Latest

Unlocking Growth with Software Re-engineering: Key Benefits and Process

Even if you once had “the best software of the decade”, it’s clearly not enough these days. In the modern technological world that is rapidly developing, there is a need for constant improvement, renewal, modernization, and transformation. Does this mean that everything old should be thrown away and start

Why Your Business Needs a Software Audit: Key Benefits and Best Practices

The absolute majority of companies use a lot of digital tools and apps in their operational activity. Companies are like human organisms, where everything works until it doesn’t. A moment comes when the organism starts failing, and then we conduct diagnostics, detect the reason for illness, and eliminate it.

The Complete Guide to Mobile App Development Process

It’s hard to imagine our lives without smartphones, without all those useful and convenient features. The number of phone owners grows each year. In 2024, there will be more than 4.8 billion new phone users, and the number will reach 6.4 billion by 2029.  Alongside this constant

Inclusive App Design: A Guide to Mobile App Accessibility Standards

Inclusion is not a feature, not exclusivity, not singling out. It’s all about including and considering everyone. In other words, the inclusive design process is all about designers thinking about lots of different people and what they need. It’s about creating products that make everyone feel included, needed,

Understanding the Lean Startup Methodology

There is one significant drawback to the traditional way of starting a business: it takes too much time. It can take months or even more than a year from drawing up a business plan and conducting market research to obtaining financing and launching the business. The traditional method is more

European Accessibility Act: what and when will change for Digital Accessibility

Digital Accessibility today is much more than just a fashionable and useful trend. It is a necessity. Back in 2019, the European Union took a huge step to guarantee inclusiveness in various spheres of life by adopting The European Accessibility Act (EAA). By June 2022, each member state of the

EU Grants for Business Growth

In February 2024, SmithySoft was registered as a participant in the Business Bridge — Ukraine-Ready4EU program. This is a project to support Ukrainian companies in preparing for integration into the European Union's single market.  In particular, our company participates in the competition for a grant related to the organization

Building a Product Roadmap in 2024: What You Need to Know

Without a roadmap, a travel plan, and a clear understanding of the final destination, you will drive aimlessly in different directions, wandering, burning a lot of gasoline, spending a lot of money, getting into various unpleasant situations, and are unlikely to succeed.  A roadmap for business works in a similar

Product Discovery is a process you can’t do without

You can either create a product properly or create the proper product. Can you tell the difference? In other words, what will be more important for your customers: the way you developed a product, or the specific, right, important, and useful product itself? Of course, the latter. The Product Discovery

10 Effective Ideation Techniques for All Teams

An idea is an essential component of any successful business. Firstly, it is the idea that starts a business, and secondly, without new ideas that are relevant and needed by consumers, your business will not stay afloat for long. Ideas keep a business alive and ensure its advancement, especially in

Essential things about Cloud Migration: benefits, challenges, types, strategies, tools

At some point, all companies face the possibility or, more often, the necessity of cloud migration. This option is becoming a requirement of the times and is driven by a whole set of convincing advantages: scalability, flexibility, cost-effectiveness, security, etc. But moving to the cloud does not imply a one-size-fits-all

Understanding Unit Economics: A Critical Metric for Startup Success

You need to know about Unit Economics regardless of whether you are a CFO of a powerful and well-known company or just an early-stage startup. After all, understanding unit economics gives you an insight into the viability and profitability of your business, and helps you decide whether to scale your

10 most remarkable Cutting-Edge Technologies for the near future

The peculiarity of such technologies is that it is always a changing concept. One could think that such technologies were unrealistic. But today we use them and they have become game-changers and tomorrow there will be new cutting-edge technologies. Not long ago, technologies like cloud services, artificial intelligence, or virtual

Why You Need a Minimum Viable Product?

Before doing a lot, do enough. In these words lies the essence of MVP, or Minimum Viable Product. Entering the startup scene nowadays might be tricky, where hundreds of companies compete with each other. You must find a product that fits the market as early as possible and create a

10 important Startup Conferences & Events 2024 in the USA

America has long been a leader in business excellence and innovation that creates groundbreaking technologies. Of the world’s most successful companies with the largest capitalization, nine of the top ten are located here. The largest number of unicorn companies is also in the United States. That’s why such

Mastering the Competitor's Slide: Elevating Your Presentation

The competitive analysis slide is crucial for your presentation. Even more so – this slide can be the most critical in the entire presentation. It will inform potential investors whether your startup stands a chance or not. If you present minimal competition or none in your presentation, it signals one of

