EY Studio+

BACKGROUND

Please describe your organization.

We are an incubator in British Columbia that works with international entrepreneurs to build companies in Canada with the goal of exporting products overseas. We take ideas at the concept stage and validate them with these entrepreneurs. I am 1 of 4 startup leaders working with entrepreneurs through project management and consulting to build their businesses.

OPPORTUNITY / CHALLENGE

What business challenge were you trying to address with FreshWorks Studio?

For this project, which involved creating a natural lipstick line for Vietnam, FreshWorks developed our e-commerce website and helped us customize it to a certain point in terms of structure. The other project, which I am not a part of, is a website to recruit talent and innovations coming out of university labs and classrooms and pair them with international founders that could build businesses by commercializing the research or intellectual property.

SOLUTION

Please describe the scope of their involvement in greater detail.

The natural lipstick website was built using Shopify. We didn’t require them to use a particular platform. We described our project requirements initially. Because we needed simple e-commerce functionality, I believe we made a mutual decision to use Shopify since I’m familiar with Shopify.

For the natural lipstick line, the structure of the site is complete. It’s now up to our graphic team to populate and finalize the look and feel of the e-commerce website.  

How did you come to work with FreshWorks Studio?

We were connected through a mutual contact from 1 of our managing directors. FreshWorks showed a broad range of development skills, and we have substantial MVP needs, especially in the app space. So, we wanted to see if this relationship would help us move forward in building MVPs and iterating quickly.

Could you provide a sense of the size of this initiative in financial terms?

The lipstick project was $10,000. I’m not familiar with the costs of the other project.

What is the status of this engagement?

We started working with them April 2017 and have been partners since. 

RESULTS & FEEDBACK

How did FreshWorks Studio perform from a project management standpoint?

Both sides knew what was needed in order to make the project succeed. Their project manager was very proactive and organized. She was also responsive, collaborative, and flexible. We used GoogleDrive and Google Docs. I think they executed quickly. At some points, they were waiting for us to share details before they could move forward.

The project isn’t completely done, but they’ve developed the structure of the site. We still have ongoing support to help us fully customize the backend. I think because they wanted to end the project within a certain timeframe for the final payment, we both agreed to end the project. They’ve been extremely responsive in terms of making adjustments to Shopify.

The project was executed very well on their side. They did require payment prior to finishing all the work, but we were okay with that as long as they agreed to provide excellent support afterward and customize additional items on the site. 

What distinguishes FreshWorks Studio from other providers?

Their project manager is very responsive and had some great ideas about the site’s look and feel. She was highly organized and kept us on track.

Is there anything FreshWorks Studio could have improved or done differently?

More interaction with our own graphics person would help ensure that the project is wrapping up well and that we are able to do what we want with the website. A wrap-up phone call with all the stakeholders would also be helpful. They were responsive, but a lot of the work has been our initiative after the project finished.

BACKGROUND

Introduce your business and what you do there.

I am the president of Viralyze, which is a platform for the influencer marketing industry. We are developing this platform and an app. These solutions will allow social media users to be compensated for making brand referrals on different social media platforms. There are 3 main components to our platform: a web application with a backend, an iOS app developed on Swift, and an Android app made through Android Studio.

OPPORTUNITY / CHALLENGE

What challenge were you trying to address with FreshWorks Studio?

Our company had 2 success pillars in place. I covered the corporate side—I had a successful career building startup teams and raising capital. Meanwhile, my partners were some of the top people in terms of social media assets, with millions of followers. We were lacking the third pillar, which was the technology provider. We looking for an external partner to build our platform and technology.

SOLUTION

What was the scope of their involvement?

FreshWorks built the first minimum viable product of our software, called Sway. We were looking at the MEAN.JS stack or some type of server technology related to Amazon Web Services for the web app. Our platform had to operate with all existing social media applications. Companies like Facebook had more advanced APIs, while the ones like Snapchat had nothing at the time. We had to figure out a way to seamlessly connect and work with different social media platforms. FreshWorks was able to do this successfully for our MVP.

How did you come to work with FreshWorks Studio?

After raising our seed investment, we looked for different software vendors who could help build our ecosystem. Referrals are everything, and there was no shortage of software and mobile app developers in the city. We received a recommendation from a well-known angel investor in the Vancouver area, who described FreshWorks as a young and hungry team. Everything turned out well after that.

How much have you invested with FreshWorks Studio?

The cost of their work was under $100,000.

What is the status of this engagement?

We started working with FreshWorks Studio in late August 2016. We worked together until December.

RESULTS & FEEDBACK

Could you share any evidence that would demonstrate the productivity, quality of work, or the impact of the engagement?

