All startups stem from the seed of an idea. A gap in the market. An unfulfilled challenge. Unfortunately, many founders don’t have the technical expertise to get from an initial concept to an effective, transformative solution.
If you’re a founder with big ideas, but limited technical know-how, one of the first steps in the process is identifying what you need in your tech stack. Time and resources are two of the biggest challenges facing startups racing to market, and choosing the right tech can be the difference between building an efficient, scalable application or staying stuck in the first iteration of development. The startup scene has grown exponentially in the last few years. https://fundsquire.co.uk/startup-statistics/.
A tech stack is the combination of technologies needed to build a web or mobile application. It’s the foundation of your solution; the infrastructure on which your entire app will be based.
But, that’s not all. Your choice of tech stack can also impact your future growth and scalability. For this reason, it’s essential you choose the right technologies for each layer from the very start.
How to build an effective tech stack Tech stacks are made up of different layers, each responsible for different elements of your app. Let’s unpack what each stack does, and we’ll give you our recommendations for each stage.
1. Front-end technologies These front-end tools and frameworks deal with the way your app looks and how your users experience it. They include technologies like Nextjs, React, HTMX and Gatsby.
2. Back-end technologies Back-end technologies are where the magic happens. This layer is packed with coding that deals with server-side operations and logic. Your users can’t see it, but without it, the app can’t carry out their commands. Popular back-end programming languages include Python, Django, Nextjs and Celery.
3. Data modelling Just as it says on the tin, this is the layer of your stack used to store and retrieve data. We recommend Pandas and Scikit-learn, for the data element of your tech stack. Pandas is renowned for providing highly optimised performance, particularly when back-end code is written in Python. Scikit-learn is the gold standard for machine learning in a Python-based environment.
4. Infrastructure This layer also does a lot of the heavy lifting and incorporates hosting, deployment and scaling. Containerization technologies like Docker can make testing and deploying your app faster and more efficient, while Kubernetes makes it easier to operate containerized apps at scale. To make sure you’ve got strong security, great scalability and agility, we recommend cloud-based infrastructure solutions like AWS https://aws.amazon.com/, Microsoft Azure https://azure.microsoft.com/ or Google Cloud https://cloud.google.com/.
Scalability Rebuilding or switching stacks after launch is expensive, time-consuming and can create security risks. By taking growth into account from the very start, we can ensure your solution is effective now and in the future.
Low development costs The right tech stack will help you drastically reduce app development costs. And, the right partner (like Wildfish), will get you a team of experts dedicated to realising your vision. Not only will this reduce your costs, but as an added bonus, our use of popular, Open-Source software will make it easy for your team to take over the development once you have a proven concept in place.
High load architecture If you’re expecting a large number of users or heavy traffic, a high load capability must be a priority. High load architecture will allow your app to scale and handle increasing user demands. It will remain responsive with optimal performance, and bring long-term cost efficiencies.
Quick delivery to an MVP
In the early days, your focus will almost certainly be on getting a Minimum Viable Product (MVP) in place, which can attract early customers and validate your product idea. Rapid and economical MVP creation gives you a workable asset to test without wasting valuable time and money.
A robust exit strategy It can be hard to think about your exit strategy when you are in the early stages, but a stable tech stack can give any future buyer (or indeed, any future investors) confidence and support any due-diligence processes.
No two startups are the same and you need a stack that suits your budget, your current needs, and your vision for the future. That’s where the Wildfish team comes in. We’ll work with you to find out where you want to go and help you get there with a well-defined plan and expert execution.
Need help creating the best tech stack for your startup? Book a call or contact us at hello@wildfish.com today.
