Pattronize InfoTech

BACKGROUND

Introduce your business and what you do there.

I am the founding director and CEO of Career Codex. I provide executive career coaching to clients around the world.

OPPORTUNITY / CHALLENGE

What challenge were you trying to address with Pattronize InfoTech?

I have a number of different projects I’ve engaged them with, but they all involve making updates to my website.

SOLUTION

What was the scope of their involvement?

The initial project was to make minor changes to the backend of my WordPress website. They updated several plug-ins, and other technical changes. I engaged them a while later on a more substantial project that included building out a landing page, some coding work, and some modest design updates. I also retain Pattronize InfoTech for maintenance work as necessary.

What is the team composition?

I communicate mostly with a project manager.

How did you come to work with Pattronize InfoTech?

A colleague of mine worked with Pattronize InfoTech for quite some time. He suggested I get in touch with them because I was having a difficult time finding a local firm to do this work for me at a reasonable price. I contacted them and have been working with them ever since.

How much have you invested with them?

I’ve spent about £2,000 ($2,600 USD) total.

What is the status of this engagement?

Our engagement began in June 2016 and remains ongoing.

RESULTS & FEEDBACK

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

Generally, I’ve been very happy with the quality of their work. I’ve worked with other firms in the UK, and on occasion, I found them very frustrating. Pattronize InfoTech has proven to be more reliable.

How did Pattronize InfoTech perform from a project management standpoint?

It can sometimes be difficult working with a remote team, but I’m usually pleased with their speed of response.

What did you find most impressive about them?

I value attention to detail and responsiveness, and they’ve hit the marks I expect. When I send them a brief, I know it’s going to get done.

Are there any areas they could improve?

I’ve sent email briefs and recorded video briefs, but it would be easier sometimes if there was an option to book a Skype call and speak directly to the project manager. This wasn’t necessarily a project that required a lot of creative input on their part because there isn’t a lot of design needed for my site. But if we had been able to have more of a conversation about the project, some creative input is something that we could have explored more easily.

BACKGROUND

Introduce your business and what you do there.

All As’ has been providing tutorial services for 15 years.

OPPORTUNITY / CHALLENGE

What challenge were you trying to address with Pattronize Infotech?

I didn’t have much knowledge about technology and had been advertising my company through newspapers. I came to know Pattronize, who explained to me what SEO and social media marketing were.

My number of students was starting to drop so I realized that a lot of people were looking online.

SOLUTION

What was the scope of their involvement?

My company had been in business for more than 15 years in Singapore, but I’d just started having online activities. They told me I should go for SEO, since the service was relatively cheap.

It took six months for my company to reach the first page of results. Even though this happened, I didn’t benefit much, in terms of attracting new students. I explained this to them and asked about another approach.

They then implemented a social media strategy and suggested that we opt for AdWords advertising. That involved modifying my website and creating a blog on it, to have it carry more weight. They produce social media content for Facebook, Instagram, Twitter, and LinkedIn and write the monthly blogs for me.

What is the team composition?

Shankar (CEO, Pattronize Infotech) is my main contact.

How did you come to work with Pattronize Infotech?

I didn’t know whom to approach, but a friend recommended Pattronize. I got in contact with them, and they explained what SEO and social media marketing were.

How much have you invested with them?

I pay them around $400 for SEO on a monthly basis, plus $200 for blog posts. I’ve paid them $800 for Google AdWords in the last month.

What is the status of this engagement?

I started working with them in May 2017.

RESULTS & FEEDBACK

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

I’m getting a few phone calls as a result of their work, and I’m happy to have my company rank first in organic search results. People have told me they’ve found me through the website.

Pattronize promised me that their services would bring me at least 15 people per month. I’ve only seen around three per month, but I still consider it a success. There’s a lot of competition in Singapore for tutorial services. I went from zero to a few calls coming in, and people started to recognize my company.

How did Pattronize Infotech perform from a project management standpoint?

They do very well. Their team members research our competition and figure out how to boost our site. Most of the time, we have conference calls discussing what keywords I can use, what other channels we can use, and so on.

They always call me to find out how satisfied I am. I can be impatient, but they’ve always collaborated with me and they’ve educated me on the work. I’m extremely happy with their work.

What did you find most impressive about them?

They’re very patient and they always answer my calls, giving me information about my keywords and other aspects of the work. They work well as a team.

Are there any areas they could improve?

I haven’t worked with any other agencies, but I believe their team is doing its best. They charge reasonable rates, compared to the Singapore market. I really appreciate them.

Do you have any advice for future clients of theirs?

No.

BACKGROUND

Introduce your business and what you do there.

I’m the founder of a recruiting platform that connects student athletes with college coaches. It’s like LinkedIn for sports.

OPPORTUNITY / CHALLENGE

What challenge were you trying to address with Pattronize InfoTech?

I wanted an inexpensive and easy solution for some development work I needed finished.

SOLUTION

What was the scope of their involvement?

I have my main developers, but I use Pattronize InfoTech for small changes; I leave the more complicated and challenging tasks for my primary team. Pattronize InfoTech updates our website, does various coding projects, and works on our email templates. They’re also our go-to vendor for website maintenance.

What is the team composition?

I mainly work with one person.

How did you come to work with Pattronize InfoTech?

I Googled them and reviewed their site and portfolio. They looked qualified and had a good price, so I hired them.

How much have you invested with them?

I’ve spent $1,000 so far.

What is the status of this engagement?

We’ve worked together since August 2017.

RESULTS & FEEDBACK

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

They meet our expectations and produce high-quality work. We’re pleased with what they’ve done.

How did Pattronize InfoTech perform from a project management standpoint?

We have regular communication, and they’re good at keeping the project on track. I sometimes have to stay up until four in the morning (because they’re overseas), but it’s worth it because they save us money.

