7ninjas

BACKGROUND

Introduce your business and what you do there.

Our company is based in Bratislava, Slovakia, and we develop social e-commerce websites. I'm the CEO.

OPPORTUNITY / CHALLENGE

What challenge were you trying to address with 7ninjas?

We were looking for people good in their craft and suitable for our needs.

SOLUTION

What was the scope of their involvement?

They're developing both the backend and frontend of our web app. It is custom code based on React framework, and the backend is Node.js. The React ecosystem is a big feature, and many technologies have been used there.

What is the team dynamic?

We've worked with 7 to 8 members of their team, with around 5 people currently working on the project.

How did you come to work with them?

We tested many subcontractors. 7ninjas was very good in the execution of the first task I gave to them.

How much have you invested in them?

We have spent around €100,000 [$118,000 USD].

What is the status of this engagement?

We started working with them in August 2016, and the work is still ongoing. We will be launching the app later this year.

RESULTS & FEEDBACK

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

We've had iterated versions while we've been working with them. After each part, we test it and provide feedback, which they then incorporate into the product. Although it's sometimes a little stressful, feedback is positive overall, and their team handles it well and better than other subcontractors.

How did 7ninjas perform from a project management standpoint?

Initially, the project was not managed very well. I provided feedback, and they changed things in the way they ran their company, so management has gotten better. We are 85% satisfied.

We communicate mostly through Slack and internet channels. We've also met a couple of times, and it's never a problem to call them on Skype whenever I need to discuss something.

What did you find most impressive about them?

They know what technology is trending currently, and they focus all assets on it. They work with trending technologies like React and Node.js. I am a programmer myself, in the same industry, so I can tell if everything's going well. I have been happy with them because they're good listeners, and they are able to develop what I want.

Are there any areas they could improve?

In project management, things could sometimes be communicated more clearly.

BACKGROUND

Introduce your business and what you do there.

SportyHQ is a membership and competition management platform. We help sporting organizations run competitions, like tournaments and leagues. We also do run rankings, court bookings at clubs, class event management, etc. I’m the president of the company.

OPPORTUNITY / CHALLENGE

What challenge were you trying to address with 7ninjas?

We already had an iOS mobile app to score squash matches. A previous company had built the Android version, but it was poor quality. We wanted 7ninjas to rebuild the app in React Native because that lets you make an app one time and have it work on iOS or Android.

SOLUTION

What was the scope of their involvement?

They rebuilt the iOS app to be cross-platform compatible, which included building the Android app.

The app lets users score a squash match on a basic level. Users can set up the scoring system, add the players, general parameters, and points, and track any disputes. The app also ties into our service: if we have a client running a tournament on our platform, users can live score the match. While inputting points, they get sent to our server in real time and can follow along online. At the end of the match, everything gets updated. 7ninjas also helped us with live scoring for leagues, a feature they added.

What is the team dynamic?

They’re a great team, and everyone speaks English really well, which was important for us. They’re all young, enthusiastic, and engaged in their projects.

I worked with one or two people from their team when we were building the app. They are now redesigning our website, and the relationship is quite collaborative; I seem to meet a new person every day. They have a business developer whom I spoke to originally about the website. I’ve recently been dealing with the product manager, and today, I spoke to a designer. They’re all willing to get on the phone and help with any issue.

How did you come to work with 7ninjas?

We were using an independent contractor for our website, and I talked to him about our app. He suggested we use React Native to get what we wanted, and recommended us to 7ninjas.

How much have you invested with them?

We’ve spent more than $20,000.

What is the status of this engagement?

We started working together in May 2016, and the relationship is ongoing.

RESULTS & FEEDBACK

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

We are extremely happy overall. The app is on both stores and has close to a five-star rating. I play squash myself, and I see people using it all the time. The feedback we’ve received has been quite good, and from my own experience, the app is reliable and doesn’t crash.

Even though I’m a programmer, I didn’t know about React Native when I hired 7ninjas. I’ve learned it since, and I can see that their code is high quality.

How did 7ninjas perform from a project management standpoint?

Their communication is good, given that most of it happens online and they’re based halfway around the world. I can also talk with anyone on the team in their Slack channel. We mostly chat during Polish business hours, but if I need something early or late, they’re always accommodating. They’re a very open and accessible team.

What did you find most impressive about them?

The quality of their work and their communication makes them stand out. Their team cares and is fun and enthusiastic. I went offshore to save money compared to the US, and I’m sticking with them for all these reasons.

Are there any areas they could improve?

The only issue we’ve had is payment. I send wire transfers to them, which is not the most convenient, but it’s not a massive negative.

BACKGROUND

Introduce your business and what you do there.

I am one of the co-founders and the CFO of Flymble, a next-generation travel platform powered by fintech. We allow users to spread the cost of their flight tickets over monthly terms so that they can fly now and pay later. If someone wants to travel and the cost of a ticket is $500, with us, it can be spread over monthly terms, so travelers pay $50 per month.

OPPORTUNITY / CHALLENGE

What challenge were you trying to address with 7ninjas?

We started the company because we wanted to travel to Bangkok, but we didn’t have the money. We worked at a bar for three months, put aside the money, and had to pay $200 extra because the flight cost had increased. With Flymble, people can get their tickets right away, months in advance. We built the first version of the website on our own, after learning how to code. Eventually, we couldn’t handle the work anymore.

SOLUTION

What was the scope of their involvement?

They started with a structured process about the customer needs we wanted to address. We then integrated the design ideas we had in mind with 7ninjas’ process. They created a design, and, from there, developed the whole work. We don’t believe in mobile apps for this purpose since people only want those for day-to-day things. However, 7ninjas did make the website mobile-responsive.

