How To Choose A Software Development Company - Simplified [2024]

To start a digital business that relies on software, it is important to understand how to choose a software development company. Software companies offer a wide range of services, from small projects to large projects. They try to satisfy clients with the support and software they develop.

Thousands of applications exist in the software market. But when an individual or a company wants to solve their own way or use their own choice, a custom application needs to be developed. For this need, they have to choose a software development company. This blog provides all the necessary information you need to know regarding custom software development and how to choose a software development company for success.

What is Software Development?

Software development is the process of designing, coding, installing, and maintaining a new application for a new or existing system. 

A company or individual can get many benefits from this type of software. Software development needs good investment and time. There are many IT companies that provide custom software development and IT Services. A company should have a precise goal for building custom software; otherwise, the investment may be a total loss.

Examples of custom software:

E-commerce software - e-commerce software allows users to buy and sell online from an online marketplace. Amazon is a good example of custom e-commerce software.

LMS software: A learning management system is a software for creating an online learning platform. Udemy, Coursera, and LinkedIn Learning are examples built with custom LMS software.

The key difference between off-the-shelf software and custom software:

When deciding on software for your company, there are two options to pick from - off-the-shelf software and custom software.

Off-the-shelf software forces your business to adapt to its capabilities, whereas custom software meets your needs. Custom software is designed to meet the specific needs of your business, unlike off-the-shelf software designed for a wide range of customers.

Benefits of Custom Software Development

Custom software provides numerous benefits for individuals or businesses. Below are the top benefits of custom software and reasons why custom software is developed for.

1. Solve Specific Needs

When a company can meet its specific needs, it sees growth. There are many working variations within the same industry, so the requirements are not always the same. Every company wants something new, something unique to meet its business goal. Custom-developed software gives users what specific function they need, no matter whether the need is big or small.

2. Better Business Performance

Custom software helps to improve existing working processes. People are creating custom software to optimize a company's working procedure. When the quality of working processes increases, the company's performance also increases.

3. Provide the Best Security

In today's digital world, security is a big concern. Nobody wants a vulnerable application for their organization. Secure software protects a company's data like - employees' personal data, financial data, business strategies, ideas for new campaigns, and many more. Custom software can provide all the security features you want to include.

4. Easier Integration

Custom software is built with the necessary integration capability for a company's existing software. A company can run without interruption when custom software is installed with the system—moreover, easy and fast integration help to increase company efficiency.

5. Total Control

Organizations can fully control their business with custom-developed software. They can update and further customize the application whenever needed. This helps a company to provide updated services or production. Thus a company can survive in the competitive market.

6. KPI tracking

Custom software for HR can help measure the KPIs (key performance indicators). It helps to evaluate the organization's and employees' performance. You can discover insights to improve business operations and measure progress toward specific goals by tracking KPIs.

7. Automation

Custom software can also help automate your specific task. The task is done accurately and effectively when it is automated. So, you do not have to do repetitive tasks manually and worry about human error. This custom software helps to complete a task more efficiently than a person can.

Ways of Developing Custom Software

It takes a team to develop custom software. There are a few options you can choose from when deciding who is going to build your software solution. You can build a freelance team, hire an internal development team or work with an agency. These are the common ways how custom software is developed.

i) Freelance team

Freelancers are self-employed people who sell their specific skill sets. You can hire UI/UX designers and front-end and back-end developers for your application development project. Hiring freelancers is a cost-effective option, but finding expert people may cost you some time. And if one freelancer stops working suddenly on a project, this may hamper the total teamwork.

ii) Internal team

An in-house development team is a team of experts that your company employs. To establish an internal development team, you must employ designers, developers, and project managers on a full- or part-time basis. It may be time-consuming and expensive to find professionals and decide on processes. You will have unnecessary resources if your company no longer requires this full department after finishing the project.

iii) Agency

Agency is the most chosen option for custom software development projects. An agency provides a particular service for another person or business. A software development agency team comprises project managers, designers, developers, and others.

Agency provides lower-cost long-term support for a company. Hiring an agency is the most cost-effective option for any application development because you can hire an agency only when needed.

How much does custom development cost?

Every custom development has its own challenges. There is no fixed cost for software development. It varies for a large, medium, or small company and how and which problem is solved.

Software development pricing depends on several factors. Here are some - 

i) Number of platforms

Your customer may use single or multiple devices - mobile, tablet, or desktop devices. Also, