Hey Hackers, KROCK has been nominated in HackerNoon's annual Startups of The Year awards. Please vote for us here: https://hackernoon.com/startups/europe/europe-tallinn-estonia?stup=66f318d46ea4677e23d9a0ca https://hackernoon.com/startups/industry/it-services?stup=66f318d46ea4677e23d9a0ca Read more about us below to understand why we deserve your vote. Meet KROCK Krock.io is a media review and collaboration platform designed to streamline video production workflows, making it easier for creative teams to manage projects, collaborate, and deliver high-quality results efficiently. Our tool is a game-changer for agencies and studios managing complex design, video, and animation projects. https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=7RPUMfsRUmY&embedable=true How KROCK Achieved Product-Market Fit We have focused on a very specific market: creative agencies and video production companies that need to manage complex workflows. By closely engaging with these teams and understanding their pain points, we tailored KROCK to address the real challenges of video production, such as the need for streamlined feedback, clear task dependencies, and integration of multimedia assets. Our close partnerships with clients, ranging from agencies to large organizations, have confirmed the value KROCK provides in making their workflows smoother and more efficient. KROCK has achieved product-market fit by solving the key issues faced by creative production teams, such as the cumbersome review process and scattered communication. We’ve seen consistent growth in client adoption, high user retention rates, and have successfully partnered with top-tier agencies, including international ones. This traction shows that we are meeting a clear market need. Some key indicators: Growing user base in key markets across Europe, the U.S., and Asia.
Increasing demand from animation studios, creative agencies, educational products, and video production houses.
Strong engagement metrics: high daily active users and extended time spent on the platform.
Client feedback that emphasizes time savings and improved communication workflows. The Evolution of KROCK KROCK originally began as an internal project management system developed for our animation agency, Hound Studio. It was designed to streamline our own production processes and enhance collaboration within the team. However, as our clients interacted with the platform, they saw immense value in its functionality and started requesting access for their own use. Their positive feedback and demand for the tool inspired us to create a standalone company dedicated to further developing KROCK, turning it into a full-fledged product available to creative agencies and production teams worldwide. When we started, we aimed to simplify project management for animation studios. Over time, the platform evolved based on client feedback and industry trends. Initially, KROCK was focused on small animation agencies, but as larger organizations began using the platform, we adapted by adding more robust features such as audio review and Interactive storyboard features with AI. Building a startup often involves a lot of iteration. Tell us about your journey to this point. It’s been a journey of constant feedback and iteration. Early on, we realized that while KROCK was intuitive for small teams, larger organizations had different needs. We pivoted from focusing solely on video production studios to also targeting animation agencies, creative design teams, 3d architectural companies, and marketing departments. This shift has helped us tap into a wider market and build a more versatile platform. Have you pivoted at any point? If yes, what informed that decision? Yes, we pivoted when we realized that our initial target market was too niche. By expanding our focus to larger organizations and animation production studios, we found a broader audience that could benefit from KROCK’s capabilities. This pivot was largely informed by user feedback and market demand for features that could accommodate larger teams and more complex workflows. We also developed an online storyboard builder with the ability to generate animatics, providing creative teams with a powerful tool to visualize and plan their projects. This feature enables users to efficiently transition from storyboarding to animatic creation, ensuring a smoother process during the early stages of production. How has user feedback affected your startup’s priorities? User feedback has played a huge role in shaping KROCK. For example, our users requested better workflow customization options. This led us to prioritize the development of features like customizable stages, and smoother team collaboration features, ensuring KROCK met their evolving needs. We’ve built a platform that allows seamless collaboration on any media production project, all in one place. With KROCK, you can approve production stages, track changes, and manage versions effortlessly. To get a quick overview of the platform’s core benefits, you can watch this brief 3-minute video: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Fu199cKsevk&embedable=true Milestones and Achievements • Expanding our platform to serve clients in over 30 countries. • Successfully collaborating with major creative agencies and studios, including leading animation production companies, marketing agencies, game developers, 3d architects. Lessons Learned Prioritize feedback from deeply engaged users who have extensive experience with the platform, ensuring that improvements are aligned with real, meaningful use cases, rather than focusing solely on the initial feature requests from new users. One of the biggest challenges we faced was ensuring scalability without compromising