Neuron

BACKGROUND

Introduce your business and what you do there.

I’m the VP of product at Flo Health. We have a women’s health app that uses a 10-day cycle to help women understand their bodies.

OPPORTUNITY / CHALLENGE

What challenge were you trying to address with Neuron?

We needed to expand our design team with external resources. Additionally, we wanted to add a feature that would send women a monthly report about their cycles. We had a clear end goal but needed help bringing it to life.

SOLUTION

What was the scope of their involvement?

Neuron was involved with our team throughout the design process, working in stages. We provided them with requirements documentation and then they did more research to help determine the best format for the reporting feature. We also provided Neuron with a couple of UI options and gathered their team’s feedback.

A medical board reviewed the wireframes to give another perspective. The reports follow official guidelines and help women understand their bodies’ health. The feature also includes graphs to show a user’s results in comparison to other users.

What is the team composition?

I had two contacts at Neuron but also worked with a dedicated partner who oversaw the deliverables and two designers.

How did you come to work with Neuron?

I found Neuron on Clutch and liked them because their team included architects, so I felt that they would have a good aesthetic direction. After looking through their portfolio, I knew their team was experienced. I felt that it would be easy to work with them.

How much have you invested with them?

We spent $15,000 on their services.

What is the status of this engagement?

We started our engagement in July and their team completed the bulk of the project in October 2020.

RESULTS & FEEDBACK

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

Neuron saw our project as not only art but also science, which I appreciated. We gathered feedback from users who expressed their delight about the clarity of the information provided in the reports. The graphs were easy to understand too.

How did Neuron perform from a project management standpoint?

In the beginning, their team seemed to misunderstand us. We had to repeat all the details to the design lead who wasn’t in the meeting with our business contacts at Neuron. After that cleared, they did great. We communicated by adding them to our Slack channel. They were reliable and accommodated our needs. Their team was also flexible with the timing.

What did you find most impressive about them?

Once Neuron dedicated a team to our project, they didn’t change the designers. That allowed us to follow through the entire process together. Unlike other vendors I previously engaged, Neuron sought opportunities to expand their work but didn’t push us.

Are there any areas they could improve?

Neuron should show off their talent and expertise upfront. Their team thought about the app’s architecture and sought ways to be more collaborative. It would’ve been helpful to engage with those qualities earlier.

BACKGROUND

Introduce your business and what you do there.

I’m the Chief Product Officer at a consumer media company that's in pre-launch.

OPPORTUNITY / CHALLENGE

What challenge were you trying to address with Neuron?

We needed to design our 1.0 product, which is a desktop and mobile progressive web app. We had an extensive product requirements document (PRD) for our product and we had developers, but we needed someone to do the design.

SOLUTION

What was the scope of their involvement?

Neuron took the entire PRD and went through all the various pieces to translate it into UX. We have three major parts of the product. They worked on the broad and individual site architecture, the flow of individual areas, and did the design.

They also worked on the individual componentry. The work output of that was a collection of Figma designs that our developers worked off of to build the product.

What is the team composition?

At the height of the project, we worked with four teammates, but we worked regularly with two teammates. Mark (Director of Strategy) was our main point of contact. 

How did you come to work with Neuron?

We were working with a company in New York that was going to do some UX prototyping for us, and they had an existing partnership with Neuron for the design element. We trusted their referral.

We talked to Neuron, and they walked us through some of their previous projects that were most similar to what we were doing. It was clear to us that they would be up to the task. 

How much have you invested with them?

We spent just north of $50,000.

What is the status of this engagement?

We began working with them in July 2020, and the majority of the work was completed in September 2020.

RESULTS & FEEDBACK

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

The developers and engineers we worked with had a very positive perception of what Neuron had done. We certainly felt that they not only built us a very modern, contemporary version of what we had imagined, but they also took it beyond what we had imagined.

