What is bespoke software?

Choosing or developing a software solution for your business is difficult. Off-the-shelf solutions often don’t allow your business to grow and flex, or they might not integrate with your existing systems.

Bespoke software solutions can be a game-changer. Software can be built to exact specifications, designed around your own business goals, and provide flexibility when you need to scale. Having your software built from scratch can give you a competitive advantage versus using mass market software packages.

Today, we look at the pros and cons of bespoke software solutions, how they differ from off-the-shelf software, and the steps involved in achieving a functional custom solution.

Struggling to find solutions that fit your business model? Contact our custom software development team. We’re ready to leverage over 25 years of tech expertise to all stages of design, development, testing and implementation.

 

Defining bespoke software

Bespoke software is any software built to your specified needs – whether that’s for your internal business needs or for your end users.

Creating a solution with a software developer or website design and development team allows you to lay out your business needs from the start, and then work with the experts to create the software to achieve those goals.

The final software delivered to you will be specialised, specifically targeted to serve user needs precisely while supporting business growth plans.

Bespoke software, custom software, and tailored software

If you’ve been working in the tech industry for any length of time, you will have come across these terms. They all essentially refer to software solutions created to meet specific requirements of a business and to the needs of its users.

 

How does bespoke software differ from off-the-shelf software?

While off-the-shelf solutions are readily available for use and often feature rich, a bespoke software option gives you more flexibility and customisation.

Custom-made solutions can be built around your existing systems, processes and workflows, and refined to your needs. Alternatively, you can build them as greenfield (starting from scratch), giving you a totally fresh process.

Off-the-shelf software is often built for mass-market commercial purposes rather than specialised ones. It is designed to work for as many people as possible, meaning you could end up paying for features you don’t or can’t use, or it lacks the features that are vital for your business.

 

Pros of bespoke software

• Tailor-made features: Bespoke software is designed to meet your exact needs, ensuring you get maximum efficiency out of the software as you will use all its features.
  
  
• Competitive advantage: By creating your own unique solution, you can craft a solution tailored to your niche, deliver innovative or refined services, and gives you an edge over your competitors.
  
  
• Built to your specifications: Bespoke software is designed to deliver maximum efficiency for your business processes, workflows, and can also integrate with other systems, meaning a greater operational benefit.
  
  
• Own your IP: You can add value to your business by owning your custom solution outright, adding value to your business and can often be attractive for any future selling.
  
  
• Automation: Bespoke software can address your exact automation needs for repetitive tasks like data entry, reporting, or inventory tracking, freeing up time for value-added activities.
  
  
• Scalable and secure: You can utilise technology like Azure Cloud for your bespoke solution to be more scalable and secure. This means you can decide where your data resides, who has access to it and what level of security you require.

 

Cons of bespoke software

• Higher initial cost: The initial build of your custom-built solution will be more costly as to support the software development process an upfront investment may be required. However, you can save money in the longer term in areas such as licensing fees, data, usage costs, and the inflexibility found in an off-the-shelf product. Read more about software development costs.
  
  
• Extended implementation timeframe: Development can take weeks or even months, therefore it’s not an instant go-to-market approach. However, you could opt to get a basic MVP solution with key features to achieve benefit sooner before delivery of the complete solution.

Types of bespoke software

1. Content Management Systems (CMS) and Customer Relationship Management (CRM) platforms

A CMS (Content Management System) is a platform for creating, managing, and publishing digital content. Popular examples include Umbraco and Sitecore. For businesses with specific customisation needs, such as creating a user buyer journey that is specific to your customer needs, or you are seeking to have your own code/IP where you can make all the decisions on what is needed for the CMS.

A CRM (Customer Relationship Management) system is designed to manage customer data, engagement, and purchasing processes, aiming to enhance customer relationships and optimise sales performance. Examples include Salesforce and HubSpot.
Bespoke CRMs are ideal for complex operations, offering tailored integrations with analytics tools and personalised email marketing platforms to support sales and marketing efforts effectively.

2. E-Commerce

E-commerce platforms are websites and apps for buy and selling products or services. For maximum effectiveness and efficiency, they need to be tailored to meet customer journeys and business goals, be scalable for high traffic businesses and peak periods, and have seamless integration with payment gateways and inventory systems.

3. Web Apps and Web Portals

Web-based applications and portals provide interactive, data-driven functionality for users. For example, online banking is a web app and Microsoft 365, which provides Word, SharePoint etc, is a web portal. These types of platforms are often for internal collaboration and supporting internal staff to providing customers with secure areas to access information and/or communicate securely.

4. SaaS & product development

This is the creation of Software-as-a-Service (SaaS) products or standalone software for end user and business access via the cloud. Successful platforms of this kind need complete control over architecture and features, as well as the requisite scalability and flexibility to integrate new features as user needs and industry standards evolve.

5. Manufacturing & logistics

These are systems like SAP ERP that manage workflows, supply chains, inventory, and distribution processes. They often require industry-specific hardware and IoT devices, as well as real-time tracking, reporting, and automation specific to business operations. As business grows and evolves, off-the-shelf solutions may present challenges regarding scaling and customising.

 

How to attain bespoke software

Creating bespoke software for your business involves planning, scoping, designing, development, testing, seeking user feedback, refining based on feedback and then finally, the launch. But it doesn’t end there – you must continuously monitor and refine your solution based on user experience and industry developments.

Key stages of bespoke software development:

1. Discovery: First, you must first spend time planning to capture what the solution needs to do and what business and/or user needs it must deliver on. Compare what you need to what’s already available in the mass market to pull together your specification of must needed capability that has led you down the route to custom development.

2. Solution architecture and design: Next, you will plan and design your solution on an architectural level. This might involve cloud implementation, database integration, creating robust security, optimising performance, or planning for scalability. This often involves front-end processes including wireframes, design concepts, and prototypes to aid the final design.

3. Development and testing: Now you build the approved set of prioritised features and capabilities against the scoped design and architectural plans, ideally with regular ongoing demonstrations of the build to take on board feedback, hopefully catching any glitches and improved user experience early. Whether you create an MVP or wait until you have a fully-featured product, you should test it with intended end users.

4. Launch and monitor: Once you are ready to use or launch your solution, you will need a robust deployment and release process for making the solution available to end users. Don’t forget to continue monitoring the application both from a system and user perspective for ongoing enhancements.

5. Continued maintenance and support: It’s vital to keep the solution updated and maintained. This includes keeping tabs on performance, security features, and incorporating user feedback for continuous improvement. This proactive approach allows you to make decisions to optimise your solution.

 

After your solution is live and running…

Now it’s live, you can pat yourself on the back, but make sure you keep your eye on future threats. Since cyber security and risks to online security are in motion all the time, you need to ensure your application and users remain protected.

• Ongoing maintenance can include:
• Fixing bugs
• Optimising performance
• Extending or improving features & capability

 

Seeking expert custom software solutions

You can streamline building and implementing a tailored software solution through a digital solutions agency. When considering criteria for selecting one, we recommend looking at their experience and expertise, pick one with cross-domain expertise so you can benefit from their learning of working across multiple industries and sectors.

At I-Finity, we provide full and comprehensive development services including planning, designing, testing, hosting, as well as ongoing support and maintenance for after the solution is in market.

Looking to elevate your business with a bespoke software solution? Contact us today.