Wunderdogs

BACKGROUND

Introduce your business and what you do there.

I’m the VP of marketing for a Berlin-based FinTech startup that automates accounting for small businesses and their tax advisors. We have around 150 employees right now and mostly operate within Germany, but we’re looking to expand to other markets in Europe eventually.

OPPORTUNITY / CHALLENGE

What challenge were you trying to address with Wunderdogs?

We were in the process of completely overhauling our brand identity and internal and external collateral, like presentation and document templates, stationery, and so on. We were also rebuilding our entire website to better explain the product and value proposition, while maintaining a more visually consistent and elevated representation of everything. 

Before working with Wunderdogs, we had a very basic logo and font as well as colors and branding. We didn’t have a thoroughly defined branding architecture that could be easily shared and applied within the company and with outside vendors.  

SOLUTION

What was the scope of their involvement?

We worked with Wunderdogs on revamping our brand identity and look. They also helped us build our website. We provided wireframes, design requirements, and copy, and Wunderdogs built out all of the different assets required. They also helped us implement those in WordPress.

They started off by doing a brand audit. They interviewed a couple of our stakeholders to gather information about how we saw the brand, the market, and our target customers. They did competitive research and pulled all of that together to describe the status quo and derive certain recommendations. In the process of reviewing that, they turned those recommendations into different design explorations. We made a couple of revisions and decided on one.

They started developing the first part of our brand book, and, based on that, we built out certain deliverables. We started with high-level web design and revamped some of the initial pages using an iterative process. Eventually, we built out all of the pages, implemented them, and went live.

From there, Wunderdogs built our Google Slides presentation template and a couple of smaller stationery collateral and templates. They helped us define the visual representation of our brand. We kept the logo but introduced a new font and colors, as well as a whole new visual illustration style. They proposed a modern and graphical illustration style and created our design language. All the applications are defined in the brand book at a high level, with fonts, colors, logo imagery, and illustration style. It’s a 30-page document with visual applications of how we’d design business cards, letterheads, and other stationery items, along with presentations, banners, billboards, and so on. They didn’t build out complete templates, but they illustrated the rules of what digital and physical use cases would look like, so that we can implement them ourselves using any agency.

On the website, they created a consistent look and feel that uses a lot of white and illustrates some abstract concepts, such as saving time with accounting standards compliance, peace of mind, and so on. They helped us keep these items approachable but still a bit more sophisticated, and they developed a couple of elements that we now use throughout our design, especially on the website, namely an outline illustration style that we use on all headers. There’s a more graphical style for all the benefits and product illustrations, which helps us show off screens or parts of screens to illustrate the actual product. Wunderdogs’ key contribution here was developing this design hierarchy and style and applying it to everything that was already there, and then helping us implement it from a technical standpoint.

What is the team composition?

There were 5–6 people working on our project overall, and we mostly interacted with two people. Olga (Co-Founder & COO, Wunderdogs) was our main point of contact and worked with a couple of illustrators and a developer. Oliver (Head of Client Services, Wunderdogs) joined later to help us with some of the planning and project management. There was another person involved in the Google Slides part of the project.

How did you come to work with Wunderdogs?

I went to business school with Daria (Founding Partner, Wunderdogs), and I originally approached her asking whether she’d have any recommendations on whom we should work with. Given that we were in Berlin and they were in the Bay Area, they weren’t my first choice. I thought it’d be easier to have a local partner than one across the world, and I also assumed that, because of their location, they’d have higher prices than those of our local market. 

Wunderdogs gave us competitive pricing and a short turnaround time. We started with a short, low-risk project, the brand audit, and their work was very convincing. 

How much have you invested with them?

My company spent $20,000.

What is the status of this engagement?

We started working with Wunderdogs on the brand audit in May 2019. We decided to work on the website in June and July. All of the initial projects are finished, and they’ve delivered everything we wanted. 

We’re still using them for graphic design as needed. They developed our design language, so if we introduce a new feature or need more sophisticated applications, we use Wunderdogs instead of our in-house design team.

RESULTS & FEEDBACK

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

Everyone is happy with the outcome, and we have received great compliments on the website and the brand book from company management and even investors. It was quite a change from what we had previously. The website is fresh and modern, and it has a unique design language that everyone in the company can use to get started on their own content. The quality and value for money were excellent, compared to other agencies we’ve worked with, which would’ve probably charged 50–100% more for the same project, and wouldn’t have been as easy to work with. Our internal team feels prouder to work for the organization because our external representation is much more professional. 

Wunderdogs’ team members are like colleagues that sit on the project with us. We can just email them and ask for something, and they’re always responsive to feedback. They’re friendly, and I’m looking forward to continuing working with them. We see everything going in the right direction, and the company’s growing rapidly, but it’s hard to measure how much Wunderdogs has contributed to this.

How did Wunderdogs perform from a project management standpoint?

I was impressed by how fast the turnaround time was. We almost couldn’t keep up with their proposed pace of providing feedback items, briefs, and other parts, especially when building the website. 

