Prototyping for Start-up and Emerging Software Companies
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Ranked #6,229 in Business, #108,073 overall
iRise is changing the way that software applications are developed and we are making a special offer to start-ups.
We will provide free 90-day trial access to our ground-breaking rapid prototyping and simulation to any qualified start-up company that is working on an idea that involves a software application, software as a service or portal.
Every software company struggles with defining the right solution and with missing or poorly defined requirements. It does not matter if you are going to program in Ruby, Ajax or Java - the most critical part of your application is getting it right the first time. This means validating and turning your idea into reality, gathering feedback, quickly iterating and refining it as you go.
iRise offers start-up companies a better way to:
- Test new product concepts in a visual and interactive way
- Explain your ideas
- Gather more targeted and valuable feedback
- Develop new innovations
Imagine the Possibilities
Imagine the possibilities. Rather than simply doing a standard business presentation, imagine if you could supplement your presentation with a working and interactive version of your vision for a new software application. Make sure that others understand your vision in the way you intended.
VCs, potential customers and business partners will be able see exactly what you imagine - instead of them having to guess what you mean. Now, imagine that the simulation could be created with 1/10 the effort of a traditional prototype and with no additional out-of-pocket costs.
VCs, potential customers and business partners will be able see exactly what you imagine - instead of them having to guess what you mean. Now, imagine that the simulation could be created with 1/10 the effort of a traditional prototype and with no additional out-of-pocket costs.
Experiment Fearlessly
"Experiment Fearlessly." This advice from management guru Tom Peters is the simple view of prototyping and innovation that should be the goal of all companies. The most important function of a prototype is to help you evaluate and validate ideas. iRise helps you to rapidly create and test alternatives - without investing valuable time or money in software development. The value of real feedback from potential users and strategic business partners will let you refine your idea earlier on in your lifecycle, leading to greater success.
VCs also value real-world feedback when considering which opportunities to fund. The ability to demonstrate that a concept has already been test-marketed and validated with the target market will greatly improve your chances of getting funded.
VCs also value real-world feedback when considering which opportunities to fund. The ability to demonstrate that a concept has already been test-marketed and validated with the target market will greatly improve your chances of getting funded.
Create a Prototype of Your Software Application
iRise is a software solution used by technical or non-technical users to create a preview of applications - before writing a single line of code.
An iRise prototype or simulation is a living and interactive model that combines all process flows, user interfaces, business logic, textual requirements and data structures in a single interactive document. iRise simulations let you focus on what you want your application to do and how it should look without having to worry about the technical programming details.
At any time while you are building the simulation, you can press the "simulate" button to view in real-time what the application looks like and see how it behaves.
Do you need to change something? It is very simple to make changes and refine the initial ideas. Since the software was designed to be used by business users, it is easy to learn. On the other hand, it is also robust enough for serious programmers, UI designers and information architects.
When it's all done, you can create an iDoc or "interactive document" which is a single file that combines the simulation and text version of the requirements. This becomes the unambiguous 'blueprint' for the developers who will ultimate code the application. The iDoc can be viewed by anyone who downloads the free iDoc Reader software from the iRise website.
An iRise prototype or simulation is a living and interactive model that combines all process flows, user interfaces, business logic, textual requirements and data structures in a single interactive document. iRise simulations let you focus on what you want your application to do and how it should look without having to worry about the technical programming details.
At any time while you are building the simulation, you can press the "simulate" button to view in real-time what the application looks like and see how it behaves.
Do you need to change something? It is very simple to make changes and refine the initial ideas. Since the software was designed to be used by business users, it is easy to learn. On the other hand, it is also robust enough for serious programmers, UI designers and information architects.
When it's all done, you can create an iDoc or "interactive document" which is a single file that combines the simulation and text version of the requirements. This becomes the unambiguous 'blueprint' for the developers who will ultimate code the application. The iDoc can be viewed by anyone who downloads the free iDoc Reader software from the iRise website.
Free 90-Day Trial to Qualified Companies
Start-up and Emerging Software Companies
We will provide a free 90-day iRise trial license (2 Studios & 1 Server) to qualified companies to demonstrate the impact of our simulation solution. In exchange, we are asking for qualified companies to participate in feedback and certain Marketing activities.
