XPLAI

BACKGROUND

Please describe your company and your position there.

Full service digital marketing firm that services a wide variety of clients from start ups to enterprise level brands.

OPPORTUNITY / CHALLENGE

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

Design and develop various explainer videos that provided clear, engaging, and creative solutions to what can be complex fields to navigate.

SOLUTION

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

Their portfolio & initial discussions around team, process, and timelines.

Describe the video(s) and the process in detail, including the project steps and all stages of production.

Established art direction, script, and animation style during discovery & pre-production phase before moving into rough (and later refined) storyboarding. Able to give notes & feedback at each step of the process that made things clear and organized. Finally, moved into preview animations & eventually full edits that we were able to assess & provide minimal feedback during the most complex phase due to all of the preparation in pre-pro & storyboarding.

Who did you work with and what was the feedback process like?

I worked directly with their Project Lead/Manager to establish overall direction, structure, timelines, and communication from initial discovery to final deliveries. Every step of the project & feedback was clearly outlined and expectations set at each benchmark.

RESULTS & FEEDBACK

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

Overall, very happy clients & excitement around getting the assets launched for marketing.

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

They are very organized with an outlined plan and phases from the beginning of the project: discovery, mood boarding, asset collection, storyboarding, preview animations/designs, and full edits & final revisions. The overall process made it very easy to follow and ensure alignment on end result.

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

The talent & level of quality in the overall creative + the organized process from start to finish.

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

No

BACKGROUND

Please describe your company and your position there.

I am a global PR and marketing consultant for a fintech company operating out of Asia. Our company has over 100 employees. I lead all global PR and marketing activities for the firm.

OPPORTUNITY / CHALLENGE

For what projects/services did your company hire XPLAI / XPLAI GAMES?

We hired XPLAI to produce a one-minute animated explainer video providing an overview of our company, product and technical solution.

What were your goals for this project?

We hope to produce a short, easy-to-consume video introducing our company to general audiences. As we are a tech firm, it was helpful to have a a simplified starting point for newcomers to our brand.

SOLUTION

How did you select XPLAI / XPLAI GAMES?

I knew of XPLAI from my time at a another firm.

Describe the video(s) and the process in detail.

Once we settled on XPLAI, we produced an initial script. XPLAI then provided valuable feedback on how to condense and edit the script to make a more engaging video. XPLAI then produced several style tests for us to choose from.

From there, XPLAI produced a full storyboard with illustrations and basic animations. After a few rounds of revision, they produced the final animated video and added subtitles in several languages.

What was your vendors' project management or feedback process?

We provided XPLAI with feedback at specified milestones: style tests, storyboards, illustrations, basic animation and final animation.

RESULTS & FEEDBACK

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

The animated explainer video served as an important component of our consumer journey. It exists on our company homepage and is often shared to attract potential users.

How effective was the workflow between your team and theirs?

XPLAI representatives were a pleasure to work with. They were timely in their feedback and always produced high-quality work.

What did you find most impressive about this company?

The most impressive thing about XPLAI is their team. They are professional, responsive and flexible.

Are there any areas for improvement?

No. XPLAI completely delivered, remaining professional throughout. They have my highest compliments and recommendation.

BACKGROUND

Please describe your company and your position there.

I am the Head of International Growth at an IT company called JivoChat. We have around 150 employees and our main goal is to help small and medium-sized businesses turn more visitors into paying customers and provide outstanding customer support.

OPPORTUNITY / CHALLENGE

For what projects/services did your company hire XPLAI / XPLAI GAMES?

Our product is constantly evolving and it is important for us to keep our marketing materials up to date. That's why we've decided to find a contractor who could help us produce a new explainer video.

What were your goals for this project?

We wanted to create a video that would deliver our message to the client and highlight key features of our product. The video will be used on several app marketplace listing and our Youtube channel.

SOLUTION

How did you select XPLAI / XPLAI GAMES?

I was looking for video production companies and it seemed like a hard decision to make as there are hundreds of them to choose from. However, after finding seeing some of XPLAI's projects on Upwork I instantly knew that I wanted to go with this company.

