Product Design and Roadmapping

Being a Non-Technical Founder is HARD

The majority of my consulting has been helping non-technical business people build incredible products that in some cases, regenerate significant revenue. A minority of these clients have come to me to “rescue” their previous experience working with a developer went off the rails:

  • The project was taking far longer than anticipated to get out the door or going over budget.

  • The project was full of bugs and embarrassing to release to the world.

  • Their development team went dark or lost interest in this project.

The goal of this engagement is to give clarity and enable your company to build the best product possible. It is designed to take you from idea to a full plan that a development team can take and implement within a budget-constrained environment. Additionally, it will be structured so it can be released in a phased approach.

While this initiative is an investment in the business, after going through this process, many of our clients have saved substantial cost:

  • Development teams have all the details up front to give a firm quote

  • Alternative architectures or tools were selected to avoid having to reinvent the wheel during development

  • Bids we scrutinized at a technical level resulting in development teams understanding the project better and therefore reducing cost.

  • The entire user experience of the project is defined so developers know how to implement each feature.

What you get:

  • Technical and Integration Options

    Instead of building something from scratch, there are a TON of off the shelf integrations you can start with. All the while giving you optionality to build something custom as your business needs evolve. Tools like Zapier (Massive integration platform), Typeform (For dynamic and complex forms), Calendly (Appointment booking with rules), Spree (For ecommerce) are examples of simple integrations we can leverage to get you off the ground. Increasing your speed of development and greatly reducing cost.

  • User Flow and Mockups

    Jevin will complete mockups of the above features and present them to your company as a clickable app using Marvelapp. This will then be helpful to make the app “feel real” and find any glaring usability issues. This can be used to show to potential users/investors to give a tangible feeling of what the app will be like.

  • User Stories

    To prepare for an estimate by developers, Jevin will build a detailed User Story list. They will be prioritized based on Jevin’s understanding of the needs of your business.

  • Development Iteration Plan

    Instead of one massive release, we help to prioritize phases based around the most critical, core features for your product. Ideally, the first phase would be released within the first 2-3 weeks of development with new features released as they are completed.

How does it work?

The process to get your interface prototype app ready:

  1. A kick off workshop is facilitated by Jevin will be to extract the persona of the users of the product and their priorities. Ideally, representatives of the different users will be present to give their feedback on how they would use the app. From there we will develop a flowchart and some mockups of the application and screen with an emphasis on keeping the product simple and intuitive. This is usually a half to full day meeting. It can be virtual or in person.

  2. A few days later, a complete set of low fidelity mockups will be delivered for all the desired features in the application. These are usually delivered within 5 business days following the in-person workshop. Jevin will iterate on these screens until your company has the “that’s it!” moment.

  3. A complete set of features from the mockups articulated as User Stories. Each User Story will take the form: “As a (type of user), when I (do something on the page), I should be able to (do or see something)”. These are usually completed within 5 business days following your company confirming the mockups are solidified.

  4. Connecting the Client with Company’s external designer of choice and guide the design on Client’s behalf (if desired) based on the scope and budget of the client. The designer usually is able to deliver a first set of designs within 5 to 10 business days.

  5. Sourcing developers to build the project, review estimates/bids and assisting in negotiating rates.

Not included in this engagement:

  • High fidelity designs are to be completed by an external designer and not part of this engagement.

  • Developing the actual product. We work with you to find the best developers for your needs regardless where they are in the world. We take no margin so you can get the best deal possible.

  • Day to day project management of the delivery of the product of the developer. However, Jevin is happy to have as needed calls to discuss progress or issues.