7 Most Common Applications of VR and AR

You may hear a lot about augmented and virtual reality being the revolution of modernity, the most impactful technological trend of 2024, etc. However, the peak of this technology is still ahead. We are witnessing another stage of its evolution, but the real revolution is yet to come. Therefore, now

Top 20 Startups in Ukraine to Be Proud Of

Grammarly, Reface, People.ai, GitLab, Petcube, Jooble, and Genesis – are successful companies known worldwide; among them are recognized unicorns. However, there are only a few who know that they were founded by Ukrainians. Ukraine has something to be proud of! Many startups founded here are well-known globally and rightfully receive

New unicorn companies in 2023

Unicorn Company is a private startup valued at over $1 billion. In other words, the company has reached a valuation of $1 billion without being publicly listed on any stock market. Unicorns derive their value from investor assessments participating in the financial rounds of these companies. Since all unicorns are

Why is mobile accessibility so important?

Mobile phones have become an essential part of our lives: communication, education, research, entertainment, navigation, shopping, social media, and more. The use of mobile phones continues to grow and will continue to do so because it is convenient, cost-effective, and beneficial. Some compelling figures:  * As of 2023, there are approximately

Anatomy of a URL You Should Know

URL stands for Uniform Resource Locator and is a standard for specifying the address of a resource on the Internet. It is used to identify and locate resources such as web pages, images, videos, audio files, documents, and more on the World Wide Web. A URL not only points to

Market Validation of Your Business Idea: Methods and Tips

Market validation is the process of determining how successful your product will be in the market. Why is this necessary? To save your time and money from spending them in vain. So, market validation is done at the initial stage of your startup—right after you’ve come up with

Color of the Year 2024 – Peach Fuzz

The Pantone Color Institute has chosen the Color of the Year for 2024: PANTONE 13-1023 Peach Fuzz – a velvety-gentle peach whose all-embracing spirit enriches heart, mind and body.  Іts heartfelt peach hue brings a feeling of kindness and tenderness, communicating a message of caring and sharing, community, and collaboration. A

10 Graphic Design Trends in 2024

In 2023, significant changes related to artificial intelligence (AI) integration into leading design software occurred, anticipating a substantial impact on the future of the graphic design industry. However, it's too early to speak of AI's truly epochal influence on graphic design—it's still being

Clutch Names SmithySoft as one of the Game-Changing VR Companies & AR Companies in Ukraine

A lot of companies are now catching up with new technologies and solutions in the market. One that has been taking center stage in the past year is the AR/VR industry! Many businesses from different sectors have been integrating this new tech into their processes, services, and even products.

New Cyber Threats to Prepare for Right Now

Technology significantly simplifies our lives. However, as we increasingly depend on it, the risks it poses to individuals and businesses grow proportionally.  The most significant danger of cyber threats is that they can destroy not only a company’s or an individual’s material resources but can easily impact the

Avoid These: 10 Design Mistakes in Pitch Decks

Even if you possess the most valuable information in the world, it will remain useless if you cannot convey it correctly. The design of your Pitch Deck is crucial: it determines whether your audience will perceive information about your startup and whether you can communicate its true value. The secret

How to Verify a Business Partner Registered in the USA?

Why is this important? For at least three reasons: money, time, and security. Without proper due diligence on your business partner, you risk losing money and another equally valuable resource—time. Whether you`re a client or a service provider, there`s always a level of risk involved. It`s

How to Check a Company in Ukraine: Using Open Registries

Performing "business intelligence" is a valuable option if you want to protect yourself and understand how real and reliable a company with which you intend to collaborate. Ukraine, in this regard, is quite progressive and reliable. There are several ways to check companies, especially in the IT sector.

10 Psychological Tips to Boost Sales

Harvard Business School professor Gerald Zaltman claims that 95% of our purchasing decisions occur in the subconscious. But how can a marketer tap into the subconscious? By engaging with human psychology. No modern business can thrive without the skills of sales psychology. The market is saturated with a vast array

Why do startups need a Virtual Data Room?

A virtual data room (VDR) is also called a corporate repository and is an online repository for definitive business documents. When will you encounter the concept of VDR? At the stage when it's time for your startup to raise funds. You've prepared and presented your Pitch

Risks and Rewards of Investing in Deep Tech

Some investors joke that no matter how cool the technology is, $1 earned in a Deep Tech startup costs the same as $1 earned in any other startup, regardless of the "depth" of the technology. However, Deep Tech is indeed "Deep," so investors rightfully expect a

Why Startups Fail: 10+2 Reasons

The reality is that nine out of ten startups fail due to various objective and subjective reasons. Understanding the most common causes of failure can help business owners manage their expectations, considering some risks (though it's impossible to account for all of them). So, let's look

