With the growth of online businesses, the need for solutions for their management is growing a lot. Software development is a niche market that does not stop innovating, adapting to the growing demands of different industries and labor sectors, optimizing products, and offering new personalized solutions.
Of course, these systems can boost communication flexibility and provide detailed construction project reports. Indeed, the construction industry has experienced massive growth with custom software.
Although many computer programs have developed, with proven quality that allows meeting various businesses’ needs, companies do not stop having their particular requirements. In these cases, opportunities arise to create more personalized software.
The customization of computer applications refers to that type of software development whose objective is to adapt to specific business needs, such as specific requirements of an entity or an administration, thus covering their needs wholly and concretely.
Why Develop Custom Software?
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The problem that certain companies find when looking for software that meets their requirements is that despite a large number of software, programs, and applications available on the market today, in many cases, they still do not cover all their requirements. Specific needs, or at least not in the way they demand it.
This can lead to having to use different solutions to complete the same purpose, making management processes more complex, delaying, and more expensive, which goes directly against the essential profitability.
Another possibility that occurs on many occasions is that the applications offer many more functionalities than many SMEs may need, which means that in the short term, the implementation costs and the learning curve increase considerably, and what is still worse, that in the long time the feeling of productivity that said application provides is lost.
It is being used less and less until it becomes a residual solution, or even its use is abandoned in favor of other options that are usually more analog and less automated, with the obvious negative consequences that this causes.
This, in some cases, leads to the customization of these applications to eliminate, restrict or hide part of their functionalities, which, although we could also consider it as personalized software, would be like building a house from the roof.
Therefore, to solve these problems and offer companies the ideal solutions for their businesses, customized computer applications are the best viable solution, both in terms of cost and profitability.
Factors To Consider Before Customizing Software
Although the benefits of having technology solutions tailored to facilitate the daily operations of organizations are apparent, certain factors must be taken into account before a company gets on the bandwagon to offer customized software.
Carry Out A Correct Requirements Analysis
Knowing precisely the purpose of the software application will be the key to success. Again, following the example of the house, only by fully understanding what building in terms of size, distribution, characteristics, materials, location, and orientation can we develop a home according to the client’s requirements.
Precisely the same happens with software, so analysts and developers must have a complete understanding and vision of all the global and specific requirements and the results and final objectives pursued to design and customize the software according to what customers need.
Assess Costs And Maintenance Requirements
There are two types of costs in our industry: the initial development cost and the maintenance cost repeated periodically. Therefore, we must hold detailed meetings between customers, analysts, developers, and business people on where and what additional expenses would be and what documented procedures must maintain the system internally throughout its life cycle.
Keep In Mind Usability, Learning Curve, And Training
As important as a correct analysis of the requirements, to subsequently carry out quality development that meets the needs, is to bear in mind the usability that our software is going to offer concerning the people who are going to use it, thus being able to determine the curve of learning that it will require for these people, thus allowing us to complement it with the necessary training in its use after its implementation. Developing and implementing custom software is hardly half the job; getting the users of said software to obtain the knowledge to use it efficiently is another significant part of the project journey.
Calculate Return On Investment
We must consider both the tangible and intangible benefits of developing personalized software and ask ourselves if the budget that we are going to offer is enough to develop said software with the required quality in the agreed time. Both developer companies and clients should calculate and bear in mind the value of this investment both in the short and long term before embarking on the project to be viable and profitable for both parties.
Can Companies Work With ERP And CRM At The Same Time?
It will depend on the nature of each company and the suitability of implementing two tools with such deep depth in it. Traditional ERP implementations used to incorporate a CRM module. However, the same ERP developers usually have an external and independent CRM since it is advisable to have software dedicated primarily to the commercial task.
That said, ERP and CRM are fully compatible. They are different and have to be measured by different scales, but their work is complementary. Both tools are designed to make the most of the company’s resources, so the question will be more about needs, especially the company’s economic capabilities or SME that wishes to implement it.
Is Software Customization A Viable Solution?
One of the main advantages of having a customized business software appropriately is that it will allow companies to reduce errors, which will enable them to optimize their processes.
Another benefit of having a customized application is that it allows company management to establish KPI’s and criteria specifically adapted to their particular processes and teams.
This will enable the company’s productivity to increase, and together with the improvement of the optimization, it will also improve the final profitability.
Whether we are talking about an industry that offers services, or a product-based industry, today, companies are more interested than ever developing and strengthening their technological processes. Which not only improves the user experience but also leads to increased sales.
So as we see, the customization of software solutions in applications, programs, or tools provides us with the key to success. It allows companies to optimize their processes, improve their productivity, increase their sales, and ultimately achieve higher profitability.