For someone who’s not familiar with app development, it can sometimes feel like app development agencies speak an entirely different language, consisting of complex terminology and tech-savvy jargon. Especially if you’re just dipping your toes into the waters of software development, it’s good to have at least a basic insight into the most important terms and definitions. In this blog, we dive into a list of the most important buzzwords in the world of app development, so you’re fully prepared to start your digital journey.

Digital Consultancy at Lizard Global

Digital Consultancy is a service designed to help customers align with and understand their business and how digitalization can help streamline or automate parts of their business or help them break into new markets. Digital consultancy is an ongoing service throughout the product lifecycle. Businesses rely significantly on Digital Consultancy to bridge the gap between their business and their online presence as digitalization continues to evolve. We work together with our customers to ensure that we fully comprehend their business, industry, and target audience in order to provide solutions that are properly aligned with their brand. From the initial concept to the finished product, our team is committed to providing a customer-centric digital solution that meets market demand.

Digital Transformation

Digital transformation defines the shift from offline to online. This can include any element of our society, including the business world. At Lizard Global, we guide our clients through the process of digitizing their business processes in order to increase productivity and stimulate long-term growth. Guiding our partners towards a successful digital transformation of their business forms the core objective of a digital partnership with Lizard Global.

Digital Conceptualization

Digital conceptualisation revolves around the entire process of defining the end-user’s problem by means of empathy and mutual understanding within the concept of design thinking. Whereas the word “concept” defines itself as “idea”, the verb “conceptualizing” means turning a concept (or idea) into something you can grasp. The digital conceptualisation phase of a project involves the drafting of the scope of that project, and the documentation of the key desired features and requirements.

The structure above consists of a process from conceptualising a broad solution by means of defining themes, and growing more detailed with epics and user stories.

Themes

Themes can be described as the static foundation of your product. The theme directly comes forth from the solution and can be seen as the subgoal of a solution. A theme covers multiple epics, that, in their turn, cover multiple user stories.

Epics

Epics are user objectives that need to be accomplished in order to achieve a theme. High-level epics are often too large to fit into one single sprint, which is why it’s usually split into smaller ones, called “user stories”. In that sense, an epic is a collection of user stories with the same main objective.

User Stories

User stories are brief descriptions of what end-users imagine their ideal app should look like and what features it should have. We can break down user stories into smaller “tasks”, which specify the specific procedures that must be completed to fulfil the end-user’s wishes and needs as outlined in the user story. Together with its underlying tasks, user stories form the building blocks of a solution.

User Acceptance Criteria/Testing (UAT)

Acceptance criteria let you determine when a user story is complete and contains all the functionalities required to meet the expectations of your users. They are a set of requirements that a user story must meet in order to be considered complete. It gives a clear description of the user story and what is required so that your team knows what they're up against. As a result, every time you release a new feature, you can be confident that it meets the high standards your users expect.

Digital Roadmap

A roadmap is a strategic plan that identifies a goal or desired outcome and the major actions or milestones that must be accomplished to achieve it. It also serves as a communication tool, a high-level document that aids in the process of strategic thinking for both the objective and the strategy for achieving it.

Product Life Cycle

Every product or service your company develops has a Product Life Cycle, which is defined as a product's lifespan from the manufacturing/development phase to the end-product delivery, as well as the go-to-market phase, as well as the maintenance and continuous improvement of the product on the market.

Target Audience

Your target audience is the group of people who are most likely to use your product or service. Age, gender, wealth, geography, interests, and a variety of other criteria can all influence who your target audience is. At Lizard Global, we usually create customer personas in order to get a deeper understanding of the target audience and their needs. A customer persona is a semi-fictional representation of your ideal customer based on market research and data from your current customers. Consumer demographics, behaviour patterns, motivations, and goals are all covered.

Go-To-Market Strategy

A go-to-market strategy is a company's plan for delivering its unique value proposition to customers and gaining a competitive advantage by combining internal and external resources.

Lizard Global Approach

Design Thinking

Design thinking is a problem-solving method that prioritizes the demands of the user above anything else. It is based on observing how people interact with their surroundings with empathy and using an iterative, hands-on approach to develop unique solutions.