FreshWorks delivered a clean, modern-looking app that impressed our investors, future business partners, and potential users. As a startup, it’s one thing to have a concept and a PowerPoint presentation, but it’s a whole other thing to actually show something on the phone to potential investors or users. We’re thankful to FreshWorks for being able to deliver a strong demonstration of what the app would look like on phones. They did the MVP on a very tight budget. We succeeded at getting end clients and interest in terms of financing.

How did FreshWorks Studio perform from a project management standpoint?

I found FreshWorks to be excellent in terms of project management. We’re thankful for FreshWorks’ hands-on approach. Knowing that we did not have a lead technology person onboard, they guided us through the process. Their founder has a technical background and is good at general problem-solving. We were not always the easiest customer. We had to make changes here and there, but FreshWorks was accommodating and moved quickly. We used Trello for project tracking.

What did you find most impressive about FreshWorks Studio?

They have a very positive attitude, going out of their way to help and be accommodating. This made a big difference, especially since we’re not technical clients. We did expect to self-manage our challenges, but FreshWorks willingly took on our technology needs. They quickly grasped our business model. The purpose of the demo was to recruit more investors and staff. We’ve appreciated FreshWorks’ accommodating and entrepreneurial approach. I will definitely use them again on future projects.

Are there any areas FreshWorks Studio could improve?

Because we were a non-technical team, there have been things which we could have done differently to save time and make the use of FreshWorks better. Ultimately, the onus was on us to be more effective, with fewer changes and pivots.  

BACKGROUND

Introduce your business and what you do there.

I’m a quality-assurance analyst for Vonigo, a cloud-based service-management software which supports clients by optimizing their business on various service levels, including work-order management, CRM [customer relationship management], online payments, invoicing, quote management, and inventory management. We have an online booking engine which integrates with customers’ existing websites, allowing their clients to request services in real-time. Vonigo also automates delivery routes and dispatching process, integrating with third-party applications such as QuickBooks and Google Analytics for accounting, reporting, and analytics. The software can be accessed on any device, including tablets and smartphones, using browser-based applications.

OPPORTUNITY / CHALLENGE

What challenge were you trying to address with FreshWorks Studio?

We are a growing software company that started several years ago. Growth often means a lack of resources for sudden, burning projects. We wanted to speed up development time and save on costs for a project, so we looked for a third-party agency.

SOLUTION

What was the scope of their involvement?

We were developing an Android and iOS mobile application as an alternative to the main Vonigo web app. We wanted it to have GPS-tracking capabilities and deeper integrations with native mobile technologies, accounting for future versions of the product.

FreshWorks recreated our app on the mobile side, taking our concept and placing it in a new framework. Our main requirement was to recreate all our existing features perfectly in the new frame.

How did you come to work with FreshWorks Studio?

We had a brainstorming session discussing the key elements we needed for a perfect fit. First of all, we were looking for happy clients, so we inspected LinkedIn company profiles. We also looked at website testimonials but found that those were not enough. We reached out to clients personally, asking for their opinion on FreshWorks’ performance. We also wanted a company that provided constant communication and fast responses to any questions we had. We knew that FreshWorks would be good at this according to their previous clients. We also knew that they were agile and could deliver products at a good pace. Some warranty clauses were also required to ensure that the project would be delivered on time and within budget.

How much have you invested with FreshWorks Studio?

The cost of FreshWorks Studio’s work was between $10,000 and $40,000.

What is the status of this engagement?

We started working with FreshWorks Studio in September or October of 2016. The project took 6 months to complete. We had some items to tweak, so we pushed the delivery back a bit, but the first versions of the app were provided by the end of November. We have been happy with FreshWorks’ output and have started a second stage for the app using their support.

RESULTS & FEEDBACK

Could you share any evidence that would demonstrate the productivity, quality of work, or the impact of the engagement?

We’re hoping that by rolling out this tool, we will increase the availability of our technology for mobile technicians on the road, which will lead to a deeper adoption of our business process. We are relying on this product for increasing client volumes.

How did FreshWorks Studio perform from a project management standpoint?

We came up with the requirements for FreshWorks and pushed it for customer testing. They were always happy to discuss and improve any inconsistencies. We ran the project in an Agile way.

Their team’s responsiveness was awesome. There were no restrictions in terms of accessibility, and we could always have conversations via phone or GoToMeeting. FreshWorks adapted to what we wanted.

What did you find most impressive about FreshWorks Studio?

The accessibility of FreshWorks’ resources was excellent. They were always open to discussing matters with us.

Are there any areas FreshWorks Studio could improve?

