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The Direct Line to grow your your business

2.8
2 reviews

Direct Line Development is a custom web designer and developer located in Philadelphia, focused on the user experience.

We specialize in organic Search Engine Optimization, and are dedicated to converting a site visitor to an engaged customer.

 

 
$5,000+
 
$50 - $99 / hr
 
50 - 249
 
Undisclosed
Show all +
King of Prussia, PA
headquarters
  • 144 ivy lane, Suite 3
    King of Prussia, PA 19406
    United States
    267.626.2554
other locations
  • 8704 Yates Dr, ste 210
    Westminster, CO 80031
    United States
    303.736.2485
  • Samara 443001
    Russia

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Reviews

2.8
2 reviews
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Custom Web Dev and SEO for Law Practice

"Their communication leaves a lot to be desired, and I’m severely disappointed in their customer service." 

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0.5

Quality: 
0.5
Schedule: 
0.5
Cost: 
0.5
Willing to refer: 
0.5
The Project
 
$10,000 to $49,999
 
May 2018 - Ongoing
Project summary: 

Direct Line Development was contracted to develop a custom Python website and provide SEO. Their copy was unusable, and a pattern of poor performance led to a request to cease billing, which went unanswered.

The Reviewer
 
1-10 Employees
 
Littleton, Colarado
Benjamin Williams
Principal, Williams Intellectual Property
 
Verified
The Review
Feedback summary: 

Failure to deliver the site promptly and provide quality copy led to significant financial losses regarding both fees and potential business. Direct Line Development would benefit from streamlining their communication structure and fulfilling all aspects of a given contract.  

BACKGROUND

Please describe your company and your position there.

I’m the principal at Williams Intellectual Property, a law firm specializing in patent law.

OPPORTUNITY / CHALLENGE

For what projects/services did your company hire Direct Line Development?

I needed custom web development and SEO services.

What were your goals for this project?

I wanted to have a custom Python website within 80 days, after which Direct Line Development was supposed to handle SEO for the rest of the year.

SOLUTION

How did you select this vendor?

Direct Line Development hired an acquaintance of mine, and he reached out to me looking for new clients. I agreed to listen to their pitch.

Describe the project and the services they provided in detail.

Direct Line Development promised me a custom Python website that would rank on the first page of Google for certain keywords in a particular geographic area. They positioned themselves as capable developers and coders, but it took them weeks to enter the simplest changes. I also signed on for copywriting services, but I discovered English wasn’t their first language and the copy had critical grammar errors. They assigned us an account manager, but he was laconic and unresponsive and left the firm. His replacement was poorly trained and unfamiliar with our project.

What was the team composition?

We worked with a sales team when we signed the deal and were then handed over to an account manager. He acted as middle-man between the developers and us, which led to haphazard and inefficient communication. It seemed as if they were delaying the process to extend their billing.

RESULTS & FEEDBACK

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

After seven months, I’ve lost over $10,000  I could've spent on digital advertising, and I still don’t have a live website. These delays have cost me both clients and profits, in addition to my out of pocket expenses. As a law firm, I’m legally obligated to represent my services in a particular way. If I’d implemented the copy they provided, my license would’ve been in jeopardy. I finally created the content myself, but it took them weeks to implement the changes.

How was project management arranged and how effective was it?

Their communication leaves a lot to be desired, and I’m severely disappointed in their customer service. While they promised me free animation, free additional pages, and a free CMS, they haven’t delivered any of them. When I lodged my complaints with them, I received a runaround. They’ve made countless false promises, including that they would stop billing me and launch the site in thirty days. They’ve continued to bill me, but the site still isn’t ready.

What did you find most impressive about this company?

I see nothing impressive about them.

Are there any areas for improvement?

I recommend they close their doors and reassess their deliverables and business model. Currently, they’re motivated by bringing in money, not by delivering what they promise. I plan on claiming damages and demanding a full refund including lost profits and subsequent damages.

0.5
Overall Score It's been one of my worst experiences with a vendor.
  • 0.5 Scheduling
    ON TIME / DEADLINES
    They've delayed and delayed to maximize billing without delivering appreciable, actionable results.
  • 0.5 Cost
    Value / within estimates
    The cost for exceeds the value they've delivered.
  • 0.5 Quality
    Service & deliverables
    It hasn't been completed.
  • 0.5 NPS
    Willing to refer
    I would never recommend them.

Python Web Dev for Electric Go Kart Company

"I can’t think of anything they did that I have an issue with."

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5.0

Quality: 
5.0
Schedule: 
5.0
Cost: 
5.0
Willing to refer: 
5.0
The Project
 
Confidential
 
Aug, 2017 - Ongoing
Project summary: 

Direct Line Development redesigned and developed a website using Python as well as enhanced frontend and backend systems. They offer design services and site integration work and currently do SEO.