Describe the video(s) and the process in detail.

After having a brief call and agreeing to carry on with the project I've sent the script and XPLAI's team started working on the storyboard. Then they've offered a few animation styles to choose from. After that was approved they've created the animation video which followed the storyboard.

What was your vendors' project management or feedback process?

During the whole process, I've worked with Julia and Dmitry and both were very responsive to the feedback my team and I have given. We had a few issues early in the process of approving the animation style, but all of them have been resolved shortly.

RESULTS & FEEDBACK

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

We are about to post the video on our marketplace pages, but our whole team is more than satisfied with the result and we all agree that the video is perfect in demonstrating the value proposition of the product.

How effective was the workflow between your team and theirs?

The communication was nice and smooth. We've only had 2 calls and mostly communicated via email. We mostly got responses to all our questions and request within 24 hours so everything was quite effective.

What did you find most impressive about this company?

Just one glance at their portfolio gives you the understanding that these people know what they are doing. All their videos surely stand out of dozens of other explainer videos that we've seen online. It was important for us to get a video that would be as good as the rest of their works and we are glad that the final result did no disappoint us.

Are there any areas for improvement?

It probably could have been a bit faster, but it does take time to create a high-quality explainer video with such a level of attention to details.

BACKGROUND

Please describe your company and your position there.

SEON works in the fraud prevention industry, with its own fraud API, developed for companies in high-risk verticals. I am Marketing Manager at SEON, responsible for all platforms and content.

OPPORTUNITY / CHALLENGE

For what projects/services did your company hire XPLAI?

We had two different products, and we wanted to have a short video for each, explaining how they work, so prospects can understand them better. We knew what we wanted to communicate and show, but we did not have the team inhouse to deliver that.

What were your goals for this project?

Our goal was to create two 30-second animated videos that can be uploaded to our website and also used for PPC campaigns. We were expecting that audiovisual content will work better compared to simply images due to the complexity of the product.

SOLUTION

How did you select this vendor?

We had some previous experiences, and also recommendations. They provided good price and nice ideas.

Describe the video(s) and the process in detail.

We provided script and ideas, they created the storyboard, then the animation, and recorded the voiceovers.

What was your vendors' project management or feedback process?

At each stage, materials were sent for review, and our comments were implemented before moving to the next stage. We had about 4-5 of such loops. We had a main point of contact at XPLAI, so she was managing the project internally, communication was very smooth.

RESULTS & FEEDBACK

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

We really liked the final videos, all of our team members were happy with them. Implementation will happen soon.

How effective was the workflow between your team and theirs?

Very smooth workflow, we always got an answer within 24 hours, and the corrections in a few days.

What did you find most impressive about this company?

Their responsiveness was great and all requests were implemented very quickly.

Are there any areas for improvement?

Just one occasion where feedback for a correction was lost in their processes, but it was quickly fixed later.

BACKGROUND

Please describe your company and your position there.

I produce videos for nonprofits, agencies and brands.

OPPORTUNITY / CHALLENGE

For what projects/services did your company hire XPLAI?

XPLAI was hired to create animations for a half dozen scenes in a video for an engineering firm.

What were your goals for this project?

Our goal was to concisely and beautifully depict complex concepts with animated visuals.

SOLUTION

How did you select this vendor?

Dmitry at XPLAI has an incredible portfolio. His communication throughout the interview process was solid and he submitted storyboards in advance of winning the job to help me pitch my client.

Describe the project in detail.

I provided Dmitry with creative direction and reference visuals. He then took those and spun it with own style and we continued to modify the designs over a handful of revisions rounds.

What was the team composition?

I worked alongside Dmitry and the client’s creative team.

RESULTS & FEEDBACK

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

Dmitry has a positive attitude, is super talented, turns around work quickly, is incredibly responsive, and very easy to communicate with. Moving forward, I look forward to incorporating ideas for animation more frequently into my video pitches, so that I can have more opportunities to collaborate with Dmitry.

How effective was the workflow between your team and theirs?

