Custom Software Development

Custom software solutions provide an organization with tailored technology specified to their individual business needs.

How does custom Software Development work?

The purpose of custom software development is to ideate, build, distribute, and maintain software for a specialized group of users or companies. Generally, custom software is more efficient than off-the-shelf software because it is built keeping the user’s and organization’s specific need in mind. Commercial-Off-the-Shelf Software (COTS) is ideal for a broader audience. One of the best examples of this type of solution is Microsoft Office because it can meet the needs of a wider audience on a global level. But every company doesn’t necessarily have the same processes and business goals. Sometimes, teams need specialized solutions that existing software simply cannot meet, such as:

  • A training institute may need course-module portals
  • An e-commerce store may need specialized functions for the specific demands of a certain product or industry
Custom Software Development Purpose Icon with Computer and Binary
Agile Software Development Icon with Rocket, Code, and Timer
Agile Software Development Icon with Rocket, Code, and Timer

Custom software, often known as bespoke software, suggests customization to a specific user’s needs.

In essence, the custom software development team takes your business’ “measurements” to ensure a “tailor-made” fit in your finished software. Typically, custom software development services occur in-house, or they are outsourced to development teams who use the same techniques as COTS development. When taking on a custom software development project, the development team would progress through the recognizable steps of gathering the client’s requirements, constructing code, testing the software, and delivering a finished product, using Agile, DevOps, or Rapid Application Development.

The product development of custom software involves personalization, modernization, and oversight of applications. Application personalization refers to the modification of commercially available applications to meet specific user and market needs. Managing the sustainability of a custom software application to meet evolving user and market demands requires application modernization. Through application oversight, the software can be effectively installed, updated, optimized for performance and availability, and serviced.

The Impact of Custom Software
Development Services

A custom software solution provides an organization with tailored technology specified to their individual business needs. Some customers might balk at the apparent higher cost of customized software. While the maintenance and support costs initially do make it more expensive than COTS, there are other elements to be taken into consideration. When implemented and used wisely, customized software improves an organization’s productivity, and when the costs of purchasing, modifying, and supporting COTS are taken into account, the two options are cost competitive. Custom developed software provides additional benefits over COTS, including:

Custom software is designed to reinforce business tasks without the necessary overhauls COTS may require

Custom software can adapt alongside a business. Custom software developers take a business’ scalability into account during the ideation phase of development. This ability keeps a business from needing to purchase additional products from off-the-shelf software packages.

Off-the-shelf software leaves a company at the mercy of the vendor who can increase the licensing and support costs at any time. Additionally, if the software is discontinued, the business will have to start the software acquisition process from scratch. While developing customized software frees a business from those concerns, they then have to finance software maintenance fees themselves.

When purchasing commercial software, a company has to determine whether it is compatible with its existing applications. If it isn’t, then the company will have to invest more money into modifying the software so that it will run on the existing infrastructure. Alternatively, custom software developers can design software to seamlessly integrate into its intended domain.

This may seem counter-intuitive since customized software has a higher sticker price than COTS. However, businesses that invest in developing their own software can then sell it to other businesses-monetizing their industry-specific expertise to companies that may not have the time or resources to develop their own software.

Blueprint to Successful Custom Software Development

Compare a Custom Project to Available Commercial Software

As mentioned, commercial software with its lower sticker price may satisfy your business needs. A custom solution has higher start-up costs, so if commercial software can account for the majority of the functions your business requires, it may be the better choice.

Gather Data from All Stakeholders

For customized software to truly meet the tailored specifications unique to a business, they should work hand-in-hand with software developers during the data gathering phase of development. These stakeholders include business employees, users, software developers, and customers. While business employees and users may know the specific requirements they desire in software in order to optimize the business, a custom software developer knows what is possible with the project budget and deadlines.

Systematic’s Development Methodologies

After mapping the requirements and feasibility of a custom software project, a custom software development company should employ cutting-edge tools to complete a project in a budget-friendly and time-effective manner.

Our Development Methodologies and Business Process

Through agile development, requirements are broken down into consumable functions that are delivered quickly through incremental development. A feedback loop allows for the detection and correction of defects as functionality is deployed on an ongoing basis.

A DevOps approach combines software development and operations. It is an agile approach that brings enmeshes technology operations and software development in the ideation, construction, and maintenance of applications.

Our value proposition is a dedicated contact team that allows us to complete projects faster and at a better cost when compared to our competitors. In the past, when going up against a large company, our cost would be 25% to 50% of theirs, and our customers received their custom software faster (often ahead of schedule) from our dedicated team.

Technologies Inherent to the Development Process

An open-source operating system, such as Linux, allows the general public to use the source code. The use of software components can improve productivity and functionality by avoiding proprietary architectures.

Cloud Development

By hosting development environments in the cloud, cloud-based development brings the benefits of cloud computing to software development. In these environments, developers can code, design, integrate, test, and build both on-premises and cloud-native applications while maintaining lower costs, efficiency, and accessibility.

Artificial Intelligence

Using artificial intelligence (AI), software can mimic human decisions and learning. The ability of computers and software to understand human language can be used to analyze requirements text and suggest enhancements. Cloud services and APIs can integrate AI technologies such as machine learning and modeling into applications.

Blockchain

An electronic ledger, blockchain removes the risk and vulnerability brought in through channels such as banks and regulators. Blockchain ledgers and open source Hyperledger technology are being used by developers to build secure, financial applications and free up capital.

Low Code

Low code is a development practice that cuts down the need for coding and permits non-coders or citizen developers to build or help build applications quickly and at a lower cost.

Analytics

In addition to dashboards, visualizations, and predictive capabilities, analytics technologies assist software applications and users in comprehending a tremendous amount of data. The inclusion of analytics into applications is relatively easy using cloud-based services and APIs, just as it has been with artificial intelligence.

Custom Software Maintenance Services

It is essential to maintain and manage customized software once in order for them to continue to perform effectively. Many businesses choose to farm out these responsibilities. As well as developing applications, application services provide quality and testing services, SAP support, and application lifecycle management. In some cases, organizations may wish to test, manage, and maintain their own applications; however, outsourcing application services can lower costs, improve efficiency, and accelerate the development of new applications. Another reason to outsource application management is the automation of the process of installing software and carrying out critical updates.

Contact Us

Custom software development has many benefits. More importantly, it has become a necessity for many businesses. To that end, if you want to leverage existing solutions and enjoy the benefits of the latest technologies, hiring a software company provides more benefits than costs.

Contact Systematic Consulting Group today, discuss your business-specific needs with our custom software developers, and let us do the rest of the work for you.

Let’s Talk