence, the second thing you will notice is the talent—and not just at an individual level, but a real dream team that is able to break down complex problems into subcomponents and stitch them back together—as another reviewer mentioned—like the work was done by a single person. A really fast, incredibly smart, very experienced, super productive, and unimaginably creative person.

Are there any areas for improvement?

None. I can't sing higher praise here—Definery is the best digital design firm we have ever had the pleasure to work with.

Introduce your business and what you do there.

I work at Flo Health as VP of Product. We have a women’s health app that uses a 10-day cycle to help women see what’s happening in their bodies.

What challenge were you trying to address with Definery?

We were looking to expand our design team with some external resources. We needed help with new ways to onboard users to the app.

What was the scope of their involvement?

Definery provided market research and talked about our current onboarding process. They helped us change our way of thinking about it to be more seamless, effective, and interesting. Their team also provided suggestions for improvement. They were deep in concept creation and evaluation of user needs, and design work.

We collaborated to make a set of valuable positions and tested different ones and how they come together. They provided Sigma files with wireframes and UI for our design team to test, and then choose which ones to implement into the app.

What is the team composition?

We worked with five people: a market researcher, a coordination lead, an art director, a designer, and a copywriter.

How did you come to work with Definery?

I heard about work they did for other companies, who were quite pleased with them.

How much have you invested with them?

We have invested $25,000.

What is the status of this engagement?

We worked together from June–October 2020.

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

My internal team was impressed with their crisp, user-friendly communication and how it corresponded with the design/image they provided. The tests we ran had better results than what we had before working with them.

How did Definery perform from a project management standpoint?

They were mature and independent in their way of thinking and exploration. They did thorough review before giving design suggestions. We communicated via Slack and Zoom calls.

What did you find most impressive about them?

They own their experience, thinking about user needs, what the client asked for, and ultimately come up with innovative designs. They try to build something they believe in; it’s quite unique.

Are there any areas they could improve?

They could expand their horizons and be less conservative in their designs.

Do you have any advice for potential customers?

If you’re looking for a team to work responsibly and independently in collaboration with you, they are excellent at it.

Please describe your company and your position there.

I am the Senior Director of Marketing at a financial services startup based in San Francisco

For what projects/services did your company hire Definery?

This project was specific to branding and website design for a startup moving into beta launch. We also worked with Definery on separate projects for product design, user research, and UX/UI

What were your goals for this project?

We are operating in a somewhat complex, crowded space so it was important to us that our branding and beta/waitlist website were designed in a way that was eye catching but also simple enough to explain the value of our product in order to hit our goal of XXXk waitlist signups.

How did you select this vendor?

Members of our team had worked with Definery on projects at previous companies and we quickly onboarded them as a partner for this new startup.

Describe the project in detail.

For this project, we specifically needed initial branding for our company (color palette, typography, general look/feel) that could translate across marketing + product. We also needed a beta website that could easily translate the value of a fairly complex product and influence people to sign up for the waitlist and refer others.

What was the team composition?

We worked with several folks on their team - namely, Almitra, Rich, and Alex - across project management, design, brand concepting, and web development. They were incredible to work with.

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

Our website hasn't launched yet, but initial user testing feedback has been incredible.

How effective was the workflow between your team and theirs?

Definery is super fast and effective at responding to feedback and moving between iterations and revisions. We are an opinionated group (a lot of cooks in the kitchen, as you might say!) and they were able to streamline the process for us and lay groundwork for feedback + ownership in a way that got us moving much faster than we might have otherwise.

What did you find most impressive about this company?

The team at Definery has an incredible understanding of brand and design but also a unique ability to predict the needs and potential of a user. Since we are pre-launch, we were limited in the quantitative testing we could do. Their intuitive sense around user-based design was incredibly helpful for us across brand, web design, and product.

Are there any areas for improvement?

Probably on our side :)

Introduce your business and what you do there.

I am the head of growth for a new startup in the small business banking space.

What challenge were you trying to address with Definery?

We were looking for a good design shop that could augment our internal team.

What was the scope of their involvement?

They worked on our mobile application and website. While developing our product, we were trying hard to figure out how people interact with their banking applications. They were fundamental in helping us translate that knowledge into graphic designs.