We are seeking companies that are:
- developing and updating web-based applications or interactive websites
- serious about innovation and experimentation
- open to trying a new approach to software development
- dedicated to making a permanent change
The value of iRise is that it will let users:
- 'test-drive' software before it is built, saving money by not going in the wrong direction
- validate alternative approaches, concepts and user interfaces
- create a clear and unambiguous blueprint for programmers or offshoring development efforts
iRise may not be ideal for all situations - it depends on your team, your skill sets, how far along you are and many other factors. We can only determine that by spending a few minutes on the phone to ask some questions and get a better understanding of your start-up.
Upon funding or expiration of the trial license, the company has the option to convert the temporary license to a permanent license.
We are seeking companies that are:
- developing and updating web-based applications or interactive websites
- serious about innovation and experimentation
- open to trying a new approach to software development
- dedicated to making a permanent change
The value of iRise is that it will let users:
- 'test-drive' software before it is built, saving money by not going in the wrong direction
- validate alternative approaches, concepts and user interfaces
- create a clear and unambiguous blueprint for programmers or offshoring development efforts
iRise may not be ideal for all situations - it depends on your team, your skill sets, how far along you are and many other factors. We can only determine that by spending a few minutes on the phone to ask some questions and get a better understanding of your start-up.
Upon funding or expiration of the trial license, the company has the option to convert the temporary license to a permanent license.
How Do I Know if iRise is a Good Fit?
Free 30-Day Trial to Studio - No Strings Attached
- iRise Studio - 30-Day Free Trial
- Click on the above link or search for iRise Studio on www.Download.com.
iRise has recently released a trial version of their ground-breaking rapid prototyping and application definition solution. This is a 30-day, free trial with no-strings-attached.
The idea behind the trial is to give you a chance to see how easy it is to build simulations and prototypes using iRise - before starting the formal start-up trial.
And anything you develop with your 30-day trial will be available to you should you be accepted into the formal program and once you install a licensed version of the software.
How Do I Get Started in the Program?
To get started in the iRise start-up program, you will need to use the Contact Me button to email the program manager, Tom Humbarger. Some of the information that will need to be shared includes:
- Brief overview of company, application and idea (1 page document or email)
- Overview of team (name, contact info, education, work experiences, etc.)
- Timing for using iRise and getting to your next funding event
- Name, title, physical address, phone number, email information for person who will be signing the agreements
After that, the final steps are:
- Brief phone qualification
- Get approval for Trial
- Sign Trial documents
- Download software
- Get started
What Happens After the End of the Trial?
Anything you create with iRise is your intellectual property. All iRise projects can be saved as "interactive documents" or iDocs. iRise publishes a free iDoc Reader (similar in concept to Adobe Acrobat) which lets you and others review your project, walk through the simulation and review additional project documentation.
- Brief overview of company, application and idea (1 page document or email)
- Overview of team (name, contact info, education, work experiences, etc.)
- Timing for using iRise and getting to your next funding event
- Name, title, physical address, phone number, email information for person who will be signing the agreements
After that, the final steps are:
- Brief phone qualification
- Get approval for Trial
- Sign Trial documents
- Download software
- Get started
What Happens After the End of the Trial?
Anything you create with iRise is your intellectual property. All iRise projects can be saved as "interactive documents" or iDocs. iRise publishes a free iDoc Reader (similar in concept to Adobe Acrobat) which lets you and others review your project, walk through the simulation and review additional project documentation.
Case Studies
- Red Herring Article on iRise Entrepreneur Program and Alpha Bay
- One client sang the praises of iRise: Alpha Bay, a Salt Lake City-based retail systems software and services provider. CEO Jack Blount credited the simulation software with speeding up development of Alpha Bay's services.
"iRise's software was easy enough to use that the other founders and I were able to get up and running on it in a matter of days," Mr. Blount said in a statement.
Alpha Bay was able to quickly create a "lifelike visualization of multi-channel retail services" and "shaved significant time off the development cycle," Mr. Blount said. - Start-up "Graduates" to Customer Status
- In December, we had a company that originally joined the start-up program become a paying customer. A press release will be coming out soon, but here are a few of their quotes:
- "I can't imagine any software company not using this product"
- "The product is wonderful"
- "We've never seen anything like it"
- "We wish we would have found iRise years ago" - Agistics Gains Attention Through Use of Simulation
- Agistics Selects iRise Application Simulation Software to Gain Early Attention with Prospective Customers, Partners and Employees - read more on Agistics use of iRise in this press release from December 5, 2005.
