Scalable MVP for a Personalized Social Reading Book App
The Iliad app redefines reading with personalized book recommendations, customizable digital bookshelves, and interactive features for logging and rating reads.
Our team worked to develop a Minimum Viable Product (MVP) that prioritized smooth UI/UX design while enabling rapid market entry and seamless scalability.
Industry:
Leisure & Entertainment
Services:
Back End Development, Cloud / DevOps, Front End Development, Mobile Development, QA as a Service, UI/UX Design
Location:
US
Challenge
Enter the market quickly to validate the product concept and plan future features based on real user data.
Deliver an exceptional user experience with animations, intuitive navigation, and gamification elements.
Ensure data accuracy while working with third-party APIs like Google Books and ISBN databases, overcoming challenges such as rate limitations and inconsistencies.
Incorporate personalization to deliver AI-powered book recommendations tailored to individual preferences.
Handle scalability while maintaining performance during peak user activity.
The app’s primary goal was clear: to create an engaging, social space for readers that encourages them to explore, share, and enjoy books.
Solution
Architecture
We built Iliad’s backend on a resilient microservices architecture that leverages AWS serverless capabilities. By doing so, we ensured that the application only scales where and when needed, and costs are minimized during periods of low user traffic.
Services communicate with each other asynchronously, using SQS to ensure messages are processed reliably, even under high traffic.
Security was also our top concern, so we integrated AWS Authorizers and OAuth2 Single Sign-On (SSO) to keep user data safe and provide a seamless experience throughout the app.
For the frontend, we built Iliad as a cross-platform mobile app using React Native. This allowed us to provide a consistent and fast app experience across iOS and Android devices.
One of the app's unique features is the virtual bookshelf. We were able to bring this to life using React Native Reanimated, which allowed us to write animated-centric UIKits.
This enables us to run animations on the UI thread, rather than on a separate layer, resulting in a fluid experience. Even on smaller mobile devices with less powerful hardware, the animations are smooth and interactive.
Personalization and Recommendations
Iliad leverages the OpenAI-powered recommendation engine, offering users tailored book suggestions based on their previous reading history and set preferences.
We also integrated Redux Persist, which enables faster caching of user preferences and boosts performance.
Data Integration and Analytics
One of the biggest challenges was building a comprehensive book database. To tackle this, we’ve integrated data from the Google Books API and ISBNdb.
Since the API requests are limited globally, we set up a system to cache book data, so users can view book details even on slower internet connections.
For data-driven decisions, we leveraged Amplitude and Sentry to help the team analyze user behavior and debug issues. These tools gave us actionable insights into user behavior to ensure the app evolves in line with the audience needs.
Agile Workflow and QA
We followed a Scrum methodology, organizing our work into set sprint cycles and delivering features in batches with user acceptance testing to ensure quality.
Additionally, we did unit, integration, and UI testing to guarantee a smooth and successful launch.
Technologies Used
Each of the technologies we selected for this product aligns with the product’s priorities: scalability, seamless integrations for personalized recommendations, and smooth performance. Below, you'll find the specific tools and frameworks we used to achieve these goals.
The workflow
Our development team followed an agile workflow to ensure rapid iterations and continuous testing. This approach allowed us to deliver a high-quality product while incorporating user feedback. Overall, it included the following components.
Planning
Gathered requirements to come up with MVP architecture.
Sprint-based development
Delivered frontend and backend components in iterative cycles to ensure progress and rapid feature delivery.
API integration and data validation
Connected third-party services while maintaining data accuracy.
Quality assurance and user acceptance testing
Conducted testing to ensure functionality, performance, and user satisfaction.
Iterative improvements
Refined features and resolved issues based on feedback gathered during sprint reviews.
Deployment and post-launch support
Launched the product with robust monitoring tools while planning features for Phase 2.
About the team
To deliver the Iliad app, we formed a dedicated team of experts who brought their technical expertise and user-centric mindset to the table.
Team composition
Project manager
1
UI/UX designer
1
Fullstack engineer
3
Frontend engineer
3
QA engineer
1
Impact
We delivered Iliad's MVP in approximately six months, focusing on rapid market entry and user adoption. As we continue post-launch enhancements, here is a look at the impact the app has achieved so far.
Tailored user experience. Visually-appealing bookshelves, smooth animations, and easy navigation.
Community-driven design. Personalized recommendations and interactive features creating a social reading environment.
Fast performance. Serverless architecture implying scalability, and caching meaning accessibility.
Cost effective scaling. AWS microservices architecture with seamless scaling, allowing the product to adapt effortlessly to user growth and evolving needs.
Accessibility. Performance optimization with the app working on all devices, regardless of hardware.
We focus on crafting tailored solutions that are as flexible as your business needs. Contact us to discuss how we can enhance your product’s journey.