Scrum sprints

Scrum sprints are short iterative, usually, bi-weekly cycles focused on developing a product in the most Agile, cost-effective and efficient way possible. Due to its iterative nature, a Scrum sprint allows developers to evaluate the product they’re working on after every incremental delivery.

Agile

The definition of Agile is based on the iterative process of creating, testing, reviewing, and adjusting in order to make sure the end-user receives the best possible end-solution. This loop of feedback and adaptation is essential for app developers to create a better understanding of what the end-user wants, and how they visualize their ideal end-product.

Do you want to know more about our ways of working? Check out our digital brochure or get in touch with one of our experts in the field.

UI/UX Design at Lizard Global

If an application is unappealing to the eye or requires too much effort for the user to achieve a specific goal, it can negatively impact your revenue streams. UI/UX Design is critical to the success of your digital solutions in the digital world. It's the union of aesthetics and functionality.

UI Design

The term "UI design" stands for "user interface design". An application's user interface is its graphical layout. It includes the buttons that users press, the texts they read, the graphics, sliders, text entry boxes, and all other objects with which the user interacts. This comprises everything from the screen layout to the transitions and interface animations to each and every micro-interaction.

UX Design

The term "UX" stands for "user experience." The way a user interacts with the app determines their overall impression of it. Is the interaction fluid and intuitive, or clumsy and cumbersome? Is it easier to interact with the app and feel like you're efficiently completing the things you set out to complete, or does it feel like a struggle? The UX design of an application dives into the behaviour of the user and tries to achieve the best possible user experience by optimizing the navigation through a website or app.

Wireframing

Wireframes can be defined by a low-fidelity outlined drawing of an interface and can be done on paper or whiteboard. Think of, for example, stick figures; it’s fast to create and understandable with some notes. It’s the skeleton that functions as a basis for the design elements that are implemented in the mockup phase.

Mockup

Mockups are known as high-fidelity designs. These will be constructed by the UI designer. Mockups consist of branding and visual elements that are designed based on the experience devised in the wireframing phase.

Clickable Demo

A clickable demo is like a PowerPoint presentation on steroids. All the screens devised in the mockups and the paths and experiences devised in the wireframes are put together in such a way that the client and project team can click on the various CTAs and menu items; navigating through various screens and journeys, without a single line of code.

Responsive Design

A responsive design is one that automatically adjusts the size of its interface to fit the device or screen you're using. Because technological gadgets are always evolving, there are numerous screen sizes and resolutions to consider when building a (web)app.

A/B Testing

A/B testing is the process of trying out two or more different elements or strategies to find out which one is more effective. Usually, each of the variants is subjected to randomized groups of end-users, which allows you to collect valuable information and make data-driven decisions based on your findings.

Software Development at Lizard Global

The longest, riskiest, and most expensive portion of a product's life cycle is translating designs into a functional solution. To make sure that deadlines and budgets are met and clients are satisfied, the development process should be carefully planned and managed.

Native Mobile Apps

Native apps are installed through an application store, such as Google Play or Apple's App Store. They are designed specifically for a single platform and can make full use of all of the device's functions, such as the camera, GPS, accelerometer, compass, contact list, and so on. Native mobile apps are developed using a programming language, framework and library that’s created for one specific platform, like iOS or Android.

Progressive Web Apps

Progressive Web Apps are cross-platform web applications that employ upcoming web browser APIs and features, as well as a classic progressive enhancement method, to provide a high-performance native app-like user experience in web browsers.

Hybrid App Development

A hybrid app is a web application that uses HTML5 and JavaScript in its development process. Whereas native apps are designed for specific operating systems, hybrid apps are developed for all platforms, accessible on desktops and mobile devices.

GDPR Compliance

The General Data Protection Regulation (GDPR) is a regulatory framework that establishes standards for the acquisition and processing of personal data from European Union citizens (EU). The GDPR includes some significant privacy and data protection standards, such as requiring people' consent for data processing, anonymizing gathered data, notifying customers about data breaches, and managing data movement across networks in a secure manner.

