Vladimir Lugovsky is the Co-Founder and CEO of digital product development agency Akveo and low-code SaaS startup UI Bakery.
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Slowly but gradually, the world is recovering from the Covid-19 pandemic, and businesses across industries want to catch up on missed opportunities. In my digital product development agency, I'm finding that this year, the demand for digital services seems to be higher in comparison to the past few years, especially 2020.
Since the IT industry is one of the most dynamic sectors of the world's economy, the demand for digital solutions and corresponding offers from development companies go hand in hand. But, how do you find a decent digital product development company?
Seek word-of-mouth recommendations.
Usually, word-of-mouth recommendations come with actionable feedback. Start asking for recommendations on social media, and seek out references from your connections on LinkedIn, Twitter or Facebook. Alternatively, you can private message your business colleagues directly to get first-hand recommendations.
A good reference gives you a significant reason to think an agency can get the job done. However, it is mandatory to take into account the specifics of applications. If a service provider has successfully developed your partner's app, this won’t necessarily mean the result will be the same with your product. When choosing, always consider the peculiarities of the industry you’re targeting.
Do some research on your own.
If you don’t have any recommendations, the first thing that comes to mind is using a search engine. The question boils down to whether you'll consider paid listings or build your search around organic results. If you ask me, I will disregard any ads. Don’t get me wrong: I’m perfectly fine with online advertising. However, I've found high organic search results often show that a company is well-established, and there's a good chance the agency knows a thing or two about developing products.
I also recommend reading between the lines when you're viewing marketing content. Marketing specialists often create content intended to feature a certain company, invest in its good search rankings and sell listings, which is important to keep in mind when reading articles such as, “The top 10 mobile development companies."
Here’s what you can do instead of placing a bet on such content. With your product’s idea in mind, look for similar case studies from enlisted service providers. There are two reasons behind this decision:
• First, they know better how much it would cost because they have already done it.
• Second, you can reach out to the client they built the product for and ask for feedback.
Look at experience and price.
All that really matters isn’t the marketing budget but instead the experience and quality. If you need a turnkey project, you would benefit from working with a reputable company that has survived tough competition in the market. On the other hand, their services most likely won’t be cheap, so keep that in mind when making a list of potential candidates.
A lot of our potential customers say that "hourly rate means nothing." But generally, the rule of "good work costs money" applies to each project. Yes, the stress goes on generally, as sometimes you might get bad service for a lot of money from the agency with a good name. For instance, it’s not unusual when companies assign a single developer to be responsible for several projects.
Alternatively, it's possible to get good services from a no-name agency that was founded a couple of months ago. If your app’s project is small and doesn’t require a team of developers, designers and quality assurance specialists, employing such an agency could be your best option. In such a case, what matters is the agency founder’s motivation. If you’re lucky, you can find a partner that is hungry for success. I remember our very first client and the level of commitment we had. Sure, the processes might have been chaotic sometimes, but we were agile and motivated. So, we had some late nights to deliver according to our commitments.
Ensure there will be good communication.
How does one build effective communication with a company? I'm not talking about language barriers (though the lack of such a barrier means a lot); I'm referring to being on the same page with each other. As an idea owner, ask for a detailed schedule of communication between you and the implementing team.
Moreover, it’s a good sign when your contractor suggests communication, demos and release schedules themselves. So be in control, and make sure your partner coordinates daily/weekly Zoom meetings to ask you about clarifications and track progress.
Ask them to share ideas for implementation.
A decent development agency will be interested in your product, not just the development process itself. What’s more, if your idea is not valid, they will let you know right from the start. The thing is, they don’t want to turn an aspiring entrepreneur into an unhappy client filled with negative feedback. Instead, by being frank with you, they will earn your trust so you can go back to them when you're ready.
Do they come up with logical suggestions? Think twice if a development company readily accepts all that you are saying. More often than not, this means they are only interested in money. If you feel that your potential technological partner can’t see the forest for the trees, it means that they do not want to (or simply can’t) delve into the issue here and now. So why bother insisting? Companies that show genuine interest will tell you about their portfolios and describe their unique approach to solving problems.
To Sum Up
When searching, make sure your potential technology partner has development experience in the industry to which your application belongs. This is a definite advantage since practical experience in this area will help outline your application's best concept and functionality. Feel free to ask about already-implemented solutions, familiarize yourself with case studies and filter out unreliable candidates.
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