"Hidden Brains will get the right result the first time."
Hidden Brains developed the backend of a training website. Features included tracking student progress and saving locations for the next visit. They also developed apps with the same functionalities.
"Hidden Brains will get the right result the first time."
A Clutch analyst personally interviewed this client over the phone. Below is an edited transcript.
Please describe your organization.
We're a software training company producing online courses and tutorials.
What is your position?
I am the owner of the company.
What business challenge were you trying to address with Hidden Brains?
We're an Adobe-authorized training center. We have a lot of experience with software and web design. My particular skills were not in web development, so I was looking for a company that could take my directions and build our website. I knew what I wanted it to look like and how I wanted it to function. I hired Hidden Brains to code the backend of it.
Please describe the scope of their involvement in greater detail.
The first phase was getting the right functionality for the website. There is an amount of complexity in tracking students' progress on various courses. That information needed to be saved until their next visit to the site. We wanted to deliver the same experience through Android and iOS devices. Hidden Brains also developed those apps for us, based upon my user interface and directions. They tie into the website functionality, so the backend is the same. The added feature on apps is that, for certain high-ranking users, offline viewing is also possible.
How did you come to work with Hidden Brains?
We went through a couple of different companies, without great success, and ultimately found Hidden Brains.
Could you provide a sense of the size of this initiative in financial terms?
The initial project was in the $50,000 range. We spend between $30,000-40,000 on an annual basis for continued development.
What is the status of this engagement?
Our relationship started in 2012. The work is ongoing. After the initial development ended, we continued adding new features and modifying the site.
Could you share any feedback from this engagement?
When we make requests and map out new functionalities, Hidden Brains will get the right result the first time. They occasionally make modifications on their work, but for the most part, we receive what we want.
How did Hidden Brains perform from a project management standpoint?
Our experience with Hidden Brains did come with a few snags. It's difficult to not sit in the same room with someone as you're explaining requirements. Things sometimes get lost with remote communication. Ultimately, they seemed to be able to do what we asked of them. Most of the time, when we laid out what we wanted to accomplish, Hidden Brains was good at getting it done properly on the first attempt. This is important because the website has 30,000 users. If something breaks, emails will start pouring in.
What distinguishes Hidden Brains from other providers?
They seem to have a decent amount of developers. If I need a larger-scope feature done quickly, Hidden Brains will be able to deliver without a drop in quality.
Is there anything Hidden Brains could have improved or done differently?
There's always room for improvement, but I don't have specific examples.
"I had never seen this much clarity and transparency with any firm."
Hidden Brains InfoTech manages a web application for an online vehicle marketplace. They provide wireframes and flowcharts, comprehensive project planning, and development.
"I had never seen this much clarity and transparency with any firm."
Midway through development, all milestones have met expectations and been delivered on schedule. Hidden Brains InfoTech's organized, methodical approach to planning and documentation makes the project run smoothly. They clearly explain each stage of the process and deliver exactly what they promise.
A Clutch analyst personally interviewed this client over the phone. Below is an edited transcript.
Please describe your organization.
I started an internet project approximately 10 years ago and it consisted of two components: a car marketplace and e-commerce. I did everything: I started a company, registered a brand and did some marketing research in Mexico, which resulted in a very successful plan. Unfortunately, I had a lot of trouble with the development of the application, especially since this business is internet-based.
What is your position?
I am the owner.
What business challenge were you trying to address with Hidden Brains?
I went through several development attempts with different programming groups. I even approached the Monterrey Institute of Technology and Higher Education, which assigned senior students to my case but yielded no results. After this, I engaged with a group in Guadalajara for the development of the app, and they ended up leaving, claiming they had a problem, taking my money with them.
So ultimately, I was looking for a group of developers who could build my application.
Please describe the scope of their involvement in greater detail.
We initially signed a contract to do the wireframe of the project. The wireframe was very successful especially because they helped me clarify my ideas of the project. I had a lot of specifications, but it was all very disorganized. They assigned to me a business analyst to make everything clear, black and white. He created flow charts and put the project down on paper so we could create the wireframe. I considered this to be a success because they understood exactly what I wanted to do. This hadn’t been possible for me in 10 years. No development company had been able to organize my project this way.
How did you come to work with Hidden Brains?
I had done some previous online research for app developers and had found someone from Hidden Brains. So we talked and they offered to support the development of my app. At the time, I wasn’t very trusting. I thought that if it was hard to develop the project in my own home country, it would be even harder to outsource the work in places like India. We communicated back and forth for 3 to 4 years before I finally decided to contract them.
Could you provide a sense of the size of this initiative in financial terms?
The first phase is between $10,000 and $50,000. The second phase is between $50,000 and $100,000.
