When things were looking bad I tied an app-realted wish to a tree. Because that makes sense.
Having your own app is all the rage these days. I don’t know how thousands of people have managed to do it. The process of producing Rome for Foodies (now called Katie Parla’s Rome for Foodies) was catastrophic. I’m not trying to be overly dramatic here, but really the whole thing nearly killed me. I am not a superstitious person, yet at a certain point I found myself tying app-related wishes to trees with red ribbons in the Hidrellez wish fulfillment ritual. Yeah, it was bad. This is my story…
Two years ago I was a carefree hardworking food and travel writer. I supported myself giving private cultural tours of Rome and southern Italy and in my free time, I traveled, wrote guidebooks, blogged, and filed travel pieces for major print publications. I didn’t know how good I had it.
I then had to go and screw up a good thing by developing an app. As an individual, I didn’t have many options. Most app development is geared towards corporations and is prohibitively expensive. Rather than jump on some app factory bandwagon targeted at individuals, I wanted to develop the whole thing from scratch, own all the content, and have a say in what my future app looked like and how it worked. Most importantly, I wanted all the profit!
Developing an app is an expensive and time consuming risk, but I was determined to give it a try. I never could have predicted that it would test my sanity, destroy my relationship, and beleaguer my friendships. And let’s not even talk about the havoc it has wreaked on my finances.
And now, after releasing an HTML5 app, and several versions of Rome for Foodies for Android, iPhone, iPad and iPod touch, I still don’t have a product I am completely happy with. It is only out of sheer numbness that I am even able to publish this post and talk about the trauma I suffered as a result of this project. My brain literally cannot internalize anymore disappointment, embarrassment, or stress.
Looking back, I think I did a few things right, I’m certain I did so many so wrong, and I kind of wish I had never made an app in the first place. But let’s focus on the positive for a moment, shall we?
The first thing I did right was to create the bilingual English/Italian HTML5 Parla Food Dining Guide, a web-based app, which I produced for very little money, and released in February 2011. The app was/is available for free and works on all browsers (smartphones, laptops and desktop computers alike). While it is nothing fancy and hasn’t been updated in over a year, it served as an important step in understanding what content was needed and whether I should develop a native app in more than one language. The results from user feedback showed I should incorporate photos into the native app and focus on English rather than Italian language apps. In general, Italians just do not respond well to restaurant advice from foreigners, no matter how qualified. Go figure.
Another thing I did right was to hire a consultant. I knew developing an app alone would be a disaster, particularly since I have no technical or code writing experience. I needed help and sought the advice of friends in Silicon Valley. They put me in touch with a former employee of theirs. We worked for several months formulating wire frames, discussing user interface, and agreed to work on the app together. She even helped me find a company on Elance that was suited to my requirements and budget.
Then on the eve of signing contracts with this company B24 e Solutions, the consultant totally flaked on me. She just straight up disappeared and stopped replying to my emails. I later found out she got a better job. She wouldn’t even respond to several attempts to pay her for the work she had done. I can only assume she was too embarrassed for having completely screwed me over. This betrayal has been among the most difficult parts to deal with. Even a year later, I still have a tough time understanding how a so-called professional would abdicate responsibility so entirely. Cue numbness…
So there I was, stuck with a massive project to manage and zero experience to prepare me for it. I should have just stopped right there. I know my life would be better off right now in so many ways if I had trusted my intuition and just given up. But I am entirely too masochistic to put the breaks on a challenge, so I went ahead, working alone with B24 e Solutions, an India-based development company. They created two Rome for Foodies apps for me, one for Android and one for iPhone and other Apple devices, based on my specifications. I provided the design and content, they wrote the code.
What I wish the app had looked like in the first place.
The 10 months of development would be the most hellish professional and personal months of my life. I dealt with constant communication difficulties (B24 e Solutions employs a brilliantly bi-lingual sales person to snag you, then sticks you with a not-so-fluent project manager), prolonged delays, and massive design flaws. I was on India Standard Time, even when I was in the States. I wasn’t sleeping in order to Skype with developers and I wasn’t sleeping due to stress brought on by these incompetent people. It was all more than I could handle. I was a wreck.
When Rome for Foodies finally came out on January 4, I was a shell of my former self. And worst of all, I was stuck with an expensive experiment that I couldn’t even promote due to its bugs.
