TREX System

BACKGROUND

Introduce your business and what you do there.

I’m the founder of Hero DNA, an app development company.

OPPORTUNITY / CHALLENGE

What challenge were you trying to address with TREX System?

We developed our first iOS app using TREX System. 

SOLUTION

What was the scope of their involvement?

I purchased an existing Swift code template from an online marketplace to serve as a basis for the project. The code had plenty of basic functions that I was looking for, and it gave us something to work with. I then brought the code, rough mock-ups, and a set of descriptions and requirements to TREX System. 

From there, they worked with me to refine the app design. We took all the rough sketches I had and moved them over to a Miro board to outline each screen in the development process. Then, we mapped out the first three phases of the development and adjusted the designs through said Miro board. After giving them the OK signal for the design, they were pretty much off to the races. Eventually, we released the app in the App Store in October 2020. 

We’re in the acquisition phase right now, and we’ve recently finished a few bug fixes and optimizations. I’m mostly handling the marketing aspect of the project now, so we’re not digging into the features and development yet. However, we’re on standby and have a roadmap forward to continue working together with TREX System. 

What is the team composition?

I mainly work with a project manager, who’s also my sole point of contact. He initiates and handles all of our communication with their developers and designers.

How did you come to work with TREX System?

I contacted them after they responded to my job posting on Upwork. I received a lot of responses to the job posting since I put a general title. However, TREX System asked me the right questions from the get-go. I didn’t have the answers to those questions, so I knew I was out of my league; I was hoping they would be able to answer those questions. By the end of our call, they’d already laid out a complete roadmap to accomplishing exactly what I set out to do. As a result, it was hard for me to not hire them for this project. 

How much have you invested with them?

We’ve spent between $17,000–$20,000. 

What is the status of this engagement?

We started working together in April 2020, and the partnership is ongoing. 

RESULTS & FEEDBACK

What evidence can you share that demonstrates the impact of the engagement? 

Being a solopreneur and a solo developer, I need all the help I can get for design, project management, and development. The fact that TREX System has handled everything in-house for me is truly a blessing. Thanks to them, we’ve released the app quickly. 

Moreover, the health and fitness category is a difficult space to break into, but our app now belongs to the top 1,000 items in the App Store in the said category. We rank even higher in terms of free app downloads; I’ve hit my monthly download milestone goals. I’ve also arrived at the final stages of an accelerator program that I want to apply for using the app MVP. 

Overall, the app that I’ve developed with TREX System has been accepted well by the end users that I want to reach in the App Store. We’re also bringing in revenue, which is great. On top of that, we’ve been successful in reaching the goals that I had for receiving funding. 

How did TREX System perform from a project management standpoint?

To communicate, we primarily use Skype, where we set most of our appointment alerts. We’ve also decided early on to talk every Friday, and we’ve stuck to that over the past year. To map out our milestones, we use Google Documents. 

For tracking analytics, we use Firebase. Meanwhile, Miro is an amazing tool for screen outlining in development. There’s a low learning curve, and it’s highly useful; we still use it today. 

What did you find most impressive about them?

From the get-go, TREX System understands that I need to be babied throughout the engagement. This is my first app development project, and I need somebody who has the expertise to tell me what to do. To be fair, I’m good at sticking to what I’m good at, which is marketing, brainstorming, and other creative inputs. However, when it comes to deciding how a node should work, I need them to figure things out and bring solutions to me so that I can make a decision. 

That’s how TREX System has worked for me. In our monthly meetings, they always explain what they’re doing and the ways we can tackle issues. Then, they ask me how I want to proceed. I make the choice, and we keep charging forward. This process has kept us lean; we’ve moved fast and accomplished milestones sooner than we’ve expected. Overall, we’re here today because TREX System has taken ownership of our product and kept pushing it forward. 

Are there any areas they could improve?

No, there aren’t any. I haven’t had any problems with them; we’ve accomplished pretty much everything we set out to do. 

Do you have any advice for potential customers?

Work with the same people I work with; they’re great. If you want someone who’s forward-thinking about everything — someone who thinks two steps ahead to bring solutions to your problems — work with the project manager assigned to me. He’s young and studying machine learning (ML) and AI right now, and he’s excellent when it comes to those subjects.