DEV Community: Waracle

Augmented Reality Technology is already revolutionising the Oil & Gas Sector

Waracle — Thu, 25 Jul 2019 16:00:12 +0000

Within the oil and gas sector, emerging technologies are being designed, developed and deployed to enhance real-time decision making, provide real life training and reduce operational costs. Emerging technologies are already disrupting multiple industry sectors and ignoring the tide of transformational change is no longer a realistic option. The good news is there is enormous potential for oil and gas innovators to get ahead of the curve quickly through adoption of these exciting new technologies. Today we’re exploring how augmented and virtual reality technology will revolutionise the oil and gas sector.

Traditional Industry Embracing Emerging Tech
There is a hard-wired perception that the oil and gas sector has been slow when it comes to the adoption and roll-out of new technologies, but that perception is now being challenged as oil and gas operators seek to explore the benefits of emerging technologies such as blockchain, artificial intelligence, machine learning and AR/VR.

Whilst the rate of technological change and innovation is starting to accelerate, there is still a considerable way to go, which presents some compelling opportunities for early adopters. Innovation is primarily being driven within the oil and gas sector by a select number of companies who are delivering emerging technology initiatives to drive commercial value. The purpose of these initiatives is to understand how the deployment of emerging technologies can drive efficiency across the entire value chain, and where pilot projects and POC’s (proof of concept) are delivering value and process efficiency gains, these projects are beginning to stimulate widespread interest and attention.

These initiatives span across all areas of emerging technology, from AR and VR to machine learning and blockchain. Each initiative will differ from the next, the core commercial themes remain consistent throughout the industry – improving safety standards and driving process efficiency gains. More specifically, these pilot projects focus on key areas such as asset management and identification, worker mobility and the digital oilfield.

In Scotland, the existence of the Oil & Gas Technology Centre symbolises that the industry is rapidly shifting towards a more progressive outlook with a heavy emphasis on technical innovation.

Technology opportunities within Oil & Gas
Over the next decade, technological innovation within the oil and gas sector will gather significant momentum. Lower oil prices have led to cost reduction initiatives, and while prices have recovered substantially, energy companies have to balance new technological innovations in R&D against operational costs – this presents a myriad of commercial opportunities for forward thinking innovators and early adopters.

The ability to drive digital transformation within the oil and gas sector has become an increasingly attractive proposition, even against a commercial backdrop whereby all new R&D investments need to be weighed up against increased competition within the market from producers of renewable energy, combined with less stable commodity prices and shifting patterns of consumer behaviour. As the market has shifted into a more stable position, many oil and gas companies are now starting to realise that the cost of inaction is greater than the cost of developing an initiative, and firms are now exploring new technologies such as AR and VR as a means of generating new streams of revenue and cutting operational costs.

Visualising the future of Oil and Gas through Augmented Reality
Augmented Reality technology has the potential to radically transform the oil and gas sector both in terms of cost reduction and operational efficiency. New AR based innovations enable engineers to control assets in real-time from an onshore locale, either through a HUD (heads up display) such as the Microsoft HoloLens or a ruggedised smartphone or tablet. The launch of mobile AR SDK’s Apple ARKit and Google ARCore mean it’s never been easier for oil and gas companies to develop lightweight AR prototypes and full production applications for use in an offshore environment.

This approach to remote working enables operators to de-skill maintenance workers on the operational front-line and reduces cost by minimising the level of involvement required from highly skilled engineers, and the number of trips to and from the offshore environment. Enabling maintenance workers and engineers to minimise trips back and forth to an offshore site can bring about huge cost savings and is one obvious area where AR is having a significant and transformative impact on existing operations.

Another area where technology can have a transformative impact on cost reduction and operational efficiency is through superimposing real-time information using AR on top of real-world assets. New mobile AR applications that enable maintenance workers to view real-time data offshore on the operational frontline can have a hugely positive impact on the time it takes to perform simple tasks and also be used to manage workflow and complex audit trails. These new innovations are providing oil and gas companies with increased transparency across the entire technological ecosystem and new innovations in AI provide the capability to harness new insights from existing data sets.