As soon as it was released, several iPhone users reported finding no data on the app after downloading. That’s a pretty significant bug. B24 refused to fix this bug, though they were contractually obligated to repair it. Like my consultant, they blatantly ignored my emails. So in addition to my advice: do not outsource app development I would add more specifically do not engage B24 e Solutions to develop your app.
A final lesson learned from working with B24, though not specifically related to them, was: do not bother developing for Andorid devices. Save your money. The cost to develop is far higher than any potential payback and I probably will never make back the investment. Though it is doing relatively well in Android Market terms, Rome for Foodies is too expensive to maintain on that platform and I will not be providing software updates for the app, though the content will remain available.
Rome for Foodies v1.0: The Aftermath: The emails about user errors on Apple devices began to pour in as soon as the app hit the market. I was stressed beyond belief. I was horrible to be around. I had no idea how to remedy user errors since B24 wouldn’t reply to me and I definitely didn’t want to shell any more money out to those jerks. I was at a total loss.
Then the unexpected happened. I got an email from my ex- (thanks, Rome for Foodies!) boyfriend’s friend’s ex-girlfriend (got that?). She said she loved the app content but wasn’t so excited about the way it looked. She made me a tempting offer: to redesign the app, fix the bugs, and create an attractive, branded product. Her team is way more professional than B24. They have loads of experience in ecommerce and the designer Peter Arnold is creative and designed some really cool assets for the app and blog (new layout coming next week!).
The new look.
From January to May, we worked together to formulate new user interface and a totally new look for Rome for Foodies. The app even got a new name and clever branding. I think we have a viable product that works well (you be the judge!) and we will continue to improve it with forthcoming updates (v2.1 is currenly awaiting approval in the App Store, v2.2 will be out next month).
After more than two years of sleepless nights, emotional turmoil, and professional humiliation, I can say with 100% certainty that if you want to make an app, you shouldn’t. In my experience it will either kill you or ruin your life. But if you are a glutton for punishment, here is a summary of my advice:
Do lots of research and put your project out on They Make Apps instead of Elance.
Do not outsource (especially to B24!). Pay real money to develop an app in a country where you have legal recourse if the company doesn’t follow through on their commitment.
Make sure you have a contract and have a lawyer look at it before you go into business with developers, designers, or consultants.
Hire a consultant to help you with UI and have a designer create the layout and branding you want.
Don’t underestimate the importance of beta testing.
Realize that creating the app is only the first step. Updating, fixing bugs, replying to user emails, and doing PR are additional money and time consuming endeavors that will inevitably follow.
Find a friend with a Xanax prescription who you can call on when things get tough. Alternatively find the closest pen, paper, red ribbon and tree branch.
Even after all of this, Katie Parla’s Rome for Foodies is a work in progress. It will require a tremendous amount of time and energy to maintain so I really hope it is a useful tool for travelers. You can update Rome for Foodies for free if you already have the app or buy it in the app store here. Version 1.1 is still available in the Android Market. And if you like the app, please leave a nice review in the App Stored. If you hate it, why not send me a message to help me improve it? Thanks either way:)
Kate
June 1st, 2012 at 12:42 pm
I am bookmarking this post for every client that ever asks me about what it takes to put together a “quick and cheap” app.
Two years ago I tried to outsource (the same way you did) creation of an app for a magazine I put together. Thankfully, they were so bad so fast that I abandoned the idea really quickly!
Cyndy
June 1st, 2012 at 1:37 pm
I’m sorry developing the app was such a nightmare. If it makes you feel any better, I used the 1.0 app quite happily and don’t remember any significant bugs. I have downloaded the new version and though I haven’t played with it a lot, it looks cool and has worked fine so far.
janie
June 1st, 2012 at 3:45 pm
Katie-my hear goes out to you. I am sending a big hug to you for all you have gone through. I think it’s great you have shared your trial and tribulations to help those out there who think they might want to undertake a project like this. I had no idea!
Laura
June 1st, 2012 at 3:52 pm
What a nightmare! I have to say it sounds very familiar to some of our experiences in developing Eat Your World the site…string of developers who just bailed on us, innumerable sleepless nights, too many stress-filled months to count. You’re right, the level of straight-up unprofessionalism out there is mind-blowing. And we don’t even have an app yet! Thanks for the words of warning.
Sarah May
June 1st, 2012 at 4:48 pm
Wow, Katie, I had no idea. You always seem so cool calm and collected, I wish I could have helped you out in some way, like donate a massage or take you out for drinks. I love the APP for the content. We have Android so I don’t have the new one, but perhaps I will upgrade my personal phone to an Iphone soon so I can download your APP. Anyway, I am sorry about everything you went through.