They don’t just ask what you’re looking for and translate it into a design. They truly get involved in the process of ideating and defining the product.

What is the team composition?

We have two people from their team working on a project at any given time. They work in-person here once per week, as well as out of office. We have a project manager as well.

How did you come to work with Definery?

They were brought on before I started with the company.

How much have you invested in them?

We have spent between $100,000 and $250,000.

What is the status of this engagement?

We started working with them in 2016 and the engagement is ongoing.

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

We are highly satisfied with their work, and I’m comfortable and satisfied with everything I have asked of them. Their deliverables have been on time and of good quality. Sometimes we have a difference of opinion, but it has been highly satisfying overall.

How did Definery perform from a project management standpoint?

They are awesome, and they sometimes push us to go faster. We don’t have any issues getting in touch with them if something comes up.

What did you find most impressive about them?

Since they are a small firm, you get very personal treatment from their managing director. It is a very personalized experience.

Do you have any advice for potential customers?

If you can make Definery part of your core team, you’ll get more value than you will if you just use them as a design shop. They’re great people with great intuition, so include them in the decision process. Use them as a part of the ideation process rather than just as pencil pushers. They give a lot of value there.

Introduce your business and what you do there.

I am the head of design for Azlo. We are a mission-based small business banking app that seeks to empower marginalized communities that wouldn’t normally have access to powerful financial tools. Each one of Azlo's founders have experience in building their own companies and we are focusing our knowledge and knowhow to level the playing field for a new generation of entrepreneurs.

What challenge were you trying to address with Definery?

In the beginning, I was the only designer on staff. I have about 25 years of experience and unfortunately, that means I can do everything. I created the brand and design principles and delineated the brand voice and how it manifested in any and all visual executions. Once the brand had a cohesive direction and we understood who our customer was, we brought on Definery to help us implement our strategy in both web and mobile applications.

What was the scope of their involvement? 

Definery’s abilities run the gamut from the visual and UX design to product strategy and project management. We create the plan and the building blocks and Definery delivers the code-ready assets.

What is the team composition?

They have several junior designers who have been put on several products, but primarily we work with the principals because a lot of what we do is very high-level UX. They also have a coding resource who helps us with social and marketing executions.

How did you come to work with Definery?

Our head of front-end development recommended Definery. The Definery team was formerly at Spring Studio, which is now owned by our parent company. We were utilizing the resources of Spring Studio, when some of their top talent went in their own direction and created Definery. 

We reached out to them because they were some of the best, and they had experience working with fintech (financial technology). There are not a lot of agencies that have that specific skill set, and a lot of the projects they have had to work on have a very strict legal and compliance framework. They were the one-stop-shop, and we were so happy with their work that we have never looked anywhere else.

How much have you invested in them?

We have a month-to-month retainer.

What is the status of this engagement?

We began working with them in July of 2017 and the relationship is ongoing.

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

We have had a lot of positive feedback. They are almost an internal team. They have made a lot of our vision into a reality and have taken it beyond my initial hopes. I have nothing but positive things to say about them.

How did Definery perform from a project management standpoint?

It has been impeccable. They have brought our level up internally. They hold us to a higher standard than we hold them. 

We use Slack, Trello, RealtimeBoard, and email as the primary communication tools. Assets are all done within Sketch, and we use InVision for viewing clickable prototypes.

What did you find most impressive about them?

They have a great deal of experience working in finance and banking applications which are such a large and growing sector within UX and digital design. Previously, I worked with a team of hundreds; we have moved faster with their team of four than we did with 200 people. They are always open to more workload as our campaigns become more complex and reach more customers.

Are there any areas they could improve?

It would be good to assess the way that they manage their time and their ability to groom how long projects are going to take.

Do you have any advice for potential customers?

Definery works best with a very clearly defined product roadmap. 

Introduce your business and what you do there.

I'm a co-founder and co-CEO of a mobile app used to help people with Parkinson's disease track elements of their regimen, including the medications they're taking and side effects, diet, and exercise. The purpose of the app is to not only make it easy to track this type of information, but to help users better understand factors influencing their overall well-being.

What challenge were you trying to address with Definery?

