Mano a Mano

Introduce your business and what you do there.

I’m a graphic designer at Critical TechWorks, a joint venture between BMW and a Portuguese company called Critical Software. We’re focused on developing automotive software.

What challenge were you trying to address with Mano a Mano?

We needed design support for several internal projects.

What was the scope of their involvement?

Mano a Mano works with us on various projects. They mainly help us create graphic designs that are used as content for internal communication, events, and programs. They’ve been us with our well-being and sustainability programs and onboarding process.

What is the team composition?

We work with two designers from their team.

How did you come to work with Mano a Mano?

We came across one of their works on social media. It had a lot of positive reviews, so we decided to hire them for this project.

How much have you invested with them?

We’ve spent about $25,000–$30,000.

What is the status of this engagement?

We started working with Mano a Mano in January 2023, and our engagement is ongoing.

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

Mano a Mano’s efforts have had a positive impact on our business in terms of lessening the workload that we have. Overall, we’re very happy with their services. 

How did Mano a Mano perform from a project management standpoint?

They’re really quick with their work; they always deliver earlier than expected. We also don’t need to guide them all the time because they can work autonomously. We use Notion to manage tasks and communicate mainly via phone calls.

Are there any areas they could improve?

I can’t think of anything that Mano a Mano could improve on at the moment.

Do you have any advice for future clients of theirs?

Be open to Mano a Mano’s comments. They’re very proactive in providing feedback — in fact, they’ve been giving us great advice on the decisions we need to make.

Please describe your company and your position there.

I am the owner and manager of Cruel, a restaurant located in downtown Porto, Portugal.

For what projects/services did your company hire Mano a Mano, and what were your goals?

We asked for the branding for the project, going through the creation of the logo, business cards, menus and web page.

How did you select this vendor?

Mano-a-Mano was recommended to me by a friend who had already used their services for her company.

Describe the scope of their work in detail, including any steps and the final deliverables.

We scheduled a first meeting where I explained the concept of the restaurant and set out my expectations. Then we communicated online, as the designers sent me their first ideas and starting points for creation.

We followed a path until the choice of the logo, which then led to the design of the remaining materials. The designers did some adjustments and we got together again to settle the final details. All the production work was accompanied by Mano-a-Mano, thus guaranteeing its quality.

How many people from the vendor's team worked with you, and what were their positions?

I worked directly with the designers Inês and Ana.

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

Based on the results of the project, our brand became very popular specially because the proposal was quite different and fun. The physical menu (divided into levels of experience) created an impact, as did the communication we put on social media. The result was brutal and positioned the restaurant at the forefront of the range in which it operates.

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

After the initial meeting, we were always communicating via phone and email, and the response was always very quick from the designers. We also held some video call meetings when dealing with more detailed matters. Communication and feedback were, without a doubt, the high point of this partnership.

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

Creativity, responsiveness and sensitivity to integrate, whenever possible, my expectations regarding the materials that were developed.

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

Honestly, I have nothing to say.

Please describe your company and your position there.

I am the General Manager of Hinterland, an architecture studio in Porto. We are a young office but with an experienced team. We develop mainly residential and services projects.

For what projects/services did your company hire Mano a Mano, and what were your goals?

We hired Mano a Mano to develop the company's branding. It defines our positioning in the market. We wanted to position ourselves in the market in a credible way that would allow us access to bigger customers.

How did you select this vendor?

First we saw the other works that Mano a Mano did and we liked their design language. We had a meeting and decided to move forward.

Describe the scope of their work in detail, including any steps and the final deliverables.

First we describe our company and our objectives. After they send us a file with some references where we can explain what we liked or not. They send us the first ideas, with different options, we chose one, and they developed that ideia. They show us the solution and we really like, after that we only had to confirme our info. In the end of the process they asked quotations for the different supports (cards, books...) and they manage this process with the providers.

How many people from the vendor's team worked with you, and what were their positions?

I worked directly with Ana and Inês, the co-founders of Mano a Mano

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

Our clients and partners love our evolution. We had new contacts coming online due to the presentation of the company, demonstrating quality and credibility

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

They sent us a time line of the process, we had zoom meetings in key moments of the process where they show us the evolution of the branding, and we have a whats app to facilitate the communication.

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

They added more to the process than we expected, and they are really creative persons. They love what they do and that rubs to the project and to the communication with us.

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

We really love there job, and we already recommend them to other people. So we have nothing to indicate as an improvement.