That’s something we’re always looking for in a design partner — someone who will take what we want and align it with our goals for the product. We consistently felt that they gave us what we asked for and gave us the best version of that. Neuron delivered a more well-thought-out product than originally intended.

How did Neuron perform from a project management standpoint?

We had a very clear view of what our schedule was, which was important because we had a lot of moving parts and a lot of contributors. We had a fairly aggressive waterfall between design, UX engineering, and product, so it was important that we stayed on that waterfall so that everything kept moving. 

We used Jira to collaborate with everyone involved in the project, and we also communicated via Slack. Their speed and clarity of communication were great. They stayed ahead of things, reached out, and asked clarifying questions ahead of time early rather than having it pile up.

What did you find most impressive about them?

In the beginning, it was clear that they had the experience and the depth that we needed for the scale and scope of what we were building. That proved to be absolutely true.

Neuron was able to go from the very top and not miss anything in terms of the site architecture, all the way down to the lowest details. Their clear experience in managing something of this scale and scope was the reason we chose them, and it proved to be true.

Are there any areas they could improve?

When you have a project of this kind of scope, you have to manage the details on time. The vast majority of the time, they were reliable and clearly met our expectations, and they found things that we hadn’t looked at.

There was an occasion here or there where details were missed, which were the toughest moments of the project.

Do you have any advice for potential customers?

Be very clear about the experience you want the user to have and then give Neuron enough elbow room to digest that and deliver against not only what you ask but also what will be best for the user.

Give them enough detail of what you’re trying to accomplish rather than the exact solution. Give them the breathing room to express your vision in their own way and you’ll get the most value. 

BACKGROUND

Introduce your business and what you do there.

I’m the director of medical coding at a new wave technology company. We’re a software technology company in the healthcare space.

OPPORTUNITY / CHALLENGE

What challenge were you trying to address with Neuron?

We have a computer-assisted coding software UI, but the design of it was a little outdated. We wanted to not only bring it up to date with industry standards, but we also wanted to make the efficiency and overall look of it more appealing and user-friendly. 

We engaged Neuron to redesign what we currently had and provide some additional enhancements that would allow us to take our tool in another direction.

SOLUTION

What was the scope of their involvement?

The original scope of work was for Neuron to take our UI and completely redesign it. I had the opportunity to work with them through the design phase where we went through several iterations to decided on what I wanted to get out of the tool and how it differed from what we had.

They did their design and created mockups that we could use. From there, they actually worked with us in the development stage, working on the frontend. Instead of them developing the entire product, they worked collaboratively with our team, and we gave them access to our Azure DevOps system. Our team did the backend.

From that process, there were a lot of reiterations. Neuron had to be able to adapt to all of the languages that we use, including MongoDB and Python. We used so many different elements in the building of the tool. 

What is the team composition?

In the design phase, I worked with two teammates. During the development, I worked with three other teammates.

How did you come to work with Neuron?

Our manager at the time had gone to college with one of the owners of Neuron, so he was familiar with what the company did. When we were looking for a company to do the work, they suggested we reach out to them.

I reached out, had a couple of conversations, and traveled to San Francisco to meet with them in-person. Upon meeting with them, I knew immediately that based on their information, understanding of the product, willingness to engage despite our challenges, flexibility, and knowledge that they would be a good fit.

How much have you invested with them?

We probably spent between $150,000–$200,000.

What is the status of this engagement?

We worked with them from March–July 2020.

RESULTS & FEEDBACK

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

We haven’t deployed it to our clients yet and we’re still going through the testing. However, the tool does what we wanted it to do, so Neuron more than met our needs as far as that. We did a live demo internally for different representatives of the company, and the feedback was overwhelmingly positive.

People loved the tool and the look of it. They also loved the changes in design and functionality compared to our original tool. Neuron developed and designed a tool that met our needs considerably, despite having little knowledge of our industry. 

Throughout the process, Neuron provided additional ideas that we hadn’t considered that the tool might need. It was a collaboration from day one until the project ended, right through the design, development, deployment, and testing of the software.

