About the customer
Time is precious when running a small business. Jobmate’s vision is to help their clients become more profitable and efficient by automating the administrative and operational tasks every small business has. The UK startup launched its flagship product in January 2021, enabling clients to easily manage their diary, tasks, resources, quotes, expenses, and all the other requirements of running a business.
Customer Challenge
Launching a new SaaS platform like Jobmate meant navigating a sea of unknowns. Predicting daily connection rates, maximum traffic spikes, or data characteristics was impossible without historical data. Overprovisioning wasn’t an option, and finding a scalable yet cost-effective solution was paramount.
Proposed Solution
56Bit designed a serverless architecture on AWS to conquer Jobmate’s challenges. This innovative approach leveraged key services to:
- Deliver content globally: CloudFront’s edge locations ensured fast and reliable content delivery of static assets from S3 buckets, regardless of user location.
- Manage data: Amazon DocumentDB offered a familiar and flexible environment for data operations, while EC2 (Bastion Host) provided secure access for administrative tasks.
- Execute application logic: AWS Lambda handled all application logic, scaling automatically to accommodate traffic spikes without the need for server management.
- Secure and authenticate: Control Tower centralized governance and compliance management, simplifying security practices and ensuring adherence to regulations. ACM managed and renewed TLS/SSL certificates for secure communication.
- Communicate and alert: SES facilitated email campaigns for notifications and marketing efforts, while SNS enabled real-time alerts and collaboration for users and teams.
- Empower users: Umbraco CMS gave non-technical users control over website content, fostering user participation.
- Automate deployments: CloudFormation automated infrastructure and code deployment, minimizing errors and ensuring consistency.
AWS Services Used
- CloudFront: Delivered static content from S3 buckets with geographically distributed edge locations, ensuring fast and reliable global content delivery for users worldwide.
- API Gateway: Acted as the front door for all API requests, routing them to the appropriate Lambda function based on the URL, enabling efficient and dynamic application logic execution.
- Lambda: Handled all application logic, including user authentication, data processing, and business logic execution. Lambda’s serverless execution eliminated server management overhead and enabled rapid scaling to accommodate traffic spikes.
- Amazon DocumentDB: Provided a familiar and flexible NoSQL database environment for storing and retrieving application data. Its flexible data model allowed Jobmate to adapt to evolving business needs without schema changes.
- EC2 (Bastion Host): Offered secure access to DocumentDB for administrative tasks, ensuring sensitive data protection while allowing authorized personnel to manage the database.
- Control Tower: Centralized governance and compliance management across all AWS accounts used by Jobmate, simplifying security practices and ensuring adherence to regulations. AWS Control Tower is used for a seamless rollout of services like Config and CloudTrail across all accounts.
- ACM: Managed and automatically renewed TLS/SSL certificates for secure communication between Jobmate’s applications and users, protecting data and user interactions.
- SES: Facilitated bulk email campaigns for notifications and marketing initiatives, allowing Jobmate to communicate effectively with its user base at scale.
- SNS: Enabled real-time alerts and notifications for users and teams, ensuring proactive response to critical events and fostering collaboration within the organization.
- CloudWatch Logs: Provided centralized logging for troubleshooting and performance monitoring, allowing Jobmate to optimize application performance and resource utilization.
- CloudFormation: Automated the entire infrastructure and code deployment process, minimizing human error and ensuring consistency and repeatability. This streamlined deployments and ensured infrastructure changes were applied reliably.
- CodePipeline: This is used for the CI/CD process and is used to automate changes to infrastructure and application code.
Third Party Solutions
- Umbraco CMS: Empowered non-technical users within Jobmate to manage website content without requiring coding knowledge. This fostered user participation and enabled Jobmate to maintain a dynamic and engaging platform.
- Site24x7 monitoring tool: This is also used as a monitoring, logging, and tracing solution.
Outcomes
Jobmate’s serverless transformation yielded remarkable results:
User Growth: Jobmate experienced exponential user acquisition, surpassing targets and establishing itself as a household name and industry leader. A vibrant and engaged community formed, solidifying Jobmate’s position.
Performance Revolution: Jobmate set new industry benchmarks for speed, responsiveness, and efficiency. Seamless functionality and intuitive interfaces empowered users across platforms. Page load times, system response rates, and overall platform stability were continuously optimized.