They worked fast and had people all over the US and Europe, so there was always someone working in the right time zone. We’d assign them something before we left the office, and it got done by the time we got back in the morning. Whenever we had feedback or a request, they turned things around quickly, and they were very organized in terms of what was missing, what deliverables we should expect, and what feedback loops we had. They were proactive, organized, and honest. Whenever they said they’d deliver something, they did. I never had to send them an extra email asking for something.

What did you find most impressive about them?

They act like a startup, in the sense that there’s very little overhead, and we get to interact directly with the people working on our project. What impressed me the most was that I could ask them for an illustration, get it back that same day or the next, give them feedback on what I liked and disliked, and get an update a half-hour later. They’re not only fast, but also reasonably priced. Whenever we had to prioritize something or meet a tight deadline, they delivered good quality and worked within a reasonable number of billed hours.

They understand the needs and dynamics of startups. They’re not an agency that just serves multi hundred-thousand-dollar accounts, where everything’s complicated, takes a lot of time, and is expensive. Wunderdogs understands the way we work and the tradeoffs that come with running a startup. 

They have an 80–20 approach of getting things done now and revamping in a few months if the product or the strategies change. We didn’t have to explain how we’re different from a corporate customer with a 30-person marketing team and different processes and budget constraints. They got us from day one, and I found that to be very helpful.

Are there any areas they could improve?

They started structuring their project management differently, introducing someone to oversee the outcome of the deliverables and timelines as a core role. That person served as the main communicator, allowing the creative designers and executors to focus on their work. In the beginning, it seemed a little more chaotic, and we didn’t know who was working on what and what timeliness they had. Over the last couple of months, we had someone to manage expectations. I don’t think there’s anything else they haven’t addressed.

Do you have any advice for future clients of theirs?

I recommend having an initial rapid prototyping session with them, depending on what the client needs. For us, it was a brand audit with high-level design directions for us to consider. They got back to us with how they saw us and our market, and where they thought we needed to go. 

Doing a rapid exploration before committing to multiple deliverables and projects is very helpful; it can build trust and a consistent language. Doing so also provides a sense of whether they’re the right partner before getting halfway through a project and realizing they don’t understand your vision or what you’re trying to get out of the project. It can help the client structure their own thoughts and be more disciplined and specific about what they want. Wunderdogs asks all the right questions, which helps the client clearly communicate what they need.

BACKGROUND

Please describe your company and position.

I am the Co-Founder of a consulting company

Describe what your company does in a single sentence.

Executive recruiting for tech companies

OPPORTUNITY / CHALLENGE

What specific goals or objectives did you hire Wunderdogs to accomplish?

• Help us choose a name for our business
• Create a website and logo
• Help us with messaging/positioning

SOLUTION

How did you find Wunderdogs?

Online Search

Why did you select Wunderdogs over others?

• Great culture fit
• Company values aligned

How many teammates from Wunderdogs were assigned to this project?

6-10 Employees

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

• Create messaging/positioning documentation
• Create a logo
• Create a name for the business
• Create a website

RESULTS & FEEDBACK

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

Yes - each project had a specific outcome/deliverable associated with it.

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

Yes everything was on time and they were hyper-responsive to our needs.

What was your primary form of communication with Wunderdogs?

• Virtual Meeting
• Email or Messaging App

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

Their dedication and responsiveness

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

No it was a great experience.

BACKGROUND

Please describe your company and position.

I am the CEO, Founder of BioLoomics, Inc

Describe what your company does in a single sentence.

We develop safer antibody therapies for cancer using synthetic biology, ML and robotics.

OPPORTUNITY / CHALLENGE

What specific goals or objectives did you hire Wunderdogs to accomplish?

• Branding
• Positioning
• Website

SOLUTION

How did you find Wunderdogs?

Referral

Why did you select Wunderdogs over others?

• Pricing fit our budget
• Great culture fit
• Good value for cost
• Referred to me
• Company values aligned

How many teammates from Wunderdogs were assigned to this project?

6-10 Employees

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

WD created a new logo (deliverable), great new website (deliverable), helped us with branding, positioning and messaging (delivering a branding slide deck compilation of all 3), template slide decks (deliverable), mock up merchandise designs (images were deliverable).

RESULTS & FEEDBACK

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

Positive feedback from employees, investors, and network members regarding the website.

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

Our messaging required more back an forth due to its initial complexity. The team was easy to work with, and the timeline ended within our internal expectations.

What was your primary form of communication with Wunderdogs?

• Virtual Meeting
• Email or Messaging App

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

The full stack branding/messaging/graphic design/positioning/website

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

There was nothing they needed to improve on.

BACKGROUND

Please describe your company and position.

I am the Co-founder

Describe what your company does in a single sentence.

A compliant messaging platform for trading digital assets

OPPORTUNITY / CHALLENGE

What specific goals or objectives did you hire Wunderdogs to accomplish?

• Design low fidelity MVP

SOLUTION

How did you find Wunderdogs?

Referral

Why did you select Wunderdogs over others?

• Close to my geographic location
• Great culture fit
• Referred to me

What was the size of Wunderdogs’s team?