How did Neuron perform from a project management standpoint?

Their project management was excellent. When we first started, we were actually missing our internal project manager, so Neuron took on the role of a project manager, helping our team collaborate and work through daily scrums, which was outside of the scope of their work.

They managed their process extremely well, and there were no delays or hiccups. They also helped us with our process when our project manager was missing. We added them to our Azure DevOps board and they did their workload within our software.

They were engaged and open to working with us in any capacity and modifying themselves to fit our needs. We collaborated with them on a daily basis. We had daily meetings and worked on client tickets with them. 

I can’t say enough about their flexibility and ability to jump in. They were flexible through the changes and through working with our team. Even though they didn’t really understand our line of work in the healthcare space, they took our directive and did research on their end. 

What did you find most impressive about them?

When we were first looking at engaging with a company for this project, I was looking for an innovative, flexible, and creative company that was up to date in terms of technology. I didn’t want someone who was just going to develop something based on the bullet points I gave them.

I wanted someone who would expand on my bullet points, provide additional ideas, be more creative, and give more solutions based on their level of knowledge. Of all the companies I talked to, Neuron fit that bill the most. 

Are there any areas they could improve?

No, I have no suggestions. From the start to the end of the project, they correctly assessed the project in terms of the number of personnel and design elements. They also put together a roadmap that was spot on.

Do you have any advice for potential customers?

Come in with your list of requirements, but give Neuron the creative license. I gave them the initial directive but said that I wasn’t tied to one thing or another. I told them that I wanted them to tell me how best to carry out the project.

Don’t hold the team to set parameters; give them the option to provide you with feedback on what they can deliver. If I hadn’t done that, my product would’ve looked different. By giving them the creative license, Neuron was able to deliver a product that was far above and beyond what I expected

BACKGROUND

Introduce your business and what you do there.

I’m the COO & chief council for Jet RVSM Services, LLC. We work with business and private jet owners, helping them with regulatory compliance. 

OPPORTUNITY / CHALLENGE

What challenge were you trying to address with Neuron?

We were branching out to work with contract pilots, as well. The coder and software group we had worked with weren’t getting the job done. We needed a new vendor to do the frontend design of an app.

SOLUTION

What was the scope of their involvement?

Neuron developed an app in an alpha prototype. The UX was very amateur. We presented that to the team, asking for consultation in order to rebrand. They came up with a style board, and once we had made our selections, they designed screens. 

They rebranded a competitive app to replace the app we had been working on, in order to get to market sooner. The app is only for iOS because 95% of pilots use iOS.

What is the team composition?

Initially, we worked with Matt (Co-Founder & Creative Director) and Mark (Co-Founder & Director of Strategy). Matt became the project manager, and we began working with their offshore coders. It is currently a tight team of three people.

How did you come to work with Neuron? 

Since the vendors we had tried to work with were failing, we were in need of a different one. We had an office in the same building as Neuron, and we talked to them about the project and decided to hire them in the end.

How much have you invested with them?

So far, we’ve spent $80,000.

What is the status of this engagement?

We began working together around January 2019, and our engagement is ongoing. They are on retainer as our go-to designers.

RESULTS & FEEDBACK

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

We just launched the first Beta test into the app store, so there aren’t any analytics to share at this time. We have had several events for pilots, showcasing the app and its design. Everyone has been impressed with it, and the brand work is great. 

How did Neuron perform from a project management standpoint?

While they are perfectly capable of managing a project, I took the majority of that responsibility on myself. They were a fantastic resource, suggesting tools like Jira, which we used. 

What did you find most impressive about them?

Neuron is talented and responsive. Everyone we’ve interacted with from there is pleasant to work with. Unlike most other vendors we’ve experienced, we enjoy working with this team.

Are there any areas they could improve?

I would like them to be more proactive, but it isn’t entirely their fault. I micromanage, and once the design work was done, the project was very small for them. 