the simplicity that our users loved. We learned that listening to customer feedback early on helped us avoid mistakes and iterate faster. Another lesson was understanding the importance of balancing functionality with ease of use. Too many features can overwhelm users, so we prioritized developing tools that genuinely improved their workflow. One of the key lessons we’ve learned is the importance of prioritizing feedback from users who are already deeply engaged with our platform, rather than focusing solely on the suggestions of new users. In the early stages, it can be tempting to accommodate every feature request, especially from new users who, after just a few hours of usage, often suggest adding an extensive range of functionalities—everything from time tracking to CRM systems. However, these requests can sometimes stray from the core purpose of the platform. By listening closely to our most active and experienced users, we gain valuable insights into improvements that enhance the core functionality, ensuring we stay focused on providing the most effective solution for creative collaboration and media review. What Startups of The Year Means to Us We’re excited to participate in HackerNoon’s Startups of The Year because it provides us with an opportunity to showcase our platform to a global audience. Being nominated in Tallinn, Estonia is a big recognition for us, and we’re eager to gain further visibility, expand our network, and potentially connect with investors and partners who share our vision. Conclusion KROCK is transforming the way creative agencies manage video production, offering a platform designed to make collaboration more seamless and efficient. We’re thrilled to be part of HackerNoon’s Startups of The Year and look forward to what’s next in our journey of innovation and growth. Vote for us today! 👉 https://hackernoon.com/startups/industry/it-services?stup=66f318d46ea4677e23d9a0ca Hey Hackers, KROCK has been nominated in HackerNoon's annual Startups of The Year awards. Please vote for us here: Please vote for us here: https://hackernoon.com/startups/europe/europe-tallinn-estonia?stup=66f318d46ea4677e23d9a0ca https://hackernoon.com/startups/europe/europe-tallinn-estonia?stup=66f318d46ea4677e23d9a0ca https://hackernoon.com/startups/industry/it-services?stup=66f318d46ea4677e23d9a0ca https://hackernoon.com/startups/industry/it-services?stup=66f318d46ea4677e23d9a0ca Read more about us below to understand why we deserve your vote. Meet KROCK Krock.io is a media review and collaboration platform designed to streamline video production workflows, making it easier for creative teams to manage projects, collaborate, and deliver high-quality results efficiently. Our tool is a game-changer for agencies and studios managing complex design, video, and animation projects. Krock.io https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=7RPUMfsRUmY&embedable=true https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=7RPUMfsRUmY&embedable=true How KROCK Achieved Product-Market Fit We have focused on a very specific market: creative agencies and video production companies that need to manage complex workflows. By closely engaging with these teams and understanding their pain points, we tailored KROCK to address the real challenges of video production, such as the need for streamlined feedback, clear task dependencies, and integration of multimedia assets. Our close partnerships with clients, ranging from agencies to large organizations, have confirmed the value KROCK provides in making their workflows smoother and more efficient. KROCK has achieved product-market fit by solving the key issues faced by creative production teams, such as the cumbersome review process and scattered communication. We’ve seen consistent growth in client adoption, high user retention rates, and have successfully partnered with top-tier agencies, including international ones. This traction shows that we are meeting a clear market need. Some key indicators: Some key indicators: Growing user base in key markets across Europe, the U.S., and Asia. Increasing demand from animation studios, creative agencies, educational products, and video production houses. Strong engagement metrics: high daily active users and extended time spent on the platform. Client feedback that emphasizes time savings and improved communication workflows. Growing user base in key markets across Europe, the U.S., and Asia. Increasing demand from animation studios, creative agencies, educational products, and video production houses. Strong engagement metrics: high daily active users and extended time spent on the platform. Client feedback that emphasizes time savings and improved communication workflows. The Evolution of KROCK KROCK originally began as an internal project management system developed for our animation agency, Hound Studio . It was designed to streamline our own production processes and enhance collaboration within the team. However, as our clients interacted with the platform, they saw immense value in its functionality and started requesting access for their own use. Hound Studio Their positive feedback and demand for the tool inspired us to create a standalone company dedicated to further developing KROCK, turning it into a full-fledged product available to creative agencies and production teams worldwide. When we started, we aimed to simplify project management for animation studios. Over time, the platform evolved based on client feedback and industry trends. Initially, KROCK was focused on small animation agencies, but as larger organizations began using the platform, we adapted by adding more robust features such as audio review and Interactive storyboard features with AI. When we started, we aimed