Studio Simpatico

BACKGROUND

Please describe your company and your position there.

We are a venture capital firm and I am part of the investment team.

OPPORTUNITY / CHALLENGE

For what projects/services did your company hire Studio Simpatico, and what were your goals?

We wanted to create a new website that captured the identity and culture of our firm.

SOLUTION

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

We spoke with 6-7 web design/development agencies before choosing to work with Simpatico. We were looking for a team that i.) had a track record of delivering great bespoke work, and ii.) did not outsource either design or development to a third party. There were few other agencies that met our criteria, but Simpatico really stood out in terms of communication and process management early on.

Describe the scope of work in detail, including the project steps, key deliverables, and technologies used.

Scope included visual identity, storyboarding, wireframes, design mockups, full development, testing, and release. We used basecamp as our primary project management tool, invision for design review, and wordpress for hosting, admin work. We also had evolving needs in terms of overall timeline, and Simpatico was very engaged throughout the process to help us figure how to best move forward.

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

Roughly five team members from Simpatico. Tamara was responsible for the overall engagement. Sinan/Bruce were leading design efforts, Amber was the main person on development and testing.

RESULTS & FEEDBACK

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

New website came out really great. We initiated this project with high expectations and Simpatico delivered.

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

Top notch in terms of both communication and timeliness. I walked away thoroughly impressed with Simpatico's professional caliber. This is a lean and mean team.

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

Throughout the entire process, Simpatico felt like a strongly entrepreneurial team. Everyone was creative, resourceful, and overall committed to delivering very high quality work.

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

I attribute this partially to the short timeline and tight deadlines, but overall QA process could have been managed better. While Simpatico conducted quality assurance post initial development, there was no dedicated QA person thoroughly testing finished and new elements as the website evolved into its final form. This resulted in a lot of time required from our end for testing.

BACKGROUND

Introduce your business and what you do there.

I’m the executive advisor for SeeHer, a media and marketing coalition dedicated to accurately portray women and girls in marketing, advertising, media, and entertainment. Our mission is to help women see themselves as they truly are and in all their potential.

We represent marketers, media companies, and agency holding companies that have come together and have identified the elimination of gender bias in media and entertainment as a critical need. We have a gender equality metric, which is a proprietary tool that actually measures bias in advertising as well as media content.

We've also done research to prove that, by eliminating gender bias from your ads and the programming environment, they can actually drive sales.

OPPORTUNITY / CHALLENGE

What challenge were you trying to address with Studio Simpatico?

Our website was outdated, unsophisticated, and wasn’t user-friendly. It didn’t represent who we were or what we were about. Consequentially, we couldn’t drive members to it. Studio Simpatico helped redesign and develop our website so it would be helpful for members and would elevate our brand.

We were in the midst of releasing a marketing essential tool kit. And we wanted to share that with our members.

SOLUTION

What was the scope of their involvement?

They took the time to go through all of our assets, brand guidelines, and color palettes. From there, they came up with two design options. I liked pieces of one and pieces of the other. Then they melded the two and brought our mission to life. After solidifying the design, they developed the site on WordPress.

What is the team composition?

Tamara (Owner & Co-Founder) was my main point of contact and she brought in other people at different points in the project.

How did you come to work with Studio Simpatico?

The executive VP of our parent company found Studio Simpatico. We were interested in working with a woman-owned business and wanted a partner that shared a passion for our mission.

We had one meeting with the Studio Simpatico team and knew they were the right fit. They took on our mission with care and intent.

What is the status of this engagement?

They started working on the project in October 2020 and we launched in December.

RESULTS & FEEDBACK

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

We’ve received incredible feedback internally, but we also get compliments all the time from marketers, media companies, and agencies. I really love the floating frame they incorporated in the design and used throughout the website. It has a lot of meaning — it’s about reframing women in the media. Their design was intentional and it turned out beautifully.

On our old website, our members couldn’t access their own accounts. Now we have over 100 accounts.

Internally, we also use the website a lot — it’s already embedded into our workflow. We use it to upload and distribute assets.

How did Studio Simpatico perform from a project management standpoint?

