Creating an App - Guest Blog
Q&A with a Small Business Owner
I'm Coach Jennifer Shelton, a Personal Trainer who focuses on Balance. I want you to succeed at getting healthier, whatever “healthier” looks like for you. Your fitness routine needs to work for the life you live right now — otherwise, it just won’t work in the long run. Yes, fitness is important, but so are family, friends, food, and fun.
I created MyGym Balance to create health consistency, a personalized approach, and most important, accountability. I want to help you develop sustainable healthy habits that work for your life. With MyGym Balance, you're not just getting an app, you're getting a supportive, dynamic coach committed to your health and wellness and a community of others to help keep you accountable.
Not ready to download the app? Join the Balancing Life with Coach Jennifer Facebook Group!
Guest: Jennifer Shelton from MyGym Balance
Focus: Building an App as a Small Business Owner
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1. What inspired you to make an app?
The idea of reaching/helping more people. The number of people I can physically see in a day/week is very limited. An app would allow me to help so many more people to become a healthier version of themselves!
2. How did you begin the process of making your own app?
I did a lot of research to see if there was an app out there that I could use. However, none of them were personal enough for me. So I just kept talking/asking around until I found someone who could build one.
3. Can you quickly recap the entire process?
Unfortunately, my process was much longer than most. I unfortunately had to go through a couple of different developers, and for some reason Covid slowed us down as well.
4. Is there anything you wish you knew before you began on your app?
Of course, I wish I knew then what I know now . . . I wish I had a much better sense of how I wanted the app to work.
I believe I relied too heavily on the developer’s expertise. The reason I didn’t go with an already built app is because none of them were to my satisfaction. I wish I would have vetted the developer better, and that I would have spent more time upfront detailing each phase, process, screen, function, etc., of the app.
Real screenshots of MyGym Balance
5. What steps are you taking to improve the app?
The best thing about having to work with a new host and developer is that eventually my app needs to be rewritten/upgraded to a modern format. Now that I’ve had the app for a few years, I now have a much better image of how I want it to function. And since I have members using it, I also get to ask for their feedback. All things that will make it a better app!
6. What was the most difficult part of this process for YOU?
Patience, yet not knowing what I didn’t know.
I often felt like I wasn't getting anywhere fast enough, yet struggled defining where I needed to be when.
7. What is one thing you’d say to a small business owner who is trying to make their own app?
Be patient and flexible.
I now understand that my app will be, and should be, something I am always changing, growing, upgrading, progressing.
8. All in all, was it worth it for you to build your own app?
Yes!