What is the status of this engagement?
We began the first phase in September, 2015 and it consisted of the development of the wireframe. The project is still ongoing.
Could you share any statistics or metrics from this engagement?
Currently, we’re working on the development phase of the application. So far, we have completed the wireframing. The app is 50% underway in development. We have a time/work schedule that we have both respected: me, with payments and them, with timely delivery of their work. They have been very formal so far and I haven’t had any problems.
How did Hidden Brains perform from a project management standpoint?
The way they work is very organized and formal. We signed a digital contract consisting of 90 pages that contains all the details and requirements we agreed upon. Everything has been carrying on very well. I haven’t seen this type of work methodology in Mexico for the past 10 years.
What distinguishes Hidden Brains from other providers?
What distinguishes Hidden Brains is their organizational skills. First, they will clearly establish the scope of work. They will put the information in flow charts and create a wireframe so that the client can understand everything clearly.
I had never seen this much clarity and transparency with any firm in my country. Tech people will talk about technical stuff and one tends to assume that they understand what you want, but in the end, they’ll deliver something entirely different. With Hidden Brains, everything was clear from the beginning. We did a lot of work at first. I paid about $4,000 to create the blue prints of the project. Hidden Brains did this and created a technical document (whitepaper). After this, we entered into the second phase, which is the actual development and it’s at a 50% completion. The development files are expected to be delivered on April 20th, 2016.
Is there anything Hidden Brains could have improved or done differently?
No. Up until now, I haven’t identified any weakness in their service. They have delivered at 100% of their capacity, sticking to all established requirements. I had my doubts at the beginning, but this was due to my 10 years of bad experiences. With the way things have been working so far, everything is great. They have really competent people and they’re good at teamwork. The business analyst that I initially worked with is in charge of the technical aspects of the development. So far, everything has been going great and I hope to not receive any bad surprises.
“[I like] their versatility, their professionalism, and their dedication to staying within the timeframe.”
Hidden Brains developed an iOS and Android app to serve as a travel guide. They also provided some Web development for the associated website. Their work is ongoing for enhancements and support.
“[I like] their versatility, their professionalism, and their dedication to staying within the timeframe.”
The app has been very well received; the user interface design is particularly strong. The team dutifully honored the budget and the timeline, and they always behaved with the utmost professionalism. They were very patient with a changing project scope.
A Clutch analyst personally interviewed this client over the phone. Below is an edited transcript.
Please describe your organization.
My company is Caribbean Online Advertising. A subsidiary of that is Cay-Guide, which is based in the Cayman Islands. It is an online directory. It's realistic and centered around lifestyle. The goal for us is for Cay-Guide to become the premier app that people visit when they want to learn about the Cayman Islands. We want it to be an application that makes life easier, not just for tourists, but also for locals. Our intention is to take over the online advertising market. We've seen some gaps that we can fill.
What is your position?
I'm the founder and owner of Caribbean Online Advertising.
What business challenge were you trying to address with Hidden Brains?
There are two ventures we've undergone with Hidden Brains. One of them is in development and the other one is the Cay-Guide mobile app.
Please describe the scope of their involvement in greater detail.
When I came to Hidden Brains, I had an idea. I didn't want to bounce between people. I wanted a one-stop shop. It was the first time I'd done a mobile application, and I wanted the experience to be smooth. I knew it wasn’t necessarily going to be an easy process. It involves telling somebody across the world exactly what it is that you want done. If I were to do another mobile application, I would gladly use Hidden Brains again. They made it easy. They accommodated me in every way possible - and truth be told, I was a bit of a pain.
We would have Skype calls almost every morning and they understood what I wanted just from me telling it to them once. They met my needs. I wanted them to get creative at one point: I told them what colors I wanted to use, and asked for some samples. They delivered remarkable examples and even made it hard to choose between some of them.
The mobile app was built for Android and iOS.
How did you come to work with Hidden Brains?
Selecting them wasn't easy. I was entertaining over fifty proposals. I narrowed it down to about ten. When I saw Hidden Brains, I was very impressed and I put them in a special category, and continued reviewing the others. Of course, I still wanted to do my due diligence and researched some of the work that they'd done. I fell in love with it immediately. I thought they would know exactly what it is that I want to do. We had a lot of communication during that time, and the professionalism they showed in the process made it easy to work with them.
What is the status of this engagement?
We started working with them in February of 2015. The app has been completed; however, from a creative standpoint, there’s still some work left to do. Just this morning, I was thinking about updates that I want to send for Hidden Brains to implement. Officially, it exists in both the Apple and Android app stores. They helped me through the entire tedious process of publishing it.
