Mobile App Wireframing

Once we get a sense of what paths the people who use the application will have to take, we can start figuring out the screens that need to be created. We wireframe each screen to detail content and navigation hierarchy, including:

• Navigation items
• Forms, with error states
• Search systems
• Notifications for errors or successes
• Systems to give people more lookahead

Wireframes help us create an abstracted design -- one that has no color or brand elements -- to help find the way the application will work best. Wireframes also make any process gaps or opportunities for improvement clear.

Click-through Prototypes

Wireframes can only show so much, like content and usage hierarchy and missing information. To make the application really usable, we create clickthrough prototypes of the entire application's functions. That helps us use tried and true UX rules and methodologies to make a mobile app that just works seamlessly and naturally.

Proof-of-Concept Mobile Apps

It's common for us at Byte to experiment with ideas by using mini-apps built just to solve parts of the bigger application. Each of these proof-of-concepts is able to be tested for accuracy and usability. While these are technically "throwaway" applications, we're going to recode the entire system once we know it all works, they're highly valuable to help everyone understand a mobile app's data and content needs.

Apply Brand Styles

Mobile apps are more trusted when they look and feel professional and well-branded. We apply a design and brand theme based on the company's current one, or we develop a unique brand and apply that to the navigations and usage tools along with proper "UI" elements like form input boxes and submit buttons. 

Schema & Database Creation

Any mobile app is going to be only as good as its data, so we have to spend time getting the right level of normalization, caching and logging. Often apps connect to a back end server, so we need to create the connection between them, and that needs its own schema as well. We also need to think through edge cases, like partial data and offline usage.

User Account System Programming

Many mobile apps employ a member or user system that connects someone to their data. We create a user account system for those applications, ensuring that each user can access their data securely and privately. Mobile apps can also use use out-of-app authentication like Facebook or Google to create a unique user, which makes account creation much easer for people. We usually find a mix works best.

API Creation & Security

Many mobile apps require a server-side API to save someone's data, allowing for easier upgrades and web access to the same data. We have to define and create the API and ensure its security.

Mobile apps also keep a lot of the interaction logic in their data kept on the front-end of the application, which means someone could examine data that might be sensitive. We keep an eye on leaking data, and ensure things like IDs don't give away information by employing hashed IDs, keeping prying eyes from knowing things like the number of users, or downloading an entire set of data by enumerating a product ID.

Most mobile apps help people complete tasks by having data on the app and on a central server system. The central system may do a lot of processing of data, or even minimal amounts, like approving someone's requests, say. We create both the app and the server-side application that manages the data, and help make system that are easy to manage and don't require intervention unless necessary. Creating process systems like this require a different set of programming skills, and we'll help build this system out and connect any external APIs or other processes.

Stakeholder Training

We train stakeholders to help understand the features, functions and testing systems of a mobile app. Most mobile apps also have an administration or data and media management system that requires training, and we'll help people understand how data works on the application, and how managing the data will affect the mobile app's front end.

Issues System Setup & Training

Mobile apps are different than websites in that they're published and released on someone else's schedule (Apple, specifically). That takes some powers out of our hands for having easy ways to manage or mitigate issues. To solve this, we can create an in-app issue reporting system and a back-end system to list issues and mark as resolved.

Alternatively, we can tie into external issues management systems.

Go-live Checklist

We have a full go-live process that covers visual checks, content checks, offsite tool registration, clearing and cleaning old data and a lot more. Here's an overview of what we do to go live:

Install the application on a production server

• Manage the DNS
• Set up site backups
• Install analytics tools, create analytics user to get info from analytics back into site
• Install and maintain site certificates
• Manage site monitoring and testing tools, including accessibility and usability
• Register captchas, fonts, other offsite assets

...and many more

Application Check-ins

We have a series of intervals of when we want to check in on an application after putting it live. It's common that the rush of going live will mean something gets overlooked, often times as unintended styles or help / training documents that don't match the live application. Our check-ins help make sure the application is in tip top shape.

