Eureka! The idea that had come to your mind some time ago was undoubtedly great! Now you run a successful business with devoted employees and are looking forward to a great future with new ups and downs and hopefully some funding from the investors. Does this description fit you in the present momentum or do you think it describes you in the near future? If your answer is “yes” to one of these questions you must have considered a partnership with a custom software development company.
Customized software development is the process of developing applications that are adjusted to the particular needs of a particular company or individual. In contrast to off-the-shelf software solutions, custom software products are designed to meet the demands of a specific client and fulfill their individual business needs and requirements in the long run.
Frequently, companies might be turned away from the development of custom software applications because of its price in comparison to the cost of off-the-shelf software. Though taking into account the future perspectives of the business, the choice is obvious what can be actually proven by an increase in using custom software products over off-the-shelf prosucts in the scope of the last five years, for example, in the ERP category.
Why is custom software development becoming more and more popular? Here is the list of advantages of custom software development for startups.
#1 Designed to Meet the Needs of your Business
Let’s imagine you want to get a sandwich with rye bread, roasted chicken, fresh tomatoes, and chipotle mayonnaise. But what the restaurant offers is pickles and pesto. You would rather go to a different place, wouldn’t you? The same is with software solutions. Businesses want solutions catered to their needs. An entrepreneur who wants to have a retail solution developed with member sign-up, the ability to track the users’ behavior, monitor website usage, offer items based on users’ age, location, and preferences, define custom tracking tags in CMS is unlikely to opt for an off-the-shelf solution. They either need to go for a custom software solution aligned with their vision or to change their business model.
#2 Secure
Cybercrime damages are expected to reach $6 trillion in 2021. A terrifying number, isn’t it? A widely spread misconception is that only big enterprises like SolarWinds or Marriott become victims of hackers. Small business owners also regularly suffer from cost and reputational damage as a result of cyberattacks. Statista reports that the finance, hospitality, and manufacturing industries are top-targets of cyberattacks.
Custom software solutions offer a much higher level of security in comparison with already-made solutions. First of all, they are not publicly available and contain special security codes and encryption. Secondly, reliable software vendors provide comprehensive cyber assessments to strengthen the composure and integrity of organizational security controls which makes them more prepared for possible attacks.
#3 Easier to Scale
The more your business succeeds, the faster the requirements are growing. At the initial stage of launching a business a big number of entrepreneurs make the same mistake — they don’t think about the future evolution of their product, they are just focused on the viability of their brand. And when the time comes, off-the-shelf solutions either simply can’t cater to their needs anymore or require abnormal sums of money. Therefore, developing custom software for startups is a wise choice to make. Though in the beginning, it seems to be more expensive and time-consuming, it will definitely pay off in the future.
#4 Integration with Software
Running a business requires active usage of numerous software systems like ERP, CRM, Marketing software, etc. Though off-the-shelf solutions cope with this task in most cases, they can’t guarantee a flawless experience that results in employees’ productivity decline.
Custom software, on the other hand, allows you to easily and without any errors integrate your product with other software that has been already in use.
#5 Independence from Developers
By buying off-the-shelf software you become “a prisoner” of the terms and conditions it sets. The future of your business is completely dependent on the developers’ support. In case the company you’ve bought this software becomes broke or stops updating it, you’ll need to find a new provider in a limited time. That is risky and expensive. On the contrary, custom software can be used as long as it’s needed and the way you want. Any time there is a need to improve something or to maintain the product, the vendor will provide its assistance.
Make the Most of Custom Software Development Advantages
Custom software solutions offer business owners a bunch of benefits: they are designed to cater to the specific needs of a particular business, offer better data security, and have endless possibilities for updates. There isn’t a single off-the-shelf software solution that would be able to keep up with an app designed especially to meet the needs of your business by an experienced team of developers.
The most important thing is to find the right vendor that will bring your idea to life. In inVerita, we have been successfully delivering software development services for startups as well as for Fortune 500 companies. We have strong expertise in building web and mobile solutions, IoT software development, quality assessment, and testing, cloud, and DevOps services. If you are ready to discuss your project, don’t hesitate to contact us.