Our Secret Formula for Long-Term Success with Clients

Today, I had the pleasure of meeting the founders of Sosyopix, a company I’ve admired for a long time. It turns out they had considered working with us several times over the years. As both founders are software engineers, they know exactly how challenging it can be to build and manage an in-house team. Every time they faced those challenges, the idea of collaborating with Atolye15 always came up.

Though we haven’t had the chance to work together yet, it’s clear that if we did, we would create something great. Because for us, the most important thing is how we communicate with our clients. Understanding their goals, getting deeply involved in the process, and being seen as a true partner rather than just a service provider. And in that, we clearly share the same mindset.

While talking to the visionary founders of Sosyopix, I found myself reflecting on Atolye15’s journey over the past 15 years. As I explained what truly defines us to people who had known us from afar for over a decade, one thing stood out: our long-term collaborations. That’s when the idea for this blog post took shape.

Looking back, I realized that aside from our early years, we’ve almost always worked with our clients for the long haul. In the beginning, we focused on delivering as many high-quality MVPs as possible, not just to establish our expertise but to build a portfolio that spoke for itself.

Over time, our work shifted from MVPs to long-term projects. As the products we built found remarkable success, our role naturally evolved. Some projects reached millions of users in record time, while others generated millions of dollars in revenue. Our apps consistently earned the App of the Day feature on the App Store. Enterprise clients streamlined and automated their operations with our solutions, eliminating massive workloads and driving efficiency. And with these successes, many of our clients secured millions of dollars in investments, fueling their growth even further. These achievements strengthened our relationships, turning short-term projects into long-term collaborations.

As you can see, this shift wasn’t accidental. It was the natural result of the way we work, the way we think about product development, and the level of ownership we bring to every project. And in this blog post, we’ll dive into what makes these long-term collaborations possible.

Long-Term Success Over Short-Term Wins

First things first, We don’t measure success only by the number of projects we’ve completed. We measure it by the longevity and impact of our partnerships. Launching a product is just the start. The real journey begins when we stick around for the ongoing support and evolution of the product.

Today, we continue to foster long-term collaborations. Bookyourdata, a US-based sales intelligence platform, has trusted us for 10 years, making it one of our longest-running collaborations. Volvo Cars has worked with us for 8 years, while Kısık Ateş, a popular gastronomy platform, has grown with us for 7 years. Heinrich Schmid, a 100-year-old German construction leader, has relied on our expertise for 6 years, and still does.

Even before these current collaborations, we worked with EY Etventure, a German consulting firm, for 8 years, and Peak Games, an industry giant acquired by Zynga, for 6 years. We also partnered with Fenerbahçe and Bonded: 24 Saatte İş for 4 years each, and Marley Spoon, a Berlin-based food-box startup, for 3 years. These are just a few of the many success stories we have.

But what makes these partnerships last? It’s simple: we’re more than just an outsourcing team. We are a dedicated product development partner, fully invested in our clients’ success.

The Mindset That Makes Clients Stick

Yes, companies work with us to build software products. But the term “outsourcing” doesn’t fully capture what we do. Whether it’s an MVP, a long-term collaboration, or a product development partnership with business-focused companies, our approach goes far beyond a traditional outsourcing firm. At Atolye15, we are not just a development team. We’re also expert consultants in product development.

Unlike traditional outsourcing, where teams complete tasks and move on, we have a mindset of ownership. We don’t just build software, we help shape products. We look beyond the technical requirements, thinking about both business goals and end users. Sometimes, the best solution is the most complex one. Other times, simplicity is the key.

At first, some of our clients don’t expect just how many questions we ask. But for us, building great products starts with understanding the bigger picture. We don’t just focus on what we’re building, we dig deep into their business goals. We want to understand where the product might evolve in the long run, what challenges could arise in the future, and what potential roadblocks need to be considered now. This level of deep involvement helps us anticipate edge cases, create scalable solutions, and truly take ownership of the project.

We Do More Than Write Code

When we kick off a project, our first step isn’t writing code. It’s asking questions, framing our work around the client’s goals and business strategy, and stepping into the mindset of the people who will actually use the product.

Sometimes, we think like a business owner deciding where to invest. Other times, like an end user navigating the platform for the first time. If our client is targeting a specific market, we adapt our thinking, approaching it like a German or an American, always considering what matters most to users in that region. A free user, a paying customer, a corporate client, they all experience the product differently. The code itself may not change, but the way we approach it does, and that makes all the difference.

We’re not afraid to suggest improvements or challenge assumptions, either. If we see a smarter, more sustainable way to achieve what the client wants, we speak up. Just like we would if we were in-house partners on their product.

That’s why we don’t just complete Jira tasks and call it a day. And we certainly don’t rely on polished PowerPoint slides to make it look like we’ve done more than we actually have. Instead, we take real ownership, helping our clients plan, strategize, and shape the roadmap for their products. This business-focused mindset helps us deliver not just software, but real, measurable impact.

We Use Sustainable Development Practices

Quick hacks might save time today, but they often cost more tomorrow. We prioritize clean, scalable, and maintainable code from the very beginning, ensuring sustainability and long-term consistency. We invest in quality assurance, documentation, and DevOps to keep the product well-structured and adaptable.

This means that as a project grows from one phase to the next, we can smoothly build on what’s already there instead of having to rewrite everything. Years down the line, our clients’ apps and systems are still running strong, scaling in size and capability, all thanks to the solid technical foundation we put in place. It’s easier to stay in a partnership when you know the tech won’t crumble under you. And that’s exactly what we ensure.

We build products with sustainability, scalability, and consistency in mind, ensuring they don’t just work today but continue to evolve and perform over time. This long-term approach is what drives real, measurable impact, allowing our clients to scale confidently and maintain stability without disruption.

We Build Stable, Expert Teams

At Atolye15, stability is key. We don’t just handpick teams with the expertise and experience to meet a project needs, we also keep them together. Unlike many firms where team members rotate frequently, our clients work with a consistent, dedicated team that stays on their project long-term. 

This is possible because of our high retention rate. Many of our teammates have been with us for six, seven, eight years, and some even more than a decade. That kind of stability is rare in this industry, and it sets us apart. With us, clients don’t have to meet new developers every month, and our teams build deep product knowledge that leads to smarter decision-making over time.

‍Final Words on What Matters

The software industry often celebrates speed: how fast you can build, how many clients you can onboard, how quickly you can scale. But at Atolye15, we celebrate something different: the partnerships that last, the projects that grow with time, and the trust we build with every client.

In an industry where long-term partnerships are rare, we take pride in the fact that so many of our collaborations extend far beyond their initial scope. Because at the end of the day, great products aren’t built overnight. They’re nurtured, iterated on, and strengthened over time. And that’s exactly what we do best.