Waker

Introduce your business and what you do there.

I am the founder of a software development agency. I oversee day-to-day activities and do some development as well.

What challenge were you trying to address with Ghost Lab?

We were looking for a good American design firm that we could rely on for a specific project and use consistently in the future. We had been burned by some overseas designers in the past, and we were looking for someone that would be both reliable and on the same wavelength. We wanted to be able to give them some ideas that they could run with.

What was the scope of their involvement?

We have used them for a few projects. One was a social media influencer project for a web app. We had a client that wanted to create a discovery platform where brands push their products and find people in their space that can do some paid advertising on their behalf. The problem was finding people to do this, especially in specific locations and demographics. We ran through the idea with Ghost Lab to figure out what the MVP was. They usually handle the sifting through a hatchling of an idea with the client and figure out how to turn it into a product, which they are really good at doing.

From there, once decisions have been made on the functionality and what the wireframes will look like, they do the designs and the narration process of what the client wants. We also work with Nafis Azad [Founder and CEO, Ghost Lab] and team during this whole process so that we know there are no red flags with the tech details or to keep the scope from blowing up if the client starts asking for additional features, etc. We have a close relationship between our companies as it is to our mutual benefit that we are on the same page and understand what each other is doing. Nafis is usually involved with the first 35%–50% of projects in scoping them out, designing them, and working with the client, and then he hands it off to my company.

More recently, we have used them to work on an education mobile app, which connects students with study sessions at their university. We used Ghost Lab to scope out that project and work on the wireframes until we had a complete design. They owned the entire process because they are located very close to that client, which was beneficial.

We have more projects in the pipeline for both mobile and web apps. We use them for anything design related and where it is possible to scope projects out to them. Clients come to us with crazy ideas with no clue how to put it into an app or what things to trim; Ghost Lab has been invaluable as they allow us to focus on what we’re good at.

What is the team composition?

One of our developers works with one of their designers every once in a while, but primarily I work with Nafis. It is easier to let him own a big part of the client relationship because he always gets results and he is trustworthy. We generally don’t deal with each other’s employees.

How did you come to work with Ghost Lab?

We found them through one of my clients who have an education company. They worked with Nafis in the past, and they introduced us.

How much have you invested in them?

We spend around $60,000 for a project.

What is the status of this engagement?

The relationship started in 2016 and the work is ongoing.

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

He gets the projects done quickly compared to other people I have worked with. I usually allocate two to three months for the design phase and usually receive things back within six weeks, which has been really nice.

I have always been very happy with them. I was at a point where I was getting increasingly frustrated with designers and contractors I had worked with, but Ghost Lab has alleviated all of my pain points. They have become an asset because I can hand the client to them and they have the ability to scope out the project. I let them talk to the client as if they were my own employees, and I don’t have to worry about it. The work they produce is great, and I have never had anyone complain. I’ll be redesigning my website this year, and I am going to have them do it. I am honestly very happy with their work.

How did Ghost Lab perform from a project management standpoint?

We have never had any issues. If anything, their timeliness is one of their strongest suits. That is pretty rare in this business.

What did you find most impressive about them?

Communication skills are also one of their strengths. Normally, I wouldn’t trust someone talking to the client on our behalf. I was very impressed with Nafis in my initial interactions with him and the way he speaks and presents himself. This is something that you don’t always find in tech-focused companies. He is fully able to break things down such as tech jargon to non-technical clients in a way that not everyone is able to do. I have been on various calls with prospective clients with him, and it is a relief to a client to be able to work with someone who understands the perspective that the client is coming from.

Are there any areas they could improve?

No. When we first started working with them, they weren’t fully aware of our technical capabilities or our product offerings, which was a growing experience, but not a complaint.

Introduce your business and what you do there.

I currently the chief marketing officer of a company called Cashflow Diary, a real estate education company. We train people in real estate investment and entrepreneurship. I handle all company marketing.

What challenge were you trying to address with Ghost Lab?

As a CMO, I consult with startups during early development, after they've been funded and are looking to develop traction and establish growth channels. At the time, I was a helping a company called Chitter improve the UX/UI design of their app.

That's when I was introduced to Nafis at Ghost Lab, who handled the entire UX/UI redesign. He's been consulting with us for a future project, but I brought him into the conversation because of the work we had done at Chitter.

Chitter was a social sharing app that helped users find deals in their area. Restaurants could set up promotions that rewarded you with an in-app $2 discount for taking photos of your meal and sharing it to your social network. It never went public. We were rebranding it and redesigning the app, but the CEO started to develop something new, and so everything ended. I was later named co-founder of Chitter.

What was the scope of their involvement?

