Editorial Team

Hi Eric and welcome. Thank you for accepting the interview about Dwibbles. What is Dwibbles?

Eric: Hi Christian, I am glad I could be interviewed. Dwibbles is an easy way to manage all your social media accounts and receive a feed based on your interest. Over time, Dwibbles learns what is important to you by detecting the topics and people you follow the most in order to bring you a more relevant feed. Dwibbles helps you make social media manageable and relevant.

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Hi Ancu, and welcome on board. We are here today to talk about Adonis Software, a young company doing mobile apps. What do you do at Adonis?

Ancu: Hi Cristi and hello to all your readers; it’s great to be here. I am the co-founder and Business Development Manager at Adonis Software.

How did you guys start? Is it the typical story of a few young people set up to make the next Facebook together?

Ancu: We had a few ideas; yes, today’s Urban Hero (https://play.google.com/store/apps/details?id=com.adonissoft.urbanhero), which we’re really proud to have made it after all. One of the problems we had then was financial. The second was that we’ve noticed that if you wanted to develop an iOS or Android application, it wasn’t really easy to find somebody to do it. Of course, some large software development companies had a mobile development department. Still, usually, that meant a small 2-3 people team, not very specialized in this area, which usually offered a mobile application as a less important part for their client’s much larger projects. There weren’t many companies specialized in mobile application development, having this as their first focus, especially in the Romanian market, so we thought it would be a good idea to offer this service while raising funds at the same time to work on our own ideas.

I always find it very interesting to hear about the first line of code. It usually happens on the kitchen table or in the basement office. How did you do it?

Ancu: Haha, well, it wasn’t that dramatic, but pretty close to it. Our first lines of code were written in our dorm room while we were still students, at 3 AM, on a Windows OS laptop that ran a MAC OS virtual machine which had quite a long response time and often crashed, taking our patience to the limits 🙂

How did you find your first customer? What went well and wasn’t so nice about having the first development contract?

Ancu: Well, that was our first question as well; at first, how do we get our clients? Our attention was on the Western European countries and the US, where the smartphone market and, therefore, the app one was clearly more developed than Romania. The remaining question was, how do we reach them? That was the moment when the freelancing thought seemed like the option to go with. I personally have worked before with freelancing platforms, so we chose to enter the largest one at the moment: freelancer.com. It proved to be a good idea, as we’ve worked on many projects there, got to know lots of interesting people from across the borders and really learned a lot. We’ve worked our way through and are currently on the top 5 companies on freelancer.com in iPhone, iPad, and Android development.

To answer your second question, nothing went wrong; actually, the client was quite satisfied with our work, the only problem was that the budget was really low, but we didn’t think about it that way, we were still at the beginning of the learning curve and what mattered the most was to prove ourselves.

And nowadays, what are the areas where you developed the most? What makes your customers tick?

Ancu: Our first focus remains the iOS and Android applications, although we are also taking web-based projects. What recently changed is that we now have a department dedicated to building our own apps. The ideas we had when we first started are now starting to become a reality; we were placed third on Ericsson Application Awards with our Urban Hero app for Android. It’s literally a dream that came true.

What makes our client tick most of the time is our experience in usability. Quality is everything, and the user’s experience is what matters the most.

How many apps have you developed so far?

Ancu: About 40-50 apps. You can find our portfolio on our website: http://adonissoft.com/mobile-applications-development/.

What would be your advice for a business willing to have a mobile app? Go for Android or IOS first?

Ancu: That depends on what the business is trying to achieve through the app. For example, if it’s a branding app, the way to go is to develop it for Android and make it free, clearly because there are many more devices on Android than iOS. If you’re planning to monetize the app, then I believe you should go with iOS. Statistics say that iOS users are much more likely to pay.

Does it really make sense for a small business to have an app? And how do they find out if they need an app or a mobile site?

Ancu: Yes, it definitely does make sense. I’m sure their clients are already in the mobile world, and that’s where they should be as well if they want to reach them. I now consider apps to be what websites were in 2000, an innovative method to differentiate yourself on the market while having incredible growth potential. I believe it’s not long before a mobile app is going to become a necessity.

Where are most of your customers coming from?

Ancu: Right now most of our customers are local, from Romania. While we were working with foreign customers, we’ve noticed how the local app market developed, so the demand is quite high right now. However, we’re not neglecting our foreign clients; we still work with them as well.

And what is the most successful app you did so far in terms of usage?

Ancu: In my opinion, the most successful app is ZeroShake for iPhone. It’s a video stabilization app. Do you know that feeling when you’re taking a video while you’re at a concert, or on vacation, or anywhere else, and you’re really happy you could record that moment in your life, and then you go home and see the video is all shaky? This app solves that problem; you now can get really professional non-shaky videos, and more than that, you can add interesting video effects and then share them with your friends. ZeroShake was recently launched, and it already hit top photo and video apps on AppStore in the countries it was promoted in Belgium, The Netherlands, and Thailand.