The Reviewer
 
51-200 Employees
 
Horsham, Pennsylvania
Sean McCabe
VP, Speed Raceway
 
Verified
The Review
Feedback summary: 

E-commerce has improved and site reservation numbers have increased. The new site runs well as a result of their timely, high-quality work, and they were worth their value. They effectively used their expertise to integrate Club Speed into the site, making it stand out from competitors’ sites.

BACKGROUND

Introduce your business and what you do there.

I’m the vice president of Speed Raceway, which is an indoor electric high speed go karting facility. We have two locations, one is in Horsham, Pennsylvania and the other one is in Cinnaminson, New Jersey.

OPPORTUNITY / CHALLENGE

What challenge were you trying to address with Direct Line Development?

We had a WordPress website made in 2012, but it was far below the standard we set for everything else in the company. The site was crowded, and although it functioned semi-well, the mobile speed was poor. It wasn't designed well and failed to represent our business. Our competitors had vastly superior websites, so we needed to make a change.

Our old website used embedding. We use a Club Speed operating system to run everything in our building including our timing system for our laps, our fail system for the go-carts, our accounting system, and all of our frontend and backend operations. We needed to embed Club Speed into our site, but we also wanted our site to look better.

SOLUTION

What was the scope of their involvement?

They worked on our entire site using Python. I described my vision for the look of the site and showed them what I liked about our competitors’ sites, and then they did the rest. They brought my vision to life. They managed and executed the design aspects such as colors, graphics, and content flow. They improved our site’s operation speed, and added the desired flare to its design. Before hiring them, our site look like plain embedding coded and displayed using Times New Roman font on a white background.

They helped make the desktop and mobile site look clear and run quickly and concisely. They executed various specifications for us such as enabling event booking online. They were the first firm to execute this for Club Speed, and to successfully connect the API on the backend to allow booking. They perfected our reservation system, and they wrote it into our coding. They also helped us sell leagues and summer camps online in site coding, and helped improve our online system for processing and selling gift cards.

They are working on SEO now, which they kept in mind while building the site. We paid for an 18-month package, which started this month.

What is the team composition?

I mainly worked with two people, Anna (Project Manager, Direct Line Development) and Greg (Sales Manager, Direct Line Development), and I worked with developers through them. I didn't have to deal with 30 different people, which was great because I didn’t want to interface with too many people.

What is the status of this engagement?

We started working together August 2017 and continue to work together. We may eventually implement electronic gift cards or other such updates and changes.

RESULTS & FEEDBACK

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

I don't have a lot of statistics because the site launched recently. I know we had a strong first weekend, and with their help, our e-commerce has increased significantly. We've never had as many reservations as now, which can only be attributed to their hard work and attention to detail. From the font to the background, everything flows well and looks ideal. Over the last five years we’ve received many complaints about online errors with gift card sales, but now we don’t have errors and purchases with gift cards are processed immediately.

We have so many new customers, but we haven't announced the new website yet. We want to wait at least two weeks before making an announcement, so we can find and resolve any bugs and make sure everything runs smoothly. I talk to most people who book with us and ask for their feedback, and everybody remarks that the site is smooth and user-friendly. 

How did Direct Line Development perform from a project management standpoint?

When I requested an online event booking feature, we weren’t sure if they could implement it; they said it was possible and got the job done. We didn't follow a strict timeline because we weren’t sure how much time the site work would need. Despite this, the new site runs great, and everything was delivered relatively quickly.

We could have done better as the clients because we asked for certain features late into development. If we had our specifications set ahead of time, development could have proceeded faster. We met on site at our office multiple times. The majority of our communication is through email or phone. If I tell them I need to speak to them in person, they don’t hesitate to come in.

What did you find most impressive about them?

It's worth noting that if you work in this industry, you’re most likely using the Club Speed operating system; they have built the best website for it. Our competitors’ websites are all inferior to our site now. They have a lot to offer, and I know they're already working with a couple of other companies.

Are there any areas they could improve?

Any problem I had was on my side and my team. I can’t think of anything they did that I have an issue with. They had to do a lot of integration work, and it was the first time anyone has really done the type of work they did.

Do you have any advice for potential customers?

Take a month to think about exactly what you want and ask for it. Don't add specifications six months into development, which is what we did. This has bothered me because we set ourselves back by doing this.

5.0
Overall Score They were great, and there hasn’t been a single aspect of our collaboration that I haven’t been impressed with.
  • 5.0 Scheduling
    ON TIME / DEADLINES
    The only setbacks we had were on our end.
  • 5.0 Cost
    Value / within estimates
    They were worth every penny.
  • 5.0 Quality
    Service & deliverables
  • 5.0 NPS
    Willing to refer