Tips to Provide the Best Website Experience

Much ado has been made about the importance of having a responsive website design, but few people really know why it's important to have a responsive website design for your business. With this in mind, then, we've come up with a list of some of the many benefits of responsive website design:

• Responsive website design saves you time and money. As professionals move away from desktop and laptop computers -- and more towards mobile devices, such as smartphones and tablets -- the need for a website that "responds," or can be searchable and clickable regardless of the platform, increases. This means that customers can view your site, and purchase from your site, no matter what they're looking for and no matter what the context.
• Responsive website design improves the user experience. Further along the lines of the website looking good no matter what platform it's viewed on, when a user (that is, a potential customer) sees a nice website on a smartphone or on a laptop, they're more inclined to visit the website again...as well as purchase from the website as well.
• Finally, but certainly no less importantly, responsive website design improves your Google rankings. While no one factor is the sole contributor to Google rankings -- higher rankings come as a result of a combination of digital marketing techniques -- a recent article released by Google suggests that part of the new Google algorithm takes website responsiveness into account when devising the rankings. And, the more responsive the website is, the higher the ranking.

For more information about us and our services, contact us today to see what we can do for you.

System failures due to miscommunication between developers is a common problem that can endanger the success of application development projects. To combat this problem, something called Joint Application Development is used. JAD brings developers, users, and managers together in brainstorming sessions with the intention of improving the System Requirement Determination (SRD) phase of the Software Development Life-Cycle (SDLC), and elevating the standard of quality produced by software development projects.

While the introduction of JAD into the SRD process has resulted in substantial improvements in regards to obtaining consistent results compared to previous methods, it still suffers from the inadequacies associated with its freely interactive group structure. Studies have shown that as many as 57% of development projects end in failure because they did not accurately identify the needs of their intended users. The research paper in question proposes that JAD can be improved by introducing elements of Nominal Group Technique (NGT) – which is a series of protocols designed specifically to avoid the sorts of problems that are common to unstructured workshops session such as JAD.

The usage of Joint Application Development was intended to speed up the SRD phase of IT projects. In order to accomplish this, JAD utilizes input from clients in a group setting in an effort to develop solutions by identifying what they believe their businesses’ requirements are. Before the usage of JAD was introduced, the identification of these requirements was achieved using personal interviews with stakeholders. As time passed the inadequacies of this method became apparent, thus leading to the introduction of JAD, which focuses on a team oriented, consensus-based approach to developing IT solutions.

Nominal Group Technique is a method of conducting group meetings - such as JAD workshops - and was designed to allow each member at the meeting to contribute their input by preventing the more assertive group members from overpowering those who are less vocal, resulting in an increase in general group satisfaction in the final results of meeting sessions. NGT has proven to be particularly effective when tough decisions must be made, or controversial topics are tackled using the input from a large group of people. It can also mitigate the effects of some group members attempting to influence others. Meetings involving smaller groups of around 15 or fewer members can be conducted as a whole. Larger groups are more easily managed when organized into subgroups of six to eight people.

In order to demonstrate the potential benefits of marrying NGT techniques to JAD sessions, experiments were conducted in which 24 workshops were held where professionals, managers, and business students were brought together in a laboratory setting. The results of this experiment seem to indicate that introducing NGT elements into the JAD process can yield substantial improvements in the outcome of the software development projects. The results of experiment confirmed all of its creator’s hypotheses in regards to improvements in the recorded performance measurements; and while there were no significant benefits regarding efficiency, unresolved issues, and the number of unique features generated by the projects, there was also no measurable impediment to these attributes.

While the ultimate validity of this experiment in data collection is marred by the limited nature of simulated experiments, the promising nature of its results warrant further investigation into the effectiveness of its premise. If NGT has been proven to aid settings similar to JAD meetings, then there is no reason to doubt that it can improve actual JAD sessions in the real world.

If you'd like to learn more about how the application development techniques can improve the development of the applications you need, then please, feel free to contact us. We're waiting for you.

Mobile applications have become increasingly popular as a tool to engage consumers with various companies. Consumers download an average of 8 applications a day, be they gaming, photo editing, news, or social media apps. Companies and individuals that have an idea for a great application and see it through often find themselves building a multi-billion dollar empire!

Do you want to develop your own app? Have a great idea for a gaming app or want to make your own blog more accessible to the public? It's easier than ever before to create and implement an app for the public. There are a few simple steps to follow in order to bring your idea to life!

First, figure out what type of application you want to create. Take a look at the Android, Google, or Apple stores for ideas on different genres to choose from. The most popular choices tend to be games, photo editing, and social media, but you are free to create whatever app you want! Also, look at the audience you creating the app for. Is this app for your business, or is it something that is meant specifically to entertain? Is a little of both?

Second, begin drawing up different designs for how you want your application to look and be used. These can be simple stick figure drawings at first, but it is still wise to have more developed drawings as you go along. If you prefer, hire someone or find a friend who can help you develop clearer drawings to get your idea across. Clear and professional drawings make it easier to get funding or a professional company to develop and publish your application to all of the major stores. The ultimate point here is to flesh out your idea in a visual sense so that you and others have a clear idea of what you want out of your app.

Thirdly (this part is a little more complicated), develop the back end of your app. This part can be done yourself or through a trusted team of people dedicated to helping you with your application. The back end of your app is the part that makes everything function the way it's supposed to; if it is responsive, for example, then when a consumer scrolls down on their smart phone, it will do as expected. If a consumer goes and updates the application, then it should update as anticipated. (This is essentially why I suggest a team of individuals help with this part of the process, as this is fairly complicated for folks who don't know what they are getting into.)

Finally, find a team to help you get your application published and available through mainstream sources such as the Apple App Store or the Android Store. Do some research online to find great companies who will publish your application. Once your application is accessible to the public, you have succeeded in creating an application! Sound fun? Awesome! Now go out there and create!

There is no way to get around it, custom web development is expensive.  However, there are tangible benefits to building a custom app instead of using an off-the-shelf application.

Insight Into Your Business Needs

You know what you want for your business, but how well does that really align with what your business really needs from a technology perspective? It is impossible to be an expert in everything, and knowing the best software tool for your business just might be out of reach. Working with a custom web app developer gives you a partner to help you decide what will work best for your business as well as writing the actual software.

Spend More Time Running Your Business

Designing, building and maintaining a website is a time-consuming process. By outsourcing these tasks to another firm, you can spend more time doing the work that only you can do and leave the website to the people who can handle it best. Look for a development company that provides complete lifecycle support. You don't want to have a firm that will build your app then run away.

Happier Customers Means Better Results

A custom web app allows you to build the site that is exactly what your customers need it to be, rather than an of the shelf solution, which always requires compromises. When your site fits your customers, they are more likely to spend more time on your site, reading and shopping, which in turn means higher profits for you.

Is your business ready to take the plunge into custom web development? Even if you are still unsure, contact us. You might be surprised at just how much you are missing out on.