BACKGROUND
Gametime is a mobile ticketing platform to help make the discovery/purchase/attendee experience at sporting events as seamless as possible. Initially, Gametime negotiated a deal with the SF Giants franchise to get tickets and allow gate entry, then built a MVP of the app on iOS. The experience wasn't perfect, but the idea was one that resonated with the tech-friendly San Francisco crowd, leading to initial traction and growth.
OPPORTUNITY
Next, Gametime raised a round of funding with the express goal of streamlining and improving the experience, increasing the popularity of the platform, and building a team to take things to the next level. Around this time, they came into contact with QuarkWorks. We knew we could help take them to the next level.
SOLUTION
Initially, QuarkWorks came in and augmented the existing Gametime app on iOS, working on improving notifications and the user experience in general. Next, we helped with the production process, pushing new builds of the app to the Apple app store and helping bootstrap new iOS developers as they came on board. Meanwhile, Android had been a desired feature for some time at Gametime. Not supporting both platforms was limiting the viral growth possible as well as reducing the return from advertising the platform in general.
QuarkWorks took on the bringing the Android app to the market as a challenge we were uniquely qualified to tackle. The team sat down and worked overtime on the project for two months, going from an empty repository to a fully functioning MVP that worked with the ticket purchasing backend. Next, we spent a month in SF directly with the Gametime team doing a final pass on QA, the UI and making sure the experience was as smooth as possible. Then, we launched the app on Android and looked forward to the future.
The next goal was to bring the app to new markets. The iOS and backend team had done preparation work, so QuarkWorks worked hand in hand with their team to add support for a second baseball franchise to their platform. Within the year, they were able to expand to all thirty-two professional teams in the United States!
RESULTS & FEEDBACK
QuarkWorks helped Gametime scale from zero in-house engineers to their current team of over eighty people. They have expanded beyond baseball to other sports as well as concerts and theatre events. They are going strong and looking to go public and continue their amazing growth!