Workflow was very effective. Dmitry was able to take the lead or follow my lead when necessary.

What did you find most impressive about this company?

Quality of work with a quick turnaround.

Are there any areas for improvement?

Maybe presenting more than one stylistic direction would be helpful in the future, but in this case I think we both knew not to be too picky about the aesthetic as long as it was good and that time as of the essence.

BACKGROUND

Please describe your company and your position there.

Hopeland is a non-profit organization working to find solutions for the millions of children globally who are separated from a safe and loving family. In my role as Operations Manager, I am responsible for the day to day running of the organization as well as managing our events, fundraising efforts, outreach, and web presence.

OPPORTUNITY / CHALLENGE

For what projects/services did your company hire XPLAI?

Hopeland engaged XPLAI as we were looking for a studio to animate a video which our organization planned to use to highlight and detail clearly the work which Hopeland is involved in. XPLAI proved best for our purposes after we went through a vetting process with six other studios - we felt XPLAI had the best combination of cost and capability.

What were your goals for this project?

We wanted a video which we felt walked a fine line between conveying purpose and conveying emotion. We felt this was important as we could easily present ourselves in a video but lacking that emotional connection meant viewers would be interested in what we're trying to achieve.

SOLUTION

How did you select this vendor?

We compared XPLAI to a number of animation studios conducting interviews with each candidate studio. XPLAI proved to be the best combination of cost and skill.

Describe the video(s) and the process in detail.

Hopeland provided XPLAI with a script, and general written visual board which XPLAI then fully fleshed out into a story board. They helped with bridging gaps in our script. They then got to work on illustrating and animating the video, as well as working on VO. They were super communicative every step of the way

What was your vendors' project management or feedback process?

I only spoke to one person on the vendor side, Anna, who was a joy to work with. There were several rounds of feedback but I always had confidence in Anna to deliver our feedback efficiently to the team.

RESULTS & FEEDBACK

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

After production, we had so many supporters come up to us and say they finally understand what we are doing - a blessing for an organization that is just 3 years old.

How effective was the workflow between your team and theirs?

High effective, yet simple - all was managed through email. XPLAI did use a storyboard software which gave me the option to leave comments directly on the software but I preferred to keep it all in the email.

What did you find most impressive about this company?

XPLAI were impressively courteous, professional, talented and willing to go above and beyond. Our video might have been slightly ambitious, but they welcomed the challenge and delivered something excellent. They absolutely lived up to the challenge.

Are there any areas for improvement?

Nothing sticks out

BACKGROUND

Please describe your company and your position there.

Credit Booster is financial services / consulting company engaged in helping clients Repair Credit or Build Credit. I am the Co-Founder.

OPPORTUNITY / CHALLENGE

For what projects/services did your company hire XPLAI?

We selected XPLAI to create an explainer video outlining our services in a short 1 minute animation.

What were your goals for this project?

The goal of this project was to create an animation video showing the scope of our services in a clear and concise manner.

SOLUTION

How did you select this vendor?

We found XPLAI on the internet and immediately saw the high level of craftsmanship and design of their team. Their portfolio showed high level of versatility and skill.

Describe the video(s) and the process in detail.

We sent them a script, a color palette, guidelines, some visual concepts as well as references of the videos we liked. They informed us about each stage of the production process. We started from the storyboarding phase and sample illustrations. Once we approved the illustrations, we sent them a draft music soundtrack with the VO we chose and they started the animation. We provided feedback to XPLAI team in every step of the process and they showed great level of professionalism in quick responses and ability to understand and work without too much direction. They understood the idea of the project and provided a number of ideas we could use to visually show our audience the ideas we wanted to convey to them.

What was your vendors' project management or feedback process?

XPLAI managers stayed in touch with our team from beginning to the end. They provided excellent feedback and ideas. It was very easy to get a hold of them and get them to share their existing material with us, so we could respond with our corrections. If I could give them a rating of 1 to 10, they would be 11. Each member of their team was timely and accurate. Besides being responsive they are simply the most creative team we have came across in our search. Superb commitment to excellence and style.