to simplify project management for animation studios. Over time, the platform evolved based on client feedback and industry trends. Initially, KROCK was focused on small animation agencies, but as larger organizations began using the platform, we adapted by adding more robust features such as audio review and Interactive storyboard features with AI . Interactive storyboard features with AI Building a startup often involves a lot of iteration. Tell us about your journey to this point. Building a startup often involves a lot of iteration. Tell us about your journey to this point. It’s been a journey of constant feedback and iteration. Early on, we realized that while KROCK was intuitive for small teams, larger organizations had different needs. We pivoted from focusing solely on video production studios to also targeting animation agencies, creative design teams, 3d architectural companies, and marketing departments. This shift has helped us tap into a wider market and build a more versatile platform. Have you pivoted at any point? If yes, what informed that decision? Have you pivoted at any point? If yes, what informed that decision? Yes, we pivoted when we realized that our initial target market was too niche. By expanding our focus to larger organizations and animation production studios, we found a broader audience that could benefit from KROCK’s capabilities. This pivot was largely informed by user feedback and market demand for features that could accommodate larger teams and more complex workflows. We also developed an online storyboard builder with the ability to generate animatics , providing creative teams with a powerful tool to visualize and plan their projects. This feature enables users to efficiently transition from storyboarding to animatic creation, ensuring a smoother process during the early stages of production. generate animatics How has user feedback affected your startup’s priorities? How has user feedback affected your startup’s priorities? User feedback has played a huge role in shaping KROCK. For example, our users requested better workflow customization options. This led us to prioritize the development of features like customizable stages, and smoother team collaboration features, ensuring KROCK met their evolving needs. We’ve built a platform that allows seamless collaboration on any media production project, all in one place. With KROCK, you can approve production stages, track changes, and manage versions effortlessly. To get a quick overview of the platform’s core benefits, you can watch this brief 3-minute video: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Fu199cKsevk&embedable=true https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Fu199cKsevk&embedable=true Milestones and Achievements • Expanding our platform to serve clients in over 30 countries. • Successfully collaborating with major creative agencies and studios, including leading animation production companies, marketing agencies, game developers, 3d architects. Lessons Learned Prioritize feedback from deeply engaged users who have extensive experience with the platform, ensuring that improvements are aligned with real, meaningful use cases, rather than focusing solely on the initial feature requests from new users. Prioritize feedback from deeply engaged users who have extensive experience with the platform, ensuring that improvements are aligned with real, meaningful use cases, rather than focusing solely on the initial feature requests from new users. One of the biggest challenges we faced was ensuring scalability without compromising the simplicity that our users loved. We learned that listening to customer feedback early on helped us avoid mistakes and iterate faster. Another lesson was understanding the importance of balancing functionality with ease of use. Too many features can overwhelm users, so we prioritized developing tools that genuinely improved their workflow. One of the key lessons we’ve learned is the importance of prioritizing feedback from users who are already deeply engaged with our platform, rather than focusing solely on the suggestions of new users. In the early stages, it can be tempting to accommodate every feature request, especially from new users who, after just a few hours of usage, often suggest adding an extensive range of functionalities—everything from time tracking to CRM systems. However, these requests can sometimes stray from the core purpose of the platform. By listening closely to our most active and experienced users, we gain valuable insights into improvements that enhance the core functionality, ensuring we stay focused on providing the most effective solution for creative collaboration and media review. What Startups of The Year Means to Us We’re excited to participate in HackerNoon’s Startups of The Year because it provides us with an opportunity to showcase our platform to a global audience. Being nominated in Tallinn, Estonia is a big recognition for us, and we’re eager to gain further visibility, expand our network, and potentially connect with investors and partners who share our vision. Conclusion KROCK is transforming the way creative agencies manage video production, offering a platform designed to make collaboration more seamless and efficient. We’re thrilled to be part of HackerNoon’s Startups of The Year and look forward to what’s next in our journey of innovation and growth. Vote for us today! 👉 https://hackernoon.com/startups/industry/it-services?stup=66f318d46ea4677e23d9a0ca Vote for us today! 👉 https://hackernoon.com/startups/industry/it-services?stup=66f318d46ea4677e23d9a0ca https://hackernoon.com/startups/industry/it-services?stup=66f318d46ea4677e23d9a0ca

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