They were very collaborative. I began having meetings with them regularly and they listened to our needs. By the end of the project, I felt like they were family. They were wonderful.

They trained me on Basecamp, which was amazing. It was so easy to communicate with them. They would reply in real-time, they were so accessible. We also used Google Docs and Google Meet.

They were so responsive to our team when we have a question. They were willing to make changes to the design later in the project when they were working on development.

What did you find most impressive about them?

They were collaborative and delivered a thoughtful design. Everything they did, they did with intent. They clearly understood who we are and what our mission is. As a result, the creative aspect and the functionality of the website are superb.

Are there any areas they could improve?

Overall, it was such a positive experience. We never had a problem.

Do you have any advice for potential customers?

Share your company information with them upfront. They will pay attention to your story. When you do that, it expedited the backend. They will do the work to accurately reflect your company’s story.

BACKGROUND

Introduce your business and what you do there.

I’m a director at Montieth & Company. We’re a global communications consultancy that provides marketing, crisis, and litigation communications as well as PR, issue management, and public affairs services for B2B clients.

OPPORTUNITY / CHALLENGE

What challenge were you trying to address with Studio Simpatico?

We needed a new website as ours was slow. It also didn't include a great sales trail. There wasn’t an obvious call to action or channel for people to contact us. The design was also confusing. We wanted a design agency to create a more sophisticated platform, particularly in terms of lead generation and SEO efforts.

SOLUTION

What was the scope of their involvement?

Studio Simpatico designed and developed a new WordPress website. Their team listened to our challenges and tried to understand our business. From there, they came up with a design and practical solutions to resolve our issues.

Their team brought us two design directions — both of which aligned with our business identity. They helped us to think through the different ways that people would use the designs — how they would work through our website and what they would click.

What is the team composition?

We communicated directly with Tamara (Owner) and Sinan (Creative Director). In total, about 3–4 people worked on this project.

How did you come to work with Studio Simpatico?

We found them through Google searches.

How much have you invested with them?

The project cost between $25,000–$30,000.

What is the status of this engagement?

We started working with Studio Simpatico in November 2019 and finished the project in June 2020.

RESULTS & FEEDBACK

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

They delivered beyond our expectations. Studio Simpatico was collaborative and creative, pushing us outside of our comfort zone.

Throughout the design process, they communicated what decisions needed to be made to my whole team including our CEO. Their team also told us what to take into consideration for the site's design, which was beneficial.

Studio Simpatico patiently explained the rationale behind the design to our team. At the same time, they took our feedback into consideration. If we didn’t like an idea, they came up with another one.

It was great to work with Studio Simpatico. Their team was flexible, patient, and knew how to design a website to yield the best results.

How did Studio Simpatico perform from a project management standpoint?

Their team effectively used Basecamp and delivered the project on time. At the last minute, we decided to make a couple of changes, which slowed the launch. Otherwise, their team was able to meet deadlines. They made sure to deliver materials on time throughout the project.

What did you find most impressive about them?

Their creativity was their most impressive quality. They came up with great designs, which didn’t just include an attractive front. Their team also had the technical skills to implement a solid backend. That makes all the difference in terms of the website’s usability and ability to drive leads.

Are there any areas they could improve?

They were fantastic from start to finish. We couldn’t have come up with a better end result. We’re really pleased with how the project turned out.

Do you have any advice for future clients of theirs?

Clients should provide their deliverables on time to ensure that Studio Simpatico can start effectively and efficiently. We proactively sent them the website's content.

Before the project started, we had all the website copy and a rough layout of the pages we wanted. That made the process smoother because Studio Simpatico had a rough idea of what we wanted. They were able to spend their time on the site’s design and usability instead.

BACKGROUND

Introduce your business and what you do there.

I’m the CEO of CALIBER Fitness. We offer a remote, app-based strength training program to help people build muscle with the assistance of a professional personal trainer.

OPPORTUNITY / CHALLENGE

What challenge were you trying to address with Studio Simpatico?

We hired Studio Simpatico for a refresh on our marketing website that we had built. We wanted to upgrade the website to reflect our new brand positioning.