MVP

An MVP, or Minimum Viable Product is a product that has just enough features to satisfy its early pre-market users in order to receive viable feedback for future development implementations. The essence of an MVP is the delivery of a product with only the most essential features. Because by scaling down your product to a minimal set of features, you don’t only save time and effort, you also make sure that the product is continuously aligned with the needs of the end-user. Since it’s such a basic version of the eventual end-product, an MVP is not market-ready. The continuous updated and improved implementations work towards a so-called MMP, or Minimal Marketable Product. This version of the product is, in fact, ready for its commercial entrance on the market, while still continuously being improved with new or updated features.

Bug Fixing

The process of bug fixing consists of continuously testing out an app’s features and functionalities in order to find potential errors and fix them by making small adaptations in the code. Bugs are, unfortunately, unavoidable in the process of app development. Even the most experienced developers and the most sophisticated apps sometimes experience inevitable lags and crashes. In order to always provide the quickest service, it’s essential to have a Service Level Agreement (SLA) in place.

Service Level Agreement (SLA)

A Service Level Agreement (SLA) is a contract between a customer and an IT service provider and includes a description of the services that are provided by an agency and their expected service levels. An SLA is indispensable in the software development domain. Lizard Global uses SLAs to help maintain a guaranteed response time and assignment time in order to provide service and bug fixes as quickly as possible.

Lizard Global Technologies

Blockchain

Blockchain is a data transaction technology that provides strong security by making it difficult to change, hack or cheat the system. A blockchain can be seen as a digital ledger of transactions that is distributed across the entire network and systems on the blockchain. Blockchain technology is built upon interconnected blocks of data, with each their own unique identity, or so-called ‘hashes’. These hashes are formulated by a unique combination of letters and numbers and therefore possess their own unique identity just like our fingerprints. Individual blocks are connected to other blocks with a reference to their unique hash identity, a so-called “hash pointer”. All blocks are connected -or chained- in a specific order. Because one block is followed by another block, connected by their code, it can not be replaced or misplaced.

Internet of Things (IoT)

The Internet of Things (IoT) is a network of interconnected “smart” devices that can gather and transmit data without the need for human interaction across a wireless network.

Industry 4.0

Industry 4.0 refers to the present trend of industrial technology automation and data sharing, which includes digitized systems, the Internet of Things, cloud computing, and cognitive computing, as well as the management of so-called “smart factories”.

Artificial Intelligence (AI)

Artificial intelligence, or AI, is the overall broad concept of machines that are able to perform tasks in a way that we would define as “smart”. AI can be specifically defined by the ability of machines to simulate human intelligence processes. Examples of AI technologies include speech recognition and natural language processing.

Machine Learning

Machine learning, or ML, is a modern application of AI focused on giving machines access to specific data. Rather than teaching the machine how to perform certain tasks, we allow them to learn for themselves and perform actions with the knowledge they’ve picked up along the way.

Gamification

The technique of putting specific game-like aspects into a non-gaming app is known as mobile/web app gamification[. It aids in the retention and engagement of an app's users. Gamifying an app allows users to stay engaged for longer periods of time and increases app traffic. Examples of gamified features in applications include progress/completion bars, in-app competitions, quizzes, etc.

Tech Stack

A web or mobile app's tech (technology) stack is a collection of programming languages, frameworks, and tools that developers employ to create a functioning application. The client-side (front-end) and server-side (back-end) are the two primary components of any digital solution. Each layer of the app’s architecture is constructed on top of the one before it, thus forming a stack.

MERN

MERN is a full-stack web development framework comprising 4 key technologies, that revolve around Javascript: MongoDB, ExpressJS, ReactJS and NodeJS. These 4 technologies cover all layers of application development.

Amazon Web Services (AWS)

AWS (Amazon Web Services) is a cloud computing platform that offers a variety of cloud services to consumers, including database storage, content distribution, and a variety of other features that help businesses scale and grow.

