6 reasons why bespoke software is the right choice for you?
With the ever-increasing drive towards digitalization, a growing number of companies, from small and medium enterprises to large organizations with a global footprint, will need to start developing and implementing software solutions. And one of the significant steps in this process involves deciding whether to go with bespoke software or with an off-the-shelf solution.
Here at QTeam Solutions, we’ve been helping organizations develop bespoke software for many years, and in this article, we’ll look at why custom software might be the right way to go for your company.
Custom made
Most of the time, when you buy off the shelf, you have to change your way of working based on the software instead of it being the other way around. When suppliers develop these solutions, they have to consider as broad a potential market as possible to guarantee sales. As a result, the space for any custom changes in the software they offer is limited. And if it is possible, it most certainly comes with huge costs. Not to mention that any custom functionality that is added now can impact future usability, because a newer version of the program might not support it.
A bespoke software solution is easy to modify, and as a result, you can blend it into your business model without too much hassle. Due to the fact that it is designed with your company in mind, you don’t need to worry that it will clash with your existing practices, systems, and other available tools. Plus, when it comes to adding new options, as you grow your business, it’s functionality can naturally grow with you.
User friendly
Anybody who has ever worked with off-the-shelf solutions from any of the large providers on the market can testify that not only are they complicated to implement, they are also very complicated to use. Whether you use it to upload contracts, create invoices, make purchase requests, create business trips, and so on. No matter the solution, you usually need a lot of time to get to grips and make it do what you need it to do. Again, it would help if the software adapted to you and not the other way around.
A custom-made software is much better at implementing UX in the development process and making sure that the learning curve for your employees is not as steep. This provides tremendous benefits for organizations. Not only will it boost efficiency, but the easier it is to understand, the less likely it is that you will have pushback from users (otherwise known as resistance to change).
Your employees will have a product that suits them and won’t have to learn to work with a rigid pre-made one.
Cost
Bespoke software may cost more initially, but you decide when, where, and how it is maintained and developed. This gives you more flexibility with ongoing costs. Not to mention, you’ll never have to pay licensing fees or pay to add additional users.
Furthermore, while off-the-shelf may cost less initially, any tailoring you want will cost a lot more because any new functionality has to take a lot of dependencies and legacy code into account. A custom software won’t have this issue.
Competitive edge
This is especially valid if your organization serves in areas such as digital marketing or e-learning, where it is crucial to have a great set of functionalities that set you apart from the competition. When your business is based on innovating a specific industry or way of doing business, you need a custom software solution. Using off-the-shelf here means than someone else can easily copy what you do.
Security
In terms of both hacking and maintenance & support for your solutions.
Commercial off-the-shelf software will always be more vulnerable to attacks since everyone has access to it. Bespoke solutions carry less risk because only your organization uses them. It hardly makes sense for a hacker to spend time, energy, and resources attacking a custom software solution when they can access those which are shared by multiple companies. The larger the number, the better the reward.
Not to mention that when it comes to custom software, you own it and can do anything you want with it. As opposed to buying off the shelf and depending on the supplier you purchased it from. A supplier who can go out of business, stop support for the solution, or discontinue the product altogether.
The personal touch
Let’s face it. Unless you’re a large client, when you buy off-the-shelf, the only people from the supplier you’ll ever meet are the salesperson and your account manager. And a lot of the times, the relationship you have with them is strictly commercial.
A bespoke solution usually comes with a more committed team. Since they are not looking to convince you to buy a generic piece of software, they will be more interested to learn about your business and your internal processes. This, in turn, allows them to suggest alternatives, improvements and act as a source of advice and knowledge. And they will do this because it is good business.
Next steps
When you’re thinking about improving the way you do business through a software solution, you are much better off opting for bespoke software. It will be better for your company, your employees, and your wallet.