ABOUT PROJECT
Imagine a place where your furry friend gets the VIP treatment, even when you’re miles away. Welcome to Doggywiff, the ultimate platform that transforms dog care into an art form. Born from a personal journey of two passionate French dog lovers, Doggywiff was created after a disheartening experience. Returning from a trip, they found their beloved pets looking forlorn and forgotten after a stay in a traditional kennel. Determined to change the narrative, they envisioned a space where every dog could receive not just care but genuine, loving attention. And so, Doggywiff was born.
With Doggywiff, arranging care for your dog becomes as simple as a few clicks. Our hand-picked network of dog sitters is thoroughly background-checked and dedicated to providing personalized care, exercise, and plenty of fresh air. Each sitter is not just a professional – they’re a dog lover, ready to treat your pet like family.
Key Challenges
The development of Doggywiff presented several challenges that pushed our team at Roobykon to innovate and refine the platform. We focused on improving the user experience with a responsive frontend design, ensuring a seamless and visually appealing interface across all devices. On the technical side, integrating Stripe Connect for secure transactions and implementing Sharetribe’s availability calendar for hourly bookings were key milestones that required meticulous attention to detail. These features significantly enhanced the platform’s functionality, making booking and payment processes smoother for users.
Expanding Doggywiff to accommodate a global audience added another layer of complexity. Supporting both English and French ensured accessibility for a wider user base, while the addition of diverse services like dog walking, boarding, sitting, and daycare broadened the platform’s appeal.
TECHNOLOGY STACK
Solution Highlights
Doggywiff’s backend is built on the robust Sharetribe open source engine, utilizing Ruby on Rails to deliver a solid and scalable foundation. By choosing MySQL as the relational database storage engine, we maximize efficiency while minimizing resource use. We use Sidekiq to handle long-running asynchronous tasks, ensuring smooth performance, and complement it with Node.js for asset management and Sphinx for powerful full-text search capabilities. DelayedJobs are also employed to execute background tasks, keeping the system responsive and reliable.
On the frontend, we leverage a stack of jQuery, jQuery UI, and plugins, with SLIM, SASS, and CoffeeScript for streamlined and efficient layouts and interactions. ReactJS adds a modern touch, ensuring a dynamic and intuitive user experience. Dockerized installation further simplifies deployment and scaling. Additionally, we integrated Stripe Connect to handle secure payments, enhancing the platform’s functionality and making financial transactions seamless for both dog owners and sitters.
The process
01
Migration to Open Source: The first step was migrating Doggywiff from the hosted version of Sharetribe to Sharetribe’s open source product. This shift allowed us to unlock richer functionality and greater customization options, providing the flexibility needed to meet the client’s specific needs.
02
Design and visual approval: With a detailed technical specification provided by the client, we moved quickly into the design phase. After creating and refining the visual elements, the design was approved, setting the foundation for the development process.
03
Frontend development and customizations: We then focused on frontend development, ensuring a smooth, user-friendly experience. Customizations included integrating the availability calendar for hourly bookings, setting up Stripe Connect for secure payments, and implementing a multi-language feature to cater to a global audience.
Main Features
Availability calendar with hourly booking
One of the standout features implemented on the Doggywiff platform is the integration of an availability calendar with hourly booking. This allows dog sitters to manage their schedules efficiently and ensures that dog owners can book services based on precise time slots. The seamless connection between the calendar and booking system streamlines the process, making it simple for users to book services at their convenience.
Multi-language support
With Doggywiff’s global reach in mind, Roobykon implemented a multi-language feature, making the platform accessible to a wider audience. Initially supporting both English and French, this feature ensures that dog owners and sitters from different regions can easily navigate the platform and enjoy a seamless user experience in their preferred language. This expansion enhances Doggywiff’s international appeal and usability.
EU-friendly payment gateway integration
We integrated Stripe Connect, a secure and EU-compliant payment gateway, to ensure smooth and transparent financial transactions between dog owners and sitters. This solution enables hassle-free payments while meeting European regulatory standards, providing peace of mind for both parties.
Adjustable provider availability feature
To streamline the booking process, we implemented a flexible availability calendar for sitters. This built-in feature allows service providers to easily update their schedules while ensuring dog owners can check real-time availability, making booking services more efficient and transparent.
RESULTS
The collaboration between Roobykon and Doggywiff has led to significant advancements, enhancing both the user experience and the platform’s technical capabilities. Our work on redesigning the main pages and implementing fresh styling has given Doggywiff a modern, user-friendly interface. The responsive frontend development ensures the platform adapts seamlessly to various devices, providing a balanced and intuitive user experience.
On the technical side, integrating Stripe Connect has streamlined payment processing, while the addition of Sharetribe’s availability calendar for hourly bookings has made scheduling more efficient for both dog owners and sitters. With the platform now available in both English and French, Doggywiff is well-positioned to cater to a global audience. Furthermore, the platform’s expanded range of services, including dog walking, boarding, sitting, and daycare, has allowed it to meet the diverse needs of pet owners, solidifying its place as a comprehensive solution for dog care.
Lessons from Doggywiff
During the development of the Doggywiff marketplace, our team at Roobykon encountered a number of challenges that ultimately became invaluable lessons. The first major hurdle was the migration from Sharetribe’s hosted version to the open-source platform. This transition pushed us to expand our knowledge of Sharetribe’s capabilities, and it taught us the importance of planning for scalability right from the start. It was a complex task, but we quickly learned how crucial it is to choose the right platform that can support long-term growth and provide the flexibility needed for customization.
Another significant lesson came during the integration of Stripe Connect for payment processing. At first, we faced some difficulties in ensuring seamless and secure transactions across different regions. However, this experience highlighted the importance of paying attention to user trust and security (key factors in building a successful marketplace). Similarly, implementing the availability calendar and multi-language support taught us the importance of clear, intuitive design that adapts to different user needs. Looking back, every obstacle taught us a valuable lesson that has made us better equipped for future projects.
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