Technologies advance very rapidly nowadays, and so does the business world. Every day, companies need more and more processes done, issues solved, expenses reduced, profits gained, and so on. And of course, traditionally, everything used to be done by human workers.
Yet, we live in the 21st century when every business in every area tries to automate as many processes as possible. There are many reasons for this, but the main ones include:
- Cost-efficiency – computers don’t require a monthly salary. And even taking into account initial equipment purchases and servicing costs, it’s still many times cheaper than operating human teams.
- Productivity – needless to say, machines can work much faster than humans, provided they were produced and programmed to do so.
- Quality – computers are usually much more precise and have better quality rates overall. Potential issues and malfunctions do take place, in both automated production and usual business software. However, they can be reduced to a minimum with decent servicing.
- Exclusiveness – particular ultra-precise machines or advanced custom software systems can do things humans physically cannot (or it would require countless times more time). For example, analyzing terabytes of statistical data and making predictions.
- Boost human efficiency – some processes still need to be done manually, but with the use of special software, everything can be done much faster, with better quality, and extreme overall efficiency.
So, when a company decides that it’s time for them to increase their performance with the use of modern technologies, they have 2 options to choose from.
- Ready (pre-made) programs.
- Custom software solutions.
Everything is pretty simple here, and the differences between the two types of software can be easily recognized from their names.
“Out of the Box”
It’s a decent option for very young companies that don’t have the funds for an exclusively developed program. Small businesses can also benefit from it if they operate a limited amount of processes and a small number of workers.
The most popular and well-known example of such software is Microsoft Excel. But don’t be deceived by it. There are many different specialized programs on the market for any of your needs, be it simple mathematical calculations or statistical analysis.
The pitfall here is the initial limitations of the software. Don’t like how particular features work? Need to scale up? Want to customize and/or change particular aspects? Forget about it.
Custom Solutions
Custom program solutions are probably an ideal option for every business out there. Yes, some of them may cost you a penny. But it’s still nothing compared to how they will increase the performance, and optimize all the processes, thus allowing you to reallocate resources.
So, such programs are called custom software solutions, because they’re developed to suit your needs. Just find a professional company that does this type of software development, for example, Develux, US software solutions market leader. Contact them, or just read through the site to find all the useful information.
The next step will be to provide them with all the requirements for your custom program. Remember, the clearer you state your demands and all the preferences, the better the end result will be.
Yes, nowadays getting custom software for your business is as simple as having a table made for you. Well, it’s just that the table consists of hundreds of thousands of lines of code sometimes, and requires dozens of programmers, and designers to work on it for months.
Still, the only thing that a customer needs to do is to make their requirements clear, negotiate the terms, and sign a contract.
Here are some examples of some typical solutions that are very popular on the market.
CRM
CRM stands for Customer Relationship Management. Such complex systems are usually used to increase the performance of workers and provide customers with a much better experience.
As an example, let’s take a good 4 or even 5-star hotel. When you enter it, you want to book a room, so you contact the person at the reception desk. To check on the status of all the rooms, their pricing, time, dates, and other details, a receptionist uses a CRM system.
Such a custom system does all the checking in a millisecond and allows the receptionist to access all the needed information in just a few clicks. So, it enhances customer experience, as you have to only wait for a minute or two, and the information is 100% precise.
Yes, it may not be the best example of the whole spectrum of opportunities CRMs give, but it explains the basics of how it works.
E-Commerce and Shopping Cart Solutions
We’ve all seen online stores at least once. Such custom software allows business owners to operate all the aspects of their online business. Some particular features and specifics may differ depending on the store type, but the main goal is to simplify everything as much as possible.
Basically speaking, it almost makes operating an online store an interesting video game. Just remember that everything is real – the products need to be restocked, the taxes need to be paid, and the service needs to be top-level.
Accounting Software
Business is all about numbers. So, accounting solutions allow one to easily monitor some processes or even automate them. Almost any task related to accounting and working with money, in general, can be either simplified or done by the program itself. Banks as we know them today would never exist without such programs.
Security Systems
They may come integrated into other types of custom software or be ordered separately. The main goals remain the same anyway – to keep the business protected from data leaks, stolen funds, and other not-so-pleasant situations that happen because of the breaches in the security (or the complete absence of it).
Such systems play the same role as security guards, cameras, and huge armored doors in banks. As they say, better be safe than sorry.
Summing Up
These are only a few examples of custom software solutions. There are countless variations and types of such programs. They’re called custom for a reason after all.
That means, as long as companies will need their tasks solved, simplified, or automated, new unique software solutions will emerge. So, order the program of your dreams now, and watch the efficiency rates rise to the sky.