Do you have any advice for potential customers?

Have a clear idea of what you want. The more direction you give them, the better the ideas they can bring back to you. For example, give them your ideas, but encourage them to expound on it and put their own creativity into it.

BACKGROUND

Introduce your business and what you do there.

I’m the head of product for a nonprofit and religious organization donation platform.

OPPORTUNITY / CHALLENGE

What challenge were you trying to address with Neuron?

We needed to redesign our app.

SOLUTION

What was the scope of their involvement?

Neuron completely refreshed our app, bringing us from our 2.0 version to the 3.0 version. As with all redesign projects, they kept elements from our earlier version but also redesigned various screens. It was for both iOS and Android.

Moving on from the app, their team now works on the other side of the platform. They’re going through each screen and working to get the redesigns out the door.

What is the team composition?

We mostly work with two designers.

How did you come to work with Neuron?

Our previous head of design had a personal connection with them and brought them on board before I started. The company engaged several outsourced agencies before starting with Neuron.

What is the status of this engagement?

We started our partnership in March 2019, and it’s ongoing.

RESULTS & FEEDBACK

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

Anytime you move from version two to three, it’s a huge investment. The most important measure of success is the impact on the UX. We had an antiquated design, and Neuron helped to make the platform much more modern. We’ve had a lot of good reviews. Before the upgrade, we had a 4.8 rating in the App Store. Now, the platform has a 4.9. It’s hard to move from 4.8 to 4.9.

How did Neuron perform from a project management standpoint?

We meet at least once a week to go over tasks and deadlines. Once they complete the work, we have reviews. Their team’s plugged into ours.

What did you find most impressive about them?

Neuron’s experienced in UX design. They explain the pros and cons of different options. Their team’s well-versed in the art of critiquing, which isn’t easy. They articulate why certain options would and wouldn’t work, and then guide us in the best direction for our users.

Are there any areas they could improve?

They may or may not have branding and creative direction resources.

Do you have any advice for potential customers?

Neuron works better in a waterfall environment. We work in a hybrid waterfall-scrum environment. If you’re open to that methodology, you could get better outcomes.

BACKGROUND

Introduce your business and what you do there.

I’m an account director at a creative studio with offices in San Francisco and on the east coast. We focus on marketing and branding.

OPPORTUNITY / CHALLENGE

What challenge were you trying to address with Neuron?

Neuron has expertise in the digital space and website design, so we looked to them to help with a particular project.

SOLUTION

What was the scope of their involvement?

Neuron designed a website for us to help depict a lifestyle.

Since we are a creative agency, we already had the brand in place and came to the engagement with lots of creative, collateral, photography, etc. Neuron took all of that and brought it to life in a digital form. We didn’t necessarily give them any direction from a website design standpoint, so they took the liberty to design a few different options for us, which was really great.

Neuron did prototyping, wireframing, and visual design. They created a site map and offered a few different approaches to the site from a design standpoint. Then, they handed off all of the files to our team in both desktop and mobile forms. Neuron was also part of the QA process. We handled the programming and development internally.

What is the team composition?

We worked with 2–3 Neuron team members, including a main point of contact who is a partner. We had a few people from our side working on the project as well, so it was a very fluid, collaborative process.

How did you come to work with Neuron?

I’d actually worked with them before at a previous agency. I knew that their skill set aligned with what we needed.

What is the status of this engagement?

Our work together began in December 2019, and they handed everything off in March 2020. We launched in mid-April. If we needed to make slight adjustments or review something, they were available.

RESULTS & FEEDBACK

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

Overall, it was a great experience. They really understood the vision we had for the brand. I think everyone is excited about what we’ve created together. Neuron didn’t just think about what's needed now but also accounted for future plans for the brand.

How did Neuron perform from a project management standpoint?

