Intro
Robust all inclusive project management and billing app
Duet is an invoicing and project management application with an integrated client portal. Unlike most applications in this space, Duet is self hosted which means businesses have complete control over their data
Most project management software is SaaS with recurring monthly fees. This is great for businesses without data privacy concerns, but creates a problem for businesses that require a higher level of privacy. Since businesses self host Duet their data will not be available to anyone outside of their company.
Other factors that make Duet a unique product are it's ability to be branded and accessed directly from a company's own domain. It also provides significant cost savings over SaaS since there is no monthly fee.
01 Challenge
Duet lacked an intuitive UI, critical features, and flexibility.
Duet did not have an intuitive user experience, features that were central to the app were hidden and did not display actionable data. It was also missing critical features and flexibility for billing and project management.
02Solution
Rebuild Duet with focus on improving features, user experience, and flexibility.
Added several critical features including a kanban view, recurring billing and estimates. Rebuilt the user interface with better organization and easier access to critical features. Added more flexibility to all of the critical features to allow for custom workflows
03Results
Easier & more flexible project management and invoicing at a fraction of the cost
The rebuilt app was enthusiastically embraced by existing users and increased sales to new users, attracting larger business users across a wider range of industries. All processes
Transforming Duet into an all inclusive business management app
This was the primary goal when rebuilding Duet and achieving this goal meant we needed to do three things: Create an intuitive friendly user interface that has no learning curve, add several critical features required to run a small business, and make the application more flexible to accommodate a wider range of workflows
User Interviews & Design
The first step was to talk to existing users of Duet to get a better sense of what they need from their ideal project management and invoicing app, as well as to discuss their specific pain points with the existing version of Duet. This information was used to define the direction for the design phase.
Next we analyzed the information from the user interviews to rapidly prototype new designs and features. Then used those wireframes to redesign the app taking into account user feedback and business goals.
Code & Deploy
Next we analyzed the information from the user interviews to rapidly prototype new designs and features. Then used those wireframes to redesign the app taking into account user feedback and business goals.
Use automatic invoice reminders to stop chasing late payments
Sometimes clients pay late. Chasing late payments is time consuming and frustrating. Anchor can automate this process with it's customizable invoice reminders. The reminder schedule is completely customizable for each individual invoice and a user can schedule as many reminders as they would like.
Automated daily status updates
It's easy for users to stay informed of all billing activity with Anchor's automated daily summary delivered directly to their inboxes. It shows the status of all upcoming and overdue invoices, recent payments, and recent reminders, so so they will always be up to date.
Improved Invoicing and Payments
This was the primary goal when rebuilding Duet and achieving this goal meant we needed to do three things: Create an intuitive friendly user interface that has no learning curve, add several critical features required to run a small business, and make the application more flexible to accommodate a wider range of workflows
Kanban boards
Sometimes clients pay late. Chasing late payments is time consuming and frustrating. Anchor can automate this process with it's customizable invoice reminders. The reminder schedule is completely customizable for each individual invoice and a user can schedule as many reminders as they would like.
Integrating with the most popular content management system
It's easy for users to stay informed of all billing activity with Anchor's automated daily summary delivered directly to their inboxes. It shows the status of all upcoming and overdue invoices, recent payments, and recent reminders, so so they will always be up to date.
