Systems for Humans

BACKGROUND

Please describe your company and position.

I am the CEO of an online reporting platform.

Describe what your company does in a single sentence.

Our company is a leading online reporting platform that diligently compiles comprehensive databases, meticulously ranks websites, and evaluates their safety, credibility, SEO performance, and other crucial metrics to empower users with reliable information.

OPPORTUNITY / CHALLENGE

What specific goals or objectives did you hire Systems for Humans to accomplish?

• Modernize look of our platforms by implementing sleek and contemporary design elements that enhance user experience and visual appeal.
• Ensure responsiveness and mobile-friendliness to optimize our platforms for seamless access and engagement across devices, catering to the growing mobile user base.
• Enhance the click-through rate (CTR) for ads by employing strategic placements, captivating visuals, and compelling ad copy, thereby maximizing revenue potential.

SOLUTION

How did you find Systems for Humans?

We were engaged in another project where Systems for Humans was working as a subcontractor.

Why did you select Systems for Humans over others?

Company values aligned

How many teammates from Systems for Humans were assigned to this project?

1 Employee

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

The scope of work for this project encompasses three separate brands and reporting platforms: one focused on web browsing security, another dedicated to ranking quality websites, and a third centered around website accessibility. The tasks involve providing design solutions for various components, including visually appealing landing pages and informative report pages. 

Additionally, the project entails designing inline frame (iframe) badges to be utilized by web developers, preparing a/b test scenarios to improve page performance metrics such as click-through rate (CTR) and bounce rate. Furthermore, the scope includes designing a browser extension that aids users in detecting malicious websites. 

The deliverables for this project consist of Sketch files with mockups showcasing the proposed designs, InVision prototypes for interactive demonstrations, and online instructional videos that guide developers in implementing the designs effectively.

RESULTS & FEEDBACK

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

While working on our platform ranking quality websites we improved ad CTR nearly 25% and our ad revenue 50%. Besides that we received great feedback about the new design look & feel.

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

Their project management was commendable as they consistently delivered items on time, showcasing their commitment to meeting deadlines. They are responsive to our needs, demonstrating smooth collaboration, excellent communication, and adaptability to our workflow, resulting in timely execution of tasks and successful outcomes.

What was your primary form of communication with Systems for Humans?

Email or Messaging App

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

What we found most impressive about "Systems for Humans" was their remarkable versatility, persistent drive to meet goals, and exceptional creativity in solving pain points for our users. Their profound understanding of psychology and the factors that drive user actions in the web context added an unparalleled level of expertise and effectiveness to their solutions.

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

While our experience with "Systems for Humans" was largely positive, one area for improvement could be faster turnarounds for ad hoc changes. Although it wasn't critical for our project, more prompt responses in such instances would have been beneficial for smoother workflow.

BACKGROUND

Please describe your company and your position there.

I am the CTO of a company headquartered in Dar Es Salaam, Tanzania. We are a social enterprise providing financed solar technology for business use e.g. water pumps, fishing lights, with a mission to improve rural incomes

OPPORTUNITY / CHALLENGE

For what projects/services did your company hire Systems for Humans?

Several of our customers have never used a smartphone and can't afford one, but could benefit immensely from it.

We are providing a gateway opportunity where a financed smartphone could be paired with their productive use asset (pump or light etc), and decided to prototype a smartphone+app bundle that would let them control their assets and make loan payments easier.

However, we had no idea to gauge what the response would be to this group of customers who had never used a smartphone before and are not conversant with touchscreens yet we expected them to use a fairly sophisticated app

SOLUTION

How did you select this vendor?

We did a local + Upwork survey for UX designers who also had customer interaction experience and could setup a detailed study from start to finish with we only being able to provide the technical function of the app and location of customers, expecting the vendor to setup the customer focus groups.

Also query our business departments on the relevant interactions required in the app, setup questionnaires for the customers, take them through a prototype interaction and be able to take verbal and non-verbal cues to get to the bottom of what could truly impact the customers.

