Podium

We build beautiful bespoke Websites, Mobile Apps, Online Ordering Systems & Social Media Management
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Podium Apps Ltd is an exciting new and innovative global company (started in Belfast) that specialises in the development and management of business apps. Founded in early 2015 by Ross Porter & Kieran Donnelly, who between them hold over 20 years experience in the Telecommunications Industry, alongside extensive business and web/graphic design knowledge. It was during this time that they discovere

d a market need for a new medium of business to client interaction, which has lead to the development of Podium Apps Ltd. Podium Apps already boosts a wide range of clients from various business sectors, such as Education, Hospitality and Retail to name but a few. All of our apps are expertly designed, developed and created using incredible technologies trusted by companies the world over. All of our apps are bespoke, created with in-depth client consultation and using our extensive market knowledge to ensure maximum client satisfaction. Part of the success of Podium Apps has come from its ability to sign agreements with Apple, Android & Microsoft, allowing our customers to benefit from all areas of the app world. Podium Apps Ltd work in conjunction with one of the fastest growing business app development companies within UK | Ireland, USA & New Zealand, in terms of revenue, customer acquisition and customer retention allowing us to keep at the cutting edge of our field. "Your customers are mobile, Your business should be mobile too"

17/06/2026

Support that carries through after the first call.

A lovely bit of feedback from Kelly Croskery, Operations Manager at Platinum Support and Care, after working with Podium on their new website.

Platinum Support and Care are a domiciliary care company based in Ballycastle, covering the North Coast and surrounding areas. Like a lot of busy businesses, Kelly came into the process with plenty to think about. What information would be needed, what photos or videos to gather, how the process would work, and how to fit it all around the day-to-day running of the company.

That’s where the support matters.

From the first Teams call with Ross, through to the WhatsApp group, updates with Stefano, changes, ideas and final launch, the aim was to make the whole thing feel clear, manageable and properly looked after.

And since going live, the website is already doing what it was built to do. Recruitment enquiries have been coming in through the online application setup, care enquiries are easier to manage, and the site gives people a simple, easy-to-navigate way to find what they need.

For us, that is what a good website should be. Not just something that looks polished, but something that helps the business work better once it is live.

You can see the finished site here: www.platinumscs.co.uk

A big thank you to Kelly and the team at Platinum Support and Care for trusting Podium with the project, and for taking the time to share such kind feedback.

𝗣𝗼𝗱𝗶𝘂𝗺
📲 07751 938205
📆 tidycal.com/rossporter
📧 [email protected]
🌐 www.podium.dev

15/06/2026

People book the day out before they ever turn up 🌄

This time of year is a big one for tourism, activities and experience-led businesses.

Tours, workshops, outdoor activities, visitor attractions, food experiences, family days out, the lot. People are looking, comparing, checking times, prices, availability and whether it all feels easy enough to book.

And most of that is happening on their phone.

So if your website is slow, awkward, out of date, hard to use on mobile, or still asking people to message for every bit of information, you’re probably making the decision harder than it needs to be.

A good website should make the next step obvious. What you offer, who it’s for, when it’s available, how to book, how to pay, where to go, and what happens after they’ve made the enquiry or purchase.

That could mean online booking, gift cards, enquiry forms, email follow-ups, clearer service pages, better mobile design, or simply a website that gives people enough confidence to choose you without having to dig for the basics.

At Podium, we build websites and digital systems that help businesses turn interest into action.

Because when someone is already looking for something to do, your online setup should not be the thing that slows them down.

𝗣𝗼𝗱𝗶𝘂𝗺
📲 07751 938205
📆 tidycal.com/rossporter
📧 [email protected]
🌐 www.podium.dev

12/06/2026

He saw the gap because he lived the problem.

That’s the part I like about the GoPro story.

Nick Woodman wanted a better way to film himself surfing. Not some overcooked boardroom idea. Not a “let’s disrupt the market” speech. Just someone close enough to the problem to notice that the existing options were not good enough.

And that is where a lot of good ideas start.

You are using something and it frustrates you. You are doing the job and can see the gap. You are speaking to customers and hearing the same issue come up again and again. You are close enough to the detail that the problem is obvious, even if the answer still needs worked out.

Of course, the idea is only the start. GoPro still had to be built, tested, improved and turned into something people actually wanted to use. But the spark was not complicated. It came from someone properly understanding the problem because he was living it.

There’s a decent reminder in that for anyone building a business. The idea worth paying attention to is often the one that keeps showing up in the day-to-day. The clunky process, the awkward workaround, the thing people keep asking for, or the gap you notice because you are actually close to the work.

It might not look massive at the start, but if you understand the problem better than most, that is a good place to build from.

𝗣𝗼𝗱𝗶𝘂𝗺
📲 07751 938205
📆 tidycal.com/rossporter
📧 [email protected]
🌐 www.podium.dev

10/06/2026

About those cheap website offers…

This has popped up on our radar a fair bit lately: cheap, quick-turnaround websites that sound great on the surface, but often amount to little more than a one-page template taking up space online.

And look, cheap only works if the thing actually does what your business needs it to do.

A website should be built with some thought behind it. How people find you. How quickly the site loads. How it works on mobile. Where the enquiries go. What happens after someone fills in a form. How the pages are structured. Whether it is secure, easy to update, connected properly, and not going to fall over the first time something needs changed.

That is where a lot of these quick template jobs start to show themselves. They might look finished, but there is often very little underneath. No real structure, no traffic plan, no proper setup, no understanding of what happens when something breaks, and in some cases, half the work being fired through AI with no one experienced enough to know what is good, what is wrong, or what is going to cause bother later.

And that is the part that concerns us.

Because when the cheap site stops working, slows down, gets hacked, fails to bring in enquiries, or needs something more than a text swap, the business owner is usually the one left trying to sort it.

At Podium, we have over 12 years of experience building websites and digital systems properly. We build from the base up, with the right foundations behind the design. Hosting, performance, plugins, forms, integrations, security, SEO structure, mobile experience, e-commerce, booking flows, automations and the ongoing support that keeps everything working after launch.

We also keep a close eye on new tools, updates and better ways of doing things, but there is a big difference between using technology well and letting it do the thinking for you.

This is not about scolding anyone for having a budget. Every business has one. It is about knowing what you are actually paying for, and making sure the website you get is built by people who understand what happens after it goes live.

With Podium, you are not just getting something that looks nice for the first five minutes. You are getting the experience, setup and support behind it too.

𝗣𝗼𝗱𝗶𝘂𝗺
📲 07751 938205
📆 tidycal.com/rossporter
📧 [email protected]
🌐 www.podium.dev

08/06/2026

Gift cards sorted before the coffee goes cold 🎁☕️

If your business should be selling gift cards but the thought of setting it all up feels like a headache, this is exactly why we built Podium Cards.

No big software install.
No new POS system.
No tech team needed.
No monthly fee.

Most businesses can be live in around 15 minutes. Upload your logo, set your gift card amounts, connect your payment method, and you’ve got a branded digital gift card store ready to share.

Customers can buy online, send instantly, and receive their card by email, Apple Wallet or Google Pay. Your team can redeem from any phone, tablet or laptop, with partial redemption and multi-use supported.

You also keep the customer data, which means gift cards become more than a one-off sale. They help you build your mailing list, market better, bring people back, and see what’s being sold and redeemed.

Most gift card platforms feel like they were built for the big chains, then awkwardly handed down to everyone else. Podium Cards is built for independents, giving you the tools you actually need without the monthly fees, heavy setup or extra hassle.

Pricing is simple too.

0% commission
No monthly fee
3.9% per transaction
Compared with an industry average of 7.2%

So you can start selling digital gift cards properly without handing over more than you need to.

Set up free or book a demo.

𝗣𝗼𝗱𝗶𝘂𝗺
📲 07751 938205
📆 tidycal.com/rossporter
📧 [email protected]
🌐 www.podium.dev

05/06/2026

Not every week feels like progress.

Some weeks you’re chasing things up, fixing bits that should already be fixed, making decisions you’d rather not make, or just trying to keep the wheels turning without letting the whole thing spill over.

And honestly, that’s part of business. The ones that last are not only good when everything feels tidy. They can still make a decent decision on a messy day, answer the email, look after the client, sort the problem in front of them, and come back tomorrow ready to go again.