Application Wireframing

Once we get a sense of what paths the people who use the application will have to take, we can start figuring out the screens that need to be created. We wireframe each screen to detail content and navigation hierarchy, including:

• Navigation items
• Forms, with error states
• Search systems
• Notifications for errors or successes
• Systems to give people more lookahead

Wireframes help us create an abstracted design -- one that has no color or brand elements -- to help find the way the application will work best. Wireframes also make any process gaps or opportunities for improvement clear.

Click-through Prototypes

Wireframes can only show so much, like content and usage hierarchy and missing information. To make the application really usable, we create clickthrough prototypes of the entire application's functions. That helps us use tried and true UX rules and methodologies to make an application that just works seamlessly and naturally.

Proof-of-Concept Applications

It's common for us at Byte to experiment with ideas by using mini-applications built just to solve parts of the bigger application. Each of these proof-of-concepts is able to be tested for accuracy and usability. While these are technically "throwaway" applications, we're going to recode the entire system once we know it all works, they're highly valuable to help everyone understand an application's data and content needs.

Standards & Browser Testing

Applications, especially single page applications, have a lot more to test in different browsers, and need to have more accessibility testing to allow people to manage the application in a "power mode", which usually involves keyboard-only sessions. To make all that seamless, have to do our standard process of testing all the pages to work in modern browsers and on the prescribed screen sizes, along with external validations and tests.

Apply Brand Styles to Application

Applications are more trusted when they look and feel professional and well-branded. We apply a design and brand theme based on the company's current one, or we develop a unique brand and apply that to the navigations and usage tools along with proper "UI" elements like form input boxes and submit buttons. 

Application Programming

Applications these days are often "single page applications" that use a modern methodology that requires a solid connection between the front end and the back-end API. While the front end in a modern manages the interactions and the "views," the back-end provides the models or data and the business logic to ensure the data works flawlessly, and connecting the two in an easy, understandable system helps current and future programmers understand how it all works.

User Account System Programming

Most web applications employ a member or user system that connects someone to their data. We create a user account system for those applications, ensuring that each user can access their data securely and privately.

API Creation & Security

Modern applications require solid API programming that keeps the API secure and testable. Modern applications also keep a lot of the interaction logic in their data kept on the front-end of the application, which means someone could easily see data that might be sensitive or useful to the wrong people. We keep an eye on leaking data, and ensure things like IDs don't give away information by employing hashed IDs, keeping prying eyes from knowing things like the number of users, or downloading an entire set of data by enumerating a product ID.

Automated Testing Creation & Management

More complicated applications often employ automated testing to run a battery of tests periodically or whenever data is managed or functionality is updated. Employing in-browser or cross-browser testing through tools like Selenium requires time to get right, so it's an investment, but one that pays off if an application changes a lot over time.

Stakeholder Training

We train any number of people to help understand the features, functions and testing systems of an application. Most applications also have an administration or content management system that requires training, and we'll help people understand how data works on the application, and how managing the data will affect the application's front end.

Issues System Setup & Training

When we train, we're likely to be beta testing, so we help stakeholder understand bugs and teach them how to track bugs down to be easily fixable. We also train to help stakeholder know how to report issues and take screenshots to illustrate issues.

For applications that have multiple types of account holders, we can create an issue system that helps regular people report issues and managers can respond and do tech support, and be able to forward issues to us when the fix is out of their range.

Application Check-ins

We have a series of intervals of when we want to check in on an application after putting it live. It's common that the rush of going live will mean something gets overlooked, often times as unintended styles or help / training documents that don't match the live application. Our check-ins help make sure the application is in tip top shape.

Long Term Technical Support

Everything online needs maintenance, and some applications are more prone to digital entropy than many websites. We’re proactive with our support, often fixing problems before they’re even noticed. Six months or six years we'll be ready should we be needed.

Future Direction Discussions

For most of our clients, we're a trusted resource on making their application better over time by adding minor features or answering how-tos or other technical questions. When it's time to rethink the data structure or add bigger features, we're always available to talk through the needs and help find both permanent and stopgap solutions that will change the direction of the application over time.