Custom software is often a topic completely overlooked by many small to medium sized businesses. The idea of having a CRM or mobile app built specifically for your business may seem like a luxury only larger businesses can afford however, this is no longer the case.

Just as a standard website used to cost upwards of $10,000+ in the 90’s and now can be built at a fraction of the cost, custom software builds are experiencing a coming of age in similar fashion. What used to cost 6 figures has been reduced to the low 5’s and there are even drag and drop app building platforms where you can build apps yourself code free.

As better tools are made available for the experts, allowing for faster output from developers, and with the rise of elastic databases like AWS, which provide commercial server access in an a la carte format, having your own app or web based software is something every business owner should consider.

Keep reading to learn more about the pros and cons of a custom software build and how to tell if it’s time for your business.

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Choosing Between Established Software and a Custom Build

You would be hard pressed to find a business that doesn't use any software at all to operate these days. Even the most basic of businesses have an invoicing system, a payment processor, or some sort of software to monitor internal affairs like employee management.

Without second thought, many of these business owners will turn to some of the most popular platforms out there like QuickBooks, Office365, Slack & more. A couple of years ago these big players were offering their software at extremely affordable prices or even free. Fast forward to 2021 and you will find new SAAS companies entering the marketplace every day along with widespread user reliance on these services.

This reliance (once you start using QuickBooks...good luck stopping) along with the rapidly growing number of competitors have created an environment where these services are usually no longer free and are becoming less and less affordable. Quickbooks cost just $19/mo a few short years ago for complete plans and now you can expect to pay $50+/mo.

Some readers may even scoff at the thought of a $50/mo piece of software as many enterprise software providers won’t talk to you for less than 4 figures a month and there’s always a contract that is essentially non-negotiable.

Paying 4-5 figures a month to a software company, that at the end of the day still owns all of your company data in one way or another, can wear on any business owner who wishes to run a secure and self reliant business.

Ultimately, opting for out of the box software when starting a business makes sense but as you grow, paying over and over again for something you don’t own, that wasn’t built for your business, causes a lot of business owners to seek out a professional app development team.

If custom software can save you or your team a few hours a day, it pays for itself in a few short months.

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Benefits of Using Already Established Software

There are many benefits to simply purchasing a subscription from a well established brand and having them hit your card every month. As stated above, it is recommended that you use these tools when you start your business and these platforms have helped tons of businesses scale.

The biggest benefits are

• Help resources across the web are easily accessible
  
• These can be YouTube videos of people unaffiliated with the brand trying to build their own online presence, Q&A forums on the company’s website, or other troubleshooting websites. For enterprise software you will typically get access to an in-house rep who can answer your questions on a personal level.
  
• Start using the software right away
  
• As compared to designing your own system, out of the box software is ready to go as soon as you press “pay”.
  
• Cancellation
  
• Even though many enterprise level SAAS companies have made it difficult to leave contracts or place expensive buyouts in the fine print, if you opt for monthly payments or send enough emails to your rep you can usually leave the platform fairly pain free and try a new system.
  

The pros of using a subscription based software as described above are the cons of a custom build and vice versa.

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Benefits of Having a Custom Software Built

Below read some of the biggest advantages to building your own system which are simultaneously the pitfalls of paying for a month to month software.

• Communicate Direct-to-Developer
  
• You won’t have the online help resources like an established brand does but if you pick the right software team you will have access to the developers, which is much more beneficial than a sales rep who then has to forward your notes to a developer anyways.
  

• Unlimited Potential
  
• If you are with an app development firm that is building your app properly you should have design approval at every stage of the development, also called agile development. This means that when your software needs a new feature or is not meeting your exact requirements it should be a few phone calls away, not a year long project of getting your data off one platform to move to another.
  
• Makes Your Business More Valuable
  
• A business that operates using its own systems and databases will always be harder to compete with and therefore more valuable than a business using the systems that all of their competitors are using. A custom built software platform is an asset that makes only your business operate more efficiently and increases with value over time.
  

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How do you Know it’s Time to Have Custom Software Built?

If you are:

• Looking to grow your business for the long term
  
• Looking to make your business more valuable to potential buyers
  
• Looking to automate tasks and save on labor
  
• Care about owning all of your data as well as your customers’
  
• Tired of paying for unused software functionality
  
• Or simply looking to streamline your online systems and save time bouncing from tool to tool and tab to tab…
  

you can be sure now is the time to invest in custom software for your business.

Custom software gives you design flexibility and freedom from high, endless monthly bills. With our average software build costing between $20-50k and a business owner that knows their numbers, we can generate a breakeven date compared to what you are currently paying your current software providers so you can be certain this endeavor will have a positive ROI for your business.

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Is There a Way I Can Dip My Toe in the Water? $20-$50,000 Sounds Like a Lot!

Yes! Here at Mad Mango Marketing we can sit down with you and your team and go over your current systems, your functionality requirements, and your design preferences. For around 10% of the price we quote you to build the entire system we can build what we refer to as a “mock up”.

This mock up has clickable features and can be used on your computer or phone with limited functionality. What we do in the mock up stage is put together our best interpretation of your needs into an app for you to feel comfortable in our ability to deliver as well as for you to visually see how it will look so you can make suggest critical changes before continuing development.

The best part!?

This mock up is 100% non-binding to the build of the application or software. We even bake this number into the future price of the project! i.e. if we quote you $20,000, you pay $2,000 for the mock up and then owe a remaining $18,000 for the completion of the project which is typically spread out into monthly payments based on our projected timeline to finish.

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Some people come to us just to develop a mock up that they can have on their phone as a tool to raise funds for completion!

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How to Get Started

Fill out the contact form below or message one of our team members on LinkedIn and we will send you some of our most recent projects, referrals from past builds, and set up a meeting to learn more about your business.

With Mad Mango Marketing, having a custom built mobile app or software system is only a few clicks away. Contact us today!

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