App development Portland
App Development in Portland, Oregon
Business apps that install from the browser and work on any phone.
Last updated
Trusted by businesses across the United States and beyond
Social Agencies is a team of app developers in Portland, Oregon, building web apps for businesses: quoting and invoicing, inventory, finance systems and admin tools. They run in the browser and install on a phone's home screen without an app store. BlitzBooks, our own quoting and invoicing web app for trades, is live and in daily use.
The problem
Do you need an app, or a better system?
Most businesses that ask us for an app are really asking to fix one of these.
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Paperwork done at night
Quotes, job cards and invoices get written up after hours, because the office system does not work on a phone on site.
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Inventory kept in a spreadsheet
Counts, prices and reorder points live in a file nobody fully trusts, and never with the person who needs them.
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Money tracked by hand
Payments and balances are worked out in a ledger, where one wrong formula costs real money and nobody notices for months.
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Customers who need a login
Clients or staff need to see their own records, bookings or documents without calling the office to ask.
Web or native
Web app or App Store app: which do you need?
The honest trade-offs. Social Agencies builds web apps, and says so up front.
| Web app (installable) | App Store or Google Play app | |
|---|---|---|
| How it is installed | From the browser, to the home screen | From the Apple App Store or Google Play |
| One build covers | iPhone, Android, tablet and desktop | Often separate work for each platform |
| Updates | Live for everyone on the next open | Through each store's review process |
| Store listing | Not needed | Required, with the store's rules and fees |
| Phone features | Many, like the camera and notifications | All of them |
| Strongest for | Business tools, portals and internal systems | Consumer apps people find in a store |
Our own app
BlitzBooks: the quoting and invoicing app we built and run ourselves.
Social Agencies built BlitzBooks so trades can send quotes and invoices from a phone. It installs from the browser, takes its own subscription payments and is in daily use, so we deal with what every app owner faces: support, updates and data that has to be right.
Our apps
What apps has Social Agencies built?
Live systems, each built around one business's real work.
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BlitzBooks
Quoting and invoicing for trades, from a phone. Our own product, live and in daily use.
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Dartbooks
The finance system Dart Motors runs its agreements, payments and balances on, every day.
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ShipShape
A white-label inventory app for yacht crews: usage logged on board, a shopping list built from par levels, and low-stock alerts.
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Autocrat inventory portal
Where the owner of Autocrat Motors adds cars, uploads photos and publishes them to his storefront himself.
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Impact Volunteers dashboard
Applications arrive through the site, email goes out automatically, and the team manages it all from one dashboard.
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Dart Motors inventory feed
Inventory read from the dealer's system and kept in sync on the website, watched so a stopped feed is caught early.
What you get
What do you get when Social Agencies builds your app?
The app, the connections to what you already run, and the team that keeps it running.
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Part 1
The app
Built around the way your business already works.
- Shaped around your process and paperwork
- Installs on iPhone and Android from the browser
- Works on a tablet and a desktop too
- Roles, so each person sees only their records
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Part 2
The connections
Information entered once and used everywhere it is needed.
- Your website's inquiries in the same database
- Inventory or listings kept in sync
- Payments where the app needs them
- Exports, so your data is never trapped
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Part 3
Launch and support
The developers who built it stay on hand after it goes live.
- A live preview link during the build
- Delivered in stages you can use
- Monitoring and backups
- Code and data in accounts in your name
One team. One system. One monthly partner. Built, run and improved by Social Agencies.
Book a callInstalls without a store
How does a web app install on a phone?
A web app opens from a link like any website. On Android the browser offers to install it, and on an iPhone it is added from the share menu. Either way it gets its own icon on the home screen and opens full screen, like any other app.
Updates go live the next time it opens, with no store review and nobody stuck on an old version. For a business tool used by your own team or customers, that is usually exactly what you want.
- Its own icon on the home screen
- Opens full screen, without the browser bar
- Updated for everyone at once
Finance software
Dartbooks: a dealership's finance system, moved out of a spreadsheet.