How to evaluate your SaaS product? Effective pricing models for startups

Creating a product is just the beginning. Often, SaaS companies spend countless hours developing and promoting their exceptional product, which they release to the market expecting an instant triumph. But suddenly, there is no triumph. Why? Your product is excellent, so could there be something wrong with its price? Is

How to Prepare the Perfect Pitch Deck: Part 2

Guy Kawasaki's Golden Formula: 10/20/30 Guy Kawasaki is known as one of the most famous specialists in the world in the field of marketing and business strategies. He is a marketing preacher for many popular technology brands, a successful author of more than a dozen books

How to prepare the perfect Pitch Deck: 10 noteworthy tips

You can find hundreds of examples and templates for creating a Pitch Deck online. But you need a unique presentation that will set you apart from others and not dissolve like a drop of water in the "sea" of startups. We will tell you how to create it.

Cloud Computing Services: which provider to choose?

Cloud technologies are a trend that will stay with us for a long time and will only gain momentum in the future. Global spending on cloud services grew by 33% to reach $62.3 billion in the second quarter of 2022. Previously, we stored data on computer hard drives or

Team building in a startup: how to attract the right people to the project?

“Choose the first 10 employees very carefully, as they determine the next 100” E. Brickman, Gruntwork Man is not omnipotent. And no matter how talented and brilliant the founder and developer of a startup is, it is unlikely that they will reach great heights on their own. A team is

How to Make an Irresistible Offer?

Many believe they need a unique product to create an unbeatable offer for the buyer. But it is not so. A product can be truly unique, helpful, and perfect, but this does not give a 100% guarantee that customers will buy it. Why? Because during the sale, the determining factor

Quiet Quitting Trend And How To Deal With It?

The phenomenon of quiet quitting is an excellent opportunity to rethink the organizational culture and the construction of relations between the employee and the employer. For a few years, the term has become a corporate buzzword and a new cultural phenomenon. What to do with this phenomenon? How to react?

Top 10 Useful AI Platforms for SEO

Choosing the right AI SEO tool is vital for your business. Why? It is obvious: because you want to improve your position in search engines, reach as large an audience as possible, overtake your competitors and, accordingly, earn more money. To stay ahead of the curve, companies must analyze large

A product designer is a must-have for both the company and the client

There is much more to the Product Designer than just the design; this role is a complex approach to solving a task in one work unit. Many titles and categories of designers create a variety of products; almost anything you can imagine and come across in your everyday life. In

If you are always "very busy", it means that you have a weak strategy

Often, when people say that they are very busy and up to their ears in work, and do not have time "for nonsense" (that is, free time, time for themselves), they expect, at least, respect from those who hear it. Or they want to prove themselves in demand,

ChatGPT: Revolution or Danger?

On November 30, 2022, the OpenAI company presented the ChatGPT chatbot to the general public. It is a neural network with an advanced language model that can actively participate in discussions and generate extended answers to questions, analyzing a deep layer of information, predicting, taking into account previous conversations, etc.

Top 5 IT trends in 2023 you should be aware of

A world of global instability is the world you and I live in today. Pandemic? War? Inflation? Earthquake? Tsunami? Geopolitical changes? Nuclear war? Can anyone say with certainty what will happen tomorrow? In such a time of turbulence, traditional patterns of doing business break down; flexibility, originality, spontaneity, and creativity

Zero-based budgeting – a breath of fresh air for companies in unstable times?

Companies often shy away from this method because they fear it or think it means “starting from scratch.” Zero Based Budgeting (ZBB) is a structured process that can create a culture of cost management. Faced with high inflation and an uncertain outlook, financial managers are increasingly forced to use tools

Feeling Christmassy?

The team of the SmithySoft® software house sincerely wishes you a Merry Christmas and a Happy New Year! We hope that exploring our blog was fun and enlightening, that it did well in highlighting the points of growth, and helped transform your outlook as you found answers to questions about

Easy ways to supercharge sales using emotions

This truth is often forgotten or not believed in. So here's a reminder: Emotions are critical to marketing – maybe even more than you thought. According to an analysis by the British Institute of Advertising Practitioners, the Independent Project Analysis (IPA dataBANK), which contains 1,400 examples of successful

Graphic design trends and anti-trends of 2023

The definition of any trends and tendencies are often generalized judgments, which, like everything in this world, have exceptions. However, when creating your unique product, you should not neglect these trends because without knowing the moods, novelties, demands, and requirements of society, it is unlikely to achieve the main task,