Leveraging AR to facilitate remote working and offshore data visualisation are just two of the ways in which emerging technologies can be deployed to drive commercial gains. Another area within oil and gas where AR is having a significant impact, is the ability to engineer new spillage detection products and services. In fact, detecting spillages is one of the key areas where AR technology can have the most widespread commercial ramifications. Machine learning algorithms can be used to detect leaks and spillage anomalies, as well as monitoring the performance of sensor data and integrated systems. Processing hardware and sensors can be combined with new AR software applications to monitor pipeline infrastructure and detect leaks before they occur.

Leveraging Augmented Reality to enhance oil and gas decision making
There has been a widespread misconception that AR technology is a gimmick and does little to impact commercial ROI, not just in oil and gas, but across all industry sectors. The key to rolling out a successful AR initiative is to start with the end in mind and work backwards from perceived commercial KPI’s. When executed correctly, new AR initiatives enable workers at every level within each organisation to establish increased control over existing processes and business operations. AR technology enables senior management to visualise data in an entirely new way and provides access to data sources in real-time that were never previously available. The ability to visualise data via AR enables key decision makers to pinpoint potential problems before they occur and creates a culture of empowerment in terms of decision making. Whilst the term ‘big data’ has led to the availability of new information, AR technology helps management to make proper sense of data and act accordingly.

One example of how AR technology is impacting oil and gas, is the mobile AR application that Waracle is currently developing for Return To Scene Ltd (part of the James Fisher Group) an Aberdeen based visual asset management company with clients including BP and ExxonMobil. The mobile AR application uses the camera on a smartphone or tablet to recognise oil and gas structures and then bring up identification tags and information about them on screen. Return To Scene’s head of product development and support Martin Macrae, explained: “Offshore oil and gas assets are complex, adaptive structures with a constant flow of actions being undertaken by international teams.

“The systems which enable these actions are underpinned by asset registers which are represented by physical tags attached to equipment. “The location of these tags and the ability to visualise data in a certain way, is crucially important. “This is where AR technology, and specifically Waracle’s unique software delivery capability, can solve a myriad of challenges.”

Conclusion
When it comes to technological innovation, the oil and gas industry has a strong future. There is significant scope at present for emerging technologies such as AR, VR, Blockchain, artificial intelligence and machine learning to impact cost reduction and process efficiency. It’s estimated that digital transformation could add more than $1 trillion to the value of oil and gas companies across the globe in the next ten years. New AR applications are already being brought to market that enable oil and gas companies to transform large data sets into meaningful information, that help to empower better commercial decision making.

New technological innovations will create a platform for energy companies to be technologically competitive, reducing costs and enhancing existing processes, for the next several decades and beyond. If you’re thinking about kick-starting your first AR project, or seeking assistance with an ongoing initiative, contact Waracle today to get the conversation started.

https://waracle.com/augmented-reality-technology-is-already-revolutionising-the-oil-gas-sector/

Onshoring vs. Offshoring: Striving For Perfection In Digital

Waracle — Thu, 25 Jul 2019 15:56:19 +0000

Just over 40% of businesses have a dedicated digital transformation team in place, and yet, there is no question that all businesses must become digital businesses sooner or later. Whether you’re on board yet, or otherwise, digital transformation will be the crucial component of commercial success for the new enterprise. Are you prepared?

For most, delivering multiple digital projects, particularly in mobile development, can be the difference between success and failure. If you’ve been tasked with assembling a killer team of digital products specialists and mobile developers, visibility of the starting point of your digital journey can seem a long way off. The good news? You’ve got options – and lots of them!

In this latest blog piece, we’re exploring one of the areas you’ll need to think about early on in your digital endeavours – onshoring vs. offshoring – and what’ll you’ll need to consider when it comes to selecting the right digital delivery specialist to partner you on this most important of enterprise odysseys.

Understanding your options on the digital path
For companies with aggressive plans for growth, the need to make strategic and operational decisions around how digital projects are delivered is critical, and one of the key considerations you’ll come across early on is agility and the time it takes to get something started, versus ongoing development, the transition to live, ongoing optimisation and DevOps.

If, like many enterprises, you’ve got an ever-growing backlog of digital projects that need to get started sooner rather than later, there are three options you’ll want to look at before you begin – whether to pursue offshore, onshore, or in-house development. It’s important to keep in mind that there’s no silver bullet aimed at the right decision – the right answer for your business will vary from others, and will be dependant upon a number of factors. The biggest challenge will be to ensure that whichever road you take, your chosen supplier (irrespective of location), will have the expertise to confidently guide your digital vision towards a successful conclusion – and beyond.