- Agistics Picks iRise Development Simulation Platform
- Here's what the CEO of Agistics says about iRise..."the iRise platform eliminated the ambiguity of a new product defined in static slides and text-based materials. With iRise technology, we are able to provide a realistic simulation of the new application with customer and partner focus groups. As a result of this early interaction, important adjustments to the application design were made before it was sent to development, saving us significant dollars down the line." Read more in this story in the East Bay Business Journal.
- Using Rapid Prototyping Simulations for Off-Shoring
- "My business partner recently used a simulation tool to define both the business and user requirements for a small yet full featured site. The site consisted of about 25 pages, he shipped the simulation over to India for production; the resulting site came back verbatim to the simulation. We have been using this firm on and off for over two years now and this is the first time the results came back the way we defined them. The only difference was instead of providing traditional deliverables such as Word, Visio, etc. he provided a simulation. It has taken some convincing to change their methodology but now that they have seen the gains in time and the reduction in ambiguity I'm sure they will be much more open on future projects to accept our simulations."
- A Picture Does Tell a Thousand Words!
- In their own words - here are some comments from an entrepreneur who has been using iRise for less than 2 months.
"When I have shown our simulation to close friends/colleagues who are advising me on my company, I typically get the question "who did you 'hire' to create this?" followed by "WOW! you did this yourself?". After that I explain the relationship that we have with iRise and how iRise allows a business person like myself to develop a real working prototype. I would like to attribute the compliments to our keen business insights, but I must give iRise a part of the credit. Without the application, our dream would live primarily in our heads. This tool gave us a canvas to express our business ideas in an efficient, creative, and timely way. I believe that once we land our first round of funding, this tool will help us get our products to market faster."
Customer Profile
Driving Innovation for a Start-up Software Company
Agistics (www.agistics.com) is a new Software as a Service (SaaS) company with a focus on the Express Delivery of employee services such as compensation, benefits, communications, technology, expense management and procurement. They were founded in 2005 and will deliver the first release of their software in Summer 2006.Challenges
Agistics' Founders had a great idea for a new kind of software company to address the employee services market. Their innovation challenge was to present their paradigm-shifting idea in a way that would convey the key benefits to the marketplace.
Solution
Agistics started using iRise in May 2005 to turn their vision into an interactive and working prototype. The iRise solution helped them overcome the challenge of trying to explain a new software application with static slides and text-based materials. The iRise simulation was also used it to attract employees and partners, and was shown to prospective customers who signed letters of intent to use the software because the simulation helped them "get it".
Result
Agistics created several generations of iRise simulations before they came out of 'stealth mode' in December 2005. In January 2006, Agistics doubled their investment in iRise and started development work on the first version of their software - expected to be delivered by Summer 2006.
"With iRise technology, we are able to provide a realistic simulation of a new application with customer and partner focus groups"
"The iRise software was so simple to use that one of our non-technical product managers was able to build an impressive simulation in just a few weeks."
Dean Alms, CEO and Founder
East Bay BusinessTimes
December 5, 2005
iRise Product Links
- iRise for Entrepreneurs Program
- iRise for Entrepreneurs program provides start-up and emerging companies with access to iRise software and resources, enabling participating entrepreneurs to graphically and rapidly visualize new product ideas and services.
Companies empowered with iRise software simulation define the right applications before any code is written - a critical advantage for new and emerging software companies, which typically get just one shot to make a powerful impression on the market and potential investors with an innovative software application. - Overview of iRise Products
- iRise simulations let product managers, end users and developers interact with software applications before doing any actual coding. Our drag-n-drop approach to building interactive applications is simple-to-use and lets users easily test different approaches. The visual representation of the application looks and behaves like the real thing, including data interactions and business logic.
