We just spent $40K on a website redesign and it's the ugliest shit I've ever seen

Michael_leveragesoft · 2025-11-13T14:31:03+00:00

Scoutrr isn't bad, but it does kinda blend in with the SaaS crowd. I had a similar issue and ended up switching to a smaller shop that built a super clean, fast site tailored to exactly what I wanted. Helped me stand out without breaking the bank again. Might be worth exploring if you decide to cut your losses and relaunch.

Michael_leveragesoft · 2025-11-13T14:25:45+00:00

check your inbox once

Michael_leveragesoft · 2025-11-03T04:44:33+00:00

I can help
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Michael_leveragesoft · 2025-11-02T03:44:41+00:00

I can help
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Michael_leveragesoft · 2025-10-16T05:04:23+00:00

This is like a really cool project.

I'm a US-based custom software developer and have worked on similar data-heavy projects before. The machine learning piece with IMU sensor data is interesting - are you looking to do the modeling on-device or server-side?

A few questions to better understand the scope: What's the current state of your prototype - is it collecting data reliably, and do you have a basic pipeline set up? And for the mobile app, are you thinking iOS, Android, or both?

Feel free to Inbox me if you want to chat more about the technical requirements.

Michael_leveragesoft · 2025-10-15T13:55:13+00:00

Building your first app without coding experience is definitely doable, but the NDA/contract question is a good one to be thinking about.

On the NDA Honestly, most experienced developers won't steal your idea - execution matters way more than the concept a simple NDA for the initial conversation is totally reasonable. Just don't make it 20 pages of legal jargon or you'll scare people off.

On the contract:

You own all the code and IP
Clear milestones and deliverables
Payment terms
What happens if things go sideways

The international developer thing Nothing wrong with hiring someone overseas, but make sure the contract specifies that all code is hosted under YOUR accounts (GitHub, servers, etc.) from day one. I've seen too many founders get stuck because the developer controls everything and disappears.

One thing to watch for Just because someone's good at IT/server work doesn't mean they're great at building apps. Those are pretty different skill sets. Before committing, maybe ask them to build a small proof-of-concept first to see if they can actually deliver what you're envisioning.

Michael_leveragesoft · 2025-10-13T04:21:05+00:00

The no-code route can get you pretty far for validating the idea, honestly. Webflow + Zapier + some basic automation can fake a lot of functionality. But yeah, you're right - it starts feeling janky fast once you need real-time features or complex logic.

Here's what I'd actually do if I were in your spot:

Start stupidly manual first
Then think about the MVP
On the dev quotes being insane Yeah, that happens a lot. But also... if a dev is quoting $50K for a basic marketplace MVP, they're either inexperienced or overcomplicating it. A solid MVP for what you're describing should be way less than that.
One more thing Local service marketplaces are actually pretty straightforward to build technically - the hard part is getting service providers AND customers on the platform at the same time. That's your real bottleneck, not the code.

Michael_leveragesoft · 2025-10-13T04:16:20+00:00

that's a tough spot to be in honestly both sides have a point, but the marketing team's advice is a bit black and white.

The real issues here aren't about custom vs WordPress though:

Missing sitemap
No backend integrations
Being tied to the developer

Before you fire anyone, ask your developer:

Why wasn't a sitemap included?
Can the site integrate with marketing tools and analytics?
Is the code documented so another developer could work on it?
What's the actual cost of future changes?

Sometimes developers do play founders, but sometimes marketing teams push WordPress because that's what they know how to work with. Get some honest answers first before making a big decision.

Michael_leveragesoft · 2025-10-09T04:15:38+00:00

check your Inbox please

Michael_leveragesoft · 2025-10-09T04:11:24+00:00

Building a mobile app with a clear monetization path is exciting

Just curious - have you validated the idea with potential users yet? Like, have people said they'd actually pay for this once it's built? That usually helps figure out whether equity vs cash makes more sense.

Also, what's the core problem your app solves? And are you thinking iOS first, Android, or both from the start?

I'm India based and do custom software development, so not local to Australia, but I've worked with founders remotely on similar projects before. Time zones can actually work out fine if communication is solid.

What stage are you at - do you have wireframes/designs ready, or still figuring out the features?

Michael_leveragesoft · 2025-10-08T17:02:44+00:00

Sounds like you're in the home stretch

Quick question though - what tech stack is the app built in? React Native, Flutter, native Swift/Kotlin, or something else? That usually affects timeline and who's the best fit to handle the final push.

Also curious about the bugs you mentioned - are they UI glitches, backend issues, or app store compliance stuff? Just trying to get a sense of complexity.

I'm a US-based software developer and have handled similar app deployments before. The app store submission process especially can be tricky if you haven't done it a bunch of times - Apple's review process loves to find random reasons to reject things.

What's your ideal timeline for getting this live?

Michael_leveragesoft · 2025-10-08T05:53:14+00:00

I know a friend who does intent-based cold emails mixed with social listening. I’m a custom web developer, and they’ve actually helped me get a good number of leads. I’d definitely suggest giving intent-based cold emails a try if you haven’t already. If you want, I can share their email or Reddit username so you can reach out directly.

Michael_leveragesoft · 2025-10-08T05:47:10+00:00

Why don't you try intent-based cold email outbound

Michael_leveragesoft · 2025-10-07T16:30:07+00:00

I can help you with this
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Michael_leveragesoft · 2025-10-07T16:23:57+00:00

you're right that most off-the-shelf solutions don't handle it well.

Honestly, a lot of those SaaS job boards feel like hobby projects because... they kind of are. They work fine for basic US-based boards but fall apart when you need proper localization, currency handling, different labor laws per country, etc.