What is offshore development?
When it comes to offshore development, operational activities such as UI/UX design, technical development and project management, will be entirely located to another country. Why? In most cases, businesses will opt for offshore development either to reduce costs or to source the required talent not available in their own neck of the woods.

Success in offshoring development usually depends upon a few key elements, but the one that’s going to have the biggest impact on a good outcome is communications. Surprised? Don’t be! Quality of Internet connection (this may sound trivial but flaky WiFi can be seriously painful over long distance comms), choice of communication platforms (WebEx, Google Hangouts, Skype etc), time differences (is the supplier working when you’re asleep and vice-versa?) and potential linguistic and cultural barriers, are no trivial matters. Fail to measure up on just one or two of these, and your project could falter before it’s even off the starting block.

And onshoring?
If you decide on Onshoring for your digital project, you’ll be looking at securing development activities on home soil, activities that you may not have the resources or expertise to employ in-house. If you take this route, expect to be outsourcing any number of elements that your digital project embodies – particularly in the context of IT and software/mobile development. Think discovery and consulting, agile team management, or expertise in certain technologies that you may not have in-house, such as AR, AI or Voice.

Onshoring your project is going to be the obvious choice if you’re a large enterprise that feels close geographical proximity across teams will enable greater efficiency, and minimise issues.

Of course, with any large scale software development project, problems can arise when least expected. And when they do arise, a successful outcome is going to depend upon your ability (and the software development teams ability) to solve the problem fast. When there are a lot of moving parts to your project, and this kind of agility is needed, onshoring is going to ensure you’ve got the best chance of swift resolution. Very often these situations can be addressed face-to-face with an onshore project – something that’s not usually as easy with offshoring.

Onshoring has become an extremely attractive option for large companies in terms of cultural compatibility and the ongoing evolution of the client relationship. In some cases, cultural compatibility can be the make or break factor for enterprises looking to engage with a specific vendor. It sounds trivial, but it’s not.

The benefits of onshoring
The core benefit of onshoring for enterprise organisations, and working in close proximity to your chosen software supplier, is ensuring

Working in close proximity to those involved, you’ll get the fastest possible service – obtaining immediate access to highly skilled pool of resources and talent at short notice.
You get to stay agile! Key development decisions can be accelerated, and in-person meetings can be called at short notice to bring together the key software project stakeholders.
Onshoring can also dramatically enhance projet ROI in the mid to long-term through smoother project communications and quicker iteration of key features. Onshoring can also deliver cost benefits if your supplier is based in a lower cost city.
So, what about in-house development?
Of course, you could consider in-house development for your enterprise. If you’re confident that in-house development is the best course of action, there are two key aspects to be considered. The first – retrain your existing in-house software engineers in a new discipline. For example, if your core software offering is desktop and your engineers are tooled up in languages that relate specifically to web based application development, quickly reskilling employees into mobile app development can be challenging and time-consuming. The bottom line? If you need to get new software development programs up and running quickly, reskilling is not the fastest option.

The second option will be to recruit developers with the relevant skills directly into your company. Again, this can be costly and time-consuming – and there are no guarantees that once a candidate has been identified, recruited and embedded into the organisation, that the relationship will work or that you’ll be happy with the quality of their output.

Key Considerations
Whoever you engage with, it’s increasingly critical that they understand the very often complex regulatory and operational frameworks within which to develop – and continuously deliver – the right digital solutions to fulfil a commercial need.

Financial services are a great example of a sector whereby governance and the ability to navigate stringent industry regulations are particularly pertinent. There are a range of regulatory factors to consider around security and compliance, not least PSD2 and GDPR. On the flip side, enterprise also needs to consider the impact of new and emerging technologies such as AR/VR, IoT, AI and Blockchain, in terms of understanding how new app development initiatives will impact business operations – and how your customers engage with your software offering. A couple of key questions we’d ask (and would welcome being asked!):

What’s their depth of experience in regulatory and security environment relevant to your market?
Breadth of technology experience – do they understand backend development? What about the latest mobile development standards? Can they work across platforms?
Conclusion
For companies tasked with mobilising a team of highly skilled software developers and engineers, knowing which direction to take can seem like a daunting process. The good news is, you’ve got options, and it’s not all about distance and timelines. Being clear at the outset about what you want – and need – to achieve will go a long way to ensuring you choose the right route. Is it lower costs, a flexible team, a quicker delivery?