10 curious business ideas for startups in 2023

The year 2022 brought many changes in all areas of human life and activity throughout the world. The redistribution of capital, money flows, influence, and geopolitics; in addition to that economic problems, wars, cataclysms, crises, etc., caused the decline of some seemingly reliable areas of business activity, and vice versa

Low Capital Intensive Business

Let's start with the major question: is it possible to start a profitable business without sky-high investments? In short, it is. Keep reading if you want to know the details. Yes, one can open a business by investing a small amount, however, they should clearly understand that the

Examples of using CSS instead of JS

Nowadays, it is very difficult to meet a site created without using JS. The speed of the Internet is high and this allows you to create complex sites, while the user sees the page loading quickly. But CSS has properties that are rarely talked about and rarely used, some of

A website of awesome Github Profile READMEs

GitHub is one of the largest web services for collaborative software development. It is really difficult to find a developer who does not have an account there. But come on, have you seen these profiles? The name is indicated because it must be filled in during registration, and everything that

Value Chain, Value Shop, and Value Network

There are different generic forms of value configuration, but in every concept, value comes first. It can be thought of as the financial equivalent that customers are willing to pay to get what is important to them but what they do not want or cannot do physically or legally. Value

Dogfooding or why do you need to test your own products?

Dogfooding is a slang term in the world of IT. It is a favored practice of companies to use their products and services. It allows testing the finished product that, according to the QA team, meets the client's requirements in a real environment. The history of this term

DORA and the software delivery performance

The development process, especially with agile methodologies, is quite difficult to measure and objectively evaluate. Yes, we adapt quickly to market and customer requirements, but sooner or later, most software companies face performance issues. For those who are just beginning their journey into the world of DevOps metrics, DORA (DevOps

Teal Organizations: why the future belongs to the teals?

Not in the distant future but here and now, the teal companies or those that are rebuilding their organizational system in the teal route are considered more progressive and successful. Because yes – they are much more productive, efficient, economical, less stressful, and not conflicted. Let’s discover together, what are

IT Army is an effective and successful Ukrainian startup

The experience of Ukrainian "IT warriors" will be studied globally! Ukraine has already entered modern world history – forever and ever. It is Ukraine, not russia, which has waged this bloody war, that is now an example of courage, resilience, steadfastness of spirit, unity, patriotism, and ingenuity. A tractor

9 books VCs think startup founders need to read

The gold standard of startup building has not yet been found and the formulas for how to build a 100% successful startup have not yet been developed so enthusiastic startups often have to focus on very generalized and very vague recommendations: • Create value • Solve the problem/pain • Be resourceful and

IT Investments You Should Never Skimp On

All too often, companies skimp on certain aspects of their technology to save some money for what they perceive to be more critical needs. You may even know someone who has done just that. They seize the opportunity to outfit their office with a huge monitor and better-spec PCs (even

A quick guide to A/B testing

Grow fast, scale quickly, instantly deliver results, catch trends immediately, change profiles, adapt. It seems the book "How to make a startup unicorn in one day" will be out of print any day now. How can one focus on their product development and understand whether the right motion

The Dark Side of the Legacy Code in the Rails' Monoliths

Any good solution is valid only for a certain time frame. For a startup, investing millions in software development is not advisable. So very often everything starts with an MVP, the costs and terms of development of which are very tight because, in a couple of months, competitors will be

A brief on the renowned Content Marketing Periodic Table

Now let's decipher it Strategy Strategy is the foundation of content marketing. Your long-term business goals will determine every aspect of it – the tools you will use, the channels you will promote your content, etc. Plan and study your target audience in detail, and focus on solving specific

Great platforms to self-publishing your book

There are plenty of resources for publishing E-books: big and small, promoted and little-known, loyal to readers and authors, or oriented for only making money on them. Of course, the main question that you should ask yourself in the first place is: what is the goal you are trying to

Business multiples: what they are and why one should use them?

Value investing tools To find an undervalued company, you need to have tools for quick monitoring and search. Several factors, the so-called “multiples”, have been developed that solve this problem. The multiple is the ratio of the market value of the company (or its value) to production or financial indicators

Is it wise for the founders to hold onto their ownership?

The term “ownership” defines what percentage of the company belongs to the founder and what percentage to the shareholders. At the very beginning of the journey, it is natural for a startup to be wholly owned by its founder or founders. But in the future, it is advisable to make

The books that most influenced Mark Zuckerberg's views on the world

Mark Zuckerberg: * the youngest billionaire in history; * included in the list of the most influential people in the world according to Forbes; * the person behind the creation of the largest worldwide social network – Facebook. After all, it is quite uneasy to find anyone in the global community who has never

Where to find an investor?

Finding an investor for a startup is a matter of survival. The greatest idea without financial support will remain an idea only. Therefore, sooner or later, the founders face the question: where to find an investor? Recently, an article on choosing an online platform for finding investors appeared on our

ANGULAR vs VUE

Framework Backgrounds - Angular is a framework developed by Google; Google also uses Angular so it is unlikely that Angular will disappear one day. It will be maintained and continuously improved. - Vue is a “standalone” project that is not built by any company. It used to be a one-man

Best startup conferences in 2021

Floating quarantine has become a part of our reality; you never know if the hard lockdown won't kick tomorrow, even if every establishment is working today. And even these constant shifts have become routine to some extent. But life goes on, and during this year, many mastered working,

What is influence marketing?

Nowadays, people no longer buy goods and services. They buy relationships, stories, and magic. With the growing demand for attention and the vast array of product options on the market, consumers are starting to lose sight of whom they can trust. Influencer marketing helps as never before. A decade ago,

8 books that inspire Elon Musk

What makes one person different from another on a planet of 7.837 billion people? Age, gender, religion, social status, upbringing, or education? Everything impacts us, but for some reason, children of the same parents, school friends, and graduates of the same college are not equally successful in life. Some

The Flash is dead, and what about your business?

WHAT IS A CORRECT SUPPORT and how does it work? What is really worth paying for and how not to miss your FLASH? Everyone has at least once contacted the customer support service with one or another question. But not everyone understands what the technical support of the product is

What is UX design?

UX (User Experience) is a set of certain stages and the proper approach to creating a startup. This is the path, which should lead the client to the main thing – to their goal. Every design decision should be based on the needs of the client. The user must reach their

10 Metrics that matter

Product metrics are qualitative and quantitative indicators based on which a conclusion can be drawn about the success of a product. A well-chosen set of metrics, accurate analytics, and timely optimization measures help keep your business afloat. However, different businesses have different metrics. Moreover, even within the same niche or

Top 5 Startup Friendly Platforms to Find Investors

Where to find investors? – This is the first and most important question that arises as soon as all the formalities for establishing the startup company are settled. It is easier for some companies to raise capital, while for others, it is more difficult. This is especially true for hardware startups.

History of Web Browsers

Today, there are only a few applications to access the Internet. The main competitors are Firefox, Google Chrome, Microsoft Edge, Safari, and Opera. Over the last decade, mobile devices have become the best way to access the Internet. Today, most Internet users use only mobile browsers and applications to connect

It's Okay to Take Risks

Only the lazy did not say that no risk — no reward. Is this really so, and to what extent is this principle applicable in startup activities? Of course, before deciding to gain or lose everything, an entrepreneur should weigh the pros and cons of any desperate decisions. But it is

6 git commands you should know

I suggest you to consider the commands that will save you time and help you use the version control system more efficiently: - reverting of the commit - revert local changes - comparing files and logs on different branches - search for the commit that caused the error - recovery

Ruby 3.0 features - what did you miss?

Ruby 3.0 with Matz - although the interview is very old, but clearly underestimated. It's really worth seeing!

How to start an online marketplace from scratch

Okay, what is an online marketplace, and how to start it from scratch? An online marketplace is an e-commerce site where many independent sellers trade items on a shared storefront and in their micro-stores. This e-commerce model has long become extremely popular in the West, but in recent years has

All about the Software Development Lifecycle

The Software Development Lifecycle (SDLC, Software Life Cycle) is a conditional series of a set of phases that any software goes through; describes all the stages of software life from birth to death, and what happens to it at each stage. A typical software development life cycle consists of the

Features and Benefits of a Dedicated Team

The dedicated team outsourcing model is a business model of financial interaction, which is increasingly being applied in outsourcing in general and in the IT field in particular. Given the fact that many customers are interested in using this model, we decided to talk about its advantages and disadvantages, as

Business Models in Software Outsourcing and Financial Feasibility Assessment

The transfer of the development and support of information systems to an outsourcing company has recently worried more and more companies. For the vast majority of IT, they are a non-core asset, so the opportunity to transfer their management to a professional external partner and free up resources for priority

How Outsourcing Is Different From Freelance and What Is Outstaffing

The main idea of the terms we are going to look into is saving time and money spent, but most of you also would like to find the answer to the question “which one is better for your case”, so we would also stop to analyze and tip on how

How to Stay on Track While You Build a Startup

After coming up with the idea of the startup, the entrepreneur will have to face many discoveries and difficulties; he will have to make dozens of decisions every day – from the smallest to the most serious and fundamental. Dealing with so much information, contacts, stress, in the early stages of