SOLUTION

What was the scope of their involvement?

We provided the team with a brief about our positioning and objectives for the engagement. They then worked with us based on our brief to design the product – a robust marketing website with about 15 different pages. Studio Simpatico moved with us from ideation to design to development, going through wireframe, iteration, and engineering stages. 

What is the team composition?

We worked directly with three teammates, and there was a fourth teammate who did the engineering work. 

How did you come to work with Studio Simpatico?

A mutual acquaintance referred Studio Simpatico to us. We talked to several different firms, but we thought they had the best understanding of what we wanted to get done. Additionally, we had a good rapport with them from the get-go, and their pricing was reasonable.

How much have you invested with them?

We spent about $20,000 in total.

What is the status of this engagement?

This particular project ran from November 2019–February 2020. Since then, we’ve engaged with them on smaller incremental projects.

RESULTS & FEEDBACK

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

Qualitatively, Studio Simpatico did an excellent job of interpreting our brand positioning and bringing it to life in a visual identity that was very much in-line with the three founders’ perspective on the brand.

Dealing with founders isn’t the easiest thing to do, but they listened well, really understood the brief, and worked with us to create a design that we’re really happy with. We’re using the product to inform other parts of the business beyond just our web presence.

I’ve worked with many agencies over the years, and this is one of the best engagements I’ve personally had. Beyond the visual aesthetic and understanding of what we wanted to accomplish, the quality of their work was excellent. They exceeded our expectations.

How did Studio Simpatico perform from a project management standpoint?

Their project management was excellent. The project was organized, they met the timelines, and there were no surprises.

What did you find most impressive about them?

Our favorite part about working with Studio Simpatico was our collaboration sessions. We sat down at the table and brainstormed what we wanted to get done. They did a good job of helping us build on our ideas. Working with them on the brief and nailing it was a lot of fun.

Are there any areas they could improve?

No, I have no suggestions. It was a great engagement, and I have nothing but positive comments about them.

Do you have any advice for potential customers?

Studio Simpatico is a smaller shop, so be ready to roll up your sleeves and collaborate with them. You’re not going to deal with a bunch of different teams; you’re going to be dealing with the principles at the agency, which is something I really enjoyed.

BACKGROUND

Introduce your business and what you do there.

I’m the CTO and co-founder of WireSecure. We create secure transaction communities for exchanging banking information.

OPPORTUNITY / CHALLENGE

What challenge were you trying to address with Studio Simpatico?

Originally, we contacted Studio Simpatico to build our corporate website. We didn’t have any branding and weren’t interested in doing it ourselves.

SOLUTION

What was the scope of their involvement?

Studio Simpatico built our website. Their team learned about our audience and brought examples of appropriate websites for them.

They also built our brand including our identity. Their team led a branding exercise to capture our company’s essence.

Their team did well with those projects, so we expanded their engagement. They designed our entire web application too. Their team created the wireframes and the UX of the platform.

What is the team composition?

In the beginning, we worked with three people. Once we switched to the app project, we worked with three other people.

How did you come to work with Studio Simpatico?

We heard good things about Studio Simpatico from colleagues and the industry. They worked with other fintech firms that we’re close to. We evaluated one alternative.

How much have you invested with them?

We’ve spent about $40,000.

What is the status of this engagement?

We started working together in November 2019 and it’s an ongoing relationship.

RESULTS & FEEDBACK

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

Through the branding exercise, their team captured the soul of our company better than we could at the time. When asked what we do, we would ramble on for an hour. Studio Simpatico pulled our ideas together and captured our story. They captured the heart of the product and that’s why we had them build our web application. Their team understands our goals, our audience, and our challenges. 

How did Studio Simpatico perform from a project management standpoint?

We have a lot of team-to-team communication. They’re good at communication and managing expectations. They’re also fast. We need changes every once in a while, and Studio Simpatico has them done by the end of the day. 

What did you find most impressive about them?

They’re fluid and easy to engage. Their team also works quicker than us. They send screens for us to approve before we’re done implementing them. Their team knocks it out of the park every time. Their attention to our audience was extraordinary. They’ve been fantastic and the quality of their work's outstanding.

