It’s no secret that bespoke or custom software can require a significant investment and often there is an off-the-shelf solution which will have most (if not all) of the features you require. However as discussed in a previous post (bespoke vs off-the-shelf software), these ‘ready-made’ alternatives have their downfalls. They may not be able to meet your future needs or at least not until the next software update. For SMEs with smaller budgets, it’s important to understand the return on investment (ROI) of a bespoke software solution, so we’ve created a list of factors to consider to understand if it’s right for you.
Efficiency
Would a bespoke solution save your employees time completing day-to-day tasks? If a number of manual and repetitive tasks are automated this frees up your staff’s time to concentrate on the important tasks that require a real human!
Sales
Save time for your customers in the sales process. If a potential client has too many hoops to jump through to complete a sale you are at risk of losing them. A bespoke software solution could combine multiple aspects of the sales process making it super easy for your customers to buy from you.
Data Integrity
Do you currently have the same data replicated in multiple systems? If so there is an increased risk of errors or discrepancy in data which can result in more work for staff correcting mistakes. What’s more, with the GDPR’s ‘right to be forgotten’ the more systems you have containing personal data, the more places you have to remember to erase it from when requested!
Staff Morale
Manual, mundane, repetitive tasks can result in unmotivated and stressed employees. It can be frustrating when it feels like your wasting time using multiple systems when you could really do with one to combine them all.
Scalability
What happens in 2 years time when you’ve outgrown your off the shelf product and have to look around for an alternative? You end up paying an initial upfront cost for the new software as well as new licensing fees and have then have the issue of moving everything to a new system, training staff etc. With a bespoke solution you just pay for the development time.
Summary
When you consider the above points, the ROI of a bespoke solution can be tenfold, and if you think of the initial investment as planning for business changes, it needn’t be so daunting. If you’re considering bespoke software contact us for a no obligation conversation on 0117 370 0777 or fill in our online contact form.
