We've helped digital marketing and SEO agencies implement their strategies for years. Even when they have software development staff we've been able to augment their team and provide real value. The key takeaway is that when timelines and budgets are tight, and your development staff is booked, reduce risk and scale up quickly with a software development partner. Here are a few reasons why this makes sense.
It can be hard to resource digital marketing projects on short notice. And bringing in contractors can add significant risk; from lack of expertise to limited availability and single point of failure scenarios.
Using an experienced development partner is a better choice when time, quality, and/or risk aversion are paramount. You will have a self-managing team at your disposal. They will provide redundancy, coordinate with your project and account managers, and provide additional resources when needed.
Software development in a single vertical tends to restrict professional growth. And though teams tend to coalesce and work better together over time, their shared experience is likewise limited. It's like being a movie reviewer of science fiction who is then asked to review a documentary on the Renaissance.
When you periodically leverage a software development partner you add a diversity of experience across industries that helps you deliver better services to your clients. It also helps your team learn and grow.
When it comes to providing digital marketing services, specialization is a key asset when generalization is your model. Agencies typically offer a full-service product, and as such may even have their own software developers. This means that they have to provide the expertise for two unique businesses.
Focus typically yields better quality. That's why it can be a huge benefit to engage with a software development partner, especially on your most important projects. They provide specialized services that improve the quality of your digital tactics, as well as reduce time to market. And they're typically more experienced in working with a wide range of development platforms and services.
There's usually more to the story so if you have questions or comments about this post let us know!
Do you need a new software development partner for an upcoming project? We would love to work with you! From websites and mobile apps to cloud services and custom software, we can help!
There is a world full of "build your own website" services that allow just about anyone to stand up a new website in a few hours. Even organizations can leverage the simplicity offered by these services to set up an online store, community, and more. Here are a few examples of why people typically choose these services.
Sounds great! But as with everything in life, there are tradeoffs.
Regardless, these services can be a great way for individuals and small organizations to bootstrap their web presence, and in many cases, you can happily continue to use the service for years.
But there are also long-term lock-in issues that can be more serious, potentially impeding your growth, for example:
If the tradeoffs are too much to swallow, fear not! You can also go with a custom web app tailored specifically to your needs and budget. It can match your vision without compromises and scaling can be managed more easily as your business or traffic grow.
So how do you get started? With a builder service you first have to find one with the price and features you need, and then create an account and dig into their control panel to start configuring your website. Whereas for a custom website the first step is to find a web development partner you can rely on for advice and technical expertise, like Fynydd. Your partner can help gather your ideas, come up with a plan, and build your web app, all within your budget and timeline. They're usually experts in both new web app projects and migrations from other platforms and services. Most importantly, they fill the knowledge gap left by the "build your own website" service.
A web development partner will choose technologies that have a proven security track record. One way we do this is by consulting the CVE database; a publicly funded global resource for tracking common vulnerabilities and exposures. For example, a CVE search quickly reveals that WordPress has historically been a security nightmare.
Your development partner will help you with a design that matches your vision, a hosting service that meets your needs and budget, a security review, a backup plan and disaster recovery strategy, and more. When the time comes to grow your platform, they can help with that too. And throughout the journey you maintain full control over your brand, your website, your data, and your customers.
There's usually more to the story so if you have questions or comments about this post let us know!
Do you need a new software development partner for an upcoming project? We would love to work with you! From websites and mobile apps to cloud services and custom software, we can help!
Planning out a long-term strategy for your web project can really pay off. We were recently reminded of that when we were asked to create a mobile app (iOS and Android) for a web-based platform we designed and built several years ago. The platform is Coursabi, a learning platform that ensures growth at each milestone for everyone on your team. You can check it out at https://coursabi.com.
Desktop view of the Coursabi dashboard.
When we created the technical strategy we knew that a mobile app was a likely roadmap item. So we chose ASP.NET Blazor as the core platform technology. It allowed us to build a web app that felt like a single page app (SPA). And it gave us several hosting models: server, WASM (WebAssembly), and hybrid mobile. The most intriguing aspect of the Blazor Hybrid model is that unlike hybrid apps of the past, there is no web server running on the mobile device. Instead, all the C# code is compiled to native .NET code, and the web view (an embedded web browser) is only used to render the user interface. So the app runs as a native mobile app!
Various mobile (phone) views.
We knew that some features of the platform would have to be altered, since the mobile app has no web server. For example, Coursabi supports the SCORM format for external learning content. And due to security restrictions, they needed a host with a trusted root certificate. So moving that out of the platform and handling the routing changes were both necessary, but totally doable.
Another benefit of a mobile app version of the platform is that in many ways it also simplifies the security model, since the app is only running on the local device, whereas a hosted app needs to manage user state, among other concerns.
Tablet view is a hybrid of desktop and mobile.
