BassForecast
BassForecast is the #1 fishing forecast app in the world. The app’s revolutionary ranking system predicts the best days and times to go fishing. It forecasts for each day, across 10 consecutive ones for all popular North American locations.
The app relies on AccuWeather to calculate variables like wind direction, temperature, and pressure. Its proprietary algorithm then delivers a BassForecast (BFR) rating ranging from 1 (callous conditions) to 10 (excellent conditions) to predict the best days and times to go fishing.
Project introduction
Anglers were always on the lookout for the most current weather information. BassForecast tried to solve this with AccuWeather and Weather Bank APIs. But the UX just wasn’t slick enough. Forecasting took longer than anglers could afford. The edge anglers got from making snap judgments disappeared. BassForecast needed an overhaul. This didn’t just demand great skills but also great processes.
Challenge
BassForecast relied too much on device hardware. This slowed it down to the point where it took many minutes to get an accurate rating. And that was just on the iOS app. The Android version was still on the cutting board. For our team, this meant reimagined iOS and Android apps, but from entirely different stages of development. Game. On.
Approach
One word, three letters, countless possibilities: AWS.
Cloud put BassForecast on steroids. The app no longer needed local resources to issue ratings. It shifted all calculations to an AWS server and freed up huge amounts of RAM on the phone. In no time, the app’s response rates shot up and snappy BFRs became its calling card. Another AWS perk was global scalability.
We also added handy new features. One of them was a Calendar view for the forecasts. Anglers could now compare days and times in one glance. A web app emerged from the drawing board as well. It recommended quality bait from partner-shops and opened a new revenue pathway for BassForecast.
Outcome
BassForecast garnered 8,645 reviews and 4.5 rating on the App Store and 4,150 reviews and a 4.5 rating on the Play Store in a year.
It became the go-to tool for most professional bass anglers in the USA, Canada, and Mexico. In fact, a catch rate study revealed that the number of bass caught per hour was 68% more than average. And when the time span narrowed to high-activity days, that number shot up to 305%!
Features like Catch Logs, which let you document your outing with images, made your fishing experience more personal. This encouraged repeat use and higher engagement.
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