We had wireframes for the app we wanted to build and had done a lot of research to understand the needs of our target users. Although my co-founder and I both had previous experience building software products, we were looking for a team of UX specialists to help us refine the user experience and visual design of the app, working closely with our own development team throughout the process.

What was the scope of their involvement?

Definery initially sat down with our team for a full-day discovery meeting to go over our research and wireframes. From there, they worked with our development team on the UX and design to refine the features of the app, and designed a basic complementary website consisting of a few pages. 

What is the team composition?

It varies depending on the stage of the project, but we mostly worked with a core team of four people, including our project manager, Almitra (Managing Partner, Definery).

How did you come to work with Definery?

We were introduced to Definery through a former colleague of mine, who raved about his experience with them at another company. After meeting their team, we liked that they had a strong background in software development for both small and large firms. They also had a lot of experience with some of the challenges we were facing and we liked how collaborative they seemed.

What is the status of this engagement?

We've been working together since July 2017.

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

Definery's team was instrumental in helping us release the first version of our product in a short period of time. We've had a lot of positive feedback from a closed group of pilot users. Considering the fact that our targeted users tend to not be tech-savvy, it was a huge success to have many describe the app as user-friendly and intuitive.

How did Definery perform from a project management standpoint?

Almitra was terrific to work with. As someone with a lot of project management experience, I can definitely say she's very good at what she does—highly collaborative and communicative.

Their team was transparent about timelines and the cost of deliverables, letting us know if anything came up that would potentially affect the scope of work.

What did you find most impressive about them?

Their responsiveness has been invaluable to us. They've been quick to turn around iterations and respond to our needs throughout the project. They're also empathetic to our users. Understanding their needs led to some great solutions regarding how we could design our product to better serve the folks we were trying to help.

Are there any areas they could improve?

As much as I want to give constructive criticism, I can't. They performed ideally in just about every regard. It's been one of the best engagements with a design firm that I've ever had.

Do you have any advice for potential customers?

Provide as much background information as possible regarding your target audience before moving into development. Be upfront from the start and provide as much detail as possible about your objectives and goals.

Introduce your business and what you do there.

I’m the head of products for a startup focused on the banking needs of expats. We’re incubated within ‎BBVA, one of the largest global banks.

What challenge were you trying to address with Definery?

As with any new company, we were facing a range of challenges. We wanted to rethink our branding as we shifted to a beta stage and also redesign our customer UI to create a cohesive theme. Ultimately, we wanted a marketing website and a product video we could share.

What was the scope of their involvement?

As a starting point, we presented Definery with a high-level vision of where we saw our company going. For the first round, they provided brand-exploration materials and helped us go over everything from color to cohesive brand images. They gave us industry cross comparisons and put together a usable package based on our feedback.

From here, they created our company website and setup a WordPress integration. They helped us put together set images that we’ve used in a variety of marketing materials, including business cards, and created a product video that conveys our mission statement.

What is the team composition?

We were given a chart breaking down the roles and costs of their team members. We’ve been in regular contact with a variety of staffers, including their experience director, creative director, engagement lead, design support manager, and a developer. Additional people support our project in the background.

How did you come to work with Definery?

This was a very important project for us, so we wanted to work with a vendor we could trust. Definery was recommended by an internal design resource, so we interviewed them along with a few other companies. We also considered hiring an in-house team.

We settled on Definery because they understood our vision, even if we struggled to articulate our mission. Startups can be chaotic, but they provided a bit of structure and focus. We felt comfortable relying on their expertise.

How much have you invested with them?

We’ve spent around $100,000.

What is the status of this engagement?

We started working together in September 2017 and our relationship is ongoing. We’re preparing to kick off a new round of deliverables.

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

The video they created generated thousands of views and likes through our Facebook page. This numbers increase provided a sense of external validation. The project has also received excellent internal feedback.

How did Definery perform from a project management standpoint?

We have weekly meetings to discuss any ongoing work. They come directly to our office, which we appreciate. We also communicate regularly through two Slack channels and they’re responsive at all hours, demonstrating a respect for our time. Any communication delays are caused by our end.

What did you find most impressive about them?