This review was published on 02/02/2023

Tiago Vieira

Executive Director, Build: from high to low tech

Arts, Entertainment & Music

1-10 Employees

Porto, Portugal

Less than $10,000

Oct 2021 - Mar 2022

Project summary

Mano a Mano provided branding services for a construction and architecture solutions company's event. They covered the entire process, from the initial concept to the development of graphic elements.

Feedback summary

With Mano a Mano, the event had a clear branding that allowed the client to get multiple contacts with partners and an executive. Through regular communication and online meetings, they led a smooth workflow. Customers can expect a creative team that can deliver effective branding materials.

BACKGROUND

Please describe your company and your position there.

I am the director of an international congress called Build: from high to low tech. We focus on sustainable solutions on the field of construction and architecture

OPPORTUNITY / CHALLENGE

For what projects/services did your company hire Mano a Mano, and what were your goals?

For the first edition of the congress we hired mano a mano to develop the complete branding of the event. Because this was the first edition they were part of the whole process, from the initial concept to all the graphic elements development.

SOLUTION

How did you select this vendor?

We did a shortlist of 3 design teams based on their portfolio, work experience and client history. After this we interviewed them and asked for the work quotation. We took our decision based on the personal connection and fair work price.

Describe the scope of their work in detail, including any steps and the final deliverables.

The first step was to do a briefing meeting where we discussed what we needed to develop for the event. Mano a Mano experience was very valuable on this phase because this was our first time organizing this type of event and they helped us define all the supports needed. After this initial briefing Mano a Mano prepared a document with several references of design supports for us to choose what we liked more or less and why, in order to understand our mindset for the design.

After we did this analysis they started working on the design, and sent us a first draft with some supports. We discussed some options and closed a solution for the general image. After this was settled they developed a calendar with the dates they would have the several deliverables ready and also a calendar with the social media content they were developing according to the post dates.

They were very professional and respected the defined timing, they delivered the web site, posters, invites, brochures, identification cards, airport card for the driver, social media publications, a note pad we offered the attendants, covid masks with logo and pencils. Besides this they also went to venue with us and designed a sign for the check-in counter and an animation for the pulpit of the speakers.

At the end of the event they also designed a book. We sent them the content, they tested a first chapter, we approved the layout and then they developed the entire document. We reviewed it in the end, corrected some things and they did the final print art works. They also took care of the printing process at the factory and went there to check the draft version.

How many people from the vendor's team worked with you, and what were their positions?

We worked with 2 people from the team, Ana and Inês, they were both in charge of all the work.

RESULTS & FEEDBACK

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

Because of the event we got multiple contacts with clients and partners for the next edition. We even managed to get a meeting with a relevant CEO because we sent him a copy of the book and he liked it so much he decided to meet us.

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

We communicated regularly by e-mail and had online meeting on key milestones of the project. In the month before the event we set-up a whats app group for contact and quick contact.

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

We already knew their creative skill where high, and thats why we hired them. We were highly impressed by their dedication to the project and organization. Everything went exactly how we planned together.

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

Not really.

STAR RATINGS

Overall rating: 5

World class design quality with very reasonable price

Quality: 5

We had speakers from all arround the world and the opinion was unanimous, the design was great

Cost: 5

worth every penny, their design gave a lot of credibility to the event

Schedule: 5

Very easy to do, they were very quick to follow-up

Willing to refer: 5

Allways, I know several designers but they are our first option

Introduce your business and what you do there.

I’m the CEO of HashDash, a company that has taken the complexity out of consumers finding the right cannabis products for their health and medical needs. Our platform features a very complex matching algorithm that takes user data and aggregates it with our cannabis data to help match consumers with better cannabis products. This allows our customers to have an enhanced experience and meet their needs.

What challenge were you trying to address with Mano a Mano?

Our biggest challenge was that our project was massive. Our platform is extremely complex, so it was challenging to build it in a succinct way that focused on the greatest pieces that would help us convert users, enhance their experience, and keep them on the platform.

Therefore, we needed to find a UI/UX design service that could help us look at our entire platform, identify the most important features for users, and design it in a way that connected those features in a user-friendly way. This new design would allow users to access our core features without feeling overwhelmed, enhancing their experience in ways they had never experienced before on other platforms.

What was the scope of their involvement?