Are there any areas they could improve?

Honestly, I can’t think of anything. It’s always a joy to work with Studio Simpatico.

Do you have any advice for potential customers?

I would let them do what they do. If you go in with a specific set of ideas, you’ll constrain them and paint them into a corner. Let them show you their process to get the best out of them. Be receptive to their ideas and how they work.

BACKGROUND

Introduce your business and what you do there.

I run the marketing team at a machine learning company.

OPPORTUNITY / CHALLENGE

What challenge were you trying to address with Studio Simpatico?

We needed to establish a presence on all of our owned properties. We worked with another agency to redesign our website but weren’t satisfied with the results. We weren’t able to edit our backend.

SOLUTION

What was the scope of their involvement?

First, Studio Simpatico acted as a consultant to our team. We sat down with them, explaining our business. From our point of view, we walked them through our biggest challenges. Without having full access to our site, they did as much as they could. Once we talked with them more and felt comfortable with how they work as well as who they were, we gave Studio Simpatico full access to our backend. Their team assessed all the wrinkles on the platform and made a diagnosis. Then, they gave us a proposal about how their team could fix the product. Lastly, their team executed the plan working in WordPress and Flywheel.

What is the team composition?

We worked with two people on a day to day basis who we contacted through a Slack channel. There were other people who also supported the project.

How did you come to work with Studio Simpatico?

A colleague recommended Studio Simpatico. In an interview session, I appreciated Tamara’s (Founder & Principal, Studio Simpatico) ability to understand our problem. She was able to diagnose the technical challenges and explain them to me in an understandable way. This helped me feel comfortable that the solution provided would work for us and enabled me to communicate the problems and solutions internally.

How much have you invested with them?

Up until this point, we’ve spent around $20,000 on their services.

What is the status of this engagement?

We started working together in April 2019 and are going to continue working with them through 2020.

RESULTS & FEEDBACK

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

We’ve had nothing but positive feedback. For example, we have a conservative organization in terms of information security. Internally, Tamara helped us get our information security and technical teams comfortable giving third party access to our backend. Studio Simpatico helped us navigate internal objections to help us meet our marketing goal.

Their team did beautiful work. Not only did they clean up our backend, but they have also made our frontend look better. We’ve liked their work so much that we’re moving into 2020 with them to manage a full redesign of our website.  

How did Studio Simpatico perform from a project management standpoint?

Primarily, we’ve communicated with Studio Simpatico through e-mail. We have a Slack channel that both sides use for day to day contact. They’ve collaborated with our IT team that way.  We’ve also had a couple of remote hang out sessions or in-person sessions that have been awesome. Their team has been incredibly easy to work with and responsive.

What did you find most impressive about them?

Their customer service has been invaluable. I’ve been able to treat Tamara as a partner, which I’ve appreciated. She has worked with me to create a project that’s based on solving my problem not on what I’ve asked Studio Simpatico to do.

Are there any areas they could improve?

They’ve been a great partner. I only wish I had more access to their time.

Do you have any advice for potential customers?

Instead of telling them what you need, give them context for your problem. Be open to their advice because they have different ideas about how to approach challenges, which is helpful. Ask upfront how many other partners’ projects they’re working on so you know where you fall in terms of timeline.

BACKGROUND

Introduce your business and what you do there.

I'm the former marketing director for MBB Architects, an architecture firm in New York City.

OPPORTUNITY / CHALLENGE

What challenge were you trying to address with Studio Simpatico?

We had a website that the partners of the firm liked but wanted to freshen up. Instead of going through the exercise of creating an entirely new website, we wanted to take what we currently have and make it more current.

SOLUTION

What was the scope of their involvement?

Studio Simpatico redesigned our website to be more user-friendly. Our original website was custom made and their team rebuilt the site in WordPress. They created an amazing and easy back-end that would allow us to make updates. 

The team ensured that the site would work across different platforms and devices. Additionally, they made sure the platform was more accessible. Studio Simpatico made us more aware of where we were meeting accessibility standards and helped us move towards them. Their team ensured that the UX of the site was improved while keeping the design largely in line with the previous site. 