You are from Romania, right? (I know you are, but I’m introducing this to the readers this way). How easy or how hard is it to start a business in Romania nowadays?

Ancu: I believe it’s as easy or hard as anywhere. Sure, one may accuse the economic perspective, which is not that great in Romania and other excuses. Still, in the end, it’s about your ambition to make a difference, to change something, to give something back to the world, and that is the same wherever you’re from.

What are you most proud of related to the business? Having customers? Being an entrepreneur? Your first employee? Doing what you love?

Ancu: Definitely doing what I love while having the chance to bring joy to people through our applications and contribute to technology improvement. We’ve once developed a very simple game called iShakeitfit; it was the greatest moment for me when users started posting videos on YouTube while playing it and having fun. I can’t even describe the feeling.

How long does it take to build a mobile app?

Ancu: This is really tough to answer because it really depends on the app. Our smallest project was of two weeks, while our largest was of 10 months.

My feedback on businesses wanting a mobile app is that most of the time, the requests are not really “mobile-oriented.” They want a “website version.” How do you deal with customers thinking about mobile apps like being web apps?

Ancu: The way I approach this situation is to present them the advantages and disadvantages of a mobile app over a mobile site. They must understand this well. The mobile application is recommended if you want your users to enjoy their experience while using your application; a native app is the only way you can have the experience that your smartphone was designed to offer you. With a native app, you have access to your phone’s hardware like camera, GPS, accelerometer, gyroscope, and so on, which can help integrate many many interesting features. If your app doesn’t need any of these features, and you’re ok with your users having a web experience on their mobile phones, you can go for a web app, and the advantage will be that it will save you some costs.

Any advice for entrepreneurs willing to start a business in mobile?

Ancu: Sure, if you’re really passionate about it and love what you’re doing, never give up no matter what anyone else tells you. The rest will take care of itself.

Roger Israni is President and Director of TestMasters, one of the fastest-growing test prep companies in the United States. Started in 1991, TestMasters teaches students to beat a wide variety of standardized admissions tests. I had the privilege of asking Roger questions about how he built his business into the powerful test prep industry player it is today.

Hello Roger. Welcome to entrepreneurship interviews. We are going to talk today about TestMasters, what it is, how it all started up, and what it has become. So, you started TestMasters back in 1991. What is TestMasters about?

Roger: TestMasters is focused on test preparation for standardized admissions tests, including the SAT, PSAT, ACT, GMAT, GRE, EIT/PE, LSAT, HSPT, and ISEE. We help thousands of students each year get into the schools of their choice by teaching innovative test-taking strategies to raise their test scores.

What would you say is different about TestMasters courses? What differentiates your product from that of your competitor?

Roger: Two main reasons. First, our test prep strategies are unique and some of the best in the world. We have accurate course materials: what we teach in our classes is exactly what you need to know for the test. As a result, we can guarantee some of the highest score improvements in the industry. We also have very rigorous selection and training processes for our teachers that result in a more dynamic, engaging, and effective teaching environment.

How did you decide to become an entrepreneur? What was the process?

Roger: Well, I have always had a passion for teaching and education, and I grew up in a teaching environment. (My father was a Dean in the University of Texas system). In 1991, I worked as an engineer, and I applied to teach at a community college in the evening… and they told me I wasn’t qualified. After that, I had a long conversation with my father about how all I wanted to do was teach and educate. So soon after, I started TestMasters. Entrepreneurship was just the best way for me to do what I love.

Back when you started, we didn’t have “everything online.” How has that changed the way you run your business?

Roger: Well, our online courses and our social media engagement are two things that stand out about what might be different. We also have some more advanced logistical capabilities. If we need to get course material to someone remotely, we have another option besides just a fax machine. Our teacher can check their schedules online at any moment.

Can you tell me a little more about how you use social media?

Roger: We use our social media sites to improve our customer communication. It has positively affected our brand, sales, and customer communication. Facebook is a great feedback portal for any business if you use it right.

What about blogging?

Roger: Sure. We love blogging. We have three blogs that getting good traffic results to our website: It’s Not GREek, which covers the GRE and graduates school admissions; The GMAT Project, which focuses on GMAT prep and business school preparation; and College Compass, a guide to all things college admissions. And we have accomplished some great things with our blogs. It’s Not GREel=k, for example, is the #2 site in the country for the New GRE – bringing in over 20,000 visitors per month. They’re excellent resources for students and potential students, and we are very proud of them.

From my own experience, having a job and moonlighting your own business is very demanding. If you look back, would you do things differently based on what you know now?

