Develop a COVID-19 Case Counting App Using Twilio (Steps to Follow)

The pandemic isn’t over yet; it seems like a long night before the dawn. After all the ups and downs, the virus is continuing to affect people, communities, and businesses around the world. Although we are finally recovering from it, the situation is still unpredictable even after the arrival of the vaccine. 

If you live in the US, you may have heard of COVID-19 tracking projects that provide up-to-date data related to the number of tests, positive cases, and deaths. Interesting; isn’t it? Let’s dive deep into this writing piece with an experienced Twilio developer and find out how to develop a Twilio-powered app to track COVID-19 cases: 

1. Create Your Twilio Account 

First, create a free Twilio trial account and then get a phone number by the location or area code. Once you have the number, find the ‘Twilio Studio’ option in the left sidebar and then click ‘Create a Flow’. Enter any name for the flow and select ‘Start from Scratch’ on the template selection screen. 

2. Create Your Studio Flow

You might see a‘Widget Library’ on the right, scroll down to the Messaging segment, and click-and-drag ‘Send Message’ onto the canvas. Also, enter ‘Send Reply’ and ‘Hello, Twilio’ for the message body. Drag and place the dot from ‘Incoming Message’ to the ‘Send Reply’ widget. Don’t forget to click the ‘Publish’button in the end. 

3. Run the Studio Flow 

Now send your number a text message and see whether you get a preconfigured reply from Twilio. To confirm, scroll to the bottom and choose ‘Studio Flow’ in the ‘Messaging’ section. Then choose the name of the ‘Studio Flow’ you’ve created and save it at the bottom. 

4. Develop a Server-Less Function

Open the ‘Twilio Functions’ section and select the ‘Create a Function’ button. Choose and create the ‘JSON Response’ template. Enter a path for the function and check the ‘Access Control’ box so that only the function runs when it is called by another Twilio service. 

5. Add the Function to the Studio Flow 

Created a function? It’s time to add it to the Studio flow. Open the ‘Studio Flow’ and scroll down to the ‘Tools and Execute Code’ segment. Click-and-drag ‘Run Function’ and then click on that function widget. Update the name and select the function in the drop-down. Make sure it’s working when you send a text to your Twilio number. 

6. Complete the Data Function

Finally, it’s time to update the Twilio function. When the API request is correct, we will get the COVID-19 information from the response data object. Click ‘Configure’ on the left side, scroll down to the ‘Dependencies’ section, and click the red/white + button. Finally, click ‘Save’ so that your function will be re-deployed. 

Final Thoughts 

Have you made it this far? Congratulations, you’ve successfully developed a COVID-19 tracking app with a Twilio developer. You see, developing such apps is relatively easy with Twilio Studio and Twilio Functions. If you need any need with your project, ask the experts at our Twilio development company today.