Imaginovation

BACKGROUND

Please describe your company and position.

I am the CEO of Orange Element

Describe what your company does in a single sentence.

We help companies and organizations strengthen their brand presence -and- develop marketing strategies to invite audiences to experience and understand their value.

OPPORTUNITY / CHALLENGE

What specific goals or objectives did you hire Imaginovation to accomplish?

• Introduce a new athletic apparel company's brand nationwide
• Develop a robust e-commerce apparel website to promote and generate sales

SOLUTION

How did you find Imaginovation?

Clutch Site

Why did you select Imaginovation over others?

• Pricing fit our budget
• Great culture fit
• Company values aligned

How many teammates from Imaginovation were assigned to this project?

6-10 Employees

Describe the scope of work in detail. Please include a summary of key deliverables.

Imaginovation worked with Orange Element to support integrations with complex third-party APIs and development of front-end UX designs onto a Shopify platform. Workflow, user stories and project management were performed and completed with efficiency and steady support in place.

RESULTS & FEEDBACK

What were the measurable outcomes from the project that demonstrate progress or success?

Tracking of user stories to integrations and UAT testing, weekly virtual meetings and development in sprints.

Describe their project management. Did they deliver items on time? How did they respond to your needs?

In most instances, Imaginovation was ahead of schedule. If anything, we were waiting on assets from our client. Response was same day (longest) to instant via slack.

What was your primary form of communication with Imaginovation?

Email or Messaging App

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

A very supportive partnership. The team at Imaginovation is interested in seeing a project through, even when as complex as this one, they did not lose sight of the finish line.

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

No - we've worked with several developers/partners to complete large and complex website builds. Imaginovation was the best partner we've had. They do not lose sight of the big picture, and they maintain a mentality to problem solve and find a solution rather than focus on challenges that create additional testing.

BACKGROUND

Please describe your company and position.

I am the Co-Founder of BattleQuestions.com

Describe what your company does in a single sentence.

Our educational website supports the Battle of the Books program, making reading fun, and preparing teams for competitions.

OPPORTUNITY / CHALLENGE

What specific goals or objectives did you hire Imaginovation to accomplish?

Website Support/Development

SOLUTION

How did you find Imaginovation?

Online Search

Why did you select Imaginovation over others?

• High ratings
• Close to my geographic location
• Pricing fit our budget
• Great culture fit
• Good value for cost
• Company values aligned

How many teammates from Imaginovation were assigned to this project?

6-10 Employees

Describe the scope of work in detail. Please include a summary of key deliverables.

Imaginovation has ensured the reliability of BattleQuestions.com, rewritten the antiquated code, and updated the look and user interface to current standards.

RESULTS & FEEDBACK

What were the measurable outcomes from the project that demonstrate progress or success?

Since partnering with the Imaginovation team, our website has been tremendously reliable, customers have continued to email us with praise for our service, and our profits continue skyrocket.  Since working with Imaginovation, we've spread our services from North Carolina, to Florida, and now Texas.

Describe their project management. Did they deliver items on time? How did they respond to your needs?

 As issues arise, we reach out to them and their response is immediate.  Often, our communications via Slack get replies from several team members.  I'll even voice concerns over the weekend, being sure to tell them that I don't want to disturb their weekend so please hold off until Monday.  They'll reply anyway, letting us know, "They're on it!"  

Recently, we had to completely rewrite the antiquated code to optimize the performance of our website, ensuring that it remained reliable for our users.  And AGAIN, they went above and beyond.  Not only does the site now run faster, but they updated the look and user interface, usually without any added fees.  

What was your primary form of communication with Imaginovation?

• In-Person Meeting
• Virtual Meeting
• Email or Messaging App

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

So I THINK that Imaginovation is a hybrid mash-up of imagination and innovation.  Well, if so, that's exactly what we've gotten from this amazing team.  After working with several other companies and being underwhelmed by their service, we met with Pete, Michael, and Zach at their office back in 2019.  Immediately, we felt HEARD and finally at peace, knowing that we were in good hands.  

Our initial meeting, that we expected to last about 30 minutes, lasted more than two hours.  Not only did they ask question after question to understand our business to its core, but they had suggestions as to how we could grow and improve our business. 

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

They seem to be a fun group, but they've never invited us to any parties.  Maybe they just want to "keep things professional," and that's cool.  

BACKGROUND

Introduce your business and what you do there.
I’m the COO and product manager of Everflex Health, a Movement for Life product. Movement for Life is a group of outpatient physical therapy practices.

OPPORTUNITY / CHALLENGE

What challenge were you trying to address with Imaginovation?
We’ve been in business for 25 years, and we weren’t happy with the software offerings in our industry. We needed a company that could help us build a healthcare solution that could address all of our pain points and something that we could possibly sell to others as well.

SOLUTION

What was the scope of their involvement?
Imaginovation provided us with a full software development team to help build our healthcare product. We started the engagement by discussing our previous product, after which I gave them acceptance criteria and a high-level concept of what I wanted the new solution to do.

I encouraged them to make recommendations on areas where they could improve the concept. They then took all of my notes and crude design and transformed them into the fully operational software platform it is now. Their work also involved designing the solution’s UI/UX and database structure.

What is the team composition?
We’ve worked with a designer, an acting CTO, a project manager, a QA engineer, and four full stack engineers. We’ve also worked with a DevOps person and a mobile app developer as needed.   

How did you come to work with Imaginovation?
We were looking for service providers to give bids for this project, and Imaginovation reached out to us through LinkedIn. I went through their website and resonated with their story, so I let them bid on this project.

What is the status of this engagement?
We started working together in January 2023, and the engagement is ongoing.

RESULTS & FEEDBACK

What evidence can you share that demonstrates the impact of the engagement?
Before we kicked this project off, I told Imaginovation that I would be disappointed if this solution didn’t end up being the thing they were most proud of building. I wanted them to feel like this product is as much theirs as it is ours.

Imaginovation did an excellent job of bringing our concepts to life in an intelligent, intuitive manner. We already had the basic principles and rules for running our business, and Imaginovation helped us put them into the right format to operate within the software.

How did the company perform from a project management standpoint?
Imaginovation has always delivered on time and met our needs well thus far. Throughout the solution’s development, we primarily communicated through Slack and had weekly meetings to keep the project going in the right direction. I also flew once to meet them in person before we started the project.

What did you find most impressive about them?
One of the best things about working with Imaginovation is that they work incredibly well together as a team. I don’t know how their company is structured, but it almost feels like they’re my employees. All of the people I’ve worked with are also good quality people who never made me feel like just another invoice.
We’re an employee-owned company, so we’re very big on making everybody feel respected and welcomed. Imaginovation aligns with our company culture, and there’s a lot of mutual respect amongst their team members.

Are there any areas they could improve?
No, nothing comes to mind. They have been nothing but great.

Do you have any advice for future clients of theirs?
Work with them like they’re an extension of your team, not as a vendor.

BACKGROUND

Please describe your company and position.

I am the Owner of Fun Services

Describe what your company does in a single sentence.

We offer an in-school shopping experience for elementary students during the Christmas season.

OPPORTUNITY / CHALLENGE

What specific goals or objectives did you hire Imaginovation to accomplish?

• Create a point of sale system for android tablets and mobile devices.
• Create a website dashboard for our managers to manage our customers and inventory.

SOLUTION

How did you find Imaginovation?

Online Search

Why did you select Imaginovation over others?

• Close to my geographic location
• Great culture fit
• Company values aligned

How many teammates from Imaginovation were assigned to this project?

2-5 Employees

Describe the scope of work in detail. Please include a summary of key deliverables.

We tasked Imaginovation with creating a point of sale system that could be used on an android tablet with a bluetooth barcode scanner and bluetooth printer.  Additionally, the system needed to be available for use on a mobile cell phone.  Each device would then communicate with each other through a dashboard system located online that our managers could access and maintain.  

The dashboard system also needed to be created so that we could manage our customers and our inventory.  We had the basic flow and design of the point of sale system, but needed some updates and improvements over our previous application.

RESULTS & FEEDBACK

What were the measurable outcomes from the project that demonstrate progress or success?

The project was completed on time and within budget.  Support was available to us throughout the rollout and initial use of the program.  We had a great response from our end users regarding the ease of use and intuitiveness of the app.

Describe their project management. Did they deliver items on time? How did they respond to your needs?

Communication was clear and on point throughout the project.  From the initial sketch up and flow design, through the first, second, third, and forth iterations of the application, and the development of the manager dashboard, all of the phases were created in conjunction with our needs in a timely manner.  I can't say enough how awesome their communication was!

What was your primary form of communication with Imaginovation?

• Virtual Meeting
• Email or Messaging App

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

They backed each other up.  Since our project spanned several months, there were times where our point person was out of the office for one thing or another.  If there was ever an immediate need for a response, there was always someone there to back him up.  I truly felt like I could get a response as soon as I needed it.

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

The great part about Imaginovation is because of their communication style if there was ever an issue or a concern that needed to be addressed, someone could respond to it.  I am an in-person kinda guy, so maybe more in-person meetings would be nice.  

BACKGROUND

Introduce your business and what you do there.

I’m the director of marketing for a nonprofit community church.

OPPORTUNITY / CHALLENGE

What challenge were you trying to address with Imaginovation?

We were looking for a vendor to help us rebuild our website.

SOLUTION

What was the scope of their involvement?

We started the partnership with a preliminary discovery phase to identify our needs and what we want to achieve. We finalized the logistics of the project and hit the ground running before the project officially started. We had fairly loose brand guidelines, which they’ve utilized to design logo, apply color schemes, and other branding elements.

We built the backend from scratch, revamped a lot of the functionalities, and rewrote all of the content to create something entirely new. We’ve also implemented a user-friendly dashboard where we can track user activities. 

Right now, they’re currently providing us with maintenance and hosting.

What is the team composition?

Our main point of contact is the project manager, and we have daily calls with the designers, developers, and QA specialists.

How did you come to work with Imaginovation?

We came across Imaginovation while searching for local development providers on Google.

How much have you invested with them?

We’ve invested bout $250,000.

What is the status of this engagement?

Our ongoing partnership officially started in January 2022.

RESULTS & FEEDBACK

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

Our online campus has grown steadily on a weekly basis and as for the traffic, we almost broke the website on the week it launched because of how much traffic we garnered.

The general feedback has also been good, as people have been impressed with the site’s dynamic and personalized functionality.

How did Imaginovation perform from a project management standpoint?

We presented a grand scope, which they’ve been very good at working within from a project management perspective. The team is very professional, understanding, and pleasant to collaborate with.

We typically communicate through Google Meet and Slack.

What did you find most impressive about them?

We’re impressed with how transparent they are and how they’re able to bring us along through their process. They employ a good mix of professionalism, expertise, and consistent adherence to our needs.

Are there any areas they could improve?

Overall, we’re very satisfied with our partnership with Imaginovation.

Do you have any advice for potential customers?

Imaginovation has done great things for us, so I’d recommend just going for it and hiring them.

BACKGROUND

Introduce your business and what you do there.

I’m the founder of Chronic Pain Reset, a nonprofit startup. 

OPPORTUNITY / CHALLENGE

What challenge were you trying to address with Imaginovation?

Our main challenges were website and blog design and implementation. 

SOLUTION

What was the scope of their involvement?

Imaginovation has designed, built, and implemented our website and blog; they’re now hosting and providing maintenance services. The first part of the engagement was focused on the site design. Once the design was finished, I think they used JavaScript to develop the site.

What is the team composition?

I have direct contact with Zach (Senior Project Manager), and several developers are working on the project. I’m also in contact with Peter (CEO) and Michael (Co-Founder). 

How did you come to work with Imaginovation?

I worked with Imaginovation a few years ago on a clinical management platform development project, but we’d only gotten as far as developing the wireframes. I’d already identified them as an IT company with the bandwidth to create a mobile app, so I decided to work with them on developing the website. 

How much have you invested with them?

At this point, we’ve invested around $17,000 with Imaginovation, which includes the $15,6000 website design charge and the $300 monthly fee for website hosting and maintenance. 

What is the status of this engagement?

This project began in October 2021 and is ongoing.

RESULTS & FEEDBACK

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

Our goal with the site has been to establish ourselves and access foundational grants for further initiatives. We’re a new nonprofit, so this is just the first step toward launching our social media via the blog; we already have 300 online followers. This project has introduced our nonprofit to the greater healthcare community, specifically those involved in chronic pain management. The intention is to now become thought leaders in the community to help us get more funding.  

How did Imaginovation perform from a project management standpoint?

We use Jira and Slack to communicate; we’re in close communication throughout all processes. I’ve worked closely with the project manager to facilitate site changes to ensure everything was as I wanted.

What did you find most impressive about them?

First of all, Imaginovation is very collaborative. We’ve worked closely on the design; I had very specific requirements that required step-by-step design and testing processes to achieve the quality and content I wanted. Their team has solved many problems for us, including fixing the donation page. 

I rely a lot on their technical experience; I’m not a technical person, but Imaginovation is very patient with me. Imaginovation is also a small enough company that I feel like we’re more than just another project to them. Their collaborative and personalized services can be attributed to their smaller size. 

They have a lot of knowledge about how to best design a website. However, I also appreciate that Imaginovation has the capacity to do more than just web design. I’ll work with them on more technically-complex projects because they’ve proven to have the capacity to execute them. 

Are there any areas they could improve?

The entire process has taken longer than I expected, but Imaginovation stayed in communication with me through the entire process. The delays we’ve experienced were generally out of their control; for example, one of their developers contracted COVID-19. We also faced some technical challenges during development. I think my expectations weren’t quite in line with the expected time it takes to bring a development project live. 

BACKGROUND

Introduce your business and what you do there.

We’re one of the largest privately owned cannabis operations in the US, and we've been around since 2013. I’ve been the director of software engineering for two years.

OPPORTUNITY / CHALLENGE

What challenge were you trying to address with Imaginovation?

We needed somebody to handle our web development efforts because we were focused on software development. As a result, we didn’t have the bandwidth or time to manage static websites, so we sought out an agency that would partner with us and could work with our marketing team to implement what was needed.

SOLUTION

What was the scope of their involvement?

Imaginovation started with a couple of brand specific websites that we have made internally or have purchased. We wanted each of those brands to have a unique identity. They then redeveloped our retail website, and they created a total of four branded websites from scratch using Netlify, React, and Webpac.

Our internal marketing team typically provides them with a rough outline of what we want to do and provide the designs they want to see on the website. From static websites, the Imaginovation team has helped us to make our platforms a little bit more agile and innovative by integrating CMS so that features such as events, addresses, dates, and more can be managed by our internal marketing team themselves.

When we expanded their work, they started to handle all of our web development needs. We also look forward to them handling our corporate website. On top of that, they’re advising us on our mobile development efforts. We’ll probably integrate their teams on building three internal corporate mobile apps since we already have a customer facing mobile app for cashless payments and rewards. That can happen within 3–4 months. We’re also looking to partner with them on some backend development as well.

What is the team composition?

We’ve worked with Pete (CEO), but it’s more focused on contract business management. They also have a technical manager, account manager, and 4–5 developers. 

How did you come to work with Imaginovation?

I searched for development agencies that would be willing and able to take on our type of industry. When I saw Imaginovation, I liked that they had an office in Charlotte, North Carolina. My CIO also told me that it would be an ideal situation if we had an agency that was close enough. That way we could meet up, especially if we need to collaborate on something larger.

We were also impressed with the rates that Imaginovation gave us. On top of that, we enjoyed talking to them — they were very personable and flexible.

How much have you invested with them?

We’ve spent $60,000–$80,000.

What is the status of this engagement?

We started working together in April 2020, and it’s ongoing.

RESULTS & FEEDBACK

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

If you’ve checked one of the branded websites they’ve built for us, you’ll see that they’ve done a wonderful job. Overall, they’ve produced great work.

How did Imaginovation perform from a project management standpoint?

Imaginovation has performed very well from a project management standpoint. We communicate using Slack, Zoom, and email. We also have phone calls with them. Our internal marketing team even requests directly to them for updates, maintenance, or more. I just stay involved from a technical perspective so everything remains manageable.

What did you find most impressive about them?

Their team gets things done, and they’re great to communicate with. They also understand the problems we’re trying to solve, and they have a good grasp on what design we should have for our websites. On top of that, they know the right questions to ask. Above all, they’re pretty good at turning our requirements into features.

Are there any areas they could improve?

No, I can’t think of any serious issues we’ve had. The Imaginovation team has been working fine.

Do you have any advice for potential customers?

Be familiar with the tech stack that they’re using. In addition, make sure you communicate your needs with them.

BACKGROUND

Introduce your business and what you do there.

I am the owner of Parcelr. I am in the real estate and farming business.

OPPORTUNITY / CHALLENGE

What challenge were you trying to address with Imaginovation?

I needed someone to realize my software solution. I’d seen some other companies out there that have apps for real estate on parcel data and property data, as well as other features for myself to be more convenient and more efficient and more convenient for users, so I had them design and develop an application and we are still in the process of it. It is a mobile app for iOS.

SOLUTION

What was the scope of their involvement?

I reached out to Imaginovation about creating an app for me. When we first started, I told them what I wanted to do. I imagine they probably get a lot of phone calls daily and monthly from someone that wants to start an app. Once I figured out what I was serious about, we did the wireframes and looked that over, and then started the project after the wireframes were done.

What is the team composition?

I dealt with three people including the CEO, a sales rep, and someone I would classify as a project manager who would then meet with their team after that.

How did you come to work with Imaginovation?

I found them on Google and noticed they were a pretty local company. I reached out to them and set up some meetings and we went from there. There weren’t many app designers in North Carolina, but I mainly went with them based on their website design and reviews.

How much have you invested in them?

I have spent $84,500 on the project.

What is the status of this engagement?

We began working together in August 2019, and it is an ongoing project.

RESULTS & FEEDBACK

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

They have let me download it on my phone and I have been very impressed by the way it looks and the way it functions. I think there could have been shortcuts they could have done just to save them money, but they have done very well in making it look good. You could tell they wanted to continue the relationship.

How did Imaginovation perform from a project management standpoint?

Throughout the whole project, everything was good. At the end of the project, we had to figure out some issues with the app, but I had to be clear. It all worked out and they held up to what they promised. They were very kind and good to work with. We used Slack to communicate back and forth as well as email. 

What did you find most impressive about them?

 Initially, I was nervous about building an app and finding a company as well as trusting them. Once I got to know them, we became good friends.  

Are there any areas they could improve?

At the end of the project, it seemed like I was getting rushed out the door and there needed to be some features addressed, but they took care of everything before we went live.

Do you have any advice for potential customers?

Try to have all your thoughts and ideas written out and in order and be thorough when explaining what you want. What they think and what you think might be two totally different things if you don’t explain what you are thinking.

BACKGROUND

Introduce your business and what you do there.

I am the founder of sleepfitness, an online self-guided insomnia program.

OPPORTUNITY / CHALLENGE

What challenge were you trying to address with Imaginovation?

We had an existing website, but we needed new features. I also hired Imaginovation to develop a web app for my clients.

SOLUTION

What was the scope of their involvement?

After we ran them through our requirements, Imaginovation added new features to our site, including a membership login functionality. For the web app, they developed it to enable clients to log their sleep information and calculate variables. 

What is the team composition?

About 4–5 people support us. 

How did you come to work with Imaginovation?

I reached out to a few companies that I found online, but Imaginovation got back to me the fastest—they responded to my email within the hour. I thought that was fantastic, and they were curious about what I was looking for. We set up a meeting to discuss details and started from there. 

How much have you invested with them?

We’ve spent around $23,000.

What is the status of this engagement?

We began working together in August 2019 and they will continue hosting and troubleshooting any issues for our platform. 

RESULTS & FEEDBACK

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

My colleagues have all looked at the final products and gave really rave reviews. They’re impressed with the homepage of the website and the web app, too. 

How did Imaginovation perform from a project management standpoint?

We use Slack, so our communication is pretty instantaneous. They always respond within 20 minutes to any of my questions or concerns. 

What did you find most impressive about them?

Although their work is phenomenal, their communication from the start has been the most fantastic part. Not a lot of companies have that level of communication. 

Are there any areas they could improve?

No, I’ve been pleased with them from the start. 

Do you have any advice for potential customers?

Have a discovery meeting with them to discuss all the details. If everything is ready from the start, they’ll be able to hit the ground running. Knowing all the details is very important. 

BACKGROUND

Introduce your business and what you do there.

We’re a patent and trademark law firm, and I’m the director of client support services.

OPPORTUNITY / CHALLENGE

What challenge were you trying to address with Imaginovation?

We had a basic client portal that we developed in-house, so our clients could see their portfolio of cases to get up to date on their work with us. We employed Imaginovation to help us make the solution more robust.

SOLUTION

What was the scope of their involvement?

We started with design services. One of their graphic designers helped us determine the ideal look and feel of the final product. They used InVision to build out the design. From there, they got into the coding and development to implement the major updates we wanted. 

The final app was integrated into our website as a secure user portal. It contains cost and deadline reminders for their cases, acting as an electronic portfolio of a party’s work with us. 

What is the team composition?

We worked directly with a project manager and designer on their side.

How did you come to work with Imaginovation?

They seem like a well-rounded company with plenty of expertise. The original solution was done using Lotus Notes, and they had a specialized Lotus Notes developer on staff. That was a good sign for us, but when we met with someone from their team to discuss the project, we were sold on their knowledge and capabilities. 

How much have you invested with them?

It cost between $500,000–$800,000.

What is the status of this engagement?

The project lasted from August 2017–July 2019.

RESULTS & FEEDBACK

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

Our sales team has been able to utilize the updated system to sell our services as something unique and customer-centric. Most law firms don’t have this technology, especially something this stable. Because of its increased stability, we’re able to use it with much more frequency for our clients. We’re leaning on it more, and our clients are able to obtain increased data from its interface.  

How did Imaginovation perform from a project management standpoint?

They were easy to work with because they were always available if I needed to call or meet with them. Additionally, they were active in making sure all of my requests were met. We used Jira and Slack to keep track of the project and how each feature was performing. 

What did you find most impressive about them?

They were pretty responsive. If I voiced concern, they returned immediately with potential solutions. We had urgent matters dealt with quickly because they prioritized communication.

Are there any areas they could improve?

I can’t think of anything. 

Do you have any advice for potential customers?

Provide them with a detailed description of what you’re looking for. That’ll make the process run more smoothly.