Mano a Mano has designed and developed our platform from scratch. They started this project by understanding our mission, core focus, objectives, and customer profiles. For the latter, they helped us build 15–20 different consumer profiles, and we studied what would be the best-case, middle-case, and worst-case user journeys for the UX. Obviously, our goal was to achieve the best-case user journey.

From there, Mano a Mano helped us analyze some of our competitors, which were limited, to understand what they did well and what they could do better. After that, we reached out to some of those platforms’ users to understand their pain points.

Once we finished with the thorough discovery and research process, Mano a Mano built wireframes for our platform on Figma. We then analyzed those wireframes and decided to start building the actual components of our platform. Since then, we’ve been developing and enhancing our platform.

On this platform, users will be able to access and answer some questions about the type of consumer they are, their preferences, and the condition or symptoms they’re trying to address. Once they fill out the questionnaire, their information gets pulled into our algorithm, which takes our aggregated data and builds a profile for the user.

What is the team composition?

I’ve worked with Inês and Ana (Co-Owners).

How did you come to work with Mano a Mano?

I was referred to Mano a Mano. This person told me that they were a phenomenal design team with a lot of positive testimonials, especially in Portugal. My first contact was with Inês and Ana, and they were both confident about their abilities to complete the task. Their confidence gave me a lot of confidence going into the project because I knew it wouldn’t be easy.

How much have you invested with them?

We’ve spent over $20,000.

What is the status of this engagement?

Our project has been ongoing since June 2019.

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

Mano a Mano has been phenomenal. Before they joined, we had a business plan, an idea, and a vision, and they turned that into reality, which wasn’t easy. We had hundreds of pages about a very complex platform, and they were able to take all that information and create a succinct and cohesive platform that aligned with our vision and mission. Seeing our platform come to life has been fulfilling and rewarding; Mano a Mano has indubitably done a wonderful job.

Moreover, the great UX created by Mano a Mano has allowed us to have a higher user conversion rate — thus far, we have over 300 early users. Although we haven’t launched the platform yet, we’ve created a lite, private site. We’ve taken these early users through a Figma demo and this site to collect their feedback, and the comments we’ve received about our platform’s UI/UX have been extremely positive.

Another successful part of our engagement has been Mano a Mano’s help in decluttering and prioritizing certain aspects of our platform. Originally, we had a lot of ideas and wanted to do a lot of things, but they were able to help us narrow down our ideas and bring greater focus to the features that truly matter to users. The positive feedback has proven the success of those decisions.

How did Mano a Mano perform from a project management standpoint?

Mano a Mano’s communication is remarkable. Our entire internal team is on Slack, so Inês and Ana decided to join our Slack channel from the start. Additionally, they set us up on Figma, so I can leave a comment on their designs if I want changes or have questions.

Mano a Mano doesn’t only make changes and recommendations over Figma, but they also reach out to us via Slack to let us know if there have been any updates. Moreover, we have calls with the entire team on Mondays, to which Mano a Mano also joins, even if we discuss something that isn’t directly related to them. These meetings help them understand the project intimately, which allows them to enhance their designs and the UX.

Additionally, Mano a Mano has set us up on Jira for project management. We manage tickets through Jira on a biweekly basis. Halfway through those two-weeks periods, we have something we call Demo Day. On this day, everyone gets to review the projects we’re working on and provide feedback. By the end of those two weeks, we close out the sprint cycle and start a new one.

What did you find most impressive about them?

Mano a Mano’s designs are extremely clean. I went to college for graphic design, so I greatly appreciate what designers go through. Thanks to this, I know that Mano a Mano has a talent for looking at cluttered things and coming up with designs to make them beautiful, natural, and emotive, which is outstanding.

We’ve pivoted a lot as a business in order to find our next step, and Mano a Mano’s flexibility to pivot with us and enhance those changes has been impressive. Additionally, Inês and Ana are very responsive, concise, and diligent, and they focus on the details. They focus on all the core pillars a designer should have.

Are there any areas they could improve?

There’s nothing Mano a Mano could improve on. Although everyone has room for improvement, Inês and Ana have done a remarkable job and gone above and beyond their line of duty.

Do you have any advice for potential customers?

Face-to-face communication is very important to avoid things getting lost in translation. While communicating through Slack and email is fine, take the time to jump on Zoom calls to allow them to understand your vision and the emotions you want to convey with your product. This will help you accelerate the process and create a more intimate relationship with them.

Introduce your business and what you do there.

I’m the co-founder of an independent label for a video game publisher. I’m responsible for operations and marketing. We have eight employees and are located in London.