If you have an ASP.NET-based web application, you can still leverage Blazor Hybrid to turn it into a mobile app. It just needs to first be migrated into a Blazor app. I'd also recommend reviewing your web app for opportunities to make it as mobile-friendly as possible. You don't want your mobile app to look or feel like a website. But those changes not only get you a great mobile app, they also improve how your app looks and feels in a mobile web browser. So you get twice the value.
There's usually more to the story so if you have questions or comments about this post let us know!
Do you need a new software development partner for an upcoming project? We would love to work with you! From websites and mobile apps to cloud services and custom software, we can help!
ZOIA Healthcare is a direct-to-patient provider of specialized nutritional products dedicated to empowering and improving the lives of individuals with inherited metabolic disorders and other rare diseases. They focus on navigating the complexities of healthcare, ensuring patients who require targeted nutrition that cannot be met through a regular diet alone gain access to necessary medical and low protein foods.
Accredited by the Healthcare Quality Association on Accreditation (HQAA), they adhere to stringent standards, helping their patients experience transformative outcomes. Their portfolio is curated to foster advancements in disease management, harnessing the power of nutrition.
ZOIA Pharma partnered with Fynydd to build a new web sales and marketing platform providing patients and organizations with a streamlined shopping experience. Individuals can browse, search, and purchase nutrition products, and even get notified when products are back in stock. And organizations also have the ability to offer a formulary catering specifically to their patients.
Some of the key features of the platform include:
CSS3
HTML5
JavaScript
Sass/SCSS
Amazon Web Services
C#
Github
Microsoft .NET
Microsoft Windows
SQL Server
Stripe
Umbraco CMS
There's usually more to the story so if you have questions or comments about this post let us know!
Do you need a new software development partner for an upcoming project? We would love to work with you! From websites and mobile apps to cloud services and custom software, we can help!
Monitoring Analytics was established in 2008 as the fully independent external market monitor for PJM Interconnection by the Market Monitoring Unit of PJM. PJM Interconnection, a regional transmission organization, ensures the reliability of the electric power supply system in 13 states and the District of Columbia.
Monitoring Analytics (MA) partnered with Fynydd to create a new web platform optimized for a modern user experience.
The goal of the project was to provide visitors with easy access to the Monitoring Analytics quarterly reports and other support documentation, as well as an updated visual appearance.
One of the challenges was the creation of a new taxonomy for their 20 year document collection. It needed to be easy to manage in the back office, but also provide better on-site search results. We were able to work with MA to categorize and organize their document collection and provide a user flow that made finding and downloading documents quick and easy.
Due to various compliance requirements, some aspects of the hosting were non-standard. But we were able to meet all their needs. For example, we deployed the platform CMS without the back office code, and with the CMS management APIs disabled, providing additional security in production. This meant creating a unique publishing workflow whereby a separate instance could be used behind a firewall and approved changes could be deployed through a VPN connection.
Some of the key features of the platform include:
NOTE: THE WEBSITE IS NOT YET LIVE
CSS3
HTML5
JavaScript
Sass/SCSS
Amazon Web Services
C#
Github
Microsoft .NET
Microsoft Windows
Umbraco CMS
There's usually more to the story so if you have questions or comments about this post let us know!
Do you need a new software development partner for an upcoming project? We would love to work with you! From websites and mobile apps to cloud services and custom software, we can help!
Fynydd partnered with Blue Sequoyah Technologies to build a community-driven learning platform named Coursabi, which gives learners a simple but powerful way to grow as they follow their learning journey. Their dashboard shows them progress to-date and what assignments are next. They can explore the content library for elective learning, sign documents, and complete forms. And the community gives them a way to learn from peers and content authors.
Coursabi Mission Control is where authorized users can create and organize training content like documents, forms, and courses. There are also libraries for audio and video content, as well as imported learning modules. People and learning assignments are managed here. And administrators and training managers can stay up-to-date using dashboards, reports, notifications, community activity, and so much more.
Blazor
C#
CSS3
HTML5
JavaScript
Microsoft .NET
Sass/SCSS
Amazon Web Services
C#
Github
Microsoft .NET
Microsoft Windows
SQL Server
There's usually more to the story so if you have questions or comments about this post let us know!
Do you need a new software development partner for an upcoming project? We would love to work with you! From websites and mobile apps to cloud services and custom software, we can help!
Fynydd was asked to help Ore-Ida and Disney by building a high-performance Sitecore platform for their upcoming sweepstakes supporting the movie Frozen. The sweepstakes was built as part of the Heinz multi-tenant Sitecore platform, with a high priority on security, performance, and availability.
The platform allowed visitors to enter the sweepstakes with enforcement of specific business logic regarding how often they could enter and how many times per day. It leveraged a two-tier caching system for optimal performance, including additional optimizations on media and delivery.
Some of the features of the platform include:
Given the large brands behind the promotion, it garnered a large amount of traffic in a relatively short period of time and was a huge success.
The performance metrics include:
CSS3
HTML5
JavaScript
Microsoft .NET
Sass/SCSS
C#
Github
Microsoft .NET
Microsoft Azure
Microsoft Windows
Sitecore
SQL Server
There's usually more to the story so if you have questions or comments about this post let us know!