More thorough alpha testing from their side would be great. We have addressed this with FreshWorks, and it was the main reason for our back-and-forth at the end.

BACKGROUND

Introduce your business and what you do there.

We are an e-commerce company that’s coming to market soon. We’re opening a field called retail impact in which we will sell brands on the site that put up a certain amount of money for us to sell them at a discount to impact kids’ and mothers’ lives to address the area of childhood poverty.

I’m the founder.

OPPORTUNITY / CHALLENGE

What challenge were you trying to address with FreshWorks Studios?

We wanted someone to help us with our beta site.

SOLUTION

What was the scope of their involvement?

They created a site for a Magento platform and use another language that interfaces with Magento that makes it easy to make changes on the site.

How did you come to work with FreshWorks Studios?

I pitched to a venture capitalist in Vancouver for funding and he knew Rohit from FreshWorks and recommended that I call them to help us with our MVP [minimum viable product]. I found that local agencies charge a lot of money for programming, but Rohit said they would be able to provide us what we need cheaper. He seemed much more positive and supportive than other firms who were saying they couldn’t guarantee anything. Rohit was willing to come here for 2 face-to-face meetings and showed us some work they had done.

How much have you invested with FreshWorks Studios?

We’ve spent $25,000 to $30,000 so far with Fresh Works Studios.

What is the status of this engagement?

We began our relationship in October 2016 and we’re still working with them.

RESULTS & FEEDBACK

Could you share any evidence that would demonstrate the productivity, quality of work, or the impact of the engagement?

We have an internal programmer who’s been testing the product, and so far it’s been working. It’s more basic than we thought but I think it will work.

How did FreshWorks Studios perform from a project management standpoint?

We get updates and status reports every night. The communication is excellent and any delays have been on our side.

What did you find most impressive about FreshWorks Studios?

They’ve made it affordable for us to do an MVP short term and it allowed us to do what we wanted to do.

Are there any areas FreshWorks Studios could improve?

Sometimes Rohit is difficult to understand because of his Indian accent, so I make sure to listen closely during our conversations. It’s been an amazing experience considering our cultures are so different.

BACKGROUND

Please provide us with a brief description of your company and your role there.

SmartShare Solutions Inc.’s flagship product, Garage, is a shared parking platform that lets owners share their parking spots with drivers who are looking for one. I am the company’s founder.

OPPORTUNITY / CHALLENGE

What was the business challenge that you were trying to address when you approached the vendor?

When we approached Freshworks, we were at a very early idea stage. The Freshworks team helped flesh it out and quickly built an MVP that will let us test the product in the market and start getting customer feedback as we start iterating it.

Additionally, the team also really took ownership of the project, coming up with feature suggestions that has made the final product much better. We needed someone to take ownership of product development and the Freshworks team more than adequately stood up to the challenge.

SOLUTION

What was the scope of the project, and can you describe the specific services that were provided? (if applicable, can you name the specific technologies that were used?)

The scope of the project involved the development of version 1.0 of the product. We were looking to develop the Garage app (AirBnB for parking). FreshWorks followed a systematized approach and provided the following services: scope document and refining the idea for the launch of the app, designing the wireframes for the app, providing the UI/UX design of the app and making it consistent with the color schemes and design guidelines, development of the iOS, Android and admin panel for the Garage app, continuous engagement and weekly progress report on the app, and QA/Testing of the app

What was your process for selecting the vendor to work with?

The team at Freshworks came to us as a recommendation from a business partner after we had a very negative experience with another vendor. The Freshworks team came in, pitched to us, and showed us how they would execute. More than anything, it was their passion for the project that made us choose them.

Can you give us a general estimate of the size of the project, in dollar terms or personnel work hours?

$50,000 - $100,000

What was the timeline of the project (start and completion date)?

July – September 2016

RESULTS & FEEDBACK

What were the results of the project, and are there any success metrics you can share?

The product is complete and will go live soon. But even before that, the product that Freshworks built has already netted result in helping us close our funding round.

Was there anything unique or special about the vendor compared to other partners you may have worked with in the past?

We felt that Freshworks had great buy-in and passion for the project, which we found missing in other vendors in the past.

Looking back on the project do you have any constructive criticism? Is there any area that they could improve or you would do differently?

Going forward, we would like to be more involved in the initial stages, specifically around UX. This was one segment we wanted to be more involved in, but were not able to because of time constraints.

BACKGROUND

Introduce your business and what you do there.

I am the Chief Information Officer for one of Canada’s largest cities.

OPPORTUNITY / CHALLENGE

What challenge were you trying to address with FreshWorks Studio?

