Zco

Please describe your company and your position there.

I am the VP of Technology at ITR Economics. We provide the best economic intelligence to reduce risk and drive practical and profitable business decisions.

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

We wanted to develop a mobile app that could be used by our clients that had subscriptions with us or for those that are attending onsite presentations to hear one of our speakers. We wanted to provide an ondemand experience with realtime, actionable data. The website needed to be simplistic, modern, and easy to use for our clients.

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

Zco was originally selected through a third party company that we hired to build our website. When we brought website development in house, we interviewed Zco and worked with them on the first phase of the app. Because they are so great to work with and the exceptional work they do, we continue to use them through several iterations of the app since its original launch a couple years ago.

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

We design the mockups in house using figma. Since we have in-house developers for the website, the API/endpoint work is also done in-house. When app development is needed, we create the designs and a basic requirements document. I then meet with Zco to go over the designs and requirements. They let us know what changes need to be made to our site or the endpoints for them to be able to build the app.

Our project manager and lead developer work with Zco and their developers to build in tandem to support the launch. We support both iOS and Android for our app. The app itself includes subscription access, client and guest access, new user sign up, user account deletion, polling, videos in VIMEO and youtube as well as blogs. We create a multi tier menu structure. All of this works fantastic thanks to Zco and their recommendations for our endpoints, etc.

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

I worked with two of their team members. (Account Executive & Principle Project Manager)

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

Since launching 2 years ago, we have maintained a 5 star rating. The app has very infrequent crashing and great metrics for stability and usability. Zco always delivers on time and provides feedback along the way.

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

Project manager was great to work with. He is great at communicating with us, asking the right questions, keeping us in the loop, and making us aware of project spend rate, timeline, etc. Our preferred communication is email but sometimes we will hop on a zoom call to go over questions or the requirements as needed.

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

I'm very impressed with Zco's account executive and project manager. Both are very communicative and open, honest about the project and our companies. The companies work is fantastic but it is because of these two I will continue to work with Zco for what I hope is a very long time.

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

Not at this time.

Introduce your business and what you do there.

I'm the founder of Songwave, a social music application.

What challenge were you trying to address with Zco?

I needed a company that could help me build the core product for my business.

What was the scope of their involvement?

I retained Zco to build a mobile app for iOS and Android. It’s a social music app that allows users to send music recommendations to their friends. Those interactions also populate a social feed in the app so other users can see what everyone else is recommending.

We started our engagement with some exploratory conversations, in which we agreed to start with the design and early conceptualization phases. I provided them with the business requirements document for the product. They delivered a series of early wireframes, 75 different interface screens, and design documents to help guide us to a final design. 

After that, they released the second scope, which involved the development of the actual product and building it in iterations so that some features come in waves. We ended up doing five sprints of development work for the second scope. 

Each sprint was about four weeks long, and we're currently wrapping up the final sprint. We're almost at a point where we have the final app, and we plan to submit it to the app marketplaces soon. 

The app’s frontend was built using React Native. We used Azure for hosting and MongoDB for the database.

What is the team composition?

I primarily work with a project manager from Zco, but I also work with a core team of five people on the design and development side.

How did you come to work with Zco?

I found Zco through Clutch.

How much have you invested with them?

We’ve spent around $92,500 so far.

What is the status of this engagement?

We started working together in October 2021, and the engagement is ongoing.

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

The product is really high quality, which I’m very happy with.

How did Zco perform from a project management standpoint?

Zco has performed well in terms of project management. Our project manager has been terrific — he’s done a great job of relaying information between the design and development team and me. He’s also very responsive and knowledgeable. He catches potential risk areas early on and communicates those so we can come to a resolution before they become a problem.

We primarily communicate through Basecamp, and we also have regular weekly calls.

What did you find most impressive about them?

I really appreciate how detail-oriented the Zco team is. They’ve been able to accurately translate my business document into the final product.

Are there any areas they could improve?

I’d give the design phase a 7/10 in terms of the actual quality of the visual design versus the creative artwork that went into the app. But everything else has been top-notch quality — the final product is coming together great.

Do you have any advice for potential customers?

Reach out to them right away because they are very accessible, and they'll be excited to talk about your project. It’s also a good idea to get organized in terms of exactly what you want to accomplish.

Please describe your company and your position there.

We are an NYC startup company focused on improving the lives of families living with autism.

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

We hired Zco to help us build a mobile application that could be used by caregivers providing care for their autistic dependents. Our goal was to create a user-friendly and useful tool that could be successfully utilized by a parent and their child.

