The Problem
The Challenge
A client needed an internal communication app for their field sales team — WhatsApp was being used but created data privacy concerns and mixed personal/professional messages. They needed a branded, controlled chat solution.
Key Insight
"Firestore's real-time listeners made messages appear in under 300ms — comparable to WhatsApp's speed for a fraction of the infrastructure cost."
How We Solved It
Strategy & Execution
Built a Flutter chat app backed by Firebase Firestore for real-time messaging, Firebase Auth for email/Google sign-in, and Firebase Storage for image sharing. Key features: real-time message delivery, online/offline presence indicators, read receipts, image sharing, and push notifications via FCM.
01
Modelled the Firestore database structure: Users collection, Chats collection (with subcollection of Messages) — designed for minimal reads and cost efficiency.
02
Implemented real-time listeners with StreamBuilder in Flutter — messages appear instantly without manual refresh.
03
Added presence system: user's online status updated every 60 seconds and on app foreground/background state changes.
04
Integrated Firebase Cloud Messaging for push notifications when the app is in the background or closed.
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