We selected Systems for Humans from among 3 final vendor candidates due to maturity of experience, ability to tackle the tricky issue of first-time smartphone users, promise of a professional output as well as value for money

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

Artur from Systems for Humans gave us a detailed project proposal centered around travel to Tanzania for face to face interactions.

He first did some pre-work by getting in touch with key departments of sales, service and IT to define his interactions, and setup the trip plan During his trip to Tanzania, he first traveled extensively in the country to meet our customers in the first phase.

He tweaked the surveys and translated to Swahili with the help of our local staff, and prepared mockups after discussion with the IT Team. Then he did another trip with a mockup ready, and collected feedback. After collecting feedback, Artur organised it into a list of high-impact features with an ROI score for each, and thus defined our MVP.

After returning from Tanzania, Artur further engaged to prepare the full set of mockup screens modified after feedback from clients, and provided downloadable collateral to support our developers as well as detailed walk throughs to conclude the project.

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

We worked with one resource, who is the owner of the company

RESULTS & FEEDBACK

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

We have a full set of screens to design our app from

How effective was the workflow between your team and theirs?

Our team provided translation and customer relation support, as well as tech feedback. Artur is a proactive and effective communicator and the discussion went well

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

We were surprised that Systems for Humans could provide us a professional solution in short time in conditions which are not conducive to UX design ie East African context with smartphone-illiterate users

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

There ended up being additional work outside the initial design, however we were not charged extra for it, which was kind

BACKGROUND

Introduce your business and what you do there.

I’m the founder and CEO of Property Deal Genie, a map-based and data-driven analysis platform for property investors in the UK.

OPPORTUNITY / CHALLENGE

What challenge were you trying to address with Systems for Humans?

We wanted to display vast amounts of data in an understandable way, so we needed help with our platform’s UX design.

SOLUTION

What was the scope of their involvement?

Systems for Humans created the UI/UX design for our app. They provided its layouts and graphics. The team first started by making a proof of concept for the UI. They then sent us wireframes, which we analyzed with a focus group. Afterward, the team adjusted the design accordingly. 

Once we got to a design that was received positively by the group, we applied their design to the app. Systems for Humans is now working on the final touches as we get closer to launching the product.

What is the team composition?

We work with two teammates: a UI/UX designer and a graphic designer.

How did you come to work with Systems for Humans?

We were looking for agencies and came across them.

How much have you invested with them?

We’ve spent $25,000.

What is the status of this engagement?

The project started in April 2020 and is ongoing.

RESULTS & FEEDBACK

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

We’ve tested the design with a few prospective users, and they really liked it and found it to be helpful. It’s definitely a product that our testers want to own.

The Systems for Humans team has not only made a beautiful design and great UX, but they’ve also made it easy for our developers to implement those designs. They’ve made the design easy to implement, which has helped streamline things for us.

How did Systems for Humans perform from a project management standpoint?

Their project management is fantastic — they’re so responsive that we can’t even match their response times. We primarily communicate through Slack and collaborate on the design using InVision. Additionally, we have occasional Zoom meetings, emails, and Skype calls.

What did you find most impressive about them?

Systems for Humans has exceeded our expectations. We trust that they’re always going to deliver high-quality work — their expertise is just outstanding. Furthermore, the team thinks about our business needs and provides solutions that align with our vision.

Are there any areas they could improve?

I can’t think of anything they could do differently — they’ve taken a lot of work off my shoulders.

Do you have any advice for potential customers?

I highly recommend working with the team.

BACKGROUND

Please describe your company and your position there.

I am the operations manager of an SEO company. We offer both SEO services and an app that companies can install on their website.

OPPORTUNITY / CHALLENGE

For what projects/services did your company hire Systems for Humans?

We decided to do a complete overhaul of our app in 2018. Prior to that, our app had been "middleware" where our clients could not manage it themselves. They had to go through our developers for everything. Systems for Humans designed the user interface from the bottom up.