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

We searched for local app developers who had similar types of projects in their portfolio. After interviewing them, we went with their service based on their project portfolio and cost estimate.

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

We spoke about the app's features, the target user, and how we envisioned the app could work. We provided wireframes and color/logo designs. Zco designers quickly came up with the app design that we went with immediately.

The entire work has been split into milestones and estimated effort to complete each. After each milestone, we provided feedback and re-tested the features. The app was run through numerous tests before its launch.

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

We had a project manager and one lead developer working with us throughout the entire project.

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

Our app appeared live in the Apple Store and we yet have to see it in Google Play. We have no metrics to provide yet but we anticipate positive feedback and most importantly, effective use of our app.

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

Our Project Manager, Michael, guided us throughout the entire project. He was very responsive and thorough in his explanations. Whenever we came across a difficulty understanding the issue or re-testing a feature, he was able to work with his team on getting things resolved and moving us towards the finish line.

Michael would notify us if there were expected delays or if the items we requested were out of project scope. We communicated primarily over email, although we engaged in a few video and phone calls as well. Mike is the true best resource at Zco for all project-related needs, and we are happy to stay in touch with him during our app maintenance service.

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

Patience with first-time app clients. As first-time app clients, we provided tons of weekly feedback with all tweaks and asks about what can be done better.

Zco project manager and a lead developer were patiently changing the content per our requests to our satisfaction and answering all questions we had. This was very important to us, and we received quality service and communication at all times.

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

Our only recommendation is to improve the medium through which the milestone and issue feedback ( from client to Zco and the other way) is communicated. We used GitHub to communicate our feedback on each issue and although it worked, we think another platform might do a better job.

Introduce your business and what you do there.

I’m a director and a QA specialist at a nonprofit that provides counseling on debt management.

What challenge were you trying to address with Zco?

Our previous client portal was antiquated and had been built with old technology by an internal team member many years ago. We needed a modern, secure, and functional client portal for our customers to access their account information online.

What was the scope of their involvement?

Zco developed our new portal from scratch. I designed the wireframes, and they delivered a brand new build for the website, with nothing piggybacking off the old system.

Their team gave us some placeholders for the content, which we then replaced with our own. After a lot of testing, we released the product to clients. 

Additionally, Zco did database and system audits for us. Currently, they’re still engaged with us to support our website. 

What is the team composition?

Praveen (Project Manager) was our main point of contact. He directed the entire team from Zco, which consisted of about 8–10 people working on different parts of the project.

How did you come to work with Zco?

We found them through online research. We interviewed and got estimates from three different companies, and just speaking with Zco, their expertise was pretty obvious from the get-go.

How much have you invested with them?

So far, we’ve spent about $40,000. For our support contract, we pay Zco as we need them.

What is the status of this engagement?

We started working together in November 2020, and the engagement is ongoing.

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

Zco’s work has been very successful. Almost no one used the old client portal because it wasn’t effective. Now, a higher percentage of our clients are using our new portal. Zco is always spot on with deliverables, too.

How did Zco perform from a project management standpoint?

Their project management is amazing; they’ve really driven the whole project, managing it soup to nuts and never missing a beat. 

Zco always follows up with us to make sure we get them what they need and that they deliver what we need.

We use Basecamp to collaborate. Our primary communication tool is email, and we’ve also done a lot of Zoom calls because we’ve been working through the COVID-19 pandemic.

What did you find most impressive about them?

Although this is our first time using a third party for a big project, Zco has stood out ever since we were looking for who to work with. During our search, the Zco team was far superior in terms of general knowledge and pricing and seemed a lot more professional than their competitors.

Are there any areas they could improve?

There isn’t anything they need to improve. If anything, there’s been a language barrier with some of their offshore team members. However, they do a great job handling the issue; Praveen is always our communicator.

Do you have any advice for potential customers?

Be prepared to move quickly with what they need. Zco has a sizeable team, and they put resources into their projects. As a nonprofit, we don’t have a ton of resources, so during development, they were waiting on us more than the other way around. If you can, be prepared to give them what they need to drive the project forward.

Introduce your business and what you do there.

I’m the president and CEO of Fresh New Start, a company that helps people with developmental disabilities become more independent. We go into homes, provide staff that can help people shop, clean, and do other tasks, and set goals for our customers to enable them to lead a self-sufficient lifestyle.

What challenge were you trying to address with Zco?

The federal government required agencies like ours to provide an automated, GPS-tracked timesheet to make sure that our people are clocking in and out where they say they are. We were recommended some companies who could provide the software, but the tech provided was hard to manipulate or understand and just wasn't very productive. We decided to develop our own program with the help of Zco.