Elizabeth Minchilli
June 1st, 2012 at 5:08 pm
I can’t even begin to imagine the headache involved in developing the technical part of an app, since just producing the content is so time consuming. If I had to go through what you went through I’m sure I would have thrown in the towel. It sounds like it was a complete nightmare you are lucky to have survived. Thank the lord for xanax.
Heidi
June 1st, 2012 at 5:28 pm
Yikes Katie!
Even though we touched on your app nightmare, I had no idea it was such a “ball breaker”. I hope putting it all there in the open is cathartic for you. I’m impressed with your openness and honesty, so that others can learn from your ordeal.
Hope you can take the time to take a deep breath and take a break…..you deserve it!
L
June 1st, 2012 at 5:35 pm
I bought your app and it’s very usefull!
Tom & Ann Connolly
June 1st, 2012 at 6:54 pm
well, you know me–my phone doesn’t have an app–so I cannot comment on Rome for Foodies but I can say this particular blog is wonderful and I hope it will be a chapter in the book of essays you should be working on. Just finished Benevolence and Betrayal: Five Italian Jewish Families under Fascism by Alexander Stille. Kept me thinking of our tour of the Roman ghetto during Passover. Enjoy this weekend. (if I have the date right.) a.
Deborah Chud
June 1st, 2012 at 10:21 pm
Katie,
I’m a cookbook author and food blogger. I know everything you say is true because I lived it myself for 2 solid years while I was getting my Trufflehead app done. I came out on the other side, however, and just founded my own cooking app production company, Mobile Skillet. I hope to prove that cooking app creation need not be a nightmare. We combine the best of traditional cookbook publishing with the time- and cost-saving efficiencies of automated app-creation systems. All of our work is done in the U.S. and we’ve built an amazing, user-friendly platform that actually will get apps done without the agonies of custom app development.
Katie
June 2nd, 2012 at 5:24 am
I’ve been meaning to write this anyway, but what an excellent prompt. My husband and I found your blog (via an article you wrote for The Guardian), and immediately purchased your app before traveling to Italy in April. Every single meal we had in Rome was great. Not one single miss!
Your app led us to the good gelato, fantastic pizza, and several plates of pasta that I still dream about. We used your app for every last meal in Rome – from midday snacks to several course dinners (and on a Sunday no less!).
As we’ve been back in the States sharing our travel experiences with friends and family, we’ve mentioned so many times that your app was invaluable. It made our stay in Rome the food highlight of our vacation – and we are a couple that values food above just about anything else on a vacation.
I had no idea the troubles this app caused for you, but it really did help create a wonderful vacation experience for us. Thank you for guiding us through Rome one meal at a time.
Fern Driscoll
June 2nd, 2012 at 10:24 am
Oh Katie, what a nightmare, what a horrible, horrible experience. I so hope for you that the troubles are behind you and that rewards will flow in from now on – you deserve it. I can’t understand how people will say they’ll do something and then leave you in the lurch. Unconscionable. I wish I could comment on your app, but we don’t use smart-anythings – will look at it on the computer perhaps. You sure are a terrier thouh, good for you for sticking with it and succeeding at the end.
mart
June 2nd, 2012 at 1:37 pm
Why is it that though this is partly a horror story it, like most of your writings, still puts a smile on my face? (no I’m not sadomaso)
Arlene Gibbs
June 2nd, 2012 at 2:09 pm
KP, sorry to hear about all the drama you went through.
I’m glad you wrote this post giving us a peek behind the scenes. I will forward it to anyone who thinks they can just “throw’ an app together.
Frank
June 3rd, 2012 at 3:11 pm
Sorry about your experience, sounds hellacious!
My takeaway from this story: Make sure you pick the right developer!
Renato
June 4th, 2012 at 8:01 pm
Katie, just a question:
is JAIPUR (the indian restaurant in via san francesco a ripa) a good restaurant?
Regards.
Timi Siytangco
June 6th, 2012 at 8:33 pm
Sorry to hear about your app woes, Katie. If it makes you feel any better, the content is top-notch. I used it as my prime eating guide for three weeks in Rome and all your tips are spot-on and very current.
And to your point about Italians having difficulty taking advice from a stranieri, no matter how qualified: I am pleased to report that M is very happy to have Tonda and Gori in his neighborhood. We’ve been to both places now multiple times. He wanted me to tell you that he thinks Gori is probably the best gelato in Rome right now — this from a staunch Italian who grew up on Giolitti!