If you’re looking for a wide range of project choices, a lower project cost, don’t mind the time differences or when the team are around and can live with any cultural incompatibilities, offshoring could be for you. But if you’re an enterprise that needs your team close to hand and able to respond to issues quickly and efficiently, onshoring will work better for you. What’s more, if your business is one that’s operating in complex, highly regulated industry, having a team that’s up to speed on requirements is going to be priceless. We’re happy to help you navigate these decisions, so get in touch and go forth and innovate!

Why consumers need innovation from their banks

Waracle — Thu, 25 Jul 2019 15:45:53 +0000

Why consumers need innovation from their banks-
In an increasingly digital world, consumers don’t expect innovation from their banks, they need it. This has profound ramifications for banks but also presents lucrative commercial opportunities for early adopters of new technologies. The banking industry is now starting to exhibit many of the characteristics and traits traditionally associated with innovative fintech start-ups. As consumer behaviours and habits rapidly shift with the proliferation of exciting new technologies, particularly in mobile, credit unions and banks are becoming increasingly comfortable with rapid innovation, use of big data, complex user analytics and the digitisation of paper-based processes.

One of the key challenges for banks adapting to this new era of aggressive technological change and shifting behaviours will be the ability to facilitate rapid innovation and understanding how to select the right development partners and resource projects accordingly. Today we’re exploring why consumers have become increasingly reliant on innovation from their banks.

What does the modern banking consumer expect?
Modern banking consumers require a wide range of attributes from their banking provider. These attributes often relate to service expectations, personalisation, the ability to self-serve and bank independently via personalised mobile apps, slick on-line banking and new in-branch experiences. These consumers can be segmented into three distinct groups: nomads, hunters and quality seekers.

In terms of service expectations, modern banking consumers expect the same level of digital awareness and service provision they’ve become accustomed to via large technology companies such as Facebook, Apple and Netflix. These customers are referred to as ‘nomads’ and expect banking services to be as slick and intuitive as the digital services that these companies provide. Nomads also expect that banks will offer high levels of real-time personalisation based on their own individual data sets and spending patterns and are constantly seeking new ways of accessing new banking products and services. This trend and shift in behaviour also relates to the in-branch experience as nomads increasingly expect digital offerings in physical retail banking locations.

Many banking customers still also expect a traditional level of service in that they appreciate human interaction and tend to be wary of non-banking providers. However, in most instances, these types of banking consumers, also referred to as ‘hunters’ are also seeking practical added-value services and are open to digitally defined offerings that can provide some form of practical value. Similar to nomads, these consumers are highly motivated to track expenses and minimise personal costs on an ongoing basis. It’s estimated that 38% of hunters would like their bank to help with major purchases by sending highly targeted information and advice in real-time.

Quality seekers differ from nomads and hunters in a number of distinct ways. Quality seekers view trust as being a critical component of the modern banking experience and value an exceptionally high level of service. Quality seekers are fundamentally motivated to bank with traditional banking providers who have a demonstrable track record of financial expertise. As such, quality seekers are less likely to trust tech companies such as Apple or Amazon to deliver core banking services (or any banking services for that matter). When it comes to developing digital products and services for quality seekers, banks must emphasise the stability and security of their offering. Traditional banks are at a serious advantage when it comes to marketing to quality seekers but also have to compete with an aggressive competitive landscape.

Innovative banking apps in a digital world
Against a backdrop of rapid technological adaptation and shifting consumer behaviours, global banking organisations are beginning to exploit some incredible strategic opportunities. As technology has evolved at lightning pace in the past decade, banks are increasingly transitioning their strategic focus and technological capabilities towards a more sophisticated setting that suits the ever-changing needs of the modern banking consumer. For many banks, this is not an easy proposition to contend with. For other banking organisations, this shift towards increased innovation and technological sophistication has occurred successfully whilst defending market share from new competitors and challengers.

