What made you decide to build a brand new app for Socar, rather than continue with the existing one? What limitations were you facing?

Our original app had some core functionality - users could get discounts, buy fuel, check their transaction history, and read our latest news. But it wasn’t delivering the kind of experience we wanted. The UI felt outdated, and overall usability was poor. On top of that, the app’s architecture made it difficult to maintain and nearly impossible to scale or add new features.

Another big issue was the lack of analytics - we had no visibility into user behaviour, so it was hard to know what was working and what wasn’t.

Eventually, we realized that rebuilding from scratch would take less time and fewer resources than trying to patch up what we had. We needed a solution that matched where we are now as a company - and where we’re heading.

How does the new app address these challenges for both customers and your internal team?

Before we started development, we ran in-depth user research to better understand what our customers wanted. Based on that, we built a loyalty program tailored to their behaviour. Now, users who fuel up and stay loyal earn more discounts and points that they can redeem at any Socar station.

We also extended the loyalty program to our Waymart convenience stores, which wasn’t possible with the old app. That’s been a great way to drive engagement across all our customer touchpoints.

Another huge upgrade is the digital Energy Card. Instead of carrying a physical card, users just scan a QR code at the pump. After fueling, they can instantly see how many points they earned, how much they saved, and how much fuel was dispensed - all in real time.

From the marketing team’s side, the app is a game-changer. We can now run personalized campaigns, send promo codes, reward new users, and even offer birthday perks. And with analytics finally in place, we can track user behavior and fine-tune our campaigns.

We also added a feedback feature - users can rate their fueling experience and get points for doing so. That helps us continually improve and deliver better experiences.

How did the onboarding process go for both users and your internal teams?

We launched our ad campaigns just recently, and we’ve already hit 15,000 downloads. That’s a huge number for such a short time. We’re hoping to hit 100,000 soon.

Internally, we started onboarding the marketing team while the app was still being built. We regularly tested new features together after each sprint. Once the app went live, they immediately began managing user data through the admin panel.

Of course, some fine-tuning was needed after launch, and Redberry remained super involved. We’re still actively working together to optimize performance and make improvements based on real-world feedback.

We’ve also received a lot of positive feedback from our partner companies. They appreciated the sleek design, user-friendly interface, and full set of features.

What were you looking for in a development partner, and what led you to choose Redberry?

We relied heavily on referrals and word-of-mouth. We needed a partner with a strong portfolio and serious experience in building high-quality digital products.

Price wasn’t our main concern - quality was. We were looking for a partner we could trust to deliver a well-built, reliable product. Redberry checked all those boxes.

What was your experience like working with Redberry?

It was a very smooth collaboration. Everything was well-organized, and communication was easy. We always knew what was happening, what was next, and what was expected from both sides.

Even when we had to coordinate with a separate design team, which naturally brought some added complexity, Redberry handled it all really well. Our official syncs were once a week, but if we needed to, we’d meet two or three times- whatever it took to keep the process moving.

Everything was delivered on time, and we always felt in the loop. I can honestly say the entire experience was extremely productive and valuable.

Before development began, we created a product backlog and a roadmap. From your perspective, did that help simplify the process?

Definitely. Even before we signed the contract, the backlog was clearly defined. That gave us a really strong starting point.

In agile development, things always change. But having that roadmap in place gave us direction and helped manage expectations as we iterated. It kept everyone aligned and ensured we always had a clear view of the end goal, even when we made adjustments along the way.

Were there any particularly difficult challenges during the project? How did you manage them?

One major challenge was integrating the “Fuel Up with QR” feature. It relies on a third-party service to scan the code and determine available discounts. That service is managed by a company based abroad, so coordinating with them, especially across different time zones, wasn’t always easy.

There were occasional delays, but Redberry handled it really smartly. When things were stuck, they shifted focus to other features in the backlog and came back to QR once everything was unblocked. That kind of flexibility made a big difference in keeping the project on track.

How did your expectations compare to the final outcome?

We had high expectations going in, and Redberry fully met them. Everything was delivered on time, the quality was top-notch, and every feature worked as it was supposed to.

What really stood out was the responsiveness and care from the team.

Every person we worked with was detail-oriented, reliable, and fully invested in the success of the project. In that sense, Redberry even exceeded our expectations.

What’s next for the Socar app?

We’re already planning new features for both users and our internal marketing team. We want to make the app even more valuable and intuitive.

Once we finalize the next roadmap, Redberry will definitely be our go-to partner for bringing it to life. This is just the beginning.