Jimmy Lee and wife Alison, want to make it easier to organise group activities using their app chillwithme, so that you no longer have to send countless emails or messages back and forth to organise a group activity, like dinner at a restaurant.

Jimmy, who has a background as a web developer for Fairfax, uses a group of around 20 friends and family as beta testers to tell him what works, and what doesn’t. The group trial each iteration using a mobile testing platform, TestFlight, before it gets released through Apple’s App Store.

“We’re able to push things out quickly,” says Lee.

“We use the private group to test everything. They’re really working for us, in exchange for being able to try things first.”

They tell him about any bugs they find, and provide input using a feedback button on the app. Lee also uses Mixpanel, a mobile analytics package, to track user behaviour on chillwithme. Crashlytics is another useful tool; it sends alerts any time the app crashes.

The chillwithme duo applied for StartMate last year, when their app was just an idea. They missed out the first time around, but are planning to apply again this year.

“Startmate have track results with their previous classes getting investments. The investment increasing from $25,000 to $50,000 is good too.”

App store optimisation: a black art

Some of the biggest growth in user downloads has taken place because of write-ups on sites like PandoDaily and CNET.

There’s a whole lot of information online now about App Store optimisation (tricks to get your app ranking higher in search results), but Lee says his experience has been hit-and-miss. At first, he tried using as many keywords as possible in the app name. Filling the title up with keywords like “meet up”, “friends”, and “organise” worked for a while, but Apple soon told the pair the name was too long.

“It’s a total black art. That’s the whole problem with the Apple ecosystem.”

How to contact a hatted chef

The app has been live for a few months now and while he won’t give specifics, Lee says downloads are now in the hundreds. The pair hope to start partnering with venues soon, so that a restaurant or cafe could reach out to groups planning an activity. They’ve already been in touch with well known chefs including Justin North and Colin Fasnidge. That’s Alison’s domain, says Jimmy, describing himself as the introvert programmer.

Alison Lee, who is Community Manager at Lasoo.com.au, has a no-fear policy reaching out to anyone, usually via Twitter or just by cold-calling.

“Get their attention using Twitter or by giving them a call. Let them know what your vision is, and work to get a face to face meeting,” she says.

SXSW: worth it or not?

Jimmy and Alison spent some time at SXSW in the US earlier this year. Although it was expensive (tickets are upwards of $700 and accommodation costs get crazy), Jimmy says it was worth it. The sessions with Eric Ries and Steve Blank were a highlight.

“We were living out of town and catching the bus in. You’re looking at a couple thousand dollars with flights too.”

Lee says he would arrange more meetings before heading over a second time. It’s not on the cards for next year, but the pair hope to go back to SXSW every few years.

“It was great, our first time at South by Southwest. It’s a huge event and the whole city becomes part of it. The level of speakers is amazing; hearing people like Sean Parker (co-founder of Napster) and Al Gore.”