
Show HN: We Got Sick of Giving Out 'Ballpark Estimates' So We Built This - wmboy
https://buildmymvp.com/
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morpheuskafka
Looks very similar to
[http://howmuchtomakeanapp.com/](http://howmuchtomakeanapp.com/) and appears
to exist primary to upsell the user at the end to the paid service.

~~~
jasonkillian
Weirdly enough, both websites use this exact same quote: "This means you'll
need to make an API (application programming interface). It's how all your
friendly apps talk to each other."

Either plagiarism was involved, or there's some underlying library that's the
same for both, or they both hired the same company to build their MVP ;)

HowMuchToMakeAnApp is by "Commite, a digital studio specialized in driving
ideas from inception to launch" based out of "Seville, San Francisco & New
York".

BuildMyMVP is made by "ProductDone a digital studio based in Auckland, New
Zealand".

The two sites side by side:
[https://imgur.com/a/e7OVYVa](https://imgur.com/a/e7OVYVa)

~~~
gpuhacker
If you do a search on the second sentence: "It's how all your friendly apps
talk to each other." You'll find at least 10 other cost calculator websites
that all use that exact sentence to explain the term API. It also shows how
flooded the web is with sites like this.

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supermw
These things never work out well. Picking out options for an app the same way
you'd pick options for an automobile implies the work is fairly well siloed
and commoditized. So it should be cheap and fast, but then the price and
timeline at the end is not what you expect, so you take your newly created
list of requirements and go elsewhere. People going through these things want
instant gratification.

It also implies that if you want something that does not fall neatly into the
categories given then you're going to pay even more.

Giving estimates is just part of sales. If you're tired of it, then don't work
sales.

Edit: Ok I decided I should probably give some constructive advice with every
teardown I do, so here's a tip: If you really want to do things this way,
instead of instantly giving a price at the end, create the illusion that the
info will be sent to a human and you'll send a quote by email after they've
had a chance to review. Then just set up a cron job to go through your list of
emails at certain strategic times of the day and send personalized messages
with the quoted price and time frame. This way you start a conversation with
the potential client and keep them on the hook.

~~~
rovr138
Regarding the quote by email, that’s also one way to quickly loose people.

They give out a number and if you click the it’s too expensive option, then
they tell you that it could be cut by up to 70% if you contact them. Not bad
but maybe it could somehow be added to the page. Ideally with a big on info on
why.

Right now it feels to me like they’re just quoting you high and then swapping
that out for the real price they want to charge you. Usually when stuff like
that happens, it’s still inflated.

That’s the feeling I got when I saw that.

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jonahx
Lots of negative comments, but whatever you think of the prices, this is very
well done:

    
    
      - Clean, intuitive UI.
      - Clear, *short* copy.
      - A complex process broken down 
        into easily digestible chunks.

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kfrzcode
This is a clear sales pitch - inflate cost estimates, obscure any source
datasets and then pitch a 70% cheaper solution?

Lipstick meets pig.

~~~
heath3n
Seriously...$21k and 6-9 months for an Android-only Tinder with no login, no
profiles, no ratings, no external APIs or payment methods, no branding, and
barebones design? At that point you may as well just download the
CardStackView sample off GitHub.

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12345432123
Momentum scrolling isn’t working on iOS. Add -webkit-overflow-scrolling: touch
to whatever element is overflowing. You’re welcome.

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puranjay
Aren't the estimates a bit on the higher side? Moreso in terms of time than
costs. A barebones mobile app shouldn't take 6-9 months to develop.

~~~
newsbinator
Yes and no. A barebones mobile app is fast to develop when you're working with
experienced people who know what they want.

If you're working with first-timers, you have to account for 3 - 5 major
redesign decisions along the way.

There are valid techniques for mitigating this: educating the client, setting
clear expectations, delineating desired outcomes, having an iron-clad
contract, charging for modifications, etc.

Each of those approaches is arguably good/bad in terms of project management
on consulting work.

But at the end of the day, if you work on tech projects with first-timers,
there's going to be a learning curve, and that learning curve is going to 2x
or 3x your dev time, if you're smart about it. Or 10x your dev time if you're
not.

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mrsmee89
Super cool. Would be awesome to to see a price breakdown in the results view.

~~~
dvfjsdhgfv
They won't do that because it's an advertisement for their service.

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cellularmitosis
Mobile web feedback: something on that page is breaking vertical scrolling on
iOS (there is no scroll momentum — the page stops dead the instant you lift
your finger, and it appears to be scrolling at maybe 10fps)

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konschubert
I went through it with some of the ideas I have but it never asked me “Is
there a special technical challenge included that needs to be solved?

So I feel like this missed it a bit.

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evanwarfel
Nice idea. One issue is that most users will think that you have responded to
the incentive to inflate the prices and make yourself look better by
comparison. Some ways you can make your estimates more credible include:

    
    
      - 1) give ranges of price estimates
    
      - 2) communicate the uncertainty around different parts of the estimate
    
      - 3) show what size team you are estimating will be working on your project
    
      - 3b) have a slider so that people can play around with the team size (and explore the team-size / price / time tradeoff)
     
      - 4) show an estimate of what kind of volume the finished mvp can handle
    
      - 5) show real-life estimates you've gotten on a set of projects. possibly include how much it would have cost to build this very website at both a large institutional design agency and a well-regarded boutique agency.

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huxflux
Another "guerilla marketing" project by some random studio/agency trying to
get new project (don't' blame you for that) but please, at least open source
the goddamn thing.

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superkarolis
I wonder what do they mean by "Hybrid MVP build process" for 70% cost
reduction. Does it only refer to a mobile app being non-native or what else
could it imply?

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xrd
Fantastic. I'm sure this has them lose out on many opportunities that shops
with less integrity will sell them on. And, that might mean they won't
survive.

~~~
tjpnz
They're claiming to be able to cut the displayed time and cost by up to 70%.

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hazz99
I really like the UI/UX in this. How was it built?

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tedmcory77
Agree with the other comments on price breakdown; would allow to hit a
different number based on understanding implications.

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dookahku
Love it! <3

When I'm on
[https://www.productdone.com/contact/](https://www.productdone.com/contact/)
and I click 'about' in the nav bar it doesn't seem to take me anywhere.

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hartator
That’s a bad website. Hijack scrolling and back button.

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senectus1
be nice if they broke the costs down a bit. bit yeah cool idea.

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dustingetz
i’ll cap costs to match estimates from this tool at 1/3 the timeframe, email
me to see if it’s a fit

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stephenhuey
Fun idea. Just wanted to point out the typo with the word startup on page 3:

statup