What is the team composition?

We worked with four members of the Studio Simpatico team. We primarily interfaced with the designer and programmer. 

How did you come to work with Studio Simpatico?

We did a Google search for WordPress developers in New York City and looked at several different firms. Studio Simpatico’s site stood out because it was friendly and they looked like nice people. It made me want to work with them. Their office was very close to us, which also helped.

What is the status of this engagement?

Our engagement with Studio Simpatico ran from June–August 2019.

RESULTS & FEEDBACK

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

It was such a great experience working with them. It went smoothly. Their team is well-organized and good at what they do. Studio Simpatico created an amazing backend and did a marvelous job at refreshing the frontend. The designs are clear and easy.

How did Studio Simpatico perform from a project management standpoint?

Our teams primarily communicated through Basecamp, which was an easy platform for us. Their team set a very clear timeline which they adhered to. They never pushed back dates and were always on top of things. We met every major milestone. They were great to work with.

What did you find most impressive about them?

Studio Simpatico is smart and articulate, impressing the partners at our firm with their knowledge and energy. They have really strong programmers and a great understanding of how people interact with the Internet. The most amazing thing about Studio Simpatico is their design aesthetic. They’re the full package, a real triple threat.

Are there any areas they could improve?

No, I thought they were great. I had such a good experience with them.

Do you have any advice for potential customers?

They’re so supremely creative, just let them create.

BACKGROUND

Introduce your business and what you do there.

I’m the VP of digital product and development at American Media, a publishing company. We have 22 brands that are divided into two categories: entertainment and fitness. Our brands have magazines and websites.

OPPORTUNITY / CHALLENGE

What challenge were you trying to address with Studio Simpatico?

We hired Studio Simpatico to help with website redesign and brand revamping.

SOLUTION

What was the scope of their involvement?

Studio Simpatico has completed three projects for us, and we’re planning to start another one soon. For the most recent project, they redesigned the existing website for one of our fitness brands. The site hadn’t been redesigned in four years, so we needed to bring new life into the brand. We worked with Studio Simpatico for several months to make the site more modern and mobile-friendly. They also improved the UX. My team does the development in-house. 

What is the team composition?

We worked with Tamara (Founder/Principal, Studio Simpatico), Sinan (Founder/Creative, Studio Simpatico), and a designer.  

How did you come to work with Studio Simpatico?

Our CTO at the time had worked with them on some other projects, and we started working with them on one of our magazines. We liked the experience and how successful the brand was after the redesign, so we decided to continue working with them. 

How much have you invested with them?

The last project cost around $40,000.

What is the status of this engagement?

Our most recent project began at the end of July 2019, and we concluded the design stage in October. My team hasn’t started development yet because we got sidetracked by another project.

RESULTS & FEEDBACK

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

All of the previous projects that Studio Simpatico has done have been very successful, and stakeholders are happy with the designs. We don’t have any statistics regarding the most recent project because we haven’t completed the development phase yet. Still, our marketing and sales, sponsorship, and editorial teams are all looking forward to the site’s new features. Studio Simpatico delivered on all of our requirements, including making the site more modern and mobile-friendly.

How did Studio Simpatico perform from a project management standpoint?

They always met deadlines and maintained excellent communication. The team was very open about every aspect of the project. We used Basecamp to track progress and communicate, as well as email. Tamara and Sinan very clearly identified the timeline so that we knew what was coming every step of the way. The mockups they delivered were precise and easy for developers to work with. 

What did you find most impressive about them?

I like the discovery process that they do at the beginning of every project, which includes interviews. They really understand the brand they’re working with for every project. Their designs aren’t generic; they really capture specific brand nuances during the interview process and incorporate those into the designs. 

Are there any areas they could improve?

No, nothing comes to mind.

Any advice for potential customers?

Just be very clear about what you’re expecting from the project.

BACKGROUND

Please describe your company and your position there.

