How Business Can Benefit from Custom Software Development

Why Businesses Need Custom Software

Custom software development is a service generally performed by an in-house development team, or offered by a third-party company, where the design of a program is created for a set of internal users for a company or industry-specific task. When one looks at the operations of a business, there is no one-size-fits-all solution, and therefore customization is often a vital necessity.

Custom software development has a tried-and-true methodology for creation and implementation, and features a road map for the whole life cycle of the production that includes design, deployment, and maintenance of the software package.

It is important to understand that commercial off-the-shelf software (COTS) or even a hybrid solution often does not meet the diverse needs of a company. These solutions, while incredibly helpful, are typically for users with similar functions and do not take company nuances, legacy programs, or even workflow into account. It is for this reason that businesses often turn to custom technology solutions that fit perfectly into their current business model and help capitalize on the company’s current successes.

Notable benefits of custom software development include: • Efficiency: A custom-made software package allows an organization to implement its workflow efficiently without needing to adapt to the parameters of a COTS package. This makes the use of the software more natural to employees and will allow for faster, more streamlined training with new employees and personnel changes.

• Scalability: A business’s ultimate goal is to grow, so it’s only suitable for software to aid in the scalability of the company. Custom software provides this scalability that ensures that businesses aren’t looking for new software every few years while the company continues to expand. During the development phase, future requirements for businesses can be factored in for future implementation and growth. Not only is this cost-effective, as companies are not purchasing new software every year, but having a company grow on a customized platform avoids the problem of having to retrain users for future platforms, avoiding any lapse of productivity.

• Lower Integration Costs: When implementing new software, a company needs to deal with the question of legacy software. There is no need to reinvent the wheel when certain software has been key to the success of a business, so integrating custom software into an existing infrastructure is a key factor in the development process. The upfront cost of building a custom platform may seem daunting, but in the long run, the company will save money as it fits perfectly with existing software solutions.

• Support and Maintenance: With off-the-shelf software, the buyer may run into various problems where they could not maintain the software anymore.

The buyer is then forced to find an alternative and may have to change their workflow and retrain their users. An advantage with customized software is the technical support that is familiar with the full life of the customized software.

• Security: Since over-the-counter-software is so common, hackers are more likely to exploit vulnerabilities within the software.

Hackers tend to avoid customized software due to unfamiliarity to it and will go after easier targets.

Before deciding on a customized software package, the company needs to consider several factors. Certain industries and companies will benefit greatly from customized packages, while others are far better off with a COTS system. Developing and implementing a custom platform can be expensive and time-consuming, and, as discussed earlier, there is no need to reinvent the wheel. However, the world of business is always expanding, and so are the technological capabilities that help keep that growth sustained. A business owner or enterprise that is looking to expand and resell should seriously look into customized software solutions as a software development company can create uniform processes across different tasks that will make companies more productive and more even more attractive to potential buyers when the company owns the source code and IP.

Businesses looking into acquiring software development services should be on the lookout for companies with experience in both custom software solutions and the exact nature of their industry. Application development companies like Chetu create a seamless backend integration between all assets of a company, have intimate industry knowledge of various fields, and offer real-time communication throughout the entire development process. With 1,500 skilled programmers on staff, Chetu has been delivering custom software development services to clients for nearly 20 years and is continuing to expand its services worldwide.

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