What was the scope of their involvement?

I came up with the PowerPoint presentation to show how we wanted the software to look like. Zco took on those specifications and built a tool that could not only do GPS tracking and automated timekeeping but also make our operations paperless through digital forms. They also developed an app that could go with the software.

I tested the functionality and interface of the program and provided my feedback to Zco. They made changes and improvements accordingly. 

What is the team composition?

The word least 3–4 people from Zco that I interfaced with over the course of this project. They have some members in Boston and others in India. 

How did you coWeatherme to work with Zco?

We had already worked with Zco previously to develop a simple program. 

How much have you invested with them?

I’ve invested under $200,000.

What is the status of this engagement?

We started the engagement in October 2019. The program was completed in seven months, but we’re still working with Zco for maintenance and changes.

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

Through the software developed by Zco, I’m able to receive documentation about what’s going on at the home that we’re servicing. Prior to having this program, we were struggling to get notes and ensure their accuracy, even falling behind by a month. Now, I can see activity instantaneously instead of having to hear about it through phone calls and texts. I’m also able to observe trends and receive alerts when an employee doesn’t show up. 

How did Zco perform from a project management standpoint?

Zco is very patient especially when I ask for something to be changed on the software. They accommodate all of my requests and get it done on the promised time and date.

We do a lot of our communication via Basecamp but we also email back and forth. We hold weekly meetings over Zoom.

What did you find most impressive about them?

Zco is more knowledgeable than most of the programmers I’ve worked with. They’re really able to take on complex projects and can respond quickly when we need something fixed. 

Are there any areas they could improve?

No, nothing major stands out.

Do you have any advice for potential customers?

Make sure to be very detailed with your requirements. That way you wouldn't need to go back and have something fixed. It will save you a lot of money. 

Introduce your business and what you do there.

My organization is called Best Coffee Shops. We’re primarily a search engine similar to Yelp, though it’s more community-based and interactive.

What challenge were you trying to address with Zco? 

We knew that building a mobile app required a lot more detail than just an idea, so we were looking for a developer to build our app and a website.

What was the scope of their involvement?

We had a number of features we wanted in the app, and Zco delivered them all. We requested a map feature to see where coffee shops are in your area, a home page where you can see different users’ home feeds, pictures they post, and coffee shops they’ve checked into, and a profile page where you can look at the places you’ve been to and the pictures you’ve taken. Additionally, we asked for a search engine so users can find and follow friends. 

The map is a blank canvas where users put pins on a map, but there’s also a link that will take them to either Apple or Google Maps. If you’re looking for directions on that blank map, it will send you to Apple or Google Maps. The app is for iOS and Android. 

We took our time developing the application. The app has a lot to do with people traveling and going out to places, and with COVID-19, I was very willing to take our time and release the app when society was a bit more back to normal. Because of this, we did decent amounts of testing on both our end and Zco’s end. 

The website was a means to an end, rather than an end to itself. It’s designed to provide general information about the app and then move people forward to the app to explore its features. Zco handled the layout and the technical development of the website. We provided a lot of guidance on the color scheme and the logo — the aesthetics came from us — but they did help us explore logos. Additionally, we developed the content for the site. Zco ultimately produced the brand that we envisioned internally. 

What is the team composition?

I know that Zco had a full team, but I’m not sure if they outsourced any of the development work or content uploading tasks, as I primarily worked with two people. One resource managed the work, ensuring invoices were sent and responding to questions. The second resource oversaw the physical production of the project. He handled all questions about functionality and the app’s appearance. 

How did you come to work with Zco? 

I wanted to work with a developer who lived near me in New Hampshire that I could meet face to face and get a read on. I didn’t want a company to come at me for a quick cash grab; I wanted the app to have a heart and a soul. We hit it off well with Zco when we met in person. They also mentioned that they’d worked on a similar project revolving around golf courses.

How much have you invested with them?

We spent around $115,000. 

What is the status of this engagement?

The work began in January 2020, and the app launched in early March 2021.

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

We have nearly 200 people using the app without us doing any real advertising; we have a large campaign planned for July. These users came from one initial post we put on Facebook and a few pieces of content here and there. 

General feedback so far has been very constructive, which is why we did a soft-opening. This helps us determine whether the information is reaching the users efficiently. We’ve made a few adjustments since launch; our update was released a few days ago. Overall, we’ve gotten positive feedback. 

Because of the nature of the app, it’s not as much a consumer app right now — content needs to be put on there to make it more useful. The more users there are, the more content there will be. It’s going to become a more useful app over time. 

How did Zco perform from a project management standpoint?