It’s not always exciting, but it all counts. You build the better weeks by not letting the rough ones knock you completely off course.

Keep the standards up, sort what needs sorted, and don’t let one rough week become the reason you stop moving.

𝗣𝗼𝗱𝗶𝘂𝗺
📲 07751 938205
📆 tidycal.com/rossporter
📧 [email protected]
🌐 www.podium.dev

03/06/2026

Don’t waste the click.

Getting people onto your website is the hard part.

Once they’re there, the site should be pulling its weight.

Can they book?
Order?
Join your mailing list?
Send an enquiry without faffing about?

Or are they just having a wee look and disappearing?

At Podium, we build websites that do more than sit there looking pretty. Booking systems, ordering platforms, CRM links, mailing list sign-ups, loyalty, gift cards, and the bits that actually help turn interest into business.

Because once someone lands on your site, you want a next step.

Not a dead end.

𝗣𝗼𝗱𝗶𝘂𝗺
📲 07751 938205
📆 tidycal.com/rossporter
📧 [email protected]
🌐 www.podium.dev

01/06/2026

The weather’s turning. Are the enquiries?

First of June, and this is where people start looking at all the jobs they’ve been putting off while the weather was doing its usual grey nonsense.

Garden work. Patios. Driveways. Extensions. Roof repairs. Kitchens. Bathrooms. The stuff people have been “meaning to sort” since about February but needed one half-decent stretch of weather to remember again.

For trades and home improvement businesses, this is when the searches start picking up.

And when people go looking, they’re not waiting about. They’ll check the website, look for photos of previous work, scan the reviews, see if you cover their area, and decide pretty quickly whether you look like the right person to call.

You can be brilliant on the tools and still lose work if the online side is making life harder than it needs to be.

A clear website. Strong project photos. Simple enquiry forms. Local SEO. Services laid out properly. A setup that helps people find you, trust you, and get in touch without needing to dig around.

That’s the bit we build.

Websites from £60 a month, with payment plans available, so getting the digital side sorted doesn’t need to become another job you keep putting off.

If you’re a trade business heading into the busier months and your website still isn’t pulling its weight, speak to us.

𝗣𝗼𝗱𝗶𝘂𝗺
📲 07751 938205
📆 tidycal.com/rossporter
📧 [email protected]
🌐 www.podium.dev

29/05/2026

June’s next week. Same plan, or same excuses?

Next week we enter June, which means we’re almost halfway through 2026.

This is usually the point where people start having that quiet little chat with themselves about the things they said they were going to sort this year. The website, the booking system, the online shop, the proper push, the thing they know would help, but somehow keeps getting pushed into “when things calm down”.

Then summer runs on, autumn lands, and before long you’re giving yourself the same “there’s always next year” speech with a different calendar in front of you.

I’m not saying you need to launch the whole thing by Friday. But if the same idea, problem or half-finished plan has been sitting there since January, at some stage you have to stop letting it drift.

Pick the next sensible move and take it. Tighten the website, make enquiries easier, sort the ordering or booking flow, or finally put the business online in a way that backs up the work you’re trying to win.

The second half of the year is coming regardless.

You can carry the same excuse into it, or give yourself something better to build from.

𝗣𝗼𝗱𝗶𝘂𝗺
📲 07751 938205
📆 tidycal.com/rossporter
📧 [email protected]
🌐 www.podium.dev

27/05/2026

Built an agency and thinking about what comes next?

If you run a web design, development or digital agency, and you’ve been thinking about stepping back, moving on, or finding the right home for what you’ve built, we’d be open to a conversation.

Could be a small agency.
Could be a freelance setup with a strong client base.
Could be a book of hosting, support or retainer clients that deserves to be looked after properly.

We know what goes into building something in this space. The clients, the late nights, the support requests, the updates, the “quick changes” that are never quick, and the responsibility of keeping everything moving.

So if you’re at the stage where you’re thinking, “right, what now?”, we’re interested in speaking.

Get in touch with us for a confidential discussion.

𝗣𝗼𝗱𝗶𝘂𝗺
📲 07751 938205
📆 tidycal.com/rossporter
📧 [email protected]
🌐 www.podium.dev

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Belfast

Website

https://podium.dev/

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