We needed an interface to serve as a professional, deliberate structure for all the new processes and user experience elements that we planned to implement. We asked: what’s going to happen from start to finish? How are users going to locate the deals? What type of deals will be offered, and what will what the deliverability look like? If somebody wants to redeem a deal, how will that screen look? What's the user flow? That's where Nafis and Ghost Lab came in.

I had a relationship with the Pasadena Chamber of Commerce, which was willing to serve as our guinea pig. I had an opportunity to present to the entire chamber. Because the meeting came out of nowhere, we were under pressure to design the app quickly. A UX/UI design project that should have taken 1-2 months needed to be completed in about 9 days so that we had something to present. It didn’t need to be perfect or functional, just ready for a showcase.

What is the team dynamic?

Nafis, co-founder and owner of Ghost Lab, was our main point of contact and primary designer.

How did you come to work with Ghost Lab?

They were brought in by the CEO of Chitter before I joined them as a consultant.

How much have you invested with them?

Nafis was involved in a startup agreement that offered shares in the company.However, based on what I know needed to be built, it must have cost around $25,000—$35,000 just to plan the UX and design, excluding development costs.

What is the status of this engagement?

We worked with them for a month back in November 2016. I took over Cashflow Diary in January, and I was still working with Chitter up until that point.

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

The design was very well received in the presentation with the chamber. Normally, the back and forth process with designers involves a lot of “That's great, but the white space is bad” or “This doesn’t look good.” But what Nafis came back with was insane. It was not only gorgeous, but it also offered a fantastic user experience. I was very impressed.

Nafis only gave it one quick pass, but he built a product that was ten times better than anything that the CEO had created before I came on board. His notable talent is the reason why I keep going back to them. I have a design background, and he did everything I would have done. It was fantastic.

How did Ghost Lab perform from a project management standpoint?

We have never had any issues with deadlines or communication. They're extremely responsive. We didn’t communicate for several months because the project was hung up by the CEO. I reached out to Nafis via text message for a Cashflow Diary issue, and he was available to schedule a call promptly. We didn't need to reschedule; he's extremely receptive.

What did you find most impressive about them?

Their communication impressed me the most. Nafis is a professional communicator with an agency mindset. Again, that's not something fly-by-night: it comes with time and experience. They are very interested in maximizing your results and ensuring your product’s success.

Nafis brings a lot to the table. He's not looking for anybody to tell him what to do. He’s a very talented designer who comes prepared with his own ideas and experience. He will agree with your ideas if there's something to be agreed with, but he doesn't bite his tongue if feedback is necessary. He tells you what he would do. He's knowledgeable, but more importantly, he's very talented. That's not something you can teach.

Are there any areas they could improve?

There's nothing there for me; it was a quality experience.

Introduce your business and what you do there.

I am the CEO of BWHealth. We specialize in medical devices and preventative sports gear.

What challenge were you trying to address with Ghost Lab?

We built our original site internally, and were looking to revamp it and shift from a B2B focus to a more sales-oriented B2C platform. We were prioritizing aesthetics, testimonials, and integration with our Shopify.

What was the scope of their involvement?

They took a lead on all aspects of development, and successfully integrated with Shopify. We wanted a minimalist look and feel to accurately reflect our brand identity, and Ghost Lab’s aesthetics are in line with that. The process started as an overview of our current site, and we listed all of the features we wanted to change. They wireframed a new version of the site, which we then approved, made comments, and went through a revision process. Our focus was on achieving customer conversions and creating a unique brand experience within the medical industry. Once we had the layout established and the feature set approved, they started on the full build. There were two additional approval points throughout this buildout that allowed us to make final edits.

The site was built on Webflow, and they provided some custom coding solutions to improve the Shopify integration, the testimonials, and several animations on the site.

What is the team composition?

I just interacted with a project manager, so I’m not sure how many developers they had on the project.

How did you come to work with Ghost Lab?

I had previous known Nafis [Founder & CEO, Ghost Lab] and followed him on social media. I’ve always liked his eye for frontend design, fonts, and general aesthetics, so I reached out when we needed the help.

How much have you invested with them?

We invested about $10,000.

What is the status of this engagement?

We started working together in August of 2017, and we completed the site in October.

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

After launching the site, we saw a significant increase in conversion rates. We hadn’t been driving a lot of traffic during the strategic pivot, but the traffic we were already getting started converting immediately. That was very good to see. We also didn’t have to create any more collateral, as the site began to function as an overall “one-pager” for what we do. We were then able to share just our site, which made interactions much easier. Although the site is still relatively new, we haven’t encountered any bugs so far, which is a great sign.

