Merkur Apps

High Level Overview

Eyas Gaming, responsible for the development of Merkur’s online products, brought me in to take responsibility for the end to end development of the apps. 

Strategy

We sought to understand Merkur’s target market in relation to the brands we would include as part of the whitelabel, and created a product consistent with the high standards our players expected.  

Whitelabel Development

I was responsible for shaping the whitelabel to ensure maximum flexibility across brands and markets. I did this by creating a strong CMS from which a number of features could be configured, allowing for maximum flexibility.

Fully Agile

The start-up culture at Eyas allowed me to develop the apps in a fully Agile environment. This meant the delivery process was dynamic and adaptable  optimising the development process.

Budget Management

I was responsible for overseeing the development of the apps in relation to the budget and identifying any delays or challenges that may affect costings; and adjusted development accordingly.

End-to-End Dev

I managed the iOS and Android apps, building them  from the ground up.

Compliant List View

Worked with UX to design a reimagined  listview as per Apple’s Review Guidelines  

Enhanced QA

Worked with in-house testers on extensive QA and UAT, as well as writing procedures.

App Marketing

I led the dev for push, IAM, web app banners and mobile attribution.

Full Feature Set

This included navigation, games, recently played, on-boarding, account and more…

Store Management

Worked with the business to create developer accounts and submit the apps.

Some more information…

Eyas offered me the opportunity to build a hybrid app template which allowed backend flexibility in tailoring the product to the target market.

Background How it was Built My Scope

What was the strategy and vision for the development of the apps from scratch?

After ensuring compliance with licensing regulation and Apple’s Guidelines was achieved, my focus was on user experience and building a strong back-end. This would allow the business to easily configure the app’s features and look and feel across the company’s upcoming brands, tailored to specific demographic. I set about achieving this by adopting a data-driven approach, which sought to first understand user behaviour through analytics and A/B testing, and building configurability into the CMS to accommodate on the fly refinement of the front-end without the need for re-submissions using remote config.

I set about achieving my vision by writing the requirements myself, and planning the phases of development, before working with delivery teams (app and web where dependencies were identified) on estimating work and planning the sprints and refining the backlog as the development panned out.

How did the apps get developed?

I worked with an external development agency, with teams based in the UK, Ukraine and Indonesia The apps were build in React Native, which saved time in as much as features could be build with only an approximate additional effort of 20% – 30% required to adapt code from Android to iOS or vice versa.

All testing was done in house, with a sharp focus on QA and UAT. As test builds were provided, efforts were made to ensure respective departments and divisions tested their own features and areas, with Product Manager and QA sign-off.

Development on the MVP began in August 2021, with the Android app being completed in November of the same year, and iOS following suit in December. An enhanced submission procedure to the app stores was required owing to geo-blocks in place as a condition of the license. This required the creation of a detailed walkthrough video, with references to a separate feature audit outlining all of the app’s functionality, as well as links to detailed licensing information for regions relevant to the app’s submission.

What were my main areas of focus?

Strategic

  • Working closely with the COO and Director of CX in defining the strategy for building the iOS and Android apps across for the Merkur Gaming brand within the U.K. market.
  • Translating Apple guideline updates into a product vision and strategy.
  • Defining the full feature set for the apps, and transforming this into a phased and iterative development plan.
  • Working with the ASO supplier in optimising the apps’ presence on the app stores and defining the app release schedule.
  • Defining app release and update strategies and schedules.
  • Planning brand and regional app adaptation and rollout


Product

  • Defining and owning the product roadmap and prioritising features.
  • Writing well-defined product requirements from scratch, for features and NFRs, as well as defining metrics in close contact with design, compliance, security and engineering teams to build the apps.
  • Managing strategic third-party relationships with suppliers, relating to (but not limited to) attribution, ASO and CRM tools.
  • Working closely with Development Teams to understand challenges on the go, and seeking to resolve these as quickly and efficiently as possible.
  • Creating submission material for app store reviews for Google and Apple.


Testing

  • Working closely with in-house testers in ensuring features were developed according to product requirements.
  • Implementing testing procedures which required feature owners to UAT their own features ensuring that these met their requirements.


Reporting

  • Reporting on app development vs budget, and development status directly to the COO.


Academic

  • Understanding the Merkur brand’s demographic, and seeking to adapt the product to a new audience while retaining the brand’s identity.
  • Developing a deep understanding of how Apple’s guideline updates impact the business’s iOS apps.
  • Keeping a sharp focus on new markets and potential legislative impacts on my roadmap.