What challenge were you trying to address with Mano a Mano?

We wanted to create a visual identity for our company. We had an existing logo, but we weren’t happy with it. We wanted to hire a creative agency to create the brand guidelines, including logo design, color palette, and font for our website.

What is the scope of their involvement?

We initially briefed Mano a Mano on who we were, our vision, and our code of ethics. They asked questions about our company goals and what we were looking for in our clients. They also researched our field to present what we needed.

The first step was to agree on the main color palette for our brand. They recommended tweaking our logo, and we had a few revisions. We gave them feedback, and they came back with a second proposal. Mano a Mano always offered more than one creative direction to choose from. Then, they built on the one we chose and created the entire brand guidelines.

In the early summer, Mano a Mano started working on the landing page. We just added the career page. Now, they’re working on adding more pages and helping us transition them into a complete website. They’ve built the pages from scratch using Webflow.

What is the team composition?

We work with the two co-founders and the gamer.

How much have you invested with them?

In total, we’ve spent between £6,000–£7,000 (approximately $7,200–$8,400 USD) so far.

What is the status of the engagement?

We kicked off our partnership in March 2022, and it’s still ongoing. We usually hire them for projects, and when they’re done, we start a new one.

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

We haven’t launched our company officially, but we’re using the brand guidelines to attract clients and investors, and it’s been a success. The design template is eye-catching and easy to adapt every time we do presentations.

Moreover, we’ve tested the colors and the landing page on developers and our small council circle and gotten excellent feedback. In our industry, companies must understand how to attract other games visually. Our brand blends well with every game we represent, so Mano a Mano has successfully understood our brand. They’ve seen the bigger picture and our end goal.

How did Mano a Mano perform from a project management standpoint?

They never miss deadlines, and we can count on their timelines. Mano a Mano always over-delivers; they make us feel more relaxed, and the team understands our challenges and finds a solution.

They’re great at communicating. We use virtual and in-person communication, including email, phone calls, Zoom, and Google Meet. We also use agile methodologies through Notion and upload the files we work with on Google Drive.

What did you find most impressive about them?

They stand out for their ability to manage high-quality projects and communicate. They’re great creative minds, and the team understands our business and vision.

Are there any areas they could improve?

No, I wouldn't ask to improve anything right now.

Any advice for potential customers?

I suggest having direct conversations with them; it saves lots of time compared to the back and forth with emails.

Please describe your company and your position there.

Our company is a co-learning and co-creation platform, focused on educating a new generation of global innovators, responsible entrepreneurs and future change makers. I was the Communication Manager.

• Definition of Communication strategy;
• Communication Plan implementation;
• Coordination of new graphic image;
• Management and Content Creation in Social Media;
• Institutional communication and website management;
• Digital marketing;
• Planification and implementation of a series of Communication & Marketing workshops;
• Events management.

For what projects/services did your company hire Mano a Mano?

Mano were hired to create the new brand of our company and all the communication regarding it. - Events communication, such as: öBot Bootcamp at CERN, International Design Factory Week, Social Impact Week, Learning and Skills Development Sessions: Communication and Marketing, Fall Presentations, Winter Presentations, Open Days with Industry, Be a Maker, Spring Bootcamp.

How did you select this vendor and what were the deciding factors?

We've checked their portfolio and met them personally. The deciding factors were the quality of their work and of their graphic proposal.

Describe the project in detail and walk through the stages of the project.

We had several meetings to discuss our goals. Later they've presented the proposal of the brand with the brand guidelines. We've met through the year (every 2 weeks mainly) to talk about different events communication and editorial books that we also needed. Then every week we comnicated through e-mail providing the feedback about the final arts that they've sent us along the process.

How many resources from the vendor's team worked with you, and what were their positions?

2 people. Founders and designers at Mano a Mano.

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

Their documentation was very detailed and very clear. The final artwork was always amazing. Beside the design talent they are great project managers and really efficient. Until today everyone comments how beautiful the design is and what such amazing job they did.

How effective was the workflow between your team and theirs?

They are really easy to communicate and provided us frequent updates. Through video calls, phone calls, or e-mails. We were always in touch and providing feedback. Everything was delivered on time and they've met all of the deadlines.

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

We were blown away because they were really collaborative along the process. Super fast delivering the artwork and always cheerful and easy to work with. Besides that, the quality of their work is outstanding.

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

I really don't have anything to say that could have been better.