Fireart Studio

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

The results looked marvelous. We know, because we only allowed our highest paid users to access the Mobile App (at least in the beginning), and their retention rate was extremely high. The app looked much better than what we had imagined, and the Marketplace looks sleek and very inviting to new users.

How effective was the workflow between your team and theirs?

Fireart were on point on this. Despite the fact that we worked remotely, the designer which we worked with was always on point with his work, his clarificatory questions and concerns, and with his overall progress towards achieving what we wanted.

Working together over Figma, we knew what would be ready, when and how. And it was always possible for us, based on internal decisions, to come back to previously-made work and introduce changes into it or consult with the designer on how to best proceed from here.

Also, business wise, the supporting infrastructure that Fireart gave to the designer, in terms of explicitly taking care of his work-time and reflecting it to us was on par.

What did you find most impressive about this company?

Well, honestly, we did not expect to receive good designs with people working remotely. This is what surprised us the most about Fireart

 We cannot stress this enough: their designer knew what we wanted even better than we did at times, and the resulting Figma designs that were handed to us were on point both in their overall design theme and up to the tiniest details involved. He's been really excellent professionally, and also a very kind fella to work with.

Are there any areas for improvement?

Not really that we could point to. The only thing I would say is that there is an essential difference between working with remote designers to working with in-house designers. Since we began as a bootstrap with limited resources, working remote was the solution for us, and Fireart really lived up to this solution. Now that we've grown as a business we are considering an in-house team.

Can you share any measurable outcomes of the project or general feedback about the deliverables?

After launch, we received positive feedback on the design of the website from (potential) customers.

Describe their project management style, including communication tools and timelines.

On a weekly basis the project manager contacted us to discuss the progress and the challenges. Our feedback was directly reflected in the design process. When we wanted to add new designs or extent the scope they would come back to us with a couple of ways to achieve it and give their recommendation. No deadlines missed and we are happy with how the project was managed.

What did you find most impressive or unique about this company?

They take ownership of the product. From early on, they bought into the concept of what we were trying to do and wanted us to be successful. It feels like every person on their team is invested in us. It’s not just another project for them. We will certainly engage with Fireart Studio again for design and development services.

Are there any areas for improvement or something they could have done differently?

Nothing off the top of my head. It’s a pleasure working with Fireart Studio.

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

Our website and our company branding have received numerous compliments from clients and users. Our designer did an amazing job creating a company mascot for us that embodies the positioning and brand of what we are trying to achieve in-market.

How effective was the workflow between your team and theirs?

Though there is a 7-hour timezone difference, the team is very responsive and handles projects at a fast and professional pace. We've enjoyed and continue to enjoy the experience working with Fireart. We use Slack to communicate all requirements, approvals, and feedback and at times Fireart will employ Trello and Invision to communicate more complex project details.

What did you find most impressive about this company?

The consistency of the product and continued communication have remained excellent throughout the engagement period.

Are there any areas for improvement?

While we sought out and employ Fireart for their design services, our one-off development projects with them have at times resulted in follow-up work required. This is not an area of deficiency for them but more a suggestion to ensure the initial scope of work is correctly detailed for one-off projects to avoid confusion.

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

The topics in our magazine are not easy to illustrate since they deal with abstract or specialized subjects. For example, the most recent cover article Firaert Studio had to illustrate was how physicians trying to find a job should consider their personal interests to determine which potential practice fit them best. It’s difficult to convey this visually, let alone in a way that matches our style and speaks clearly to potential readers. However, Fireart Studio does a great job every time.

How effective was the workflow between your team and theirs?

Their team is extraordinarily easy to work with. They’re also agreeable, proactive, flexible, gracious, and creative. I could not ask for a better experience.

What did you find most impressive about this company?

Occasionally, during the art direction process, I have trouble articulating my creative vision up front and it takes ongoing communication before the illustration looks the way I want it to. When this happens, I have the opportunity to see the illustration change over time as the Fireart Studio team responds to my edits.

I’m often impressed at how deftly they make changes, listening to my vision and doing what I ask for. They also implement my requests with creativity and thoughtfulness, so there’s no compromise in the quality of the work from their initial designs. To me, this demonstrates not just artistic skill but skill at working with people.

Are there any areas for improvement?

There's nothing they need to improve.

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

We haven’t fully launched our product externally yet, but, so far, we’ve received a lot of positive feedback internally. Our engineering, business, product management, and marketing teams have all complimented their design work.

How did Fireart Studio perform from a project management standpoint?

The communication has been excellent. Typically, we’ll either work with their project manager to coordinate the projects or give feedback directly to their designers, depending on the situation. We use Slack and Zeplin to collaborate on tasks.

What did you find most impressive about them? 

Compared to other off-shore options, their communication is excellent, and I appreciate the amount of effort that they put into their work.

Are there any areas they could improve? 

No, I can’t think of anything. Everything has been fine for what we need. 

Do you have any advice for potential customers?

When considering a design partner, start with smaller projects to see how they go before adding on more tasks. That’s what we did, and it worked out smoothly for us.

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

It looks good and works great. We're about to launch our social media accounts. The traffic has been quite low, but we'll hopefully have a lot in the coming months. We attended a conference in Helsinki to do a live demo, and our competitors complimented us. Overall, feedback has been positive.