They did very well. There’ve only been a few things that I wish Zco’s team had asked me more detailed questions about. 

We had to wait until all the adjustments were uploaded before we could critique them, rather than being able to give feedback throughout the process prior to upload. I feel like this change would have taken less time, but Zco did fairly well overall. 

We most commonly communicated over Basecamp. There were areas for us to talk about specific subjects. Larger questions were discussed over phone calls and emails. 

What did you find most impressive about them?

Their team is a bit younger, and I enjoyed them a lot. 

Are there any areas they could improve?

One potential improvement is asking more of those small, detail-oriented questions and ensuring that communication isn’t misunderstood. They could have sent me a few options before finalizing details rather than having to go back in and adjust it later. 

As a new business owner, I could have been much more detailed in my descriptions of certain aspects of the work as well. Some of the responsibility certainly falls on my end. 

Do you have any advice for potential customers?

Be very detailed and descriptive because they don’t fill in the blanks. They do exactly what you ask them to. If you deliver a list of tasks and functions, they’ll deliver those exclusively, even if there are things that seem obvious to you that must be included. Provide a very detailed description. 

Introduce your business and what you do there.

I’m one of the founders and chief manager of a mobile app company.

What challenge were you trying to address with Zco?

We needed someone to help us with mobile app development.

What was the scope of their involvement?

Zco built and developed our mobile app called Zinder for the Android and iOS platforms. It connects sales reps with anyone who’s searching for a product or service.

We started by sending a wireframe that I created to Zco. They took the idea, designed the screens, created the app, and submitted different deliverables. They documented the specifications of the app and how every button works together using Word, and then started reaching different design milestones. More and more features were implemented until the final application was complete.

They also created our website, and we’re thinking of using them more for marketing, but we just haven’t gotten far with them yet.

What is the team composition?

Our main point of contact is Don (Executive VP), but we work with around 4–5 people. Sometimes, there would be about 15 people involved whenever we have meetings.

How did you come to work with Zco?

I basically searched for global development companies online and read reviews on Clutch. I thought they had great reviews and they had a lot of history developing software as a service. Some of their companies are large companies like Samsung and Harvard Business, so I felt comfortable going with them. 

How much have you invested with them?

We were originally contracted for about $40,000, but we’ve added some changes and I believe we’ve spent a total of $160,000 so far.

What is the status of this engagement?

The ongoing partnership started in April 2020.

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

They created an admin website for us where we can see the downloads and number of users using the app — it even determines whether the user is a consumer or salesperson. The app also has a lot of reviews on the App Store and Google Play and so far, there have been no complaints and it’s been good. If there are any issues or updates needed to be implemented, Zco gladly addresses them.

How did Zco perform from a project management standpoint?

The specification document has different milestones that we use to pay them — each milestone has a different amount. For the project management, since there’s only really one or two points of contact, it helps the project move along and get everyone on the same page. We use Basecamp for the project and we typically communicate through email and phone.

What did you find most impressive about them?

We like that they’re easy to work with, and are always glad to help make changes and adjustments without nickel and diming me. They also address any issues experienced by the app very promptly.

Are there any areas they could improve?

One of the other members had an issue with Basecamp, but I never really had an issue with it. That’s the only thing I can think of as they’ve been great to work with.

Do you have any advice for potential customers?

My advice is to be diligent on your side as a customer and review the progress in a timely manner. They’ll give you about a week to review the product and provide comments and then after that, they go ahead and start moving on. This is important because it takes time to go back and change stuff once they’ve already moved forward.

Introduce your business and what you do there.

I’m the director of a company.

What challenge were you trying to address with Zco?

We needed help building a mobile app.

What was the scope of their involvement?

I contracted Zco to create specifications and features for a mobile app.

What is the team composition?

I worked with two people from Zco: the project manager and the lead engineer. They had people offshore who were doing a lot of the work as well.

How did you come to work with Steelkiwi?

I was searching online and found Zco.

How much have you invested with them?

We spent over $100,000.

What is the status of this engagement?

The project was completed.

How did your relationship with the vendor evolve?

There were too many delays on Zco's part. In the end, they produced the app, which is something I give them credit for. However, it took too much work on my part to keep the project on track.

How was project management handled?

Zco had a lot of problems keeping track of details. The US-based people were continuously having to get their offshore team to do the work, and a lot of it was lost in translation. It was exhausting for me to keep pointing out corrections and then, pointing out corrections to the corrections.

Is there anything that the vendor did well or that you would consider a strength?