We wanted to make some key information and services on our website more easily available to visitors and residents of the city. The concept of a mobile app for the city appealed to us due to the increasing mobile traffic analytics to our website.

SOLUTION

What was the scope of their involvement?

We chose to surface some of the most popular content of our website, and went with the agile concept and started with a minimum viable product. We wanted to start small and build on early success and feedback. The plan is to expand function and content.

How did you come to work with FreshWorks Studio?

We were referred to them by a trusted colleague.

How much have you invested with FreshWorks Studio?

It was in the $10,000 - $50,000 range.

What was the timeline of the project?

The project lasted about four months.

RESULTS & FEEDBACK

Could you share any evidence that would demonstrate the productivity, quality of work, or the impact of the engagement?

We haven’t yet launched the project, but we are very satisfied with the final results and anticipate success.

What did you find most impressive about FreshWorks Studio?

FreshWorks Studio was extremely responsive to our requests, and overall was very easy to work with. The relationship is very much a partnership with a win-win outlook.

Are there any areas FreshWorks Studio could improve?

I feel the project was very successful. If I were to give any feedback, I’d say tighten down the project scope a bit more. I feel we got more out of them than what was in scope, which was good for us, but to be fair to them, they need to set those boundaries.

BACKGROUND

Introduce your business and what you do there.

I am the Founder and Chief Executive Officer. PetComm was created for pet lovers, as a place to expand community in a safe and fun environment. PetComm is for connecting, sharing, and educating, helping people have the best possible pet ownership experience.

OPPORTUNITY / CHALLENGE

What challenge were you trying to address with FreshWorks Studio?

We had the idea that the community of pet owners would benefit from an app-based social network. Sharing their stories, experiences, and love of their pets would be facilitated by the mobile app. We had no experience as app developers and wanted to be secure in knowing that the product we were going to receive would be based on the latest technology for both major platforms. We also wanted to partner with a group whose vision matched our own and could provide long-term support for us.

SOLUTION

What was the scope of their involvement?

The scope was a full development of both the online presence (web site) and the apps associated with the two major mobile communities, Apple’s iOS and Android. We also wanted a stunning design.

How did you come to work with FreshWorks Studio?

We selected the vendor based on a referral from a friend.

How much have you invested with FreshWorks Studio?

The project was comprehensive, in the range of $50,000 - $100,000.

What is the status of this engagement?

The project took 2-3 months to complete.

RESULTS & FEEDBACK

Could you share any evidence that would demonstrate the productivity, quality of work, or the impact of the engagement?

The project was launched on time and results were outstanding. The FreshWorks team worked closely with us to meet our goals.

What did you find most impressive about FreshWorks Studio?

FreshWorks has a strong local presence, great passion for technology and startups,a willingness to go the extra mile to make PetComm’s launch successful, and a large offshore team to support the continuous development.

Are there any areas FreshWorks Studio could improve?

I believe our process was accelerated with this vendor. If I were to suggest an improvement, it would be enhancing the speed of the app.

BACKGROUND

Please describe your organization.

We are a marketing and consulting company for small businesses. We handle their online and offline marketing including PPC [pay per click], website and mobile apps and games.

What is your role at the company?

I am the vice president.

OPPORTUNITY / CHALLENGE

What challenge were you trying to address with FreshWorks Studio?

We were looking for a small app development company to design and produce an iOS and Android app for one of our clients. We were looking for a team to take our card game and wireframe and build a fully functional app.

What was the scope of the project?

The project was about two months in length. We required FreshWorks to do the design, coding, and testing for both iOS and Android devices.

How did you come to work with FreshWorks Studio?

We had talked to a few other design studios and found them either too big or too expensive. FreshWorks fit our criteria perfectly.

How much have you invested with FreshWorks Studio?

We have spent somewhere between $10,000 and $50,000 working with FreshWorks.

What is the status of this engagement?

The project began on May 1, [2016] and was completed by the end of June.

RESULTS & FEEDBACK

Could you share any evidence that would demonstrate the productivity, quality of work, or the impact of the engagement?

Both apps are complete and available on Google Play and the App Store. FreshWorks provided us with prototypes, alpha, beta, and final products on time.

What did you find most impressive about FreshWorks Studio?

We were able to communicate directly to the design and development team rather than having to work through layers of management. 

SOLUTION

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Please describe your organization.

We are a marketing and consulting company for small businesses. We handle their online and offline marketing including PPC [pay per click], website and mobile apps and games.

What is your role at the company?

I am the vice president.

OPPORTUNITY/CHALLENGE

What challenge were you trying to address with FreshWorks Studio?

