Iomart

The challenge

As one of the UK’s largest hosting service providers, Iomart provides everything from infrastructure as a service (IaaS) to managed hosting. Customers love the flexibility and configurability of the cloud, but many are wary of privacy, security and other issues. They also value the cost savings and support from Iomart’s worldwide network of data centres.

Iomart wanted to develop a simple graphic interface that allowed its customers to configure, manage and deploy their own services. The process would be slick and efficient, saving customers time and enabling them to always be aware of how much their network would cost.

Such a unique idea would make Iomart stand out in a highly competitive market. And it would give them a smoother, faster sales process. The only problem was: how to make it work.

How to simplify the complexities of cloud services, blending user-friendly design with state-of-the-art functionalities?

The proposition

The idea behind this diagramming tool was to let users design networks in the browser to their own specific requirements. They could deploy hybrid services, with some components delivered in Amazon Web Services or Microsoft Azure, and buy equipment for other data centres or their own premises.

Once a customer had designed and priced their network, Iomart would build it at one of their data centres. Iomart called this HAPPI: Highly Automated Procurement and Provisioning of Infrastructure.

The project journey

The Iomart team had a clear vision of what they wanted but were keen to let us work out the nuts and bolts. We listened hard and quickly learned a lot about Iomart’s business. We understood what they were trying to achieve commercially and appreciated the technical constraints and requirements.

Together, we started fleshing out the concept. We worked in React because it gave us a rich environment where we could build a desktop app on the web. We went through a process of rapid prototyping; seeking out the hardest most contentious issues and grappling with them first.

Working quickly and flexibly, we designed the product and then built, tested, deployed and supported it in production.

The impact

“We went to three or four digital agencies and it became very clear that we needed someone who understood the vision and goals. When the team at Isotoma were finishing my sentences and asking questions that we hadn’t even considered, we knew we’d found a real partner.”

— Neil Christie, Managing Director at Iomart