How did Ghost Lab perform from a project management standpoint?

They were great. The communication was very effective, and I think that’s the most important part of projects like these.

What did you find most impressive about them?

Their work ethic was very impressive, and really stood out to us. They reliably turned around edits within a day or two, which meshed very well with our pace of work. I still use them on projects now here and there. When we have anything that requires heavy design and visual elements, they’re the fastest, most reliable option, and the quality of their work is great. They cared about the work that we do, and invested in our success.

Are there any areas they could improve?

Honestly, there was nothing negative about the experience.

Advice for potential customers?

You should mesh well with the person you’re working with. If you have good rapport and it feels like a good relationship, it’s going to work.

Introduce your business and what you do there.

I am the chairman of Ticketfire. We sell tickets and have an app used by over 2,000 ticket brokers throughout the world. It takes pictures of hard tickets and turns them into mobile or PDF tickets, which turns physical assets into digital assets. Once they are digital they have a higher value because we can sell them more at the last minute.

What challenge were you trying to address with Ghost Lab?

We needed to update our app. It needed some redesign, and we wanted it to be current, cool, and increase the usability of it.

What was the scope of their involvement? 

We had an app for iOS and Android but it needed to be updated as it was a little out of date, which was more complicated than we thought it was going to be. When we first got into it, we thought there were going to be 17 screens, but it ended being 25. They helped us through all of it. The intense part was on the frontend and then we had some other things to work on and tweak.

It allows people to take a picture of their tickets to a concert, sporting event or whatever it may be, and post them. We create a link on someone’s Facebook page where the tickets can be sold to a friend.

What is the team composition?

We worked with two people who did amazing work and turned it around really quickly. They exceeded our expectations in all ways.

How did you come to work with Ghost Lab?

I’m quite involved in the tech community in Columbus and I believe Ghost Lab had done some work for another company is in one of the incubators I am with. I asked around doing some design work and someone had referred them to us.

How much have you invested in them?

We spent around $10,000–$15,000.

What is the status of this engagement?

We worked with them from October 2016 through to February 2017. 

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

It has been great and the app is current. We’re rated 4.7 in the iOS store. We’re just about ready to start marketing it and have over 68,000 registered users of our app now, which keeps growing weekly. The facts speak for themselves. Our ratings and registered users have gone way up since we redesigned the app.

How did Ghost Lab perform from a project management standpoint?

They were always ready for our weekly meetings and would come back with the promised deliverables. Often on projects like this, the company wants to go faster than the consultants can go. In this particular case, we weren’t always ready and they helped to push us. This made us make a lot of decisions—redesigning the app meant there were a lot of implications and edge cases that we hadn’t thought about, which they forced us to so that it would flow and create a good user experience. I thought they were very responsive and we had no issues whatsoever on deliverables or timeliness. They were great.

What did you find most impressive about them?

They’re very focused on getting it right and on giving us great service. The results speak for themselves as we have a great product, which is highly rated. They played a big part in helping us get there.

Are there any areas they could improve?

Not really. I know they are growing and I think they need to keep up with doing what they are doing.

Do you have any advice for potential customers?

You want to have someone that is experienced as well as current. You can find someone that is current, but might not be experienced in how to lay out things properly, and you can find someone that is experienced that might not be hip enough to know what the latest and greatest is. Ghost Lab has both of those aspects nailed, which was a big benefit for us.

Introduce your business and what you do there.

ambi is a social network, for Work, that's geared specifically towards college students to help them be better organized and collaborate online. It is the first productive social network that enables students to become their most productive, inspired, and focused selves and to learn even during their down time in a fun and engaging way. I'm the COO of the company, in charge of daily operations.

What challenge were you trying to address with Appify?

We needed to complete the development of the platform and needed extra help from talented developers who could go into an existing codebase and hit the ground running. We wanted someone who could contribute quality code and add the features our platform needed. We were using another contracting firm but wanted to move to a US-based one. After interviewing other talented developers, I was genuinely impressed with how quick the Appify team picked up on our project and were able to improve both the features, so what the end-user sees, and improve on the structure of our codebase, which gives us big benefit in the long-run as we grow. 

What was the scope of their involvement?

Appify initially provided one developer for our project. After two weeks, since things were working well, we added a second resource. They first had to get set up and understand our existing codebase, which took them under 3 days. The Appify was and is today involved in our daily operations of planning sprints, executing them, bug fixing, coordinating with our in-house devs and other contractors, getting our site running live, and they even give us genuine feedback and suggestions for how our platform can be further improved. It feels like they are part of the team and care about the success of the company, and as a result, we trust them, which is difficult to find with contractors but it seems to be the case with Appify because of the people that work there.  

