Drew McChesney, Relay Managing Director: “We work with start-ups and brands to build apps and digital experiences that shape the way people live and work, for the better.”

The Silicon Review

A team of designers and developers who love to build. And when the things Relay builds help thoughtful, innovative people solve meaningful problems – all the better. Everything Relay does begin and ends with people. You, your customers, and team. Relay builds trusting, meaningful relationships with its clients – and their customers – by keeping its promises and communicating clearly. Relay doesn’t build anything until it understands why it will matter, and to whom. That’s how Relay keeps your product aligned with your vision, and ensures that your investment makes a meaningful impact. The company believes in discovery and research to help it make informed bets on what to build. But even more than that, it believes in learning from observing customers using an actual product. That’s why Relay’s approach is centered on learning by doing – through design iteration, quick prototyping, validating ideas through user testing, and shipping often.

Relay follows a design-led process that prioritizes progress over perfection and continually asks, “What’s the next most important thing?” Because momentum is everything when building digital products for a rapidly changing market. Relay’s design-led process helps clients build what matters – to their customers, and their businesses – reliably and effectively. Relay believes that the most successful products are built around clear, consistent brands – and the strongest brands are built around thoughtful, useful products. That’s why Relay’s approach starts with both brand and product strategy. When aligned, they have an exponential effect on your ability to create engaged and loyal customers. Relay’s product managers, designers, and engineers work closely together throughout the entire engagement. It’s a model that allows us to move quickly, catch issues early, and avoid lapses in communication. The company can fill gaps in your existing team, or serve as a complete product team – helping you take your product from now to whatever comes next, quickly.

American Airlines

Relay worked with American Airlines subsidiaries Piedmont Airlines and PSA Airlines to design and develop custom employee portals to house information and tools that enable team members to stay informed while working around the globe. Challenge was to replace multiple legacy intranets that were used daily by a global team to access critical business tools and announcements. Challenges experienced by users included performance issues, sprawling information architecture, and lack of content management tools.

Outcome

Implemented a new digital platform with easy-to-use yet powerful content management tools, allowing communications teams to quickly, easily distribute information
Improved employee satisfaction with the online experience by providing intuitive information architecture and clear, on-brand design
Enhanced support for tablet and mobile devices, which was critical to AA’s mobile workforce’s needs
Complied with AA’s rigorous information security requirements, and worked closely with their IT team to test and deploy updates

Embodied Labs

An online training platform educating caregivers through immersive experiences. Embodied Labs is a start-up that pioneered the use of VR for healthcare training. When Covid prevented users from learning on-site and in-headset, Embodied Labs turned to Relay to help translate their product to the web. The original Embodied Labs product was VR-based. It required trainees to use a VR headset, and was most commonly used on-site at their employer. When the pandemic hit, customers were reticent to bring employees on-site or share headsets, and usage dropped off. Relay was tasked with helping bring the product to the web, enabling users to access the educational content remotely via their browser.

Outcome

Created an online platform to house and distribute Embodied Labs content to customers without a VR headset
Provided a web-based GUI for integration with the Windows VR application, allowing for a consistent cross-device user experience, and speeding up the time-to-deployment for new native application features
Iterated through features with the product team to reduce onboarding friction and ease the login process, including SSO support and custom login features
Shipped new features regularly to support the sales team and new customer needs
Supported the product team’s efforts to develop a product strategy for the web-based product offering

GE Appliances

The annual KBIS trade show is one of GE Appliances' largest opportunities to promote new products to their professional customer base. When the pandemic disrupted the show’s in-person experience, GE asked Relay to create a complementary digital experience for sales staff to use with remote attendees. Each GE Appliance brand, from Monogram to Hotpoint, has its own unique look. The in-person tradeshow expresses that through unique booth designs, and enticing technology-driven displays. Relay was tasked with translating those diverse brand experiences into a single online destination that sales staff could use to communicate with off-site customers, while also serving as a value-added resource for on-site attendees.

Outcome

Created an online destination that met the needs of a large, diverse group of corporate stakeholders across multiple brands
Simulated the in-person booth experience by supporting 360º video and a web-based VR experience
Designed a cross-brand user experience that surfaced highlights to support the larger GE Appliances brand story
Provided QR-code-based access to digital resources to support on-site sales staff and customers
Accomodated large traffic spikes throughout the show dates and during press events

Drew McChesney, Managing Director