There are items that I personally want to improve. I want it to be a bit quicker and more responsive. I'll discuss it with them, and see if it's even worth it cost-wise.
Could you provide a sense of the size of this initiative in financial terms?
The project budget was around $8,000-$10,000.
As the project starts to take off, it also evolves. I started adding new things and dealing with both platforms made it more expensive.
Could you share any statistics or metrics from this engagement?
Everyone I've introduced to the app so far has liked it. People are impressed with the user interface and the flow and colors of it.
What distinguishes Hidden Brains from other providers?
What I definitely like about Hidden Brains is their versatility, their professionalism, and their dedication to staying within the timeframe of the project. As a client, you have deadlines to meet; we agreed on them and they delivered. They also gave me some nice discounts.
Is there anything Hidden Brains could have improved or done differently?
We uncovered different issues and we worked past them. Maybe I had some issues and gaps on my end that couldn't be fulfilled right away. They were very patient.
"[T]he quality of the final product seems to be a lot more buttoned up than any other group."
Hidden Brains InfoTech provides augmentary development resources for an agency. They have built extensive websites, iOS and Android apps, and a cross-platform mobile device management system.
"[T]he quality of the final product seems to be a lot more buttoned up than any other group."
Successful projects have landed lucrative contracts with large clients. All of Hidden Brains InfoTech's solutions are clean, cohesive, and highly functional. Their exclusive focus on development enables them to deliver uniformly exceptional results.
A Clutch analyst personally interviewed this client over the phone. Below is an edited transcript.
Please describe your organization.
We are an online digital agency shop. We do everything from web design, software design, and development, to the marketing of the sites and products that we create for people.
What is your position?
I'm one of the owners.
What business challenge were you trying to address with Hidden Brains InfoTech?
One of our biggest challenges was actually finding reliable resources and, more importantly, resources that had enough bandwidth to handle the number of projects we had coming in at any given time. Up until that point, I would say that we had been using between five and ten different shops to try to get done what we're currently doing exclusively with Hidden Brains. They're handling everything large and small for us, outside of search engine marketing and things of that nature, which we have another group handling. They're the sole development shop that we use for every project now.
Please describe the scope of their involvement in detail.
One of the first projects that we did was an online classified site. It was geared up to be a niche Yelp-type of site for anybody in the window and glass business. We were going to take that model and expand it into different markets after that. We got the site done. Everything was perfect, and we're still in the process of trying to get some funding for it. It's a turnkey product for us as administrators of the site itself and, of course, the businesses and the people who would actually be advertising on the site. It was a big project considering it was our first one with a new company that we hadn't worked with before.
The next big project we did with Hidden Brains was an iOS and Android application for a health care group in Dallas. It was an educational application for their practice. It was a way to help them identify issues, symptoms, and conditions that their patients had after they left their initial appointment. They could download the app, track how they're feeling during the course of time, and provide feedback to the practice. That was our second big one.
The next one was a design integration project with a platform for which we are actively in the process of getting funding. It's a mobile device management platform that allows organizations to create custom app stores for employees or students, whether it's educational institution or commercial enterprise, and manage device settings across any device: iOS, Microsoft, Android, and so on. It's got MDM [mobile device management] capabilities, and it's also got some app management capabilities built in. That was a big project, and Hidden Brains worked on it during the course of 18 months until we launched the product.
How did you come to work with Hidden Brains InfoTech?
We've looked at quite a few other companies and worked with several of them. There were some things I knew, having done it for three or four years already, as far as what kind of communication gaps would come into play when working with remote teams. During our first interview we asked, "How do you manage your projects? What's the process? What's the communication process like? Do you guys use a project management system? Do we get a project manager involved in our project to communicate with? How much hand-holding do we have to do throughout the process?"
After talking to them, it seemed like we weren't going to have to babysit this work that we're doing with them, like we were going to have to do with some of the other companies. Even speaking with their sales guys, the communication was better, it was more fluid, and they had a rock-solid process. Their website was impressive as well. You could tell, based on the way they marketed their own company, they knew what they were doing.
What is the status of this engagement?
Our relationship started about four years ago [2011], and the work is ongoing. We work with them for ongoing projects and new projects as well as maintenance on existing work.
Could you share any statistics or metrics from this engagement?
One product that Hidden Brains InfoTech worked closely with us launched, and we immediately signed a school district with 30,000 users to the platform. We beat out some of the larger Fortune 500 companies. It was a big hit right out of the gate. We're at a point right now where we need funding to even service every single customer and provide the level of support that the product needs. We're maintaining the one we have, but until we get funding we're not in a position to get a team together to help us grow. But, obviously, that was a huge success.
What distinguishes Hidden Brains InfoTech from other providers?
