our process
Discovery phase
As with most things in life, it starts with open communication. You tell us what your goals are and together, we’ll figure out the steps to get there.
We start all new projects with a discovery phase which allows us to learn about your goals, your vision, and what it will take to get there. In many ways this is the most critical part of a project, and it helps us answer the most important questions: what are we building, why, how long will it take, and how much will it cost?
The discovery phase is critical because the best time to address major project risks is before development starts.
The biggest cause of project failure, by far, is poor requirements. If the requirements are not clear, specific, well defined, and well communicated, then the end result may not be anywhere near what you had in mind at the start. We keep our process lightweight, but the end result is to help you visualize what the final product will look like and how it will behave. We will know we are all on the same page, and we have the confidence to proceed.
The next step is to organize and break down the requirements into smaller milestones. We find the shortest path to delivering a minimum viable product (MVP) that can be released to users, beta testers, investors, or stakeholders. We prefer to develop less critical features after launch if possible, to reduce initial timelines and costs. We always aim to keep the project as simple as possible, but no simpler. We develop a high-level product roadmap so you can optimize your time and budget, test your idea, and quickly receive and iterate on user feedback.
The discovery process yields the following deliverables:
software requirements document
This document clearly defines what the software will do, how it will accomplish its objectives, and the different rules for how it behaves under various conditions.
wireframes
This is a conceptual diagram that shows you what the implementation (screens) will look like, how it will behave and how it will move from one screen to another. These are the blueprints of the software.
time / cost estimate
No two software projects are identical, but the above requirements allow us to provide an accurate estimate.
ux & ui design
User Interface (UI) dictates how your app looks: color schemes, button layout, screen transitions, etc. Apps with a great UI have a higher chance of success in the app store - it is human nature to want to interact with something polished and beautiful! The app’s UI is the face of your company, it is the first thing the user will see and a major criteria to decide how reliable and trustworthy a company or product is.
User Experience (UX) dictates how your app behaves: an app that is easy to use, easy to understand, easy to navigate is considered to have good UX. If users find it difficult to use the app, or they do not understand how to get to a menu, or how to accomplish a task, they will become frustrated. They may increase your support load, be less likely to recommend the app to others, or even abandon the platform entirely.
A great UI/UX is needed to make your idea successful. This part of the process is usually done in parallel with, or right after, the discovery phase.
First impressions matter. To resonate with users, your product needs to look sharp and simple to use. Fortunately, we can set the right first impression with thoughtful design and iterative improvement based on feedback.
development & qa
Our goals during development is to minimize project risk by dividing the project into smaller, easier to manage pieces, and by tackling the hard parts first to allow more time to explore options and find solutions.
Communication is critical in this phase, as such, we have weekly status updates and biweekly sprint demos to allow for discussion, feedback and changes if necessary.
Our dedicated QA team tests the product at every step to not only eliminate bugs but also to provide user feedback for software improvements.
app store launch
Launching a new product is stressful, that’s why we worry about the technology part of the launch so you can focus on your business. From setting up production servers, to load testing, to submission apps to the Apple App Store and Google Play Store.
ongoing support
Launching your product is not the finish line – for most projects it’s only the start line! As your business needs changes along with technology, know that you’re not alone. We’ll be there for on-going development and maintenance needs.