Roger: I think it was the right path for me. Texas Instruments was a wonderful place to start. I developed plenty of critical thinking skills and met intelligent, successful people there. We were able to achieve big accomplishments, and the job provided a financial cushion. I taught for TI engineering design seminars for TI nationwide. They have a very rigorous training process for their teachers.

But there definitely have been times when the balance has been a bit more complex to maintain. That’s why you have to implement high-efficiency management systems, so you aren’t doing everything yourself, and you don’t have to sacrifice consistency when employees exit.

As far as moonlighting, I would say everyone is different because every business is different. But any entrepreneur should expect to do a little of it at some point.

Roger Israni Wins Entrepreneur of the Year from the Asian Chamber of Commerce

When you started TestMasters, did you envision it becoming what it is today? What were your goals in the beginning?

Roger: I always had it somewhere in my mind that we could expand TestMasters. Our classes are actually global. Online students in other countries take our classes all the time. We also have plenty of classroom courses around the US and recently held a class in Belgium. So I guess, in some ways, we wound up fulfilling some of what I knew I wanted to do from the start.

On the other hand, the way technology has changed really shaped our business. You look at how test prep companies teach these days, and a lot of the more modern technology is used for business processes. Online courses are a great product.

What are the main areas of expertise for TestMasters? And who can use it?

Roger: Our classes help anyone who has to beat a test, but that category has a broad number of subcategories. Students who are applying to business school take either the GMAT or the GRE. Other graduate programs lean toward the GRE (although that is changing).

How did the crisis-affected these domains?

Roger: Some industries perform better when times are a little more turbulent. Education is consistently popular. But when times are bad, more people return to school. When more people return to school, more people take admissions tests. And when more people take admissions tests, more people need help beating admissions tests. “When times are good, business is good. When times are bad, business is better. “

How are things working exactly? It’s only online learning nowadays? Or face to face learning is still better?

Roger: We believe that different students learn better using different styles. Some students need to be able to hit the pause button. Other students need more interpersonal interaction and the ability to ask on-the-spot questions. Some want individualized, personal attention. So we provide all of those class forms. We have an online program, classroom courses, and 1-on-1 course options. We also customize courses further by several topics, hours, location, and more.

I think there is a wave of new younger entrepreneurs that start even before graduating. And there is also a current saying you don’t need advanced studies to do well in life (as our parents taught us). Is higher education still a “safety net” for “having a good life”?

Roger: It depends on what you learn. And again, if you enjoy what you do, you stand a better chance at succeeding because you will be driven and focused. But there are some very effective programs out there that help you succeed. For some professions, you have to get an advanced degree. I wouldn’t want a doctor without a medical diploma or a lawyer without a law school degree. Many of the best scientific discoveries take place on college campuses, and almost all of the modern ones are discovered by people with formal scientific training, either public or private.

Entrepreneurship is its own thing. There is a lot you have to learn that is specific to your own business. But some business programs out there are very well-known for producing success stories. Anyone who is making these decisions should do the proper amount of research.

Do you think younger generations give the same importance to education?

Roger: I think they do. This generation knows as much or more than previous ones that you need a useful set of skills to succeed. They work really hard. Our students are almost all terrific kids who want to learn and do big things globally. We require completing certain homework objectives to fulfill our point guarantee, and our students follow through on the homework and take advantage of extra opportunities to learn.

When I think about our students, I feel good about the future.

TestMasters Grooms a New Crop of Perfect Scoring Students

What has changed in the education demand in the last 20 years (besides IT)?

Roger: I think green living has gotten a lot hotter. There are more majors for it than ever before. Given technology, training in engineering and medicine are always in strong demand. We always let students know that if they enjoy what they do, they will stand a better chance at succeeding. But many of those in the liberal arts have moved into customer service jobs rather than jobs in their field.

How did TestMasters embrace social networking? Do you think Facebook has also changed education?

Roger: We started our Facebook page in 2010, and we have grown it to more than 36,000 fans. It is now one of the top referral sources for us, and we have constant communication with our customers. We bring them useful tips, tools, and strategies for beating the test and see what they want and need. Last year, we competed in #SocialMadness, a social media competition for businesses sponsored by the Business Journals. During this time, we really promoted our Facebook page, Twitter feed, and LinkedIn profile. All of our feeds grew dramatically. In fact, we competed in the finals in the competition in the Houston small business category and made it into the national bracket.

We also have a robust YouTube page and a lot more electronic PR as part of our business.

TestMasters: Test Prep Dominance

How did the internet change the way we learn? You can check on things and get informed just about everything online nowadays, but that doesn’t seem to make us smarter.

Roger: The internet has improved certain things. Obviously, there is a lot more information out there than ever before, and knowing which sources are legitimate and which sources aren’t taking a bit more work. But there is also more useful information out there than ever before.