I would say the quality of the final product seems to be a lot more buttoned up than any other group I've worked with. I handle a lot of the technical and project management side of our business. When we do get an alpha launch or a sandbox to go work in, there's not much that we have to do as far as fine-tuning what they provide. The only time we have to fine tune is when the customer changes their mind.
Is there anything Hidden Brains InfoTech could have improved or done differently?
I wish they had a strong search engine optimization division within their company. It would make my life a lot easier to deal with one single vendor versus multiple people at two different companies. At the end of the day, I don't think that's in their business model. They're focused on what they do, and that's not a bad thing.
"They get deep into what you're trying to do, and they've always stood behind me."
Hidden Brains InfoTech built applications for Android and the web. The apps allow multiple repossession companies to manage their office and field operations.
"They get deep into what you're trying to do, and they've always stood behind me."
The apps perform reliably and present very few technical issues. Hidden Brains InfoTech's proactive development approach ensures excellent results. Their development process involves thorough scoping, deep familiarity with the project's objectives, and comprehensive ongoing support.
A Clutch analyst personally interviewed this client over the phone. Below is an edited transcript.
Please describe your organization.
We are a Virginia repo company. It's a software provider mainly for the repossession industry. We do repo software to run their companies, and I focus on building websites for repo companies.
What is your position?
I'm the CEO.
What business challenge were you trying to address with Hidden Brains InfoTech?
When I first came to Hidden Brains, four or five years ago, I was driving around in a repo truck trying to dream up a "repo app" that would help me finish my responsibilities and make life easier for my wife and myself. When I first met them, I was trying to see what it was going to take to create a mobile application. Then, it snowballed from there.
Please describe the scope of their involvement in detail.
Initially, it was only supposed to be a mobile app, but then we started getting into it, they thought it was a great idea and suggested building a web app around what I had dreamed up with the mobile application. We actually have a complete web application and mobile application that work together to allow the repo companies to manage all their needs to run their entire company both in the field and in the office. The mobile app was for Android phones.
How did you come to work with Hidden Brains InfoTech?
In doing repos, I pride myself on being able to hunt things down – dig up information and such. I got into deep pockets so it wasn't just my money any more. I had to get investors, such as friends and relatives, to get in on this. When it came to the kind of cash we needed to create something like this, we first started looking for United States-based companies. A few months into researching all these companies, I started realizing there's a lot of technology in India. We started reaching out to other companies around the world. I ended up with eight companies competing for the mobile app project. I dug into them hard. I could only find good stuff about Hidden Brains. You go to YouTube and the Internet, you don't find bad reviews about them. There's nothing shady.
One thing that set me off to them was when I went to YouTube and I was looking for things on them, there's actually a video out there. They were an Indian company, and they were winning an award in Paris for customer support or some sort of commitment award. It meant a lot to me being in the U.S. to see a company in India in an entirely different country winning an award for taking care of their customers. I'm happy with it. I love everything they do. It's like walking through a candy store.
Could you provide a sense of the size of this initiative in financial terms?
The cost was between $50,000 and $200,000. When we had those eight companies competing for the contract everybody was within $5,000 to $10,000 of each other. Hidden Brains was on the lower end. Price-wise, they were right there where they needed to be. In the end, it wasn't about the extra $4,000 that we saved. Their service is insanely good.
What is the status of this engagement?
It's always ongoing. For the initial build, that took six months. They didn't take any longer than it was expected to be and they didn't add any additional costs beyond what we had figured out from the beginning.
Could you share any feedback from this engagement?
I love it. Being a repo company, I was new in this whole technology side of the industry. One thing that's been very comforting and helpful is the fact that the software itself just works. We don't have a lot of bugs. We don't have issues in general. It's solid. That's all I can ask for from their end. Beyond that, it's all ideas from me. What else can we do? Then they say, "That can be done."
What distinguishes Hidden Brains InfoTech from other providers?
I will say that when it came to deciding whom I was going to do business with the support and the service was very clear as day from the start. They were talking to me for 16 to 20 hours before we even got our initial contract penciled in. They get deep into what you're trying to do, and they've always stood behind me. It's not only about money. Hidden Brains InfoTech does a lot of stuff to make sure the project has the best chance for success. I never expected the support to be what it was. Having them in my pocket, I know I'm a lot further ahead than I would've been if I had chosen some of these other companies that were competing for the contract.
Is there anything Hidden Brains InfoTech could have improved or done differently?
No improvements. I can't really put anything down for that one.
Despite some communication mishaps, Hidden Brains delivers what is asked of them the first time around. Because they have a large team of developers, Hidden Brains can deliver even complex features relatively quickly.