Do you need a new software development partner for an upcoming project? We would love to work with you! From websites and mobile apps to cloud services and custom software, we can help!
The Clinical and Laboratory Standards Institute (CLSI) is a not-for-profit organization that develops laboratory standards worldwide. Our standards are recognized by laboratories, accreditors, and government agencies as the best way to improve medical laboratory testing.
CLSI partnered with Fynydd to create a web platform for marketing their organization, provide member and volunteer services, membership management, and a shop for their Standards documents.
The platform integrated with NetForum and other third party services to provide a single, complete access portal for staff, members, and volunteers.
The shop provided unique pricing, options, and user experiences for anonymous visitors, members, and customers in developing countries. Standards products provided digital samples and full specifications, as well as customized pricing based on the visitor.
A member portal provided everything a member needs to manage their profile, membership details, purchase history, downloadable products, event attendance, membership certification, nominations, volunteer history, and more. It also provided delegates with management tools for authorized employees in their account.
Other tools and features include public file management for volunteer communication and education, outbound links to services such as their eClipse platform and support system, a shopping cart reminder system, product import and publication tools, and so much more.
Some of the key features of the platform include:
CSS3
HTML5
JavaScript
Sass/SCSS
C#
Github
Microsoft .NET
Microsoft Azure
Microsoft Windows
NetForum
SQL Server
Umbraco CMS
There's usually more to the story so if you have questions or comments about this post let us know!
Do you need a new software development partner for an upcoming project? We would love to work with you! From websites and mobile apps to cloud services and custom software, we can help!
Saint-Gobain North America Headquarters
Saint-Gobain designs, manufactures and distributes materials and services for the construction and industrial markets. These solutions are found everywhere in our living places and our daily life: in buildings, transportation, infrastructure and in many industrial applications. They provide comfort, performance and sustainability while meeting the challenges of the decarbonization of the world of construction and industry, the preservation of resources and rapid urbanization.
Saint-Gobain partnered with Fynydd to create a marketing website for their Living Laboratory campus location in Malvern, PA. The campus was built to showcase their newest, cutting edge building materials and processes. It also happens to be their North America Headquarters.
One of the many futuristic office spaces in their Living Laboratory
Saint-Gobain created a high-performance workplace that encourages employee productivity, collaboration, satisfaction and well-being. By installing more than 60 of their sustainable building materials, working together in a systems-based approach, they influenced occupant comfort and well-being.
The marketing website included a visitor signup flow and several interactive content units including photo gallery, infographics, news feed, social network updates, video library, and more.
Some highlights of the project include:
CSS3
HTML5
JavaScript
Sass/SCSS
Amazon Web Services
ASP.NET
C#
Github
Microsoft Windows
SQL Server
There's usually more to the story so if you have questions or comments about this post let us know!
Do you need a new software development partner for an upcoming project? We would love to work with you! From websites and mobile apps to cloud services and custom software, we can help!
Lehigh Valley Hospital, Cedar Crest
Lehigh Valley Health Network (LVHN) is proudly part of Jefferson Health. LVHN's mission is to heal, comfort, and care for people and communities by providing advanced and compassionate health care of superior quality and value supported by education and clinical research.
Lehigh Valley Health Network (LVHN) partnered with Fynydd to build a curated, locked-down "kiosk" learning and entertainment experience for in-room patients. It would be deployed on Apple iPads and rolled out to a limited number of random patients. IT would gather analytics on usage through tracking of the patient's Internet access and in-person feedback. The goal was to try a new approach to educating patients about their care team, as well as what to expect when they go home, and a more enjoyable experience while in the hospital.
HIPAA requires that the device be completely cleared of all personal information between patients, and nurses needed a simple way to reset the devices, and keep patients from navigating into device settings, the App Store, and other areas that would create HIPAA and security concerns.
The first thing we had to do was ensure that HIPAA compliance was possible. After some research, we discovered that by using iOS "Guided Access Mode", we could keep patients in our app, even if the device was locked. We also discussed being able to write a system which would auto-wipe any browser or other history and input from the device whenever the user was taken to the "Acceptable Use Agreement" screen, asking for consent. We also created a shortcut for hospital staff to get there and a passcode so only hospital staff could initialize the app.
The app had lots of information about a patient's care team, what to expect during their stay, and what to do when they get home. They also had access to specific web resources, including a custom YouTube interface with curated LVHN videos.
During the testing phase, armatures which held the iPads were connected to the hospital beds, making it easier for patients in most any condition to use the device. There were no support calls, LVHN IT was able to get the analytics they needed, and some lucky patients got an even better experience.
Some of the key features include:
Apple iOS
Github
Swift
Amazon Web Services
ASP.NET
C#
Github
Microsoft Windows
SQL Server
YouTube
There's usually more to the story so if you have questions or comments about this post let us know!
Do you need a new software development partner for an upcoming project? We would love to work with you! From websites and mobile apps to cloud services and custom software, we can help!