RESULTS & FEEDBACK

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

We think that this project was just a beginning of our long term partnership and cooperation with XPLAI. We have released the video to our audience and received extremely strong feedback. We have multiple companies we deal with currently who have expressed interest in hiring XPLAI for their businesses. The level of care and professionalism is something we have not seen with video/animation and we are very fortunate to have come across their team. We will certainly have additional projects together.

How effective was the workflow between your team and theirs?

The process was very fluid and easy. Turn around times were less than a day when we had corrections. Calls backs were immediate. Although I know the team was very busy, they found time for us.

What did you find most impressive about this company?

XPLAI delivers outstanding high- quality work. We are very satisfied with the final outcome and pleased to have such a great opportunity to work with the real professionals. In the very beginning they presented a number of ideas to us, and showed how creative their team could be.

The most important thing I found with XPLAI is their ability to understand the project, take a short amount of time to present a rough draft and go right to implementation. Most of the ideas in this animation came directly from their team. They were spot on, and our audience responded with respect and interest to our company because of XPLAI creativity. We are very proud to have had the chance to work with them.

Are there any areas for improvement?

We couldn’t find any. They are simply superb. If youre looking for a fast, reliable, responsive, high quality artists and animators, look no further. These guys are the real deal.

UPDATED REVIEW

This review was updated on November 26th, 2019, by the client. New content is below:

Introduce your business and what you do there.

I’m the co-owner of Credit Booster. We help our clients reach a maximum credit score by either fixing issues on their credit or giving them a boost through our programs.

What challenge were you trying to address with XPLAI?

We needed to have an animated video that would convey our services to our clients. We wanted to simplify the process and control what our business is about.

What was the scope of their involvement?

The team at XPLAI was involved in the whole process. Along with animation, their team assisted with scripting and storyboarding. There were a few different versions, but the final product ended up being a minute.

What is the team composition?

In total, I’d say we worked with six to 10 people. We had contact with animators, the project manager, and their CEO.

How did you come to work with XPLAI?

I saw their positive reviews on Google.

How much have you invested with them?

We spent just under $10,000.

What is the status of this engagement?

We worked with XPLAI from August–November 2019.

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

We were extremely happy with XPLAI. They’re professional and skilled at what they do. Their team was excellent at getting back. Every time we had a question or wanted to change a stylistic element, they were quick to respond. Communication was also seamless. We’re going to work with them on more projects in the future.

How did XPLAI perform from a project management standpoint?

Their communication was excellent. We mainly used Skype. They would send a storyboard to us, and we would send along the proper feedback. Their team was ready to listen, quickly implementing before going into the actual process for animation and development. It was easy to work with them in a back-and-forth process like this.

What did you find most impressive about them?

Their team has a versatile skillset and are able to understand tasks quickly. Sometimes clients can communicate an idea to a vendor, but find that they have different visions. When we communicated our ideas to XPLAI, they presented an accurate vision. Even with changes, they were able to add additional ideas and insights. Typically, not everyone has the same vision but because of their skillset, it was easy to agree with their ideas.

Do you have any advice for potential customers?

If you come across XPLAI and are lucky to work with them on your project, you’re going to get excellent results.

BACKGROUND

Please describe your company and your position there.

I’m the content specialist for a leading blockchain platform as a service company.

OPPORTUNITY / CHALLENGE

For what projects/services did your company hire XPLAI?

We hired them to create various explainer videos around our offerings and features.

What were your goals for this project?

To have better communication across our complex feature set.

SOLUTION

How did you select this vendor?

We selected them based on their pricing, portfolio, and responsiveness.

Describe the video(s) and the process in detail.

We provided them with briefs and rough storyboards, then they come back with mockups and later, complete animations.

What was your vendors' project management or feedback process?

They’ve been thorough and patient at incorporating our extensive feedback.

RESULTS & FEEDBACK

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

Every one of our videos has come out well. They’ve increased traffic to our website, generated a better understanding of our product and its features, and increased our social media likes.

