Homebuzz

Background

Introduce your business and what you do there

I'm the founder and CEO of Homebuzz, which provides software-based property management services.

Opportunity / challenge

What challenge were you trying to address with Gecko Dynamics?

We engaged them to serve as our IT team.

Solution

What was the scope of their involvement?

Their services largely focus on web-user frontend experience and software improvements. They’ve worked on IVR [interactive voice response] systems using phone and text messaging. We employ the IVR system for security, authentication, and informational purposes.

We’ve also collaborated on UI development and design. Often, they’ll design interfaces based on my sketches. They will then code the backend to make the site responsive on multiple devices.

What is the team composition?

We work with 3-4 people, which includes the project manager and 2 developers.

How did you come to work with Gecko Dynamics?

I found them through an online search. They were a good fit because the owner’s ideas and creativity aligned with our challenges. We started by engaging with smaller projects and gradually giving the team larger assignments over time.

How much have you invested with them?

We’ve spent $750,000 - $1 million.

What is the status of this engagement?

Our work started in 2010 and is ongoing.

Results & feedback

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

To give an example, we’re currently working on an after-hours calling service that our clients pay for per building. We’re now able to increase items 25% for monthly recurring revenue because they keep adding service features that grow our revenue and marketability. For example, we may start with texting, then offer call tracking, and finally syndication. We’re targeting our existing customer base while widening our reach through highly clickable features for property managers.

How did Gecko Dynamics perform from a project management standpoint?

We have several points of interaction on a weekly basis: Skype, JIRA, and phone calls. JIRA works well as a tool to log and troubleshoot customer issues. We integrated Zendesk with our JIRA account, but haven’t added new technologies because they necessitate more training.

We collaborate very closely on technology and development issues. And yes over a 7-year period there were unexpected problems that we had to overcome, such as outages, design not being robust enough but our communication and feedback works well with the team to overcome these issues.

What did you find most impressive about them?

They get deeply embedded in an organization and create value. Their team is very intertwined with our company.

Are there any areas they could improve?

Due to our close partnership and growing operations, documentation isn’t always processed perfectly. Project handoffs tend to be more informal but it’s also a question of speed to market, so I can accept this.

Do you have any advice for potential customers?

Make the scope crisp and clean. The project also needs to be well-documented and UI designs require excellent mockups. Investment in making deliverables solid will make quotes and schedules more accurate.