It was really great to work with them. They were open to our feedback; we made frequent updates to specific copy or imagery, and they worked swiftly to make those changes. It felt like they were a part of the team. Since we’re both in San Francisco, we had a few in-person meetings. We also communicated via Slack and used Figma to provide design feedback or copy.

What did you find most impressive about them?

They took the time to understand what we were looking for, what the brand needed, and the vision for the project. They made something that we are excited about.

Are there any areas they could improve?

Honestly, I don’t. It went really smoothly. I actually talked to some of my internal team, and we can’t pinpoint anything that we felt could have been improved upon. We’re all really happy with how everything went.

Any advice for potential customers?

I don’t have any specific advice. You can’t go wrong taking them on as a design and development team. This project had more of a graphic design element to it than being product-focused, and their work shined through. They’re really creative and thoughtful in their approaches, so I’d advise people thinking of hiring Neuron for this type of work that they should.

BACKGROUND

Introduce your business and what you do there.

Our company's name is Future Dial. We’re a robotics and software startup in the mobile and wireless device space. We do Software and robotics that process mobile phones with major wireless carriers. When a phone is traded in we work on the backend for the recycling process. My role is the marketing communications manager. So, I’m in charge of the outbound marketing and messaging in support of our sales office.

OPPORTUNITY / CHALLENGE

What challenge were you trying to address with Neuron?

We hired them for software interface design. We needed intelligence design and some of the arrangements on the screen.

SOLUTION

What was the scope of their involvement?

They redesigned our website to make it easier to navigate and a little more straight-forward. We had an initial scope of work, then they went over our requirements and came back with a branding survey. They evaluated our brand, how we looked, how we compared to our competitors. They also did some site mapping and looked at our navigation to explain what parts worked well and what parts didn’t.

Then they went through our messaging and determined where what we’re saying doesn’t match up with our customers. They also noted what we were trying to say and where the messaging wasn’t coming through.

Coming into this project, they streamlined our website, tightened up the messaging, and used a lot more visuals. They graphically and visually portrayed our business so users could easily understand what we do.

We then had a tradeshow a few months after starting the project, so we at least needed the landing page completed by then, and they delivered.

What is the team composition?

We worked primarily with our project manager and a few designers.

How did you come to work with Neuron?

They came highly recommended. We had a manager who knew them and had them help with the UI design. Our sales VP talked to them and found out they did website design as well, and thought it would be great to bring them on board for that as well.

How much have you invested with them?

The project cost between $25,000–$50,000.

What is the status of this engagement?

The project lasted in August 2019–March 2020

RESULTS & FEEDBACK

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

We saw more people accessing our landing page during and after the tradeshow. We just launched the first phase of the website, so it’s brand new and I don’t have any metrics there.

Our previous developer didn’t structure the site in a way that would enable us to manage the site ourselves. There was no rhyme or reason. Neuron was able to strip it down to the nuts and bolts so we would be able to manage the platform going forward. Now it’s more logical, and if we need a banner changed, we can do that ourselves now.

Our former website was also a bit wordy. Neuron’s strength is simplifying and distilling it to a message that’s easier to understand. That’s their forte.

How did Neuron perform from a project management standpoint?

We held bi-weekly meetings to go over requirements or they would show us wireframes, what they put together, we’d preview it and tweak messaging. Our main point of contact was always available, we would message him at a lot of different hours, and we were always able to reach him.

What did you find most impressive about them?

They accommodated all of our requests and were always consultative. They would make suggestions and discuss the advantages or disadvantages of anything we were considering. We knew we could ask them for their professional opinion whenever we needed it.

Are there any areas they could improve?

Sometimes there were visual aspects that we wanted to incorporate, but because of technical considerations, it wouldn’t work on the mobile layout. But that’s not necessarily against them.  

Do you have any advice for potential customers?

Go into engagement thinking about it as a partnership. Neuron works best when they know that you are willing to be open to feedback. They can then provide advice on best practices.

