Member Article

bdaily goes behind the scenes of Gospelware with Technical Director Michael Dunn

Synopsis of your area of expertise:

Gospelware create native mobile apps for iPhone, iPad, Android and Blackberry.

What key challenges has your company faced?

With this year being our first in business we have had many challenges. Starting a company from a back bedroom with two PCs and the money we had in our pockets in an economic down turn might not have been the smartest thing to do but we persevered. We then set about building a network of contacts and a solid portfolio that showcased the great projects we have delivered and some of our crazy ideas.

What is your biggest achievement over the past 12 months?

Our biggest achievements this year came following the release of our Android app Skiver. After initial interest that had us featured on US tech blog Gizmodo, we had coverage in most tabloid papers and on Channel 4’s comedy show Stand Up For The Week. This exposure got our name out there and is always a great story to tell new clients.

What is your biggest focus for the coming year?

The focus for the next 12 months is to make some key hires and continue our growth. We have recently started gaining clients from outside the North East and will look to expand on this to have more of a national presence. Client projects will continue to be our priority while still making time to release apps for our own amusement (keep your eyes open for ‘Brew Roulette’ in next few months). We will also continue to partner with Digital and Creative Agencies to bring app development to their clients.

If you had to choose one top piece of advice for someone just starting out in business, or is currently operating within your industry sector, what would it be?

One piece of advice I would give to someone starting out in business is to quickly build up your network. We found that “It’s not what you know, it’s who you know” has never been more true when first starting out, so make your network wide and varied. Get along to networking events and make as many quality contacts as possible. We have found our most promising enquires come from referrals and are keen to encourage this.

Can you share with us your view of the current landscape of business, in this region or generally and where your organisation sits within it?

The business landscape in the North East is really positive despite the hard economic times we are still in. The clients we see still have budgets to spend but to be successful you have to offer fantastic service and deliver great work.

This was posted in Bdaily's Members' News section by Michael Dunn .