In terms of innovation, there is a massive emphasis on banks’ ability to digitise core business services and processes and understanding how to adequately resource these types of projects is key to success. In many instances this process of digital transformation involves reassessing organisational structures, how decisions are made in relation to digital transformation and reskilling existing employees to be better equipped for incoming technological change. This entire process of transformation represents the desire of many banks to become truly digital in terms of expanding existing banking services, remodelling delivery channels, providing proactive guidance for customers and the application of blockchain technology.

“Recent industry research has suggested that 69% of all consumers want more innovation from their banks. The research focused on 5000 customers across six European countries including the UK, Belgium, Germany, France and Spain) and only 12% of respondents agreed that their bank was innovative. In addition, only 12% of customers agree that their own bank is different from competing banking offerings and 33% ‘somewhat agree” (Forrester)

The importance of innovation in banking
When it comes to rapid innovation in banking, one of the most consistent themes moving forward is the fact that banks will need to continue to innovate harder and faster than ever before. Banks will increasingly need to get to grips with how to develop new mobile prototypes and applications. This means banks have to dabble with new technologies such as artificial intelligence (AI), machine learning, augmented and virtual reality, blockchain, voice control, connected devices and the Internet of Things (IoT). Many banks are now increasingly aware that the customer must sit front and centre of the entire banking experience and that means experimenting with new technologies and deploying innovative development principles and practices.

Let’s take a look at some of the banks that are challenging the status quo of how banking services and products should be delivered to keep up with the changing expectations of the modern banking consumer:

B Currency
The award winning B Currency application is a great example of how banks can leverage innovative tools, technologies and services to cater for the requirements of banking consumers. Launched by Clydesdale and Yorkshire Banking Group in 2018, the B Currency app provides a simple and fast way for customers to convert prices in real-time using augmented reality and optical character recognition. B Currency is super simple to use – users can open the app, hold up their smartphone camera to the price they want to convert, and watch the converted price appear in real-time.

Barclays
Barclays are one example of a major bank intent on crafting a richer and more immersive experience for their customers. Rather than opting for major innovative strides that could potentially be too disruptive for quality seekers, Barclays have focused on introducing regular slices of innovation and taken an iterative approach to rolling out new features. One example of this iterative approach is the introduction of iconography in bank statements for customers. Barclays system pulls through specific brand logos into each transaction detailed in every bank statement based on actual expenditure. This provides users with a more personalised banking experience and enables ‘at a glance’ awareness of spending patterns and behaviours. Whilst this may not seem like a major innovation, it underlines Barclays intent to provide a deeper experience for online customers and reinforces their commitment to innovative development practices.

Market research from Barclays also revealed the true cost of admin for small to medium sized business users. Traders indicated that invoicing costs them approximately £2,000 a year, while 32% of those surveyed suggested that they have to work at weekends due to a backlog of paperwork. In response to this research, Barclays was the first major high street bank to launch free mobile invoicing within its mobile banking app, helping hundreds of thousands of business owners create and send invoices in real-time on the move. Another great example of a major bank staying in tune with rapidly evolving consumer tastes and habits.

Cleo
Meet Cleo is an innovative banking service driven by artificial intelligence (AI) and machine learning (ML). The application enables banking users to better manage their personal finances. The AI is deployed via Facebook Messenger, text messages, Amazon Alexa and Google Assistant, where banking customers can ask the personal assistant spending related questions relevant to personal account and spending habits. Users can then receive instant feedback and guidance in terms of how to optimise spending behaviours. What’s very cool, is the fact that Meet Cleo utilises emoji/gif friendly imagery and adopts humour and a relaxed, friendly tone which offers a fresh perspective in terms of personal banking and money management.

Mint
Mint is an awesome example of how new banking products are bringing increased personalisation to existing banking products and processes. The Mint app enables banking users to manage all of their core services in one place and enables them to easily create budgets, whilst the Mint app uses ML and predictive analysis to make recommendations on how to optimise spending performance. Users can track when bills are due and receive notifications in real-time as to when bills are due to be paid, reducing the potential occurrence of unwanted fees and charges. The Mint service also provides advice and guidance on personal credit score and makes suggestions in terms of how users can improve the quality of their score. Again, this is a great example of a banking service that is committed to better understanding user behaviour and providing a highly targeted and personalised experience, utterly focused on the core requirements and needs of each individual customer.