UPDATED REVIEW

This review was updated by the client company on April 17, 2020. New content is below:

BACKGROUND

Please describe your company and your position there.

FutureDial provides automated solutions for wireless device processors. Our SMART Receive product streamlines the receiving process of devices to ensure inventory accountability, accurate device identification, removal of private consumer content and further testing of device Condition. I, Angel Anderson, am the product manager for FutureDial's SMART Receive Product. This solution addresses many issues that our customers have experienced in the reverse industry which by definition has many variables. Our SMART Receive software takes all the complexity of processing these variables & simplifies the directive to allow any operator to be successful on day one.

OPPORTUNITY / CHALLENGE

For what projects/services did your company hire Neuron?

FutureDial approached Neuron to redesign our User Interface. Having been immersed in this industry for so long, we felt it was important to get a fresh perspective on the user interface and the user experience.

What were your goals for this project?

1. Design a clean User Interface 2. Improve the User Experience to simplify user tasks and improve their efficiency.

How did you select this vendor?

The FutureDial marketing team selected Neuron to redesign our website. They were so pleased with Neuron's work and support that our internal marketing team highly recommended Neuron to the product team for this UI project.

SOLUTION

Describe the project and the services they provided in detail.

Neuron was briefed on our existing software. They were given user work instructions and a copy of the software to interact with. We held a training session and a followup call for questions. I was extremely impressed how easily the Neuron team was able to pick up on what we do and how we do it. Neuron inquired about things we liked or didn't like, feedback that we've received from customers, etc.. Neuron then took that back & designed a proposed sketch of a new UI concept and submitted that concept to FutureDial. This concept was outside the box that we at FutureDial had lived in at that time, but we all quickly fell in love with the design. Neuron's concept solved several problems that we had been stumbling with for a while. FutureDial gave our feedback to Neuron, who then built a very basic wire-frame that further helped to demonstrate an anticipated look and feel for the new product. As the product requirements process advanced, Neuron further built out an interactive wire-frame that FutureDial used to pitch this product to one of our Tier1 customers. The ability to professionally demonstrate our product concept in such a tangible way was beyond valuable. Not only did this lend confidence to the SMART Receive design plan, it also assisted in hashing out specific customer requirements ahead of development. I was also impressed at Neuron's problem solving skills as new customer requirements or concerns arose, Neuron was able to quickly propose solutions and seamlessly integrate those into the design.

What was the team composition?

For the SMART Receive project, I primarily interfaced with two individuals from Neuron. Ryan Matthew was on point to manage the project. I also worked closely with Michelle Stoner who directly worked on the wire-frames. Both were closely in communication and responded quickly.

RESULTS & FEEDBACK

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

The new User Interface and User Experience has allowed us to take our software to the next level. SMART Receive has developed many new fantastic functional features. The UI/UX however magnifies those improvements and sets FutureDial ahead of our competitors for the product in this space. Neuron's design was accepted by everyone on all sides, our internal product team, sales teams, marketing teams and engineering team, as well as our customer from operations to IT. It is worth noting that in my carrier I have never seen a project be so widely applauded nor pleased so many without receiving any negative feedback.

How was project management arranged and how effective was it?

Neuron's project management was on par. They clearly communicated timelines and made or exceeded those deadlines. They did not hesitate to ask questions & they clearly communicated throughout the process. They were agile with changes that were thrown at them and were quick to respond.

What did you find most impressive about this company?

1. How well they were able to articulate our software & the industry that uses it. 2. How they were able to problem solve using that knowledge, in some ways solving problems that the industry has been struggling with for years. 3. How patient and helpful they are. Working on a major project there were days that I inundated them with questions and feedback. They seamlessly captured this & helped manage the chaos into a productive workflow.

Are there any areas for improvement?

From my perspective, I cannot think of anything that Neuron could have done better. They met my every need and I plan to use them again in the future for other products.

BACKGROUND

Introduce your business and what you do there.

I’m one of the original founders of Marvel Optics, an online retailer of affordable prescription eyewear.

