Custom software is without a doubt growing in popularity with businesses of all shapes and sizes. However, many small businesses may be wondering if this is a reasonable solution for their type of business. Without a doubt, small businesses can benefit from custom software, which will offer them a more personalised and intuitive solution that’s designed to fit their needs. Let’s look at why custom software is the future for small businesses and the great benefits it will offer you in the years to come for your company.
What is custom software?
Before we explain why custom software is so important for small businesses, first let’s take a look at what exactly custom software is. Custom software recognises that software needs are not the same for every company. In fact, user requirements vary dramatically between companies of all sizes. Off-the-shelf software can’t solve every issue a business has, which is why custom software is often designed from scratch for a specific user. This allows them to choose features that they’ll regularly use within their business and disregard options they don’t need.
Benefits of custom software
Custom software is most certainly the future for small businesses. These are some of the reasons why we believe small businesses will be utilising custom software more than ever before in the upcoming years.
A solution that’s future-proof
We all know how quickly technology changes, and within the next few years, we can only expect more developments within any industry. As technology develops and advances, the software will need to keep up with these ever-changing demands. Custom software can be constantly adjusted and improved depending on your small business’s needs. Working with a custom software development team will allow you to adjust the custom software long after its initial implementation. It’s made with your needs in mind and can be adjusted to fit your company if you continue to expand over the next few years.
A scalable option for expanding businesses
As well as technological changes, we understand your small business may not remain that size forever. If you are anticipating growth for your business over the next years or decades, custom software is scalable to fit your needs. With the recent pandemic in mind, many companies have had to scale back, which is also possible with custom software. You can easily add or remove features that you need, unlike traditional software options. Custom software can also be adjusted to work alongside other applications you use within your business, which may change over time. You can use your systems to their full potential thanks to custom software, which can help to improve processes within your business.
Long term cost savings
We appreciate that one of the most common reasons that small businesses don’t consider custom software is the cost. However, you’ll find there are options available to fit all budgets and needs. Instead of paying for features in off-the-shelf software that you never use, you’ll find you are only spending your budget on software you need and want for your everyday work. While custom software may seem like a huge expense for your business upfront, depending on the nature of the software, you’ll find that it’s a very cost-effective solution in the long run.
More support for your business
When using traditional software, getting the assistance you need sometimes doesn’t come at the speed you would like. Sometimes it takes one to two working days to receive a response, and that’s often far too late for your project. Custom software is designed by a company that will have fewer users to look after, which enables them to offer you a quicker response time and more personalised service.
You’ll find this to be the case from the first day you start working together, and then you should be offered continued support after its implementation. Your team will also be offered full training when you first start using your new custom software, so you won’t have to manage training internally like you would with traditional software. Businesses of any size can benefit from this personalised attention and service, which helps them to make the most of their new custom software.
Increased security
Security is becoming a greater concern for businesses around the world year after year. Just because you may deem your company to be small, it doesn’t mean that you are any less likely to be the victim of a security or cyber attack. As thousands of users around the world use the most popular software applications, you are often far more vulnerable to a security breach. Hackers have a very good idea of how to make it through popular software, but with custom software, you’ll find this isn’t the case. One of the top reasons companies are using custom software today is for this increased security, which will reduce your chance of attacks and intrusions that could destroy your systems and seriously impact your business.
The future for small businesses
Custom software offers so many great advantages for small businesses, and it’s certainly not something that’s only reserved for larger corporations. All of these benefits make it clear that this is a worthwhile investment for businesses today and for many years to come. If you’ve not already considered custom software for your business, we recommend you start looking at this solution sooner rather than later. By finding a software development team that will work with you to understand your needs and requirements, you’ll begin saving money for your company in the future.
Where to from here?
Custom software is clearly an excellent solution for small businesses, and we hope you now see the many benefits it could offer for your company this year. To find out more information about custom software for small businesses or to schedule a no-obligation business consultation, contact the BSPOKE Software team.