We needed to rebuild the entire booking website. We sell tickets on a payments basis, but, before this step, we needed a search engine. It involved quite a lot of work with the APIs of other booking partners. 7ninjas integrated spread payments partners and connected complex systems like fintech loan generators with a booking platform, which are very complex things.

Everything was built from the ground up. For the frontend, we used React.js together with Redux, which is the technology used for Facebook. They also used JavaScript ES2015+, webpack, Babel, Yarn, ESLint, stylelint, Flow, RxJS, Reselect, Immutable, Lodash, Ramda, PostCSS, SCSS, CSS Modules, and Foundation for Emails 2.

On the backend, we used Django and Python-based languages. Our work involved the Django REST Framework, Django Channels, Tornado, Celery, and Haystack. The other technologies used were PostgreSQL, Redis, RabbitMQ, Ansible, Vagrant, Docker, Terraform, Amazon Web Services, Apiary, and Swagger.

What is the team dynamic?

The team size varied depending on the work needing to be done. On average, we had 5–6 members from 7ninjas. At the peak of the project, we had 12 people. There was also a period during which we focused more on sales and less on the product. That meant there were 2–3 months with no work.

How did you come to work with 7ninjas?

We approached multiple development teams via Upwork and met with them. We even traveled all the way to Warsaw to meet 7ninjas. Immediately, we could see that they were much more focused. They could see the bigger perspective—where we wanted to go and the best way to achieve that. In contrast, other agencies asked about our needs and immediately offered to execute them without thinking.

How much have you invested with them?

I don’t know the exact figure. So far, the total cost has been €150,000–€175,000 [$177,202–$210,000].

What is the status of this engagement?

Our first contact with 7ninjas was in June 2016, and we started working together in the first week of July. The first version of the booking platform was done in record time, launching in 6–7 months. We’ve just released the first version of the website, and the work is ongoing.

RESULTS & FEEDBACK

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

We’ve just released a new version of the platform. The previous one had massive conversion rates, of around 1.5%, whereas the travel industry averages 1.1%. Based on feedback, we needed to make the process more explanatory by educating the users. We’ve done just that with the new version, where we’ve added a “How it works” on top and a tutorial. Our first vision was to make the website playful and friendly, but the feedback we got drove us to change our style.

How did 7ninjas perform from a project management standpoint?

The project managers are concerned with identifying the fundamental customer pain points. They’re communicative. We mainly use Slack and phones for communication. We’ve also visited 7ninjas frequently.

What did you find most impressive about them?

Project management is one of their strongest points, especially in the case of our contact, who joined the company two months ago.

Are there any areas they could improve?

It would be great to have a public platform for tracking invoices. They send out invoices every two weeks, but we need to manage our cash flow, and we sometimes ask for more work.

Do you have any advice for future clients of theirs?

They take the process broadly, which could irritate some people looking for companies to do what they want to get done. It depends on what the client is looking for. In our case, it is great that 7ninjas provided a fundamental look at our project. It can be a long process, but it has worked out well for us.

BACKGROUND

Introduce your business and what you do there.

I’m founder of a startup company that operates a freight aggregator website. Businesses log into our website, type in what they want to send, and we would give them options from different freight carriers across Australia.

OPPORTUNITY / CHALLENGE

What challenge were you trying to address with 7ninjas?

I was looking for someone to help me build the website from scratch. I was trying to do it myself, but I realized I needed professional help.

SOLUTION

What was the scope of their involvement?

I had some ideas of what I wanted for the functionality of the website. We did a research and development phase to figure out how the site should work and how it should be laid out. This process took a couple of months and it made me look at the project from a different perspective, which really helped.

From there, 7ninjas started building the site. They began with UI/UX [user interface/user experience] design and user flows. They are now working on the frontend and backend development. We plan to launch in two weeks.

Quite a few of the integrations with freight carriers have been difficult to deal with, especially in Australia, because their technologies aren’t that good. Fortunately, 7ninjas showed me some technology I wasn’t even aware of, which made the job quicker and saved me a lot of time. They also did all the designs, including a new logo and brand.

What is the team dynamic?

I’ve dealt with two or three different graphic designers. Currently, there are seven people working on the project, including two frontend developers and one backend developer. There are other resources that have come and gone during the process. I’ve probably dealt with ten resources at the most.

How did you come to work with 7ninjas?

I found them on Upwork. I posted my job, and there were lots of applications. I looked for the best quality work and found a job that 7ninjas had done, which was a website for an airline booking site. I loved the design and functionality of the website. It was exactly what I dreamed of having for my website. I contacted them, and someone got in touch with me. She was amazing—really friendly and approachable.

How much have you invested with them?

So far, I’ve spent $20,000–$30,000 on their services.

What is the status of this engagement?

I started working with them in May 2017.

RESULTS & FEEDBACK

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

We worked on a prototype before they started development so I know how everything works. I’ve shown it to a few people, and they’ve been very impressed. It’s a good website and everything goes together quite well.

How did 7ninjas perform from a project management standpoint?

They’re in Poland and I’m in Australia. Working with someone internationally on a completely different time zone was a new thing for me in web development. I thought that was going to be challenging, but it has been so seamless. They’re online all the time, and we’re chatting all the time on Slack.

We have meetings every week and calls twice a week with the project manager, Karol. He tells me what they’d been doing on the project. He’s so organized and professional. He pays attention to details, and what he does is impressive. He knows every part of the project, and I know he’s involved with other people’s projects as well. He’s bilingual and communicates to a lot of other people.

What did you find most impressive about them?

They’re very honest, and all of the estimates have been accurate so far. My budget was restrictive, and they’ve been really accommodating with that. They always found a way to make it work. They’re really friendly people. I was scared about working with an agency, but they’ve made it so easy. They’re excited to work on the project, which makes life easy. They’re very fair and have done all the right things, so I’m really impressed with that.