Why Decision Tools Matter More Than Code: A Behind-the-Scenes Look at Going Mobile

One of the most common traps in product development is thinking the next step is to just “build the thing.”

But what if you’re not even building the right thing?

That’s the question I had to face with CAC Tracker — a tool we developed to help track customer acquisition costs across digital campaigns. We had a working desktop version. Users were asking for mobile access. And the options weren’t obvious:

• Do we leave it desktop-only?

• Build a full mobile app?

• Make the site responsive?

• Or create a Progressive Web App (PWA)?

Every option had trade-offs — cost, development time, deployment complexity, and maintenance burden.

So we paused, and did what most businesses should do before writing a single line of new code: we created a simple decision matrix.

We broke down each option by:

• Technical lift

• Deployment path

• Long-term maintenance

• User experience

• Business goals

Then we made the call: go with a responsive website that can be upgraded to a PWA.

The result?

• A fast, accessible version for users on any device

• No app store approval headaches

• A better experience without ballooning our dev budget

The lesson: decision-making frameworks + expert guidance are your best defense against wasting time and money in product development.

It’s not just about building faster. It’s about building smarter.

If you want to see what the document looks like drop a comment below and I'll send you an email with it.