How did FireArt Studio perform from a project management standpoint?

They used a software to track their hours and billed us weekly. The overall experience was very pleasant. I felt like they were at my service at all times. When I needed something, they were immediately available.

What did you find most impressive about them?

They made me feel like I was in good hands and were there for me 24/7.

Are there any areas they could improve?

They are a bit too soft. They have a great team and know what they're doing. But sometimes they let the client, who may not be as informed, take the initiative. We made some rookie mistakes and requests at the beginning. They went with it, but could have suggested other things to avoid those mistakes.

Do you have any advice for potential customers?

Figure out what you want, and they will handle it. They are very friendly, fast, and professional. 

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

Our team was very satisfied with their output. We also received very positive feedback during our early rounds of user testing. While we have not yet launched our product, we expect that it will meet our business goals and appeal to our user base.

How effective was the workflow between your team and theirs?

We used email, Skype, and Google Docs to manage the project. Communication took place primarily through email, but we also had Skype calls when we needed to go over some design concepts and open questions. While there were some unavoidable delays due to the time difference, our communication was satisfactory. They were quick to respond when we requested additional assets, such as the full source code repository and access to the build scripts they used to generate the final JavaScript bundles.

What did you find most impressive about this company?

We really appreciated their raw talent. They came up with an attractive design with minimal direction and inspiration from our team. They were also quite helpful, pointing out some usability issues that we were able to fix before our users encountered them.

We were also impressed with the quick turnaround time of the project. They even accommodated our tight deadline by sending us the final project assets prior to the final wire payment clearing into their account. We were grateful for their trust and flexibility in this regard.

Are there any areas for improvement?

They could provide a bit more structure when gathering initial requirements. While FireArt did give us a questionnaire to fill out, I'm not sure how useful it was. However, they still did a great job on this project.

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

They're familiar with the industry and different styles so they can interpret nuances within design assignments. They deliver every project I send them within expectations. My clients always love the work they do.

How did FireArt Studio perform from a project management standpoint?

Everything they did was great and communication was excellent. They set up a Slack channel so we could talk to the project manager and the designers themselves, which was extremely helpful. In addition to Slack, we’d communicate via email and Skype. Jumping of Skype call with the project manager and speaking face-to-face is useful because emails can be easily mistranslated.

Outsourcing work to a different time zone is always a challenge. However, I was able to hold most meetings during regular work hours because they did everything they could to accommodate time zone changes. It’s a different process than working with someone locally, but definitely worth the trade-off.

What did you find most impressive about them?

They approach each project with the professionalism and efficiency of a large studio. I always get the sense that while they’re a multifaceted team, they know how to work together and execute a project, so everyone is happy with the result. They offer a high-end client experience.

Are there any areas they could improve?

Nothing from my experience could really be improved.

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

Because we’ve had to delay the site’s launch due to the upcoming launch of our new app, we still can't share the link. So, we don’t have specific results of actual site traffic from the new landing page itself. However, we did use FireArt’s animations to advertise the new app through Facebook, and users are really reacting positively to these elements, resulting in a fairly low price per click.

We’ve also used FireArt’s designs and animations for two email campaigns and plan to launch more to re-engage some of our mobile users. This gave us incredible results, including a 60% open rate for both campaigns and an amazing 20% click-through rate. Additionally, we’ve received a lot of positive feedback from users who’ve contacted our customer support. We expect to promote the page made by FireArt heavily during the next year, which will boost our site traffic and app downloads.

How effective was the workflow between your team and theirs?

All four team members communicated constantly and provided punctual updates and comments. We collaborated over Slack and received weekly reports that showcased FireArt’s progress and the tasks remaining. We never had a problem communicating with FireArt. Because of our relaxed interactions, we could easily explain any changes we wanted and provide guidelines if needed. All in all, great communication paved the way for a great workflow, which resulted in a prompt delivery.

What did you find most impressive about this company?

I was amazed by how quickly they created the early sketches and pushed from the first draft to final deliverables in just two weeks. I can’t emphasize enough how important our deadline was and how much FireArt’s ideas helped us communicate certain features of our new app.

Since we don’t have many in-house designers, we do hire vendors from time to time. However, this collaboration with FireArt was truly an amazing experience. We’d like to hire them for future campaigns, especially because they’re expanding into areas like coding and development.

Are there any areas for improvement?

I honestly can't think of any issues. Their development team could be more involved in our future projects. FireArt is an amazing one-stop shop for web design and development. 

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

After the brand identity was completed, they helped design the look and feel of the Curvature website. The client was incredibly happy with all of the work that was submitted.

How effective was the workflow between your team and theirs?

The workflow was excellent; we communicated daily via email and Skype, as well as calls or video conferences when necessary. Bottom line, they are a pleasure to work with.

What did you find most impressive about this company?

They’re excellent designers and illustrators—they really get it. There's not a lot of great design talent in our industry, so FireArt Studio is a rare find.

Are there any areas for improvement?

The only challenge we had was the time zone differences, but in all honesty, that mostly played to our benefit since we'd have completed work show up in our box at the beginning of the day. It all worked out great.