Social Network Mobile App for University Students
- Mobile App Development
- Less than $10,000
- Oct. 2020 - Ongoing
- Quality
- 5.0
- Schedule
- 5.0
- Cost
- 5.0
- Willing to Refer
- 5.0
"They went out of their way to teach me various things about the development process."
- Other industries
- Ann Arbor, Michigan
- 11-50 Employees
- Online Review
- Verified
WeUno is redesigning an existing app using React Native and MongoDB. It's an anonymous social network platform for university students. The app has public and private groups.
Within three weeks of launch, the app has gained more than 1,000 downloads and 300 daily active users. WeUno demonstrates a strong design sense, providing complete transparency in the design process. They are friendly, responsive, and talented in their field.
The client submitted this review online.
BACKGROUND
Please describe your company and your position there.
STRAPP.AI is an anonymous social network platform for University students - I serve as the founder.
OPPORTUNITY / CHALLENGE
For what projects/services did your company hire WeUno?
I hired WeUno to spearhead the development of STRAPP.AI after leaving a previous agency with which I did not have a good experience. I didn't have a good experience because of the inability to communicate directly with developers and project managers.
WeUno addressed this by having complete transparency in the development process and allowing me to communicate more directly with the team. In terms of logistics, I hired 1 front end and 1 back end developer to work on the app and get it published to the App Store. The app was written in React native and the backend was in MongoDB.
What were your goals for this project?
One of my primary goals was to have a very high quality app that looked identical to the UI mockups. The previous firm had lots of difficulty replicating the design correctly.
WeUno was able to deliver on this by allowing direct communication with the developers, thereby increasing the number of design iterations/changes per week that were possible. On a more high level, my goal was to launch a high quality MVP on the App Store by February 2020 that was good enough to conduct a proof of concept.
SOLUTION
How did you select WeUno?
I selected a firm based on several factors. Most importantly, I wanted a firm that would allow good communication between me and the developers. I wanted to be deeply involved in the process and WeUno exceeded on that promise. In fact, they even let me fly out to their office in Pakistan and work directly with the team in their office. They went above and beyond to make ensure there was always a strong line of communication with the project manager so my demanding needs were met.
Another reason I selected WeUno is because I wanted a firm that demonstrated strong design sense on previous projects. As the UI designer for the app myself, it was absolutely necessary that a firm would deliver on the fidelity of my designs, as this was an issue with the previous firm I contracted.
Developers at WeUno had excellent design understanding as WeUno takes on a holistic range of projects, many of which are purely design related. During the selection process, I spoke often with the founder of the firm, Alyna. She went out of her way to make sure WeUno would be the right fit for my projects requirements, and this greatly streamlined the selection process.
Describe the project in detail.
The overall scope of the project was to take an existing app and do a complete redesign, in addition to adding the feature of "public groups" (the previous app only had "private groups").
I sent WeUno the UI mockups at the start of the project, and they spent the next 2 months adding the aforementioned changes to the existing react native app. They started working on IOS, but later completed the android version. 2 months after the project started, they allowed for me to fly to their Pakistan office from America and be more intimately involved in the process. This was extremely helpful and fast-tracked the app development by a month.
Throughout the project, they sent me IOS builds using test flight and diawi to receive feedback and show progress. As of mid-february, the app has been live on the App Store and they are continuing to help with bug-fixes and optimizations.
What was the team composition?
The team consisted of 1 front end developer, 1 back-end developer, and a project manager.
RESULTS & FEEDBACK
Can you share any outcomes from the project that demonstrate progress or success?
Within 3 weeks of launching, we have accumulated over 1000 downloads and 300 daily active users. This was significantly higher than that of our previous app. Through various interviews and customer research opportunities, the overall form and functionality of the app has been very well received by our users. In short, the app looks & works very well. We have also received over 50 5-star ratings on the App Store.
How effective was the workflow between your team and theirs?
I do not think the workflow could have been more efficient. By having direct communication with the developers, and being a coder myself, the process was very transparent. We had a great system for providing feedback on early builds, utilizing trello & slack to communicate effectively.
The 10 hour time zone between New York and Pakistan did not present a significant hurdle - they went out of their way to speak with me at odd hours. There was no language barriers either, as the developers on my project spoke strong English, and because I was partially fluent in the local language.
What did you find most impressive about this company?
What I find most impressive about WeUno is their commitment to tailoring their services to meet the specific needs of their clients. In my case, I wanted direct communication, pixel perfect design, and overall had extremely high standards for the app. WeUno went out of their way to adapt the project workflows and personal constraints to ensure these needs were met, and deliver the highest quality app possible.
In one instance, there was a server glitch at 3am in their local time during one of our launches. The developers did not hesitate to wake up during this time fix the issue right there on the spot. Overall, my experience was amazing.
During my trip to Pakistan, they welcomed me as if I was family, and I developed strong personal relationships with various people on the team. They went out of their way to teach me various things about the development process, as their goal was to help me succeed with my idea, rather than to execute just another project scope. I would absolutely recommend WeUno to anyone looking for a strong development agency and partner in building their idea.
Are there any areas for improvement?
If I could suggest one improvement, it would be to have more transparent project planning at the start of the project. There were some questions I wished I could have addressed earlier in the process that would have decreased our turnaround time.
RATINGS
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Quality
5.0Service & Deliverables
"The app is very high quality and feels professionally made. The designs match up exactly to the UI mockups and have great usability."
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Schedule
5.0On time / deadlines
"WeUno was very transparent in the timelines of projects and delivered exactly on those timelines."
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Cost
5.0Value / within estimates
"WeUno delivered much more than the original scope of the project as I had many changes that would have usually cost extra with my old firm."
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Willing to Refer
5.0NPS
"I had an amazing experience that exactly met my goals and would recommend WeUno to anyone looking for a mobile app development partner.