Going into specifics, one of our platform’s functionalities is our dashboard feature, which is the first thing that someone logging in will see. It provides an overview of the day and gives access to the rest of the platform. One of the things Appify did was to build-out widget and settings features, which allowed people to customize the dashboard as much as they wanted by adding things like weather, daily quotes, interests, and so on. Appify created many of them and also made our dashboard more HD, implementing backgrounds which are stored on Amazon S3 that can be changed daily or left the same.

Appify also helped architect and took responsibility for the implementation of our quick-chat feature. We had parts of it built but really needed someone who could step in and take it to the next level by finishing features like file transfer, group conversations, and other components that people expect nowadays. The Appify team did this in a structured way by first presenting us all the possible providers and options we could go with, and with our involvement and the rest of our developers, weighed the pros and cons and picked which method we thought would be best to build out our chat. Now we have laid out sprints and Appify team is executing them. We get to see results every two weeks, it's really exciting.

How did you come to work with Appify?

I found them through a referral from a friend who is also running a startup. He described Appify as having great engineers. When I contacted them, I saw that their founder really understood what we wanted to do. We’ve had a very good experience with their team members.

How much have you invested with Appify?

We are paying between $2,400 and $3,600 per developer every two weeks. This comes to around $10,000 per month.

What is the status of this engagement?

We started working with Appify in early March 2017. The app is still a work in progress, but Appify has finished some portions of it.

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

We have laid-out sprints for our two developers from Appify. They’ve had to deliver work every two weeks and have pretty much met our deadlines, working on a consistent basis in order to move the cards to the right and knock-out features one by one. Anytime we finished a sprint, Appify was open to making additional small changes.

How did Appify perform from a project management standpoint?

We invited Appify to our Slack channel, and they’ve become very active there. Appify has integrated well with our team and have been very friendly. It’s been awesome to see them become a part of our group. We use Google Hangouts every few days on an as-needed basis, and we use Trello and Asana for task management.

What did you find most impressive about Appify?

Appify’s developers are very talented full-stack engineers, who are able to hit the ground running. We are using a number of technologies, and someone has to know a lot in order to develop our product comfortably. Appify was able to dive into some complex elements that other developers had been working on for a year and understood the challenge within one or two days. Appify contributed to our project in a meaningful way. Even when roadblocks came up, they could figure out what was happening. They came to us with solutions, which is really nice to see. This has been the most impressive thing on the talent side.

On the attitude side, I would say that Appify is very reachable. I can get in touch with them at any point. If we have an upcoming deadline, Appify’s team will stay up with us and get the work done. Lastly, Appify has a leadership mentality: they’re willing to help team members when something is wrong in another area. This is helpful in forming a good team spirit. We’re a small startup, so things like this can go a long way.

Are there any areas Appify could improve?

I was able to speak to Appify about anything I experienced, and they were able to address it. There’s nothing outstanding.

What tips or recommendations could you share that might increase the likelihood of success with Appify?

Have a clear idea of what you want to get done. Appify’s team is strong on the tech side of things, so the task at hand should be clearly laid-out to help them do what they’re best at.

Introduce your business and what you do there.

Mystro is a tech company based in Atlanta. We do in-person and online tutoring nationwide in all sorts of academic subjects and offer test preparation. The Mystro app allows student users to connect with amazing tutors. I’m the founder and CEO. 

What challenge were you trying to address with Appify?

I needed to find a quality development team. The goal was to create a platform for high-school students to be tutored by college students who are relatable to them and could inspire them. I had previously contracted with an Indian firm to build a minimum viable product (MVP), which was done in PHP. It was breaking all the time, so we had to scrap it and start again.

I wanted to find a team that could build an app right the first time and do it cost-effectively. I didn’t want to work with a company that outsourced the development work overseas. In my experience, the quality of the product suffers when you do that. 

What was the scope of their involvement?

Appify did everything in terms of the tech side of the project. They were basically our CTO. We worked primarily with Phillip, one of Appify’s founders, who is one of the sharpest people I’ve met. There’s no one like him. He didn’t just do what we said; he wanted it explained, and he wanted to know why. He often came back with better alternative solutions.

We had an in-house designer, but Appify also worked on the design. They did all the development. Phillip led two teams throughout the project. At our highest point, we had five people on the project, including mobile, iOS, and web developers. They built a native iOS app, mostly built on Objective-C. They also built a web app in Angular 2, with the backend in Ruby.

Appify also provided a lot of marketing material and assisted us with a marketing strategy. Most of their work was in the app development, but their experience working on other apps helped to guide us. They have a large talent pool from which to pull resources based on the project’s needs.