With limited resources and time, we initialy hired a different vendor to develop the website. It needed to be ADA-compliant (Americans with Disabilities Act) and translated into Spanish, but we were unhappy with the progress. After completing the video, Definery was able to launch a professional site within two weeks.

They took time to understand our business and continue to apply care to every task. It was incredibly important that we work with a company that could provide guidance, so Definery helped us fine-tune our aspirational goals. Plus, they deliver quality work with a short turnaround. We haven’t hired an internal designer because it would be too difficult to match Definery’s quality.

Are there any areas they could improve?

Their capabilities were made clear upfront, but they need to bring in additional resources if they want to move into technical integrations beyond HTML and WordPress.

Do you have any advice for future clients of theirs?

As with any project, it’s important to be upfront about your goals. Definery can help you explore options, but they need to understand your priorities.

Introduce your business and what you do there.

I’m a co-founder of Lively, a health savings platform for businesses and individuals. Accounts have a triple-tax advantage in order to save and pay for future healthcare expenses. People put money into their accounts on a pre-tax basis and either let them grow through interest or investments. They can take the money out at any point in the future, tax- and penalty-free, so long as it’s is used for qualified medical expenses.

We’ve built a software platform focused on design and user experience in order to set ourselves apart from competitors. Definery was the first group we worked with as we were getting the platform off the ground.

What challenge were you trying to address with Definery?

We only had a PowerPoint deck when we approached them. We needed to design an experience for the end-consumer as well as for the employer and administrator.

What was the scope of their involvement?

We needed two different interfaces and a number of user personas. The spender and saver are on one side, while the employer and administrator are on another. We needed to figure out how users would interact with the product on an ongoing basis after signing up. Definery assisted with this as well as with actually putting it together and launching our initial marketing site.

We handled development while Definery did everything from low- and high-fidelity wireframing, user experience, customer journeys, and logo design. It was initially web-based, but they provided a guide for mobile-responsive design as well.

We went through a number of different design sessions and provided a lot of material upfront (e.g., work we did as part of the product discovery phase). We knew what we wanted as a minimum viable product and used this as a basis to scope out the initial work.

The first session was in-person between my co-founder and Definery. It lasted several hours and I took part on a remote basis. We then got together for design reviews on a weekly basis. They would come to us with their progress so we could talk about it and ask questions. They continued to iterate it thereafter.

What is the team composition?

Almitra [Managing Partner, Definery] managed the work for us. We also worked closely with the experience design director who led the experience side of things. Once we were comfortable with that part, they handed us over to the creative director who worked on the visual design. Another person was brought on halfway through the process who handled some of the collateral work and logo design. All of our meetings were with Almitra, the experience design director, and the creative director. We viewed them as a single unit.

How did you come to work with Definery?

My co-founder for a previous company I’d started in Boston married a woman whose agency was bought by Facebook. Facebook had done some contracting work with one of Definery’s partners, so I networked my way to him and made a call.

What is the status of this engagement?

We started working with them in November 2016 and have kept them on retainer ever since. We work on new things twice a month.

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

We’ve performed testing with a handful of people at both the wireframing and visual design stages. Definery offered three different versions of the work each time, allowing us to compare and contrast in order to narrow down our approach. It was a combination of user feedback and our own vision for where we wanted to go.

How did Definery perform from a project management standpoint?

Almitra was easy to work with. She kept everything on time and in accordance with the budget. If there was a chance of going too far out of scope, she would raise it with me earlier rather than later. It helped me manage my own expectations.

What did you find most impressive about them?

Definery isn’t in it just to make a quick dollar. We know that if we choose to work with them that they won’t just try to get as much money out of us as possible. They’ll sometimes challenge my ideas and either ask if it’s worth spending the money or give me an alternative. I go with my intuition half the time and depend on them for the remaining half. The team is transparent and easy to work with. The quality speaks for itself.

Are there any areas they could improve?

I’ve been very impressed and encourage everyone to use Definery. That being said, I don’t find their user research side particularly strong. There don’t have anyone in-house for this, so they outsource the work. They work closely with their partners, but I still wouldn’t consider it one of their core competencies.

Do you have any advice for potential customers?