SOLUTION

How did you select this vendor?

The selection was done by our late founder and I wasn't involved at that time. Our usual process is to select a few promising candidates and ask them to do a small sample job, such as low-fi wireframes for a segment of the app.

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

Our late founder worked with Artur to describe the project, and hecreated a new design for the app. I was not involved in the project at that time. However, I have worked with Artur on improvements to the app designs, giving feedback and asking for modifications.

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

We worked directly with the UX designer, Artur.

RESULTS & FEEDBACK

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

We have been very pleased with the app design. Artur's designs are intuitive for users to learn. We have been using this app with our customers for roughly two years. Onboarding new customers is very easy.

How effective was the workflow between your team and theirs?

It has been easy to work with their team. Communication has never been an issue. He lets us know realistic timelines to complete work and reliably meets deadlines. He is easy to reach for questions or requests for changes.

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

The UX designs are beautiful and easy to use. We went from a clunky interface (that was only usable by our own team) to a sleek one that can be shared with all of our customers.

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

I have not noticed any issues. Our late founder was also consistently happy with them.

BACKGROUND

Please describe your company and position.

I am the Preseident of LiveMixtapes

Describe what your company does in a single sentence.

A music platform on web and app for distributing independent hip hop music.

OPPORTUNITY / CHALLENGE

What specific goals or objectives did you hire Systems for Humans to accomplish?

• Design our LMT Pro professional tools dashboard (new)
• Redesign web
• Redesign iOS app

SOLUTION

How did you find Systems for Humans?

Referral

Why did you select Systems for Humans over others?

Referred to me

What was your primary form of communication with Systems for Humans?

• Virtual Meeting
• Email or Messaging App

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

Work directly with myself on design and redesign. Many zoom calls and loom video reviews of progress in Figma. They're very hands-on and understanding of my vision of the product.

RESULTS & FEEDBACK

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

• Figma deliverables are extensive and include everything necessary to reach our goals

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

Always on time and explained in full detail. If I had any objections or change requests we talked through them and reached a favorable outcome

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

Professionalism and experience

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

There's nothing they need to improve on.

BACKGROUND

Please describe your company and your position there.

Senior Management at Management Consulting firm and founder of early stage SAAS tool startup based in Hong Kong.

OPPORTUNITY / CHALLENGE

For what projects/services did your company hire Systems for Humans?

We wanted to create an online prioritization and roadmapping tool to help SME and enterprise businesses objectively decide what projects to run and in what order, based on value, risks, and effort required. We hired the vendor to undertake the UX/UI design for the tool so that it was intuitive, user-friendly, and had a inviting but professional look and feel.

SOLUTION

How did you select this vendor?

We went through 6 interviews with various vendors. We decided on this Systems for Humans based on examples of previous work, their willingness to answer all questions, a genuine interest in the subject matter, willingness to provide a clear timeline and cost breakdown, and the cost itself.

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

The vendor took my spec documents and used it to create a first draft of wireframes using Invision. We had a number of calls to ensure alignment, after which the full wireframes were created. My team then used this to conduct user testing with our candidates in Hong Kong and provided feedback to the vendor. This feedback was used to update the wireframes.

A change request was needed for one piece of feedback as it was out of the original scope and needed to be estimated, however it was agreed upon to be created for a little extra cost. The vendor then created a design preview for the hi-fidelity clickable prototype to ensure alignment. From there, they proceeded to create the full clickable prototype in InVision. Another round of feedback was provided and the prototype was updated accordingly.

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

1 resource - UX Designer

RESULTS & FEEDBACK

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

Very pleased with the deliverables from Artur. Will make development much easier, and all user-tests reported that the layout, structure, and look and feel was excellent.

How effective was the workflow between your team and theirs?

Very easy to communicate and discuss either by email or call. All deadlines met and if there was any need for extension it was up-front and rationale provided.

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

"Their high-quality UX, communication, knowledge, and willingness to contribute to our project have been impressive.