2-5 Employees

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

Wunderdogs worked on a low fidelity product designs of our platform

RESULTS & FEEDBACK

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

• The number of pages/screens of the platform designed

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

The team delivered on time, and they were very responsive.

What was your primary form of communication with Wunderdogs?

• Virtual Meeting
• Email or Messaging App

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

Their responsiveness and agility was awesome as they were flexible enough to chat on Slack and make amends on as fast as a daily basis

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

Wunderdogs could improve their project estimation.

BACKGROUND

Please describe your company and position.

I am the CEO of Supermojo

Describe what your company does in a single sentence.

NFT checkout and custody

OPPORTUNITY / CHALLENGE

What specific goals or objectives did you hire Wunderdogs to accomplish?

• Branding
• Website

SOLUTION

How did you find Wunderdogs?

Referral

Why did you select Wunderdogs over others?

Referred to me

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

We partnered with Wunderdogs for our branding, visual identity and website development.

RESULTS & FEEDBACK

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

• completion of visual identity and branding guide
• website design
• website development

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

They are very responsive to our needs and on top of managing the projects.

What was your primary form of communication with Wunderdogs?

• Virtual Meeting
• Email
• Messaging App

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

They care about the output of their work and have a talented team of designers and developers.

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

We have been very happy working with them

BACKGROUND

Please describe your company and your position there.

We're a nonprofit that builds technology for a more rehabilitative corrections system. We democratizesprison communication and education technology. By connecting incarcerated people with support networks and vital resources, we cut recidivism and sustainably reduce prison populations. I am the Creative Director.

OPPORTUNITY / CHALLENGE

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

We hired WD to fully create our new website in a way that could be maintained by team members that were not software engineers, and so did not require coding experience. This included both the desktop version and adaptive mobile. Our goal with WD was to create a well-designed website that would visually and functionally represent the work that we do. In other words, would be as visually and functionally striking as the services we provide and the lives we impact.

SOLUTION

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

We had already worked with Work& Co previously and were looking for a new direction. Wunderdogs fit in very well when looking at their work for their clients.

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

I only started participating in meetings after the Wireframe was complete and visuals started coming in. We had a kick-off meeting with the first four options on design based on the references we sent, and kept working together with WD to get to a final visual identity that reflected both our work and were up to the standards of the service we provide. Wunderdogs was very adaptive to our needs and our products, creating a logic system on Webflow that worked well with our team.

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

We worked with the account director and designer mostly. They heard us and understood us very well and were quick to provide responses to our needs. Once the project was completed we had immense help from people at Wunderdogs specifically aiding us with Webflow.

RESULTS & FEEDBACK

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

I don't have numbers to provide but in general, this website has been a key factor with DOCs and new corrections. Again its visual and functionality with all its content has been enlightening to them about what we do and who we are.

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

They provided a very outlined timeline from the start, with meetings and deadlines both on ours and their end. The whole project was very well aligned, having regular meetings to show progress and work together, and they were always very positive in setting up any new video call that we needed to work on items here and there.

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

We like their energy and positive attitude to be willing to help and provide solutions to our needs. It is hard to find a team that will be so comprehensive and respective to your project, and not try to force what they think is correct on you. It was a very rewarding experience to work with Wunderdogs on our website because they were able to create a great product that we can maintain nowadays, and this whole process was done with very respectful back and forth. Great to work with!

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

It was great overall and has been great!

BACKGROUND

Please describe your company and your position there.

We are an executive search and investment firm that builds crypto/web3 companies.

OPPORTUNITY / CHALLENGE

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

Full rebrand - logo, messaging, website, pitch deck, etc.

SOLUTION

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

Prior work, references, pricing

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

Full rebrand - logo, messaging, website, pitch deck, etc.

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

Probably 4-5 CEO Project Manager Several designers

RESULTS & FEEDBACK

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

Overwhelmingly positive response (mostly unprompted) from a variety of groups. We have introduced wunderdogs to numerous groups as a result of their work.

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

Highly efficient. They managed to the schedule without being pushy. They alerted us if we were going to slip on the schedule bc of choices we made.

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

Their ability to deliver exceptional quality work on time at a reasonable price was impressive.

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

No

BACKGROUND

Please describe your company and your position there.

Cofounder & ceo

OPPORTUNITY / CHALLENGE

For what projects/services did your company hire Wunderdogs?

Design for content, basic branding, promotional materials

What were your goals for this project?

Beautification

SOLUTION

How did you select this vendor?

Word of mouth

Describe the project in detail.

Deck Logos/branding Research Discussing options & iterating on content

What was the team composition?

me + 3 ppl from Wunderdogs

RESULTS & FEEDBACK

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

Excellent work - fully satisfied, 10x our design capability

How effective was the workflow between your team and theirs?

Smooth communications and workflow. We used email + zoom.

What did you find most impressive about this company?

They take a customer-centric approach to all projects. Great designers + significant early-stage company experience = They know what they're doing and how they can help to depend on stage of growth of the company

Are there any areas for improvement?

No