The people I had contact with from Zco’s team were very nice and very responsive. They did put a lot of work into the project. Perhaps, they just needed to charge more and get more staff on board in order to produce a higher quality experience.

What advice do you have for clients with similar needs to yours?

For a simpler project, maybe Zco would be fine, but mine was a complex one. For that kind of project, you may want to look elsewhere.

Introduce your business and what you do there.

I’m the head of digital architecture at Aliv, a telecommunications company. I’m responsible for all new technology and building opportunities to earn revenue through tech.

What challenge were you trying to address with Zco?

We had a proof of concept (POC) AR product 2–3 years ago. When users clicked maps, content popped out. 

What was the scope of their involvement?

Zco helped us turn our POC AR product into a tourism product. Visitors to The Bahamas can use the product to find their way around the country using AR.

What is the team composition?

I dealt directly with three people, but the team was probably close to 20 people.

How did you come to work with Zco?

I searched for the best AR development companies. Zco came up as one of the top 10 companies through a few different tech blogs and Google.

How much have you invested with them?

My company spent about $170,000.

What is the status of this engagement?

We started working with Zco in February 2020, and we wrapped up that September.

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

I’m very happy with the end-product. The most important thing was that Zco understood our business rules very well. They had product managers who asked a lot of questions in non-technical ways so that they could understand what the business wanted to achieve. They also translated those objectives into functional requirements.

Zco’s core skill is that they manage their team of developers well. They found easier ways of achieving the same results, so they did a lot of third-party plugins and best practices that they brought themselves. The team didn’t have to do a lot of new development; rather, they were able to use existing technology.

How did Zco perform from a project management standpoint?

They did very well. Zco used a lot of technology like Basecamp or Slack to keep us up-to-date on all of the releases and the work that they were doing. It was all live, so we could watch it in real-time.

What did you find most impressive about them?

Our company works with a lot of developers. One thing that Zco did very well was management. They had a meeting at the beginning of the week to review functional requirements with the client. They made sure that we all agreed upon what they would be working on. Then, later that week, they had another meeting to articulate what they’d built, and they walked us through that bit-by-bit.

Are there any areas they could improve?

The original project cost was $140,000. With all development comes the need to translate an idea from one group to another. The only commentary I’d have is that the cost did increase as we developed the ideas over time, and I would’ve liked to keep it within budget.

Any advice for potential customers?

Have very clearly defined functional requirements. Document everything that you have in mind and use as many resources, like photos, links, or videos, to help explain your ideas. Also, ensure you have a weekly touchpoint with Zco. Quite frankly, they’re really great at managing clients’ expectations.

Introduce your business and what you do there.

I’m the president of a contractor company.

What challenge were you trying to address with Zco?

We were looking to expand our services by building a mobile app.

What was the scope of their involvement?

They did some extensive iOS/Android development work for us, and they continue to provide developing work.

It was a collaborative process. We approached them with our scope of work, and then we worked together to work on the first version of the app. Since then, we’ve told them what features we want to add, and they’re able to develop and deploy that for us. We’re on about the twentieth iteration of the app now.

What is the team composition?

We have one project manager that we deal with most frequently, and I’ve worked with 4–6 people over the course of the project.

How did you come to work with Zco?

We did a lot of research online and interviewed about 10 companies. In the end, we narrowed it down to three different agencies, conducted some interviews, reviewed their previous work, and then settled on Zco.

How much have you invested with them?

We’ve spent between $100,000–$200,000 so far.

What is the status of this engagement?

We started working together in January 2016 and we launched the app in April that year. We’re always giving them new features to incorporate into the mobile app, so our engagement is ongoing.

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

We’ve had a positive response from our users. Whenever we notice an issue with the app, we bring it to Zco’s attention, and they’re able to resolve it immediately. They're every quick and agile. I’m extremely satisfied with their work.

How did Zco perform from a project management standpoint?

They’ve performed very well. We’ve had many meetings over the phone and work closely with our internal team. We typically communicate using Basecamp as well. When we finally came up with the final scope of work, they followed the scope of work to a T.

What did you find most impressive about them?

Their attention to detail sets them apart from other providers. I feel like they’re part of my own staff. They work all the time and respond within minutes of any request we ask them. It seems like they really value our partnership as well.

Are there any areas they could improve?

I’m not sure there is anything they need to improve. Everything they delivered has been spot-on.

Do you have any advice for potential customers?

No matter who you work with, it’s important that you have a clear scope of work. Then set up a consultation with them to go over the scope and make sure that they understand it and think it’s realistic. It’s also important that you have a good project management tool like Basecamp. Basecamp was very simple and easy to use, and it helps ensure that the project will run smoothly.