The way it has helped us is by improving convenience, communication, and sales. When we have better engagement and better dialogue with customers, we do everything better, including finding new customers and partnerships in our field.

Hi Phil! You run an SEO company, so today, we are going to talk about online marketing. What exactly does your company do?

Phil: We specialize in Organic SEO at Eyeflow. In other words, we focus on increasing website traffic and non-paid rankings in search engines. Our clients are located all across the country and come from a variety of industries. We also utilize Pay Per Click advertising and Social Media to target campaigns and generate traffic, create leads and customers, and produce a strong return on investment.

Everybody has heard about Social Media, but not everybody knows about its real impact on a business. People think, “I have to have a Facebook page,” but they don’t really know if it’s going to help their businesses. What’s your take on this?

Phil: I think it’s vital to track the impact of Facebook and other social media efforts in terms of your overall online campaign. Looking at exposure and referral traffic between social media accounts and your website is a great way to do this.

I bet when you started the business, things were a bit different. When did you actually start, and how was the beginning?

Phil: When I started back in 2001, there were many quick ways to rank organically. As Google’s algorithm evolved, ranking became more and more complex. Many people used to say SEO would be dead in a few years, but these advancements have only made our services more necessary.

What was your elevator pitch back then? And what did you tell your friends you were doing?

Phil: I told my friends that I am an Internet marketer, and I help people make more money online. My elevator pitch depended largely on who I was speaking with.

What has changed over the years in online marketing?

Phil: What hasn’t changed? This industry changes, sometimes drastically, from month to month. Recently there is more emphasis on a website’s overall online “brand,” so to speak. Having a strong identity online is becoming increasingly important.

What makes your services special?

Phil: Eyeflow focuses on 100% white-hat, quality online marketing. The success of our clients after the Google Panda and Penguin updates is a strong indicator of the level of our services.

A lot of companies are outsourcing online marketing to offshore companies. I noticed on your site you are quite focused on the Pittsburgh area. Does this sort of “real-world location” focus make a difference in the quality of the services and the results?

Phil: Definitely! There are multiple problems with sending work overseas, including lower-quality content and ineffective links. Google updates are continuously making it harder for these “link mills” to show any results. We are seeing that customers are being pushed to companies here in the United States because of this.

Back in the days when you started the business in the basement, did you think Eyeflow will become what it is today?

Phil: I didn’t. I thought that I would remain a single consultant, or maybe that it would grow to a 2 person consulting group. I never thought that I would have employees, but as we gained more and more clients, it became necessary to hire more talent.

What kind of companies do you have in your portfolio?

Phil: We’ve worked with small “mom and pop” stores and businesses here in Pittsburgh and with nationally known leaders. Hertz Rent-a-Car, Wyndham Hotels & Resorts, and Giant Eagle are some examples.

How important is online marketing for a small company versus a big/established business?

Phil: I think it’s vital for both. Small companies need it to reach their niche of customers effectively. Big companies need online marketing to stay on top, especially with so many small companies joining the game.

I’ve seen cases where a company ranked high on some services or even paid for advertising, but when following the links, the content wasn’t convincing. This always made me wonder why people invest in online marketing if they don’t pay any attention to their content, especially when it doesn’t convert. Or even worse, sometimes pages are missing. What are the biggest mistakes in this area?

Phil: Most people think that SEO is only links and keywords, but Google looks at a website’s overall brand. Also, sometimes people think they can get away with tricking Google, but with the newest updates, those days are truly over.

By the way, how many people you have on staff today? And why does your staff page mention “the dogs”? 🙂 Did you have that feeling that “I’m doing ok? I’m not a start-up anymore.”

Phil: We have 24 total employees. I bring the dogs to the office every day, so it seemed right to mention the smallest members of our team on the staff page. I’m not concerned with being considered a start-up because of the presence we have built here in our area and in the industry.

How did you get from being a one-person company to what you have today? Making annual business plans? Or is it more about the following inspiration?

Phil: A lot of hard work and a lot of luck brought us to where we are. We’ve had some really high “ups” and some really low “downs,” but dedication always won out in the end. We’ve learned from past mistakes, and those experiences have only made us better. Ultimately, we offer a quality product at a good price, and there’s a demand for that in online marketing.

You have quite a presence at conferences and through traditional media. Does this mean that although you are an online marketing company, Internet marketing should always work together with face-to-face exposure? I’m asking because many businesses that have an online selling channel don’t pay any attention to traditional media, and I’ve always questioned myself what is most advantageous.

Phil: Strong branding is important online and offline. I’m really into making sure our analog sales materials reflect the quality and value of our services. Success is in those details.

What would be your advice for small businesses looking to get online marketing services?

Phil: Provide as much education to your audience as possible, whether you’re working on marketing yourself or with an agency. It’s vital to build your online reputation and identity.