- iRise Studio
- iRise Studio is a rapid prototyping solution used to quickly create functionally rich simulations of Web-based software applications. iRise Studio can be used to develop simulations of new custom applications, portals, enhancements to existing systems, and customizations of packaged software, and can be used for ideation, requirements definition, design, validation, development, and pre-development usability testing.
iRise Studio features include: an electronic whiteboard to quickly sketch out the high-level view of the application, built-in support for diagramming scenarios, easy layout of user interaction and business logic (by dragging and dropping text, images and user interaction widgets onto pages), and the ability to add realistic sample data via a spreadsheet-like interface. iRise simulations look and act just like real enterprise applications, and they can be created in 1/10th the time of coded prototypes without straining precious developer resources. - iRise iDoc Reader
- The unique part of our collaboration story is the iRise iDoc. iDocs are project files that can be shared with anyone, anywhere - including users who do not have our software. An iDoc opens in a standard browser and includes a working simulation of the application plus any textual requirements shown in context to their location.
iDocs can be shared with your distributed development team, with prospective partners and customers or anyone else who needs to review or provide feedback to your project.
Follow this link to our website and download the free iDoc Reader. The download includes a sample project that allows you to experience the power of this collaborative tool.
iRise Articles and Independent Blog Entries
- Simulation - The New Standard For Start-up Software Firms
- This article from VCFodder discusses how simulation can improve the chances of success for a new start-up by greatly enhancing their pitch to VCs and for emerging companies by helping them get to market faster.
- Blog Entry - Creating a Demo Without Coding
- This is an independent blog entry written on using iRise for creating interactive previews by one of the Education in Entrepreneurship bloggers. Make sure to follow the screenshot links to FLICKR.
- Blog Entry - Software Simulation and Start-ups
- Here is another independent blog entry on using simulation for start-ups from Eric Olsen (the Wannabe VC). Eric is also an avid podcaster at www.ventureweek.com.
- Prototype the Product
- Om Malik and Michael Copeland wrote an article for the June 2006 issue Business 2.0 titled "How to build a better startup". Phase 2 of their article was "Prototype the Product". This section explains how to use prototyping to validate the idea, define key features and guide product development.
iRise - Additional Background Information
iRise® is dedicated to bridging the communication gap between business and IT by dramatically improving the process of defining business applications.
iRise is an exciting software company that is igniting the application definition market with a simple idea: simulate business applications before they're built so everyone can "test drive" the software and get it right - the first time. With its beginnings as a consulting services company delivering hundreds of complex projects for clients around the country, iRise 'lived the pain' associated with ambiguous business requirements that force delays, cost over runs and missing features in business-critical applications.
In 2002 we decided to do something about this endemic problem and delivered our first application simulator. Since then the iRise product has been used by thousands of business people on hundreds of projects to quickly assemble and collaboratively review working previews of complex business applications that are virtually indistinguishable from the final product. Global, innovation-driven companies have now experienced improved time to market, the elimination of rework and the successful delivery of business applications that users actually love to use.
Our combination of products, services offerings and customer validation are unmatched in the application definition space.
Isn't it time you simulated before you built?
iRise is headquartered in Los Angeles, with offices around the U.S.
###
iRise is a registered trademark of iRise. All other companies and products mentioned are trademarks and property of their respective owners.
iRise is an exciting software company that is igniting the application definition market with a simple idea: simulate business applications before they're built so everyone can "test drive" the software and get it right - the first time. With its beginnings as a consulting services company delivering hundreds of complex projects for clients around the country, iRise 'lived the pain' associated with ambiguous business requirements that force delays, cost over runs and missing features in business-critical applications.
In 2002 we decided to do something about this endemic problem and delivered our first application simulator. Since then the iRise product has been used by thousands of business people on hundreds of projects to quickly assemble and collaboratively review working previews of complex business applications that are virtually indistinguishable from the final product. Global, innovation-driven companies have now experienced improved time to market, the elimination of rework and the successful delivery of business applications that users actually love to use.
Our combination of products, services offerings and customer validation are unmatched in the application definition space.
Isn't it time you simulated before you built?
iRise is headquartered in Los Angeles, with offices around the U.S.
###
iRise is a registered trademark of iRise. All other companies and products mentioned are trademarks and property of their respective owners.
by thumbarger
Tom Humbarger is Senior Manager of Strategic Projects for iRise and is the program manager for iRise's start-up and venture capital outreach initiativ...
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