I gave all the facts upfront and told them the variables that could change the project in order to maximize our partnership. Definery can adapt based on your personality and work style. I immediately established an open communication framework so that everyone could remain at the same level of understanding. It’s easy to waste a lot of money when you have to address surprises late in a project phase. That’s never a good situation to be in.

Introduce your business and what you do there.

I’m the creative director for Lucidworks. We are an enterprise search technology company.

What challenge were you trying to address with Definery?

We needed to totally redo our website. We knew there would be heavy UX work for the site and some of our future product projects. We didn’t have the internal capability to handle all the work and chose to look for an outside vendor.

What was the scope of their involvement?

The first project was the web design for the site. We had a kickoff meeting where we gave them an overview of our business and strategy. We told them where we were headed and what we wanted to see on the site. Their information architecture proposals were spot-on and their wireframes really helped us see how our story would come together. Then, we jumped into design. They did a lot of good, fundamental work.

Once they proved themselves with the web design, we engaged with them on a few other projects, including product branding and logo design for a secondary brand. That was helpful, as our creative staff is small. They’re really UX specialists, and were excited to help us with our software products. They helped with a cloud-based product that bridges with the website they helped build. There is also a documentation portal where users can search for information related to the different versions of our software.

What is the team composition?

There were at least five or six people working on the project at different times. The team grew when the project got bigger on the backend. Some of their key players included people in information architecture, project management, design, and backend.

How did you come to work with Definery?

I started at the company around the same time they were brought in, so I don’t have insight on the selection process. The team members who picked them have since moved on.

How much have you invested with them?

The total scope of the projects we’ve done together is somewhere in the $100,000–$250,000 range.

What is the status of this engagement?

We began working together around October 2016 and work is ongoing.

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

Our website is much better organized now. They worked with our tech team to implement our search product into our website. Now we can use the website to show off some of our own features. We’ve done a lot of iterations over the last year and the site keeps getting better.

How did Definery perform from a project management standpoint?

It’s helpful to have key project managers on both sides to work on milestones. They aren’t as interested in project management, but help guide projects to a point. We use Slack a lot to communicate. The private channel is open all the time for us to contact them. We also use a ticketing system called Sifter.

What did you find most impressive about them?

One of their secret powers is their ability to digest complicated technology stories and come back with information architecture maps. They blew us away with their understanding of complicated products and their recommendations to organize the online experience.

Are there any areas they could improve?

Not really, we’re big fans of theirs.

Do you have any advice for potential customers?

Don’t underestimate their ability to take on bigger roles. They’re more than just web design; they can help with product design and understand technology.

Please describe your company and your position there.

I'm the head of design at an online manufacturing startup. We provide hardware companies access to a network of suppliers we manage in and outside of the US. 

For what projects/services did your company hire Definery?

We had to create a comprehensive design vision to bridge the gap between a high-level business initiative and a product roadmap.

What were your goals for this project?

We wanted to have vetted, fleshed out product features that could be prioritized into our roadmap. We also needed to speed up our product discovery process and double our design team’s bandwidth. Finally, we were aiming to establish a product discovery and design process.

How did you select this vendor?

A designer on our team had a positive experience with them previously.  

Describe the project in detail.

Based on our initial market research, Definery worked with multiple stakeholders to articulate a set of concepts that would differentiate our service from competitors in the industry. We had several workshops to align on these key concepts, and then Definery fleshed them out into user stories and flows, which they tested with actual users.

What was the team composition?

We worked with a business strategist/project manager, a design director, a UX designer and two UI designers. I worked closely with Definery's project manager to set stakeholder expectations, project milestones, and design deliverables.

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

Internal stakeholders coalesced around a set of high-impact features to use in planning our roadmap. Everyone involved was impressed by Definery’s deliverables and wanted to implement their processes in our own work.

How effective was the workflow between your team and theirs?

Mutual trust and respect were present throughout. I appreciated their team's strong intuition regarding stakeholder expectations and implementation of communication practices I asked for. This lightened some of my burdens and helped preserve the space for design.

What did you find most impressive about this company?

Their design work was consistent from strategy to execution, like it was done by a single person. They took a systematic approach and synthesized many components to create an overarching design. They were also skilled at breaking down a complex problem into manageable tasks.

Are there any areas for improvement?

No, not that I saw.