Thanks @rrhoover! Two main reasons for building the web.
First, it was by far and away the most requested feature of our most active users.
Second, is the fact that even the most active mobile professionals spend time at their desks for some portion of each week. We looked at our data and saw high WAU, but inconsistent DAU. When we looked deeper we discovered that people batch their meetings and tend to have 'meeting' days and 'non-meeting' days. So when you are juggling 6 meetings on a Tuesday the mobile app works well, but it isn't convenient when you're sitting at your desk all day Wednesday getting work done or making phone calls.
Our favorite apps like @Evernote, @Wonderlist, @asana, and many other are both on web and mobile. It's essential for productivity apps to be on both.
@bhavinator this reminds me of an article @ryanlawler recently published: The Return Of The Desktop Productivity App Although he primarily refers to native desktop apps, this remains true for web-based apps as well:
"'By owning engagement on both desktop and mobile, startups capture more attention and become more defensible,' Product Hunt founder Ryan Hoover writes. 'It takes more effort to switch someone from Sunrise when they’re using both the mobile app and desktop app. This is especially important for those creating more ‘commoditized’ apps that can be easily replaced.'"
Refresh just released their desktop web app and 2.0 of their mobile iOS client. I've been a beta user of Refresh prior to its launch. They've expanded beyond the simple "rapportive for people you're meeting," adding features like intro's and notes to make these meetings more effective and efficient.
Congrats, @bhavinator and team on the launch. Why did you build a desktop web app?
@rrhoover can't wait for the moment i can go into a bar and with my google glass i can see everyone's personal + professional interests instantly ("Oh - you like Nas/the new yorker/product hunt too!")
@daveambrose you're the one that introduced me to Refresh a few months ago and it's easily one of my most valuable tools. I like how the web view goes into even more detail, but it would be easier to read if it were less spread out, I think. Too much scrolling required.
Are the notes made in refresh exportable to contacts or other calendars at all? looking for a way to keep track of meeting people, but i want it stored with my contacts in the end.
Interesting that Refresh mobile and Refresh desktop seem to reflect different value propositions. On the mobile app, it's all about my upcoming meetings and information on those people. On the web, it's all about looking people up.
@bhavinator, I think that probably makes sense. On the web, I'm usually in research mode looking people up, whereas on mobile, I usually want the quick-fire hits about a particular person I'm about to meet. That said, it certainly felt disjointed - in other words, my first thought as a mobile user when I hit the site was, "Wait...this isn't Refresh?"
@alexschiff Great feedback and I would have to agree. We intentionally made them different to serve different use cases. It's too easy to just take your product and replicate it on a new platform. Over time we'll add more functionality to the web app until we find it's sweet spot.
Love refresh, use it ~everyday. Desktop site is a great addition, I've already used it twice. My biggest ASK would be to add more advanced meeting notes. I use MeetingHero currently, and could easily see using Refresh exclusively if those types of tools were offered. Keep up the great work!
@pandurang and @bramk, you both are correct that the iPhone app is only available in the US App Store. Sorry about that. International version is coming. However, you should be able to get to the desktop version at http://www.refresh.io/app.
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@bhavinator is there a sign up page so we could be informed about international access please? Congrats on the web app - it's fantastic.
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