By Tobin Harris
Managing Director, Pocketworks
October 29, 2024
Updated November 4, 2024
By Tobin Harris
Managing Director, Pocketworks
October 29, 2024
Updated November 4, 2024
It's alive! If your job is to decide what app to build or what roadmap to commit to, then hopefully, you'll find this useful.
AppFlows is a free tool for tech leaders to visualise and explore app ideas. I developed it in my spare time because I wanted something that would allow our clients to progress faster.
I've been using it at Pocketworks for a while and decided to offer it as a cloud-based solution so other tech leaders can benefit.
So, how does it help you?
AppFlows includes a mobile strategy designer to help them align on the big decisions and communicate those with others. This encourages more healthy ideation because everyone understands the desired outcomes.
All the business leaders we meet are considering launching an app. One challenge I see repeatedly is that executive teams love coming up with app ideas, but those ideas don't always solve the same business problem. If you take the time to frame the problem and create ideas around it, everyone is more productive.
The AppFlows strategy designer starts with a "winning aspiration"—a well-framed problem and outcome. This helps create alignment.
AppFlows allows you to use AI to generate your strategy and user journey. This is helpful if you're new to building mobile strategies or designing app features.
When you create a new project, you simply check the AI button. After it generates your project, you can always tweak everything. This helps you get started fast and is a solid learning tool.
When I work with product directors and CTOs, they often come with a spreadsheet of features the business thinks might be useful to their app.
Spreadsheets are helpful but aren't great for communicating ideas and triggering creative thoughts.
AppFlows will convert your text into visual app flow diagrams so that you can see a preview of potential features.
This was created simply by copying and pasting text from a random idea on Reddit.
This helps stimulate new ideas and creativity.
AppFlows includes a tool to help teams estimate the effort and cost needed to take an idea to market.
It's controversial, but I've always been a fan of Story Points for estimating, as long as they have empirical data backing them. When you translate story points to a cost, you base it on what has happened in the past on other development initiatives.
So, with AppFlows, you can add story points to your stories and a point price based on any historical data you have. Then, it will list them out in an easy-to-read table format that you can export into an Excel sheet or whatever.
If you don't want to show cost, and just go with relative point sizes, you can turn off costs.
Costs and point sizes are also shown in the user flows designer, as shown below.
We know your app ideas are sensitive, and you might not want them stored on a cloud server.
Because of that, AppFlows saves all data in your browser; nothing is sent to the cloud.
You can use AppFlows for free; check it out at https://appflows.ai.
Oh, and if you have any feedback, I'd love to hear it.
In case you're wondering, Pocketworks is a software consultancy that specialises in mobile apps.
We bring you expertise in user research, mobile technology and app growth tactics to help you develop apps that create positive impact for your customers, shareholders and society.
To get a flavour of us, check out ourย free guides and app development services. Or,ย see some more background info on us.
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