We were looking for a small app development company to design and produce an iOS and Android app for one of our clients. We were looking for a team to take our card game and wireframe and build a fully functional app.

What was the scope of the project?

The project was about two months in length. We required FreshWorks to do the design, coding, and testing for both iOS and Android devices.

How did you come to work with FreshWorks Studio?

We had talked to a few other design studios and found them either too big or too expensive. FreshWorks fit our criteria perfectly.

How much have you invested with FreshWorks Studio?

We have spent somewhere between $10,000 and $50,000 working with FreshWorks.

What is the status of this engagement?

The project began on May 1, [2016] and was completed by the end of June.

RESULTS & FEEDBACK

Could you share any evidence that would demonstrate the productivity, quality of work, or the impact of the engagement?

Both apps are complete and available on Google Play and the App Store. FreshWorks provided us with prototypes, alpha, beta, and final products on time.

What did you find most impressive about FreshWorks Studio?

We were able to communicate directly to the design and development team. Some of the other companies we have worked with had too many management layers.

Are there any areas FreshWorks Studio could improve?

I would recommend making the UI/UX [user interface/user experience] for the app or game from the wireframe for client approval, which would save a step in reworking it.

BACKGROUND

Please describe your organization.

I own a small business consulting and executive coaching firm.

OPPORTUNITY / CHALLENGE

What business challenge were you trying to address with FreshWorks Studio?

I was looking to improve the online presence of our company.

SOLUTION

Please describe the scope of their involvement in detail.

FreshWorks designed a new website for us, helped us set up a social media management tool, and trained us on best practices for SEO [search engine optimization].

How did you come to work with FreshWorks Studio?

I was referred to them by a colleague.

Could you provide a sense of the size of this initiative in financial terms?

It was less than $10,000. 

What is the status of this engagement?

The project lasted approximately one month.

RESULTS & FEEDBACK

Could you share any statistics or metrics from this engagement?

FreshWorks Studio has an exceptional knowledge base for mobile computing and social media tools, and I found their delivery capabilities to be superb.

In hindsight, are there areas in which they could improve or things you might do differently?

I wish they had been clearer in terms of expectations on input required from the us.

BACKGROUND

Please describe your organization.

ChatterBlock is a social media company supporting parents and families in local communities. Today's parents are time constrained and overcommitted, yet their child's development remains a top priority. More activities, entertainment, and educational choices for families exist than ever before, and the information is available from many sources. Yet, parents are unable to manage this information effectively because there is no website that synthesizes city-specific information in an intuitive and accessible way. ChatterBlock's vision is to empower families through intuitive city-based content in a protected social network environment. This is a significant untapped market opportunity.

What is your role at the company?

I am the chief executive officer and cofounder.

OPPORTUNITY / CHALLENGE

What business challenge were you trying to address with FreshWorks Studio?

We wanted to create a mobile app for both iOS and Android that would allow our ever-growing population of customers to browse our website using their smartphones. The app had to interact securely with our back-end through RESTful Web Services and our main user sessions through cookies.    

SOLUTION

What technologies were used in developing your application?

The project was developed using Java and Objective-C. Our graphics were developed using Adobe Photoshop and Illustrator.

How did you come to work with FreshWorks Studio?

FreshWorks was a local company with a very well-defined process for tracking progress and streamlining the entire development and testing process. They started with gathering all the functional requirements and then defined the scope of the project. FreshWorks also gave me a firm project cost and delivery timelines, which greatly reduced our risk and project overhead.

Could you provide a sense of the size of this initiative in financial terms?

We have spent somewhere between $10,000 and $50,000 working with FreshWorks.

What is the status of this engagement?

The project was started in September 2015 and finished in January of this year [2016].

RESULTS & FEEDBACK

Could you share any statistics or metrics from this engagement?

The mobile app was developed according to the project plan, and the quality of the product was very good. We did an internal code review, and the coding standards were quite impressive. We are experiencing a steady download rate of our app, and a majority of users have left positive reviews on the app stores.

What distinguishes FreshWorks Studio from other providers?

FreshWorks Studio has a very nimble and hard-working team that loves to deliver beyond expectations. They are good communicators and loyal to the project timelines. As compared to other software companies, FreshWorks is very proactive in getting all the needed assistance from the client's side. As a result, the project was completed on time without any surprises. Their cost was also very competitive and certainly justified.

In hindsight, are there areas in which they could improve or things you might do differently?

I don't have anything major to add here, but I would like to see the cost based on hourly estimates as compared to the fixed project price that I received. Hourly estimates might have helped us plan better for any technical support that we might need in the future.