What happens during a discovery phase and how it saves money

When planning a new website, web app or mobile app, most businesses want to get straight into the design and development, which makes sense, as that is when the project starts being tangible and feels real. But before even starting the design, there’s a step that can make the difference between a smooth project and a messy, expensive one: the discovery phase. Even though it adds a bit of time in the beginning, it almost always saves time, money and lots of frustration later on. 

So what is a discovery phase?

It is basically like creating a roadmap before starting a journey. The goal is to understand exactly what needs to be built and why, who it is for and how it should work. At Swiss Tomato, a discovery phase typically includes workshops, user journeys, wireframes, technical planning and feature prioritisation. By the end, everyone has a clear understanding of the project and a realistic plan to move forward. 

Why not just start building?

 Mainly, because assumptions are expensive and end up being very time consuming. It’s common for a business to begin a project with one idea, only to realise halfway that certain features aren’t needed but important requirements are overlooked. Experienced developers can often devise simpler solutions to problems, options that business owners might not be aware of. Making these changes during planning takes minutes, but making them after weeks of development or during testing, can take days and significant additional costs. That’s why we spend time asking questions before we start building. 

It keeps everyone aligned

Online tools often involve multiple teams in a business, ranging from marketing and sales to IT and management. Naturally, everyone has their own priorities and points of view. The discovery phase brings everyone together early to define goals, agree on priorities and avoid misunderstandings later on in the process. 

It helps you build the right thing

A discovery phase isn’t about adding unnecessary meetings or paperwork. It is about making sure you’re investing your budget in features that genuinely add value. It is also especially important for start ups who don’t yet have years of business data and customer evaluations. At Swiss Tomato we work with you as a team to figure out what exactly it is that you need, what is the best tool to launch with, keeping in mind the future growth possibilities. 

A small investment that pays off

Every project is different, but one thing that stays the same is that good planning leads to better results! Taking the time to understand the business, the users and the technical requirements before development begins, reduces risks, improves communication and creates a much smoother development process. 

At Swiss Tomato, we see the discovery phase as the foundation of a successful project, because when everyone starts with the same vision, the rest of the journey becomes much simpler!