How effective was the workflow between your team and theirs?

Julia (Producer, XPLAI) is our project manager and she’s a paragon of patience. We’ve gone through numerous iterations, and she’s patiently helped to incorporate our feedback to deliver a finished, slick video end of the day.

What did you find most impressive about this company?

Their customer service is unbeatable. Our project manager was thorough and patient in her communication us and without her, our projects would not have seen the light of day. The technical team did a wonderful job of delivering slick videos at an affordable price.

Are there any areas for improvement?

They should keep doing the same.

BACKGROUND

Please describe your company and your position there.

I am part of the team behind a technology platform that powers shared mobility services.

OPPORTUNITY / CHALLENGE

For what projects/services did your company hire XPLAI?

Video production.

What were your goals for this project?

We asked XPLAI to produce a video explaining the motivation behind creating our company and its core characteristics. The video content was integrated into our website.

SOLUTION

How did you select this vendor?

We carried out research to find video production companies that could create the kind of content we were aiming for, under our budget and time constraints.

Describe the video(s) and the process in detail.

We initially provided the video script and some input on the illustration style. XPLAI took it from there, producing a storyboard that we reviewed and changed to our preferences. This was followed by visual illustrations that we iterated on with XPLAI. Afterwards, we were given sample voice recordings by different voice artists to choose from.

The audio was recorded and we were able to make changes on this as well. We provided XPLAI with the music background track that we preferred and they delivered a video production result that we were absolutely satisfied with.

What was your vendors' project management or feedback process?

XPLAI assigned one person as the project manager. We worked with that person through email exchanges, voice calls, a video call and messaging. We were asked for feedback in every step of the process and they were very fast to iterate on this feedback.

RESULTS & FEEDBACK

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

They were very easy to work with. The project was completed in time, under budget and matched our requirements.

How effective was the workflow between your team and theirs?

The workflow was very effectictive and the comunication overhead was minimal.

What did you find most impressive about this company?

What I found most impressive was the speed at which they iterated and responded to our feedback. They were very responsive and made remote collaboration easy for us.

Are there any areas for improvement?

The sky is the limit.

BACKGROUND

Please describe your company and your position there.

I'm a communication manager for an independent, non-profit, non-commercial think tank. We analyze policies and provide solutions to improve equality and social justice in school and higher education, urban development and migration governance.

OPPORTUNITY / CHALLENGE

For what projects/services did your company hire XPLAI?

We needed an attractive poster to grab the attention of school graduates and encourage them to make an informed choice on their higher education. The Ministry of Education and Science will oblige every school in Ukraine to hang this poster during the graduation period.

What were your goals for this project?

Our research showed that graduates often chose their university and profession based on rumors and stereotypes, so we wanted to improve the number of graduates making evidence-based decisions on their continuing education.

SOLUTION

How did you select this vendor?

I searched through around 200 profiles of Ukrainian graphic designers and illustrators on Behance, then contacted about 30 of them whom I thought had complementary styles. We chose XPLAI because they had their contract process in order and they were quick, kind and rational during the negotiation process.

Describe the scope of their work in detail.

They received our description of the audience, the aims of our project, and the text of the product. They proposed several styles and made 12 example works, then created the draft based on the style we chose. They were eager to finalize the draft according to any suggestions I had.

What was the team composition?

I worked with a project manager.

RESULTS & FEEDBACK

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

The project is still ongoing, so I can’t provide results for the posters. However, we’ve used the style and illustrations developed by XPLAI to create a landing page, which has been tested already and users have found it interesting and attractive.

How effective was the workflow between your team and theirs?

It was very helpful that their supportive project manager could correspond electronically so that I didn't have to call and talk. All of our negotiations are written and I could refer to the previously made suggestions to check if we did all we planned. They delivered on time at every step.

What did you find most impressive about this company?

Their delivery of an array of quality examples gave us the opportunity to make an excellent design choice. All of the examples were well drawn, so we could concentrate on the style of work rather than judging quality.

Are there any areas for improvement?

No, I can’t think of anything.