Toni DeBella
June 7th, 2012 at 6:58 am
Katie, The thing that most impressed me about your story is that even when your head said to stop and your life was crumbling in front of you….YOU DIDN’T GIVE UP and I am hoping that your app will become a bestseller and huge success, because after all that, you deserve it. Congrats. Toni
Eleonora
June 7th, 2012 at 11:46 pm
From what you mentioned at the author’s fair I understood that it was a steep incline but I had no idea how traumatic and hard this has been, Katie…
Brava on hanging in there and not giving up. I can’rt even imagine the stress involved.
I personally love the app, and read it as literature in between uses. Now that I know how hard you worked to make it right I value it even more.
Baci
Carol Malzone
June 8th, 2012 at 4:33 pm
Katie,
What a backstory behind your beautiful app! I have mine on my IPad & IPhone -no bugs around either. .Appreciate the warning and advice.
Valerio
June 9th, 2012 at 9:03 am
Hi Katie,
I’m sure those lucky ones who have read this will benefit from your words. Creating an app is no joke and requires loads of time and true passion or determination to get to the final product.
Ps The brand and look of the app is great!
Mike Robinson
June 14th, 2012 at 9:29 pm
I’m a developer, so while I sympathize dearly with you I have to defend app development a little bit. After all, the first time I cooked a chili it set the fire alarm off, and I didn’t tell my friends never to try it!
I think, as you mentioned, your biggest early mistake was greed. While a canned app would have taken a cut of your profits and not been perfect, your first release to market would have been a matter of weeks. The nice thing about canned apps is they have made a lot of the decisions for you. Those decisions are backed up by user research and the experience of design professionals. Granted it won’t look perfect, but it will -work-.
Outsourcing is a liability. My experience with outsourcing has been mixed but it is possible to get a quality product. The downside is you have to micromanage your team on a daily basis. Imagine a chef coordinating a dinner party 3,000 miles away and you get the idea. You have to know, based on limited information, exactly what the finished product should look like. Oh, and you have to do it with a 6+ hour time difference! The solution here is to stay local until your are confident enough and willing to manage an international team. I’ve played with your app and agree that what you really needed was a single competent local developer, but do not agree that outsourcing always fails.
As for the design, I think you nailed the personality and appearance but blew it when creating a real “App”. What I mean is: your buttons don’t look like buttons, your alignment is all over the place, the map is hard to find, and icons (while cute) are a pain in the butt to read when you’re standing in the middle of a sunny town square. It’s hard to use, and the cuteness factor will be a turnoff to your (potential) customers. You should never forget the context of an app: it’s mobile. That means it’s being used outdoors in quick bursts in which your user probably has a direct goal in mind. You have to make ease of use a priority, and often that means axing elements you’re personally attached to.
The design point also brings up my final argument: DO bother designing for Android devices! Yes, their screen sizes are all different and there’s massive fragmentation, but this is a simple app. A competent developer could take your android app and turned it into something so much more usable and beautiful that worked across all devices. The framework used to build it (jQuery Mobile) is actually designed specifically for that purpose! However, ensuring compatibility means you will have to ditch some of your notions of how it appears. But why would you deprive potential customers of your content simply because the app doesn’t look perfect? I certainly don’t deprive vegetarians of my delicious shepherd’s pie!
Development is hard, just like cooking (which I find -especially- hard), but these techniques aren’t a bad idea just because they went wrong for you. A little more preparation, practice, and occasional compromise will ensure that you learn from mistakes instead of tossing them out completely.
Marc
June 19th, 2012 at 7:07 pm
I’d like to tell you that we used your app a LOT when we were in Rome two weeks ago. We loved your web site and my girlfriend bought the app on the iPhone for our trip. We went to Trattoria Monti specifically for the ravioli with the raw egg yolk! As an Android user I wish there would be updates on it, but if the costs make it too high then I get it.
Keep up the good work, this app is a necessity for any tourist in Rome. There’s so much bad food that a guide like this is necessary. We had things we wished for during usage, like recommendation based on where you are now and listings by neighborhoods, but this was way better than any guide books.
Looking Back at 2012
December 31st, 2012 at 6:06 am
[...] stream of anxiety-inducing events: I was single for the first time in nine years, I had some tiny issues with version 1.0 of my app, I got screwed by my publisher, I forgot to sleep for several months, I got fed up with living in [...]