OPPORTUNITY / CHALLENGE

What challenge were you trying to address with Neuron?

We were looking to migrate our outdated web platform to a WordPress site with improved functionalities. We wanted to redesign the frontend of the site for a full rebrand.

SOLUTION

What was the scope of their involvement?

Starting from a new logo and color scheme, Neuron was responsible for redesigning over 20 site pages. Apart from page-specific designs, they executed the graphics, typeface, and icons that span across the website.

They also reorganized the layout of our product pages. They took a mobile-first approach, so they implemented the mobile layouts first and kept UI/UX across all devices in mind. The team also streamlined the checkout process so users can reorder products quickly.

What is the team composition?

We frequently interfaced with Chris (Co-Founder, Neuron) and Lucia (Senior UX Designer, Neuron) but we know that there were a couple of developers working behind the scenes.

How did you come to work with Neuron?

If I recall correctly, we found them on Clutch. We were looking for an affordable company and shortlisted three; we eventually decided to go with them.

How much have you invested with them?

We spent somewhere between $25,000–$50,000.

What is the status of this engagement?

We started working together in January 2019 until May of the same year.

RESULTS & FEEDBACK

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

One of our goals was to increase our average order value—the average amount of products that a customer will purchase from us—and thanks to Neuron’s work, we saw that number double from $75 to $150.  

All of our repeat customers, including our corporate clients, have given great feedback about the usability of the new site. It’s much more intuitive and user-friendly than our previous platform.

How did Neuron perform from a project management standpoint?

Their project management was excellent. When there was something I needed to change, they were on it right away. They definitely have a sense of ownership of the project beyond the strict scope of the engagement. They showed commitment to making sure that everything worked out well for us.

What did you find most impressive about them?

Their responsiveness and communication skills are stellar. I was also impressed by their genuine investment in our success. They didn’t bill us for every hour but instead went out of their way to make sure that everything was going well, even post-project.

Are there any areas they could improve?

While they took a mobile-first approach where the site was created for mobile then translated over for desktop use, some of the pages displayed awkwardly on a PC screen. It would’ve been nice to see beforehand what the layouts would look like, on the desktop side. This wasn’t the case for all the important pages, but a few of the more minor ones.

Do you have any advice for potential customers?

Be very clear about your goals and requirements. Once you communicate what you’re trying to achieve, they take ownership of the project. Let them drive the creative process because they truly know what they’re doing.

BACKGROUND

Introduce your business and what you do there.

I’m the IT director for the City of Everett, Massachusetts.

OPPORTUNITY / CHALLENGE

What challenge were you trying to address with Neuron?

We needed to revamp the look and functionality of our website. Ours was template-based, without a lot of original work, and we wanted to update it to retain users and increase engagement. 

Our main priority was shifting from a department-oriented site to a task-oriented site, so people could come to it with something specific in mind and accomplish their goals quickly and easily.

SOLUTION

What was the scope of their involvement?

Neuron focused more on the design work than on coding, as we’re using WordPress as our CMS. The team decided how the pages would be organized and what the interface of each would be. They focused on keeping a unified look throughout.

The team has passed along final deliverables, so now we’re in the implementation stage. Neuron will monitor the conversion and follow up with any of the minor changes or tweaks we want to make before the website officially launches.

What is the team composition?

I directly interact with three people, but there are more on the team. Mark (Co-Founder & Director of Strategy, Neuron) was the leader on the project. Natalie (UX Designer, Neuron) was usually in on the weekly calls as well.

How did you come to work with Neuron?

One of my colleagues within the city had worked with Neuron on a project in the past. I really liked the samples of their work that I’d seen and felt they fit really well with our organization and goals.

How much have you invested with them?

We’ve spent $90,000 with Neuron.

What is the status of this engagement?

We started working together in August 2019 and the work is ongoing.