Social Agencies built Dartbooks so Dart Motors could run agreements, payments and balances in one ledger instead of a spreadsheet. The dealership uses it itself, every day.
Why us
Why work with Social Agencies on your app?
- 01
We run our own app
BlitzBooks has paying customers, support requests and regular updates, so we build from the owner's side as well as the developer's.
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Honest about native apps
Our live apps are web apps. If your idea genuinely needs an App Store or Google Play listing, we will say so before you spend anything.
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Your code, your data
The code, the database and the hosting sit in accounts in your name, and your data can be exported any day.
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Built in stages
Bigger apps arrive in stages, so the first part is working in your business before the rest is finished.
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On Pacific time
Social Agencies is based in Portland, so working sessions about how your business really runs happen during your own business day.
The Social Agencies method
How does working with Social Agencies work?
- 01
Discover
A short call about your business, where inquiries come from today and where they get lost.
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Plan and quote
A written plan and a fixed, itemized quote. Nothing starts until you agree to it.
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Build
You get a live preview link from early on and watch it take shape, instead of waiting for a reveal.
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Launch and grow
It goes live on accounts in your name, then we host, support and keep improving it every month.
Professional, efficient, and delivered exactly what we needed. The website is clean, modern and easy for our customers to use, and communication was clear throughout.
I am extremely excited & proud of our new look website. Jared's knowledge, ingenuity & understanding of our needs, wants & desires falls nothing short of BRILLIANT. Jared & James are a formidable team with amazing ideas. Highly recommended.
BEST website company ever. From the start they have been so helpful designing a company website for me. Great pricing, very helpful, wil definitely recommend them to everyone i know. Great Team to work with Social Agencies. Thanks Team for the great work
It was an absolute pleasure working with James. He created an amazing website for us, maintained clear communication throughout the process, and ensured that all of our needs were met. He was professional, easy to work with, and delivered exactly what he promised. I would highly recommend him to anyone looking for website design or advertising services.
This young dynamic company has really impressed me with my requirements on a complete website design/development. Highly recommended.
I had an absolutely outstanding experience with Social Agencies for the web design and marketing support of my business. Jarred was incredibly professional, attentive, and patient throughout the entire process. … The final result exceeded all my expectations: the website is more beautiful and functional than I could have ever imagined.
Great service, thank you for your help with Dr van der Poel's website.
Free demo site
Your business. Your free demo.
See your new website before you pay a cent. Social Agencies builds a demo of your homepage, free, so you judge the work first.
- A real demo of your homepage, built for your business
- What your competitors are doing online, in plain words
- Where your current site is losing inquiries
- 1
Tell us about your business
Two minutes on the form, or a quick call.
- 2
We build your homepage demo
Your name, your services, your area. Not a template.
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You decide
Like it? You get a fixed quote in writing. If not, you owe nothing.
Get your free demo
No cost, no obligation.
Frequently asked questions
How much does app development cost?
It depends on how many jobs the app has to do, how many types of user it has and what it connects to. Social Agencies scopes it with you on a call and sends a fixed, itemized quote. Bigger apps can be built in stages, so the first part is in use before the rest is finished.
Do you build iPhone and Android apps?
Our apps are web apps that install on both iPhone and Android from the browser, from one build. If your idea needs a listing in the App Store or Google Play, we will say so when we scope it.
Who owns the app and the data?
You do. The code, the database and the hosting sit in accounts in your name, so the app stays yours whatever happens.
How long does it take to build an app?
It depends on the scope. Apps are built in stages you can see and use along the way, and the dates for each stage go on the quote.
Can I see an app you have built?
Yes. Book a call and we will walk you through BlitzBooks, our own quoting and invoicing web app for trades, and the other systems we have built, so you can judge how we build before you commit.
Let's talk
Your next customer is searching right now. Let's make sure they find you.
One short call with a director. You get a plan and a fixed quote in writing before anything is built.
- You speak to a director, not a call center
- A fixed quote in writing, no obligation
- A reply within one business day