diff --git a/.env.example b/.env.example
new file mode 100644
index 0000000..d8cf3a1
--- /dev/null
+++ b/.env.example
@@ -0,0 +1,4 @@
+EXPO_PUBLIC_API_DOMAIN=....ngrok-free.app
+AWS_BUCKET_NAME=...
+AWS_ACCESS_KEY=...
+AWS_SECRET_KEY=...
diff --git a/README.md b/README.md
index ec6d5f8..58006a3 100644
--- a/README.md
+++ b/README.md
@@ -54,7 +54,9 @@ of requests from the database.
 [Task](https://taskfile.dev) speeding up development by running long commands in
 quick phrases.
 
-[Nodemon](https://www.npmjs.com/package/nodemon) a tool that watches code and
+- Check out all of our commands in the `Taskfile.yaml` file!
+
+[Nodemon](https://www.npmjs.com/package/nodemon) | (optional) a tool that watches code and
 reloads the build if it sees changes.
 
 ## Before Running
@@ -63,6 +65,7 @@ Create an .env file in the root directory:
 
 ```
   EXPO_PUBLIC_API_DOMAIN=your-ngrok-static-domain-here
+  AWS_BUCKET_NAME=your-aws-s3-bucket-name-here
   AWS_ACCESS_KEY=your-aws-access-key-here
   AWS_SECRET_KEY=your-aws-secret-key-here
 ```
@@ -75,6 +78,14 @@ item below!
 
 [Pre-commit](https://pre-commit.com) standardizing code style and commits
 
+After installing, in the base folder run:
+
+```
+task pre-commit
+```
+
+This will run and install all of our hooks to ensure consistent formatting and structure in the code base.
+
 [Commitizen](https://commitizen-tools.github.io/commitizen/) organizing our
 commits into categories
 
@@ -84,6 +95,7 @@ commits into categories
 2. In the base of the repo: run `task start-docker`
 3. Then, open a new tab to run commands in: run `task start-backend` or
    `task start-dev`
+   - `task start-dev` utilizes nodemon to check for updates in the backend so installing nodemon is necessary to run this command
    - You can now view swagger: http://localhost:8080/swagger/index.html
 4. Next, in a new tab run `task start-ngrok`
 5. Finally, open one last new tab: run `task start-frontend`
diff --git a/backend/schema/files/transactions.go b/backend/schema/files/transactions.go
index 136273b..05b8c72 100644
--- a/backend/schema/files/transactions.go
+++ b/backend/schema/files/transactions.go
@@ -7,6 +7,7 @@ import (
 	"fmt"
 	"io"
 	"mime/multipart"
+	"os"
 	"strconv"
 	"strings"
 	"time"
@@ -17,7 +18,7 @@ import (
 	"github.com/jackc/pgx/v5/pgxpool"
 )
 
-var AWS_BUCKET_NAME = "care-wallet-storage"
+var AWS_BUCKET_NAME, _ = os.LookupEnv("AWS_BUCKET_NAME")
 
 type FileDetails struct {
 	FileID    int    `json:"fileId"`