RESULTS & FEEDBACK

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

We don’t have any metrics because the site hasn’t gone live yet, but we did do some preliminary testing that impressed us and gave us confidence moving forward. 

Since one of our primary goals was to improve workflow and navigation on the website, the team at Neuron came up with a test involving different test groups to analyze how long different tasks took to accomplish on the site. 

Their findings confirmed that for almost every task and group, users could easily find the information they need. The numbers we saw were a significant improvement from our old site, thanks to the design and organization efforts from Neuron. 

How did Neuron perform from a project management standpoint?

Neuron’s project management style is excellent. Dealing with the different requirements across departments was difficult, but Neuron handled the challenge really well. 

The team was very patient, often facing waiting periods of two weeks after requesting information from departments. 

We had a weekly call during the design phase of the project, and the team was always focused and ready to answer questions about the project as well as their progress and workflow. 

What did you find most impressive about them?

Neuron didn’t start the engagement with ideas that they tried to guide us to. Instead, they listened to us and did their best to incorporate our vision. The team managed to come up with a unified final product that represented us well.

Also, we have a lot of third-party solutions in place for things like permits and parking tickets. Neuron collaborated with us really strongly in coming up with a solution to deal with those third-party platforms but retain the unity of the site. That was especially important to us, as it was one of our main concerns going into the project.

Are there any areas they could improve?

There’s nothing that stands out to me. During the entire process, I was never frustrated with the team or their services. Working with Neuron was a seamless experience. It felt like they were working as part of our own team. 

Do you have any advice for potential customers?

While this is specific to organizations that are dealing with multiple departments with their own specific goals and needs, my advice is to collect as much information from all actors beforehand. 

If we’d had more prep work done before we started, we could’ve been a little more focused throughout the project and new ideas would’ve integrated more smoothly. 

That being said, Neuron did a wonderful job handling those difficulties.

BACKGROUND

Introduce your business and what you do there.

I work for an investment firm that purchases e-commerce companies and runs them. I’m the CEO of Cards for Causes.

OPPORTUNITY / CHALLENGE

What challenge were you trying to address with Neuron?

Our previous design agency failed to redesign our website to our standards. Neuron was brought on to take their place.

SOLUTION

What was the scope of their involvement?

To start, we switched from a no-name e-commerce company to BigCommerce. With that, we lost some functionality, but that’s standard in the industry. It was important that we were able to freshen up the site and put a new spin on it.

Once they got a chance to know our business, they got to work. In the end, they presented exactly what we asked them for. We made a few revisions here and there for minor issues. They wrapped up the project but will stay on board to tweak other aspects of the site.

What is the team composition?

I worked directly with Chris (Director, Neuron) and one of the chief designers. There were also developers working in the background. 

How much have you invested with them?

We spent between $20,000–$30,000 on this project. 

What is the status of this engagement?

We started working with them in August 2019, and our team plans to collaborate with them in 2020 to tweak the design even more. This particular project wrapped up in November 2019.

RESULTS & FEEDBACK

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

They worked closely with us to craft a site that was 100% better than it was before. Their responsiveness level was really important to us. They were willing to utilize a Slack channel and speak directly with each other about progress. 

How did Neuron perform from a project management standpoint?

I appreciated having a single point of contact that really understood what was going on across all parts of the project. Internally, they used Jira to organize the project. They didn’t have to expose that to us, because I didn’t want that level of detail. I was satisfied knowing that they were fixing problems as they popped up.

What did you find most impressive about them?

They always responded to us quickly, honestly, and at reasonable prices. I’m very impressed with their business, so they deserve credit where credit is due. Their price and responsiveness were the two most impressive things about them.

Are there any areas they could improve?

Nothing’s coming to mind at the moment. 

Do you have any advice for potential customers?

In general, it’s important to internalize your scope before reaching out for their help. They’re going to ask you scope-related questions early on, so you need to know exactly what you need to get things right the first time. Once you get them to know your business, they’ll do wonders for you.