Digital Ocean

Digital Ocean is a cloud computing company that provides software developers with an Infrastructure as a Service (IaaS) platform. Developers can generate droplets from existing VM images that come with pre-installed programs instead of picking a Linux distribution, which Digital Ocean refers to as "One-click Apps”.

Google Cloud Platform (GCP)

Google Cloud Platform provides a heavily protected cloud-based database in which developers can write, build, and deploy cloud-hosted applications.

ISO 27001

ISO is a non-governmental and independent organization active on an international scale. It develops standards to make sure that the quality, safety and efficiency of products, services and systems are ensured at all times. The ISO27001 Certification refers to an organization’s Information Security Management System (ISMS) and guarantees the secure handling of user data on servers within an organization.

MySQL

MySQL is a SQL (Structured Query Language)-based relational database management system. MySQL can be used for Data warehousing, e-commerce, and logging applications. However, the most popular application of MySQL is as a web database.

NoSQL

NoSQL stands for “not only SQL”. A noSQL database is designed to handle unstructured and unpredictable data. The inside structure isn’t built on tables like relational databases, but rather makes use of documents, key-values, graphs, or wide-column stores.

Want to find out more about how we turn an idea into a tangible and functioning product? Fill in the contact form on our website for a free digital consultation! Our experts tell you all you need to know about the technologies we use at Lizard Global, and what technologies suit your digital solution best.

Customer Relationship Management (CRM) software

CRM software is specifically designed to optimize and streamline the processes of communicating and managing the relationship between you and your customers by providing a centralized digital solution. This software is primarily designed to centralize all these processes: a central point for receiving, processing and sending data.

Salesforce

Salesforce is a cloud-based software provider that offers sustainable and efficient solutions by interconnecting all the elements necessary for maintaining a high-quality and low maintenance CRM process. Its software allows users to obtain easy access and a clear overview of their marketing, sales, and service activities by providing a unified cloud environment where the sky's the limit.

Workflow Management

Workflow management is the process of developing and improving data pathways in order to finish items in a process. Finding superfluous tasks, sketching out the workflow in an ideal state, automating the process, and identifying bottlenecks or areas for improvement are all part of workflow management.

Growth Strategies

Business growth is dependent on a number of factors and involves the creation, execution, and modification of appropriate strategies. In order for the client to keep moving forward in a visionary manner, growth consultancy requires a combination of consulting, coaching, and contracting.

Lean Analytics

Lean Analytics is a methodology to continuously measure and optimize your business processes and strategies in order to grow a sustainable business. At Lizard Global, we find out exactly what metrics matter for your business. We look at the current stage of your business and the industry your business is active in and based on that we concretize KPIs that fit the objective of your business. Once your KPIs are identified, we pinpoint the exact metrics we need to measure to keep track of the success of your KPIs and adapt where needed.

User Engagement Metrics

User engagement is a metric that determines whether or not users value a product or service. Engagement can be measured by a range of activities, including downloads, clicks, and shares, among others. Users who are highly engaged are often more profitable, as long as their actions result in desirable outcomes like purchases, signups, subscriptions, or clicks.

Product Success KPIs

A Key Performance Indicator (KPI) is a specific measurable value that is used to track the performance of a company, product, or initiative over time. Setting Product Success KPIs can help you measure the overall success of your product or service, and gives you insights into what elements in your strategy you might have to change in order to optimize your overall growth process.

OKR

Objectives and Key Results, or OKRs, are used for defining and setting high-level business objectives and keeping the team and their goals aligned with one another. Generally, an organization has about five high-level objectives with each its own measurable key results. OKRs bring alignment from strategic planning to the actual execution. Its goal-setting framework is used in businesses to align individual performance with organizational goals.

Need a hand?

At Lizard Global, we believe that transparency is key in a successful partnership. That’s why we want our readers and partners to know exactly what to expect when partnering up with us. We don’t just do this by providing an insight into the sometimes complex jargon of app development, we’re also continuously aiming to improve our services by closely analysing the feedback we receive, and turning it into value.

Are you interested in partnering up with Lizard Global? Get in touch with one of our specialists, and let’s get to work!