Deep User Engagement: A welcoming and inclusive environment fostered a strong sense of belonging and community. User-generated content and active participation fueled platform growth. User session duration, action frequency, and content creation metrics all indicated deep engagement and loyalty.
Unwavering Reliability and Security: Exceptional uptime and robust security measures ensured user trust and uninterrupted service. Jobmate earned a reputation for reliability and resilience. Control Tower’s centralized governance and compliance management, combined with CloudTrail logging and multi-AZ redundancy, further strengthened security posture.
Cost Optimization: By leveraging cost-effective solutions and optimizing resource utilization, Jobmate minimized operational costs and maintained competitive pricing.
Metrics for Success
User Growth:
- Number of new users acquired per week/month: This metric tracks the rate at which Jobmate is attracting new users, indicating the platform’s overall appeal and growth trajectory.
- User demographics (location, age, occupation, etc.): Understanding the user base’s characteristics helps Jobmate tailor its features and marketing strategies to specific segments.
- Activation/churn rates: The percentage of new users who activate their accounts and remain active over time provides insight into user engagement and retention.
- Net Promoter Score (NPS): This metric measures user loyalty and satisfaction by asking users how likely they are to recommend Jobmate to others.
- Social media mentions and brand awareness: Tracking mentions of Jobmate on social media platforms gauges its reach and brand recognition within its target audience.
Performance Revolution:
- Page load times: Measures the time it takes for a web page to fully load, impacting user experience and SEO.
- System response times: Tracks the time it takes for the platform to respond to user actions, influencing user satisfaction and productivity.
- Error rates: The percentage of user actions that encounter errors indicates the platform’s stability and reliability.
- User satisfaction with performance: Surveys or feedback mechanisms help assess user perception of the platform’s speed and responsiveness.
- Completion rates for key tasks: Measuring the percentage of users who successfully complete critical tasks within the platform identifies potential areas for improvement.
Deep User Engagement:
- Number of user-generated content (UGC) pieces: This metric measures the level of user activity and participation in content creation, fostering a sense of community.
- User engagement rate (session duration, actions per user): Tracks how long users stay active on the platform and how frequently they interact with its features.
- Community growth rate: Measures the rate at which the Jobmate community expands, indicating its value and appeal to users.
- User satisfaction with community features: Surveys or feedback mechanisms assess user perception of the community’s features and sense of belonging.
Unwavering Reliability and Security:
- Uptime percentage: Measures the platform’s availability and accessibility, influencing user trust and brand reputation.
- Security incident rate: Tracks the frequency of security breaches or vulnerabilities, highlighting the platform’s security posture.
- Mean time to resolution (MTTR): Measures the average time it takes to resolve security incidents, demonstrating the platform’s responsiveness and resilience.
- User confidence in platform security: Surveys or feedback mechanisms assess user perception of the platform’s security measures and their trust in data protection.
Cost Optimization:
- Monthly operating costs: Tracks the platform’s total monthly expenses, including server costs, storage fees, and other operational expenses.
- Cost per user: Measures the average cost of acquiring and maintaining each user, helping Jobmate optimize its pricing and resource allocation.
- Resource utilization rate: Tracks how efficiently Jobmate utilizes its allocated resources, identifying opportunities for cost savings.
- Cost savings compared to alternative solutions: Comparing Jobmate’s costs to similar platforms in the market highlights its cost-effectiveness.
Additional Metrics:
- Conversion rate: Measures the percentage of website visitors who convert into paying users, indicating the effectiveness of marketing and sales efforts.
- Customer lifetime value (CLTV): Estimates the average revenue a customer generates over their lifetime, informing marketing and retention strategies.
- Return on investment (ROI): Measures the financial return on Jobmate’s investment in its technology and infrastructure.
- User retention rate: Tracks the percentage of users who remain active over time, indicating platform loyalty and stickiness.
Conclusion
Jobmate’s story is a testament to the power of adopting a serverless approach with AWS. By embracing innovation and flexibility, Jobmate transformed from an unknown entity into an industry leader, proving that even with limited data, the right solutions can unlock significant growth and success.