Onera is a B2B SaaS startup based in the Bay Area. We're building a cognitive operating system that harnesses AI to power the modern commerce supply chain. I lead all Marketing & Brand efforts.

OPPORTUNITY / CHALLENGE

For what projects/services did your company hire Studio Simpatico?

Previously, we had a single landing page for our website. We knew we needed an updated website to better reflect our scale and to offer more information about our platform and products. We engaged Studio Simpatico to lead web design and development for our new website.

What were your goals for this project?

This website served as the first and critical component of our company's rebrand, so we needed a partner for this project that would:

1. Design a cohesive, refreshed visual identity, weaving in existing components (e.g., logo and color scheme)
2. Design a site that would provide product, platform and company info in a clear, engaging way
3. Develop the site's back-end to flex / grow with us, meaning we could update content and pages with relative independence

SOLUTION

How did you select this vendor?

We conducted a brief RFP with a handful of smaller studios. We were looking for a partner that could deliver relatively quickly (<12 weeks) on a "startup budget." Studio Simpatico came highly recommended by a friend in my network, who spoke highly of the team and its track record of delivering high quality work against well-thought-out timelines. After speaking with Tamara, it was immediately apparent that she understood our needs and would be a joy to work with. It was an easy decision from there!

Describe the project in detail.

Once we decided to work with Studio Simpatico, we had an introductory meeting to discuss timeline, process, and goals. I provided some initial documentation sitemap, copy, and branding guidelines. From there, Studio Simpatico worked on two homepage options to help us choose a visual direction.

Once selected, the team designed a few rounds of mockups for the homepage, working through feedback between each. Once homepage design was finalized, the team mocked up all remaining pages. After design was finalized for all pages, development began.

After development was complete, the team walked me through our WP Engine staging environment and how to update / refine each page. We launched and did some light QA within 24h - and then it was done!

What was the team composition?

We worked primarily with a design lead (Sinan) and a development lead (Amber), with Tamara providing overall project management and structure. The team worked directly with me.

RESULTS & FEEDBACK

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

We've received great feedback across the board! Our existing customers love our "upgrade;" our prospects are able to receive much more information about us when we reach out for introductory meetings; recruiting candidates also have a better understanding of our team dynamic and our mission. Folks have called the new design "elegant," "crisp," and "distinct," and our own team loves the final result.

How effective was the workflow between your team and theirs?

It was an incredibly streamlined, collaborative, and fun process from beginning to end! Studio Simpatico was always available to chat through design ideas or questions, and Sinan, Amber, and Tamara felt like an extension of our own team.

What did you find most impressive about this company?

Where do I begin? The process was seamlessly managed and delivered. They had such wonderful, creative ideas for capturing our brand in an engaging way. The team was a delight. The quality of their work speaks for itself!

Are there any areas for improvement?

None!

BACKGROUND

Introduce your business and what you do there.

I am part of a personal injury law firm with five attorneys.

OPPORTUNITY / CHALLENGE

What challenges were you trying to address with Studio Simpatico?

We needed a new website developed so that we could get more clients through online sources.

SOLUTION

What is the scope of their involvement?

Studio Simpatico built a WordPress website tailored to our areas of practice and optimized for SEO and Google Analytics so that it would show up as high as possible in search results. They provided us with content ideas, images, and site map logistics.

What is the team composition?

I worked with three of their team members.

How did you come to work with Studio Simpatico?

I knew Tamara (Principal and Co-Founder, Studio Simpatico) through a friend. We ultimately chose to go with them because their proposal was really impressive.

How much have you invested with them?

We’ve spent $25,000.

What is the status of this engagement?

We worked with them from April – June 2019.

RESULTS & FEEDBACK

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

We’re now showing up in organic search results on Google. We’ve received lots of compliments on the website from clients and friends. We're happy with the way the site looks.

How did Studio Simpatico perform from a project management standpoint?

I'd give them the highest marks that I could. I think they did everything well. They’re extremely responsive and easy to get in touch with.

What did you find most impressive about them?

They're a small team, but they produce the sort of high-caliber products you'd expect from a larger firm.

Are there any areas they could improve?

No, I can’t think of anything.