Making a site yourself 101: From App Idea to AI-Powered Weekend Planner

Hey everyone, today I want to share a little story about how what started as an idea for an app turned into something completely different – and a whole lot cooler – than I first imagined. It all began a couple of years ago during COVID. As you can probably remember, the days were long, there weren’t many people to hang out with, and the overall vibe was pretty isolated (pun intended). But in that isolation, creativity started to brew. I found myself thinking, “Wouldn’t it be great to have an app that helps people connect and find things to do together?”

And so, the idea for Meent was born.

It felt like a daunting task, especially for someone like me who had never touched design work before. But if there’s one thing I’ve always been drawn to, it’s creating. I’ve spent years painting my jeans, customizing T-shirts, even ripping them up to give them new life. There’s something satisfying about turning a blank canvas – or in this case, a blank screen – into something that reflects a vision. So, naturally, I dove headfirst into design.

At first, it was exhilarating. I had all these ideas floating around, and seeing them take shape on my screen felt like magic. But as I quickly learned, while the process of designing can be fun, creating good design is a whole different challenge. Things didn’t always look right, and getting the user experience just right required more thought and effort than I had expected. Still, I stuck with it, determined to bring the idea to life, even though the road ahead wasn’t smooth.

When I finally felt ready to move on to coding, that’s when the real setbacks began. I was counting on developers to help me bring the designs to life, but not one, but two developers bailed on me mid-project. It was frustrating, to say the least. Just when I thought things were starting to fall into place, I found myself back at square one.

At that point, I was feeling pretty stuck, until I stumbled across The Lean Startup book, which mentioned an alternative way of thinking: build a website that functions like an app. It was one of those ideas that seemed so simple I couldn’t believe I hadn’t thought of it sooner. Then, around the same time, AI technology like ChatGPT was becoming insanely powerful, even able to provide me with ideas and explaing mes stuff I thought, "Why not leverage AI to build this thing, or at least help me learn code or understand some of it?"

So that's how it started - using chat gpt I have learned and understood some basics of code and functionel and made the site work ( some functions only, in reality most of the site was pre built not by GPT ). I m talking about some of those functions that interact with phone APIs, which is pretty cool! Nevertheless, what started as an ambitious app project ended up as a website that still delivers on my original vision of helping people connect through unique activities.

Which brings me to the latest exciting development: the AI Weekend Planner!

Imagine having a personal guide that knows all of London’s hidden gems, quirky spots, and must-see events – except instead of being a person, it’s a user-friendly tool that makes finding things to do a breeze. Whether you’re looking for a cozy hideaway to escape the rain (seriously, where’s the sun, London?!) or searching for the perfect date night idea, our AI Weekend Planner has you covered. The goal was to create a seamless experience, where planning your weekend takes just a few clicks. No stress, no hassle. It’s almost like having a UX-friendly friend guiding you through the city’s best experiences.

But here’s the thing: we need your help to make sure this tool is as useful as possible. We’ve poured our hearts into it, and now we want to know what you think. Take it for a test drive! Explore the suggestions it offers, let it guide you through some new ideas, and then share your feedback. Was it helpful? Did it spark inspiration to try something new? Or maybe it missed the mark in some areas? We’d love to hear from you either way. Your thoughts will help us refine the tool to make it even better.

(While you’re at it, let us know how it stacks up against some of the other pages on our site, like “Free Things to Do in London,” “Fun Things to Do in London,” or even “Arcades in London.”)

So, there you have it! What started as a solo venture into app development during a global pandemic has evolved into a functional website and now an AI-powered planner. Am I happy with how things turned out? Absolutely. It’s not the app I originally envisioned, but it’s working, and the feedback so far has been really positive. We’re getting some organic traffic, users are interacting with the content, and most importantly, the site works almost like an app.

That being said, I still plan to move forward with the app idea in the future. But for now, this website and the AI tool are teaching me so much and opening up new possibilities I hadn’t considered before ( plus also im actively considering how financing the app should work, after all it is not a small fit ). I guess that’s the lesson: sometimes, what feels like a setback can actually lead to something even better.

So please, help us test it out! Jump into the AI Weekend Planner, explore some new spots, and let us know how it goes ( on our https://www.meent.co.uk/feedback page ). We’re excited to hear your thoughts, and even more excited to see what you discover!

Cheers,

Me