Can a Small Business Benefit from Custom Software?

Every business can benefit from custom software.  For all companies, custom software gives a highly-focused solution to a particular problem — even a small business.

Customization involves not only choosing which tools would best benefit your company, but also creating a system that is designed around the way you work and integrating it into your existing software.

Custom Software vs Out-of-the-Box

For small businesses, it’s crucial to be smart with a tight budget. So, choosing an out-the-the-box solution for the unique business problems of a small business could possibly cause problems down the road.

Supporters of off-the-shelf software consider it a competitive advantage to get your offering to the market faster than your competition. But, that’s not the case. Off-the-shelf software solutions simply cannot provide you with the same competitive advantage because of the simple fact that it’s open to all. If you’re thinking long term, the only competitive advantage to be had in software development is a customized one.

Growth Potential

For most business owners, the goal is the grow the business. Custom software is conducive to a steady, seamless growth. It is scalable.

Also, if selling your company is the end goal, then having a proprietary custom software platform is an added value to potential investors.

Merging with Existing Platforms

If your business depends upon the use of other software platforms and programs (ex: Salesforce, Pardot) then consider a custom software solution. The chances that an out-of-the-box solution will meet these needs is slim.

The only way to guarantee the union between your existing software and a new addition is to develop a custom platform, one that is built to anticipate and adapt where and when it is needed.

Time & Cost

When compared to maintaining, training employees, and updating out-of-the-box software for the life of the product, building your own custom solution is a better financial decision.

And, depending on the size of your development team, the development time is much faster, as well. You can tailor your development experience when you work with a good software firm.

If you are a small business owner and are looking for a permanent solution to your unique business problems, let’s talk! We’ve helped small businesses go from crawling to running with customized software solutions for 19 years, and we’d love to help you, too!