I haven’t seen any bugs in the finished product. They’re now working on a retainer to complete some upgrades to the app.

How did you come to work with Appify?

One of our lead investors referred me to an engineer who worked at Google, who then introduced me to Phillip. We looked at dozens of firms, but we couldn’t find anyone who matched our criteria for quality and price.

How much have you invested with Appify?

We’ve invested around $50,000 in this app. They’re the only firm that said they could make a quality app for that price.

What is the status of this engagement?

We started working on the platform in March of 2016, and it just launched in February of this year. We’re still working with the Appify team to expand several key features. We’re about 95% complete, and we’ll keep adding and tweaking based on feedback from our users. We currently have a contract with them through the end of 2017.

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

Most important is how the users feel about it. Our tutors are excited about the ease of use and the income potential the app gives them. The payment system is easy, and it’s built with college students in mind. Parents appreciate how the app gives them all the information they need to find a tutor for their high-school students.

We’ve already had over 220 tutoring sessions. We’ve done some tutoring boot camps. It’s growing very quickly, and we’re now preparing to speak with bigger companies about possible business opportunities. A lot of this is happening because Appify took what we wanted and made it happen in the smartest way possible.

How did Appify perform from a project management standpoint?

The project was broken up into timelines, and the Appify team was very good. I remember a couple of times when they said they wouldn’t sleep until they made a deadline. We were in contact with them until 3:00 am or 4:00 am. That level of commitment meant a lot to us.

We used Waffle.io as a project management tool. My co-founder tagged the features due on specific dates, and Phillip managed the project on their end. All we had to do was upload designs and explain them thoroughly, and he handled everything else.

What did you find most impressive about Appify?

Phillip is the most impressive aspect of Appify. He manages a lot of talented developers, but he is so technically sharp. He’s a fantastic entrepreneur and has great talent, commitment, and attitude. I would love to hire him full-time.

The team at Appify are top engineers in the U.S. They’re fair and honest, and they really want to see their clients do well. They got it done over and over again. I appreciate people who get things done the way they say they will.

Are there any areas Appify could improve?

No. If they want to expand, they could bring in more design talent, but they’re a great development team. 

Please describe your company and your position there.

I’m the co-founder of a mobile application that facilitates student interaction outside of the college classroom. This is done through course-relevant study sessions.

For what projects/services did your company hire Ghost Lab?

We needed help with branding as well as end-to-end design and development.

What were your goals for this project?

Our goal was to create a seamless, deployable minimum viable product quickly.

How did you select this vendor?

They had a reputation for delivering quality development with some of the best interface design I've seen in the industry.

Describe the project in detail.

Ghost Lab worked with us from the conceptualization of the product to our upcoming launch. They made sure we understood every step of the way. Following completion, testing was rapid, allowing us to quickly submit our product to both Android and iOS stores. Ghost Lab also handled this for us.

What was the team composition?

A handful of developers were involved as well as a very talented user interface and user experience design specialist.

What outcomes or results can you share that demonstrate progress and/or success?

Ghost Lab delivered an incredible product ahead of schedule—it was everything we dreamed it would be. Thanks to them, we're gearing up to launch our pilot at a handful of major universities at the end of the month.

How effective was the project management?

It was seamless. Nafis [CEO, Ghost Lab] stayed in constant contact with me and my team. They always kept us updated about completed milestones and let us know of any delays. We also received valuable input for various decisions our team had to make throughout the process.

What did you find most impressive about this company?

The best part had to be the constant communication. My team and I felt at ease throughout the entire process, thanks to their weekly updates. Any questions or issues we had were immediately answered and resolved.

Regardless of what stage you're at, Ghost Lab can provide critical value. They can manage multiple, fairly large products all at once while providing everybody with top-tier service.

Please describe your company and your position there.

I'm the CEO of a mobile app helping college students build a valuable network for all of their academic needs.

What were your goals for this project?

Our goal was to quickly create a seamless and deployable minimum viable product (MVP).

How did you select this vendor?

They've got a great reputation in the industry, not only for outstanding development, but also for communication and efficiency.

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

Appify developed our entire application. They took our concept and turned it into a legitimate product within a very short period of time.

What was the team composition?

Appify provided us with a project manager and two full-time developers.

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

Our app was delivered ahead of time and surpassed our expectations for an initial MVP. It has allowed us to gain traction within universities.

How was project management arranged and how effective was it?

We could contact our project manager at any time. He addressed our questions and concerns immediately.

What did you find most impressive about this company?

We were impressed with the constant communication and rapid turnaround for any iterations we requested.

Are there any areas where they can improve?

We didn’t see any areas for improvement.