What did you find most impressive about them?

They strive to satisfy their customers. Whenever I have a request, they do their best to solve it.

Are there any areas they could improve?

No, they do well on small projects.

BACKGROUND

Please describe your company and your position there.

I'm the director of Triobits Venture, a digital agency that develops products for clients.

OPPORTUNITY / CHALLENGE

For what projects/services did your company hire Pattronize InfoTech?

We hired them to be our outsourcing company for a few projects, mostly around customized web development.

What were your goals for this project?

To provide quality development for our clients, delivered on time.

SOLUTION

How did you select this vendor?

We found them through Google.

Can you go into detail about the services they provided and the scope of the project?

We had meetings prior to beginning the project. We then produced the UI layout before the development took place.

What was the team composition?

They have a good project manager who meets with us almost every week.

RESULTS & FEEDBACK

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

Their role helps us solve manpower issues in our company. Outsourcing to them has been a good choice.

How was project management arranged and how effective was it?

It's been impressive, but could be improved by introducing some tracking tools such as Trello. The team had meetings with us weekly to update us on the status. The communication was always clear and we generally had a good experience with the responsive team.

What did you find most impressive about this company?

They were friendly and responded to our requests pretty quickly and efficiently. Their team did a good job with all projects given to them.

Are there any areas where they can improve?

The communication as we are dealing with different industry and country. They could work to understand the culture of new industry as it can be difficult and it takes time. In the end, they did a great job.

BACKGROUND

Introduce your business and what you do there.

Our organization has been writing a book about climate change for the last eight years. It's a highly graphical manifesto about how to make the world zero-carbon by 2050. I am the co-writer of the book and have managed the production of the website. 

OPPORTUNITY / CHALLENGE

What challenge were you trying to address with Pattronize InfoTech?

We needed to create a website for our book. We created a design for the website. However, we needed somebody else to implement it. 

SOLUTION

What was the scope of their involvement?

Pattronize InfoTech was commissioned to build the site based on our designs. It includes functionalities like a shop for selling the book, different ways of updating content, details on events, and so on. The site has a unique user interface, which slides from left to right, as opposed to going up and down. It's also highly graphical incorporating video backgrounds, full screen preview slideshows explaining the book and its idea, and a dynamic scaling menu system. All of these functionalities were executed based on our requirements. We created a number of Photoshop designs that explained what the site should look like and how it should work. Pattronize InfoTech implemented both the frontend look and style with great attention to detail. They also implemented the backend management functionalities using WordPress. We've actually now recommissioned Pattronize InfoTech to create an online version of the book that will be integrated into the website. They will also be implementing a donation functionality.

How did you come to work with Pattronize InfoTech?

We went through three web designers before working with Pattronize InfoTech, including two UK companies. Eventually, we started using Upwork, which was called oDesk at the time. We sent out a brief asking various people to tell us about their experience and submit prices. We found Pattronize InfoTech to be the most responsive, enthusiastic and experienced candidate. They also offered a competitive price, so we chose them. 

How much have you invested with Pattronize InfoTech?

The cost of Pattronize InfoTech's work has been less than $10,000.

What is the status of this engagement?

We started working with Pattronize InfoTech in November 2015. The site has been online for around two years. We've started another project with Pattronize InfoTech six weeks ago that includes a big update of our site's content.

RESULTS & FEEDBACK

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

Because the book is not yet published, we haven't actively marketed the website, and there are no specific figures on visitor numbers we can provide yet. The site has essentially acted as a "coming soon" page. Quality-wise, it's been a big success. We've received great feedback for its look, originality, and functionality whenever we showed it to people. The site has worked perfectly and, if there were any problems or issues, I have no doubt Pattronize InfoTech would resolve them immediately. 

How did Pattronize InfoTech perform from a project management standpoint?

We usually send Pattronize InfoTech a brief and have them review it. They would send back a carefully broken-down quote for time and cost that goes through each part of our project. After we commission them, we will be given previews of the work on which we can make comments using an Excel spreadsheet. Pattronize InfoTech will respond to those comments, ask for clarifications, and work on the changes. Dealing with Pattronize InfoTech is a very smooth process. We say this because we've had communication problems with other companies we've contracted from abroad, but Pattronize InfoTech's team speak and write fantastic English. It's easy to talk to them via Skype, spreadsheets or email. We typically receive responses within the same day or a day afterward.

What did you find most impressive about Pattronize InfoTech?

Pattronize InfoTech's expertise was the key thing which stood out with us. Our website is unique in how it functions so it couldn't be built using a template. Other developers said that they could do it, but, as soon as they tried, they found out that they did not have the necessary technical knowledge. Not only did Pattronize InfoTech manage to achieve our goal, but they did it quickly and efficiently. They obviously had a lot of in-house knowledge for building websites dynamically and adapting them to different browser sizes. 

Are there any areas Pattronize InfoTech could improve?

Not in our opinion - it was a very smooth and enjoyable process.

BACKGROUND

Please describe your company and your position there.

I’m the sole director of a sports and entertainment company.

OPPORTUNITY / CHALLENGE

For what projects/services did your company hire Pattronize InfoTech?

We needed website development and process automation.

SOLUTION

How did you select this vendor?

I found them by word of mouth.

Can you go into detail about the services they provided and the scope of the project?

They developed our new website and helped us automate some processes.

What was the team composition?

They assigned two resources to the project.

RESULTS & FEEDBACK

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

We now have a better website and increased ease of access.

How was project management arranged and how effective was it?

They were very good in this regard.

What did you find most impressive about this company?

Their communication, persistence, and patient approach to problem solving were outstanding.

Are there any areas where they can improve?

They should develop a user requirement template.