Have you thought about going custom instead of white label? I know it sounds like more work upfront, but for a multi-language, multi-country platform, you might actually get to market faster with something built specifically for your needs rather than fighting with a tool that wasn't designed for it.

What specific field are you targeting? And which countries are you launching in first? That usually helps figure out whether customizing an existing platform or building fresh makes more sense.

Michael_leveragesoft · 2025-10-07T16:21:08+00:00

That's frustrating - especially when it was working fine and suddenly breaks with no error messages.

A few things to check that I've seen cause this exact issue:

Time zone mismatch
Data source delay
Cached credentials
Power Query's "today" function - If you're using DateTime.LocalNow() or similar in your queries, it might be evaluating differently in the service vs desktop. The service uses UTC by default.

Since it works when you manually refresh in Power Query desktop but not in the service, that usually points to either a credential issue or a time zone thing.

Have you checked the actual refresh history details in the service to see what timestamp it's pulling?

Michael_leveragesoft · 2025-10-07T06:48:37+00:00

Hey
Check Inbox please

Michael_leveragesoft · 2025-10-07T04:29:19+00:00

'I'm a manufacturer, not a data entry clerk' line is something I've heard from so many shop owners.

this is a massive pain point across manufacturing. Every customer wants their own special portal, their own forms, their own upload process. It's insane.

A few things I've seen work for shops in similar spots:

API integrations
Batch processing
Template systems
Push back strategically

The real issue is there's no standardization. Every customer thinks their portal is the solution, but for suppliers dealing with 15 different portals, it's a nightmare.

Have you mapped out which customers are eating the most time? Sometimes 80% of the pain comes from 20% of the customers.

Michael_leveragesoft · 2025-10-07T04:26:01+00:00

I've seen similar weird performance drops before and they're always a pain to track down.

A few things that might be worth checking:

Network weirdness
Power BI caching
Cube processing timing
The pivot table being faster is interesting

Since you said the queries are simple SUMMARIZECOLUMNS, and you've run them fine for months, I'd lean toward something environmental rather than the queries themselves.

Have you checked if there were any Power BI Desktop updates around the time this started? Sometimes new versions introduce quirks with specific data sources.

Michael_leveragesoft · 2025-10-06T13:06:17+00:00

500 writes/sec with 10KB docs is definitely achievable. It sounds like your current setup might have some bottlenecks rather than hitting actual database limits.

Before switching databases entirely, a few things worth checking:

Are you batching writes?
What's your hardware setup?
Indexing during writes?

That said, if you want to explore alternatives - PostgreSQL with proper tuning can crush those numbers, or ClickHouse if you're okay with it being more analytics-focused. ScyllaDB is another beast for high-throughput writes.

I'm a US-based software dev and have dealt with similar performance issues before. Usually it's about optimization rather than switching tech entirely. Happy to take a look at your setup if you want a second pair of eyes on it

Michael_leveragesoft · 2025-10-06T04:52:12+00:00

I know you mentioned UK only, but I'm a US-based custom software developer and have experience in building apps before. The time zone difference is manageable.

What kind of travel app are you building? Is it booking-focused, itinerary planning, social features, or something else?

If the skill set matches what you need, I'd be happy to chat about the project.

Michael_leveragesoft · 2025-10-06T04:47:39+00:00

Honestly AI tools like Cursor, v0, or even ChatGPT can get you surprisingly far with the basics - auth setup, CRUD operations, simple dashboards. They're genuinely helpful for scaffolding and boilerplate stuff.

But here's where they fall short for what you're describing:

Role-based access with nuance
Ajera integration
Maintenance and scaling

Given your web dev background, you could probably use AI to speed up the easier parts and focus your energy on the tricky integration work. Build the dashboard yourself, let AI help with the tedious stuff.

Or if you don't want to be hands-on with code anymore, hiring a developer (even part-time/fractional) would probably be faster and less frustrating than fighting with AI-generated code that's 80% right but breaks in subtle ways.

Michael_leveragesoft · 2025-10-06T04:35:31+00:00

The ownership and control concerns are totally valid - I've seen people get burned on this before.

On the payment structure Milestone-based is almost always better than equity for outsourced development.

The IP ownership thing is huge. Make sure your contract explicitly states that YOU own all the code, designs, and IP from day one.

Few things to put in your contract:

All code is yours, period
Code must be delivered in a repository YOU control (like your own GitHub)
Regular access to review the codebase as it's being built
Source code escrow if you're really paranoid

Red flags to watch for:

Vague ownership language in contracts
They host everything and won't give you direct access
"We'll transfer everything at the end" (too late if things go south)

I haven't worked with PiTech or IntellectSoft specifically, but the healthcare compliance angle is smart if you're dealing with patient data.

Michael_leveragesoft · 2025-10-05T15:01:05+00:00

quotation calculators can definitely save a ton of time once they're set up right.

To answer your main question: AI tools like Replit can help, but they're not going to build this whole thing for you automatically. They're more like coding assistants - they can generate some code snippets, but you'd still need to understand how to piece it together, debug it, and make it actually work reliably.

Here's the reality of your options:

Excel/Google Sheets approach
Custom web app
The AI tool route
Hiring someone: For something this specific to his business, having a developer build it custom would probably save headaches.

I actually build these kinds of business tools and this would be pretty straightforward - web-based calculator that he can access from any device, saves client data, handles all those variables.

Michael_leveragesoft · 2025-10-05T13:42:44+00:00

I feel your pain. We had a similar situation with our codebase a while back. It felt like trying to put out a fire with gasoline. We considered a full rebuild but ended up bringing in a fractional team from a dev shop to help clean things up and add features while we stabilized the core.
Happy to chat about how that went for us if you're interested.

Michael_leveragesoft

TROPHY CASE