Conclusion
With the advent of sophisticated new technologies and digital products, there has never been so much opportunity for banks to move fast, innovate and gain serious competitive advantage by focusing on the delivery of a highly personalised banking experience that caters for the needs of individual users. For banks that are committed to innovation, one of the major challenges is resourcing software development capability and expertise. Whether it’s a case of extending the functionality of an existing paper based process into a responsive web app, or extending an existing web app into mobile (it could even be a case of extending an existing mobile app into new and emerging technologies such as AR, IoT or AI/ML), resourcing is always a key consideration in terms of being responsive (and committed) to rapidly evolving consumer needs and shipping the highest quality software to market in the shortest possible time scale.

If you’re keen to better understand how you can respond to changing consumer behaviour through agile and rapid digital product innovation, we’d love to hear from you. Contact Waracle today to kick-start your journey.

Why consumers need innovation from their banks

Waracle — Fri, 12 Jul 2019 12:18:42 +0000

In an increasingly digital world, consumers don’t expect innovation from their banks, they need it. This has profound ramifications for banks but also presents lucrative commercial opportunities for early adopters of new technologies. The banking industry is now starting to exhibit many of the characteristics and traits traditionally associated with innovative fintech start-ups. As consumer behaviours and habits rapidly shift with the proliferation of exciting new technologies, particularly in mobile, credit unions and banks are becoming increasingly comfortable with rapid innovation, use of big data, complex user analytics and the digitisation of paper-based processes.

White Label Apps: should you or shouldn’t you?

Waracle — Fri, 12 Jul 2019 11:52:26 +0000

As the mobile app market continues to rapidly grow and evolve, the go-to stat on everyone’s lips is the colossal App Store consumer spend envisaged for this year – currently standing at $120 billion. According to App Annie, that’s “double the size of the global box office market, and bigger than the global live and recorded music industry” – in other words, it’s huge. The big question: If you haven’t been persuaded to jump headlong into the lucrative world of the mobile app yet, what are you waiting for? Today we’re exploring “White Label Apps: should you or shouldn’t you?”

If that sounds like a rhetorical, slightly brash question, it’s not. Building a mobile app isn’t something you ‘just do”. With a ton of factors to take into consideration before it even gets to the ‘discovery’ phase – time, investment and a lot of staying power – it’s not surprising that that big app idea of yours might never get off the ground if you’re going it alone.

But wait! What about White Label apps? You’ve heard of them, they entice with the promise of being faster, easier and cheaper than a custom build, and it’s a tempting route, indeed, the right route for some – but is it for you? In this blog, we’re going to explore the pro’s and con’s of each.

The White Label App – what is it, and what can I expect?
In a nutshell, a white label product – app or otherwise – is used or distributed under your own brand name, but created by another company. The initial investment you’ll make is often less than a custom-built app, the time to market can be reduced, and there can be less of a maintenance burden that a custom app demands. With so much going for it, it’s easy to see why the white label app can be a preferred option for some businesses.

Trivia: The origin of White-Label Solution can be traced back to vinyl records. Before records were to be released to the public, promotional copies were sent out in a white sleeve to DJs to solicit radio plays, in an effort to build hype and gauge public interest by the record labels.

Indeed, utilizing white label products often makes a lot of sense in many instances for organisations that simply don’t, and never will, have the resources or finances to create an own-brand solution – think e-commerce platforms (3DCart), websites (Squarespace), and managed services (Acronis), to name but a few.

But when it comes to mobile apps, is a white label solution ever the best solution for your enterprise? White Label apps have changed the speed and cost it takes to build and ship a branded app, and for many businesses that don’t have the infrastructure or resources in place to manage a custom build and upkeep, they can be a good route into mobile, allowing companies to test the waters by shipping an app that has minimum commitment. But when the brand experience is critical, and features and functionality need to measure up to that experience, the white label probably won’t cut it. Let’s dissect (no pun intended!).

Basic is what basic does: What to expect from a white label app
When it comes to white label apps, it’s fair to say that what you’re not going to get is a sophisticated, all-singing, all-dancing app that does everything you both need and want it to.

iPhone white label

Rather, ‘basic’ is the term often used when it comes to white label apps, and for good reason. Control over app features, its design and functionality, and other brand-critical elements that you may want a say in, are very often limited. This can be an issue, particularly for delivering that crucial seamless brand experience we mentioned.

When it comes to set up, some developers will provide what’s called a ‘module’ system, allowing you to pick and choose the individual modules for your app. Usually, design, features and functionality can be customised (to a certain extent), and while it’s true to say white label apps can look and function as well as a custom build, you could run into limitations you hadn’t envisaged halfway through a project – then you’ve got a problem on your hands. Having the option to customise can come with higher costs attached, which will often be bolted on to your monthly fee – and you may still find your customisation options not quite measuring up.

What can I expect to pay for a white label app?
The idea of a ready to use, no-nonsense, out-of-the-box mobile app is appealing – particularly from a cost perspective. When it comes to white label apps, costs will always vary, and sometimes significantly. Expect to pay an upfront fee for initial set-up (though be aware, you’ll often be expected to do this yourself!), and then a monthly fee to the developer for as long as your app is live. Occasionally, you may also be asked to pay the developers a percentage of the app profits.

white label icons

These ongoing fees are worthy of consideration – you’ll need to make sure you can afford the monthly outlay, as well as being prepared for any price changes … what if the developer decides to double your monthly fee, or increase the percentage of profits you’re required to fork out? It’s also worth mentioning that integrating a white label solution into an enterprise architecture and customer authentication process can be a mammoth task, and as such, an expensive process. But whatever the costs, and however much time and resources you put into it yourself, if you go for white label, remember you will never own the app. Why? Because the source code remains the property of the developers for life.

And while we’re talking about code …
Code is the very foundation on which your app – white label or otherwise – exists. Being the property of the app developer when it comes to the white label, you’ll need to be comfortable having limited, if any, control over the quality of said code. More often than not, this shouldn’t be an issue … after all, no developer wants to be known for turning out second-rate code. But equally, no one is ever going to tell you the code quality isn’t up to scratch, so you’ll need to be prepared to jump in with both feet and take a leap of faith.

The white label and scalability
Scalability is one of the key issues that businesses will face when opting for a white label option. While scalability may not be an issue for the majority of businesses who opt for the white label, the bottom line is that you need to be aware that you could be limited when it comes to timely, expected app updates, – not only when you want them, but when your audience is getting itchy too. What’s more, any updates that are made may not include those that you feel are needed the most. While this isn’t something that’s often seen, being stuck with an out-of-date UI that doesn’t address your audience pain-points isn’t ideal – you look bad, and your audience finds something newer and better.

And what happens when you outgrow the generic white label functionality and want to go on your own? Transitioning to a new app with the same functionality is a huge initial cost, and jarring to your users. If the vendor goes away, they may well abandon the white label platform, leaving you stranded.

Security & Privacy with the white label
No mobile app is a great mobile app without reliable security and privacy to go along with it. When it comes to the white label and security, there’s lots to consider –

Multi-Tenancy systems. Will your user data live with all other companies user data in the proprietary system? What about backups?
Are the developers security aware? Are they following the Mobile OWASP guidelines, and how do you know?
You’ll need complete visibility of what customer data your white label app developer holds, as well as what they’re doing with it.
Libraries can contain malicious code such as cryptominers that, unless the devs are doing due diligence on them, will be in your app without your knowledge.
You must ensure you’re confident that malicious code is not – and won’t be – an issue.
The difference between White Label and bespoke mobile apps
Now that we’ve covered the key points you’ll need to consider around white label apps, let’s talk about how they measure up to the bespoke app solution.

As we race through 2019, one thing that’s racing alongside us is the growth of mobile. Showing no sign of a slowdown, by the end of this year, consumer spend in the App store is expected to exceed $120bn. For the many businesses that have started their mobile transformation, the benefits have been clear – from building a stronger brand to improving the customer experience, reducing operating costs to opening up new possibilities in their markets … the list goes on. For those that have yet to board the mobile bandwagon, the pressure to do so is reaching boiling point – even if budgets say otherwise. And it’s why the white label app is courting popularity right now – white label apps are affordable, and can be shipped in just a few days. Doing the sums, a custom build can seem like a pipe dream … but is it?

Look and feel
We know that the white label app is all about basic, and for many, basic will do just fine. But for companies that have a brand to build and protect, where look and feel is critical to a seamless cross-platform experience, custom-build offers the precision and flexibility to do just that. Remember, white labels will give you the option to customise, but that customisation could come at a premium, and is likely to be very limited.

Functionality
When it comes to the white label UI, again, expect basic functionality with the potential to customise – just not perhaps the precise way you’d like. Updates for your white label will be when the developer decides, which may not necessarily be when you need them. What’s more, there will be many other companies deploying the same white label app, and as such, updates made will be those that address the collective needs of the widest possible user base.

The custom-build, on the other hand, will have as many bells and whistles as you need, meaning that the UX is always going to be a superior experience for your end users. The custom build will also allow you to offer a seamless user experience that marries with what your customers have come to expect, with updates made when you need them, and they’ll be based on comprehensive user analytics.

Code
So, we know that white label code is the property of the developer that writes it. We also know that no developer wants to write second-rate code – so for most businesses that opt for white label apps, the code shouldn’t ever be an issue. But there will be times when it is, and there will be very little you can do about it. The downside is you’re stuck with a glitchy app that may or may not be a priority to fix. Why? You’re in a queue with all the other customers to have it fixed. What’s more, if it only affects your specific use case, it could take even longer, or worse, never be fixed.

With a custom build, however, the code belongs to you, which means the upsides are myriad – changes and updates when you need and want them; the ability to address bugs as soon as they’re spotted, and reassurance and flexibility around future planning (you decide, not the vendor) – good for the bottom line, and your users.

Security
Security is never just a single option – it’s a spectrum of options, and with a custom build, you’ll be in the driving seat with control over how and what to implement in a way that exactly fits your own needs (rather than the generic needs of everyone using the white label app.)

What’s more, and while we’re talking about control, the need to be able to respond to new security issues (rather than waiting for a white label app provider to get around to patching their system) may well be at the top of your list of ‘must-haves’. If that’s the case, you’ll only be able to do this with the custom option. Having first-hand knowledge of the developers, the libraries they use, and the tooling they have to check for virus’ and malware means you’ll need an expert guide and partner. Here are a few of our security must-do’s, whatever option to take:

Make sure that standards are followed to avoid leaving your app vulnerable e.g. OAuth 2 vs your own authentication scheme.
Use trusted libraries that have been well peer reviewed rather than roll your own e.g. Don’t implement your own encryption algorithm.
Penetration testing, where you hire an independent security expert to try and crack your app, is the best way to know you’re keeping your customers safe and your name out of the tabloid headlines.
Cost
Ask most business leaders how much it costs to build a mobile app, and most would be unable to tell you. Costs vary widely, and will mostly depend upon app functionality, so you need to be very clear about what that looks like from the outset. Let’s recap – for the white label, you’ll likely have a setup fee, your standard monthly fee, plus any additional costs incurred for, say, customisation.

For custom build – the complexity of the project, the preferred OS, app design, features & functionality and post-launch maintenance and management mean this route is likely to require a bigger budget – but the payoff in the long run will likely far exceed those of the white label. From owning the app outright, to having robust flexibility around every element of design, functionality and UI/UX, enhanced scalability & security to quicker problem-response times – the benefits are numerous and reassuring.

Conclusion
In most cases, a white label solution will be a consideration to bring your mobile app to market if you’re a small company, you want to ship your app very quickly, are playing with a small budget, and are confident that having scalability and flexibility will not be an issue further down the line.

If, however, maintaining your brand reputation through the best CX (customer experience) is crucial, the custom build is always going to be your best bet. Let’s be clear – an app that’s been built from the ground up exactly how you need it, that delivers a value-add user experience, and that will scale with your enterprise as it grows, is going to deliver an ROI that will far outstrip the financial investment considerably in the long-run.

Helping cut costs, manage manpower, and accelerate time to market for the app, is what an efficient, effective project team will aim to deliver from the outset. The ability to rapidly evaluate and automate processes, promote cross-team symbiosis and ensure milestones are met, is what any good custom-build team will be aiming towards, and we have to conclude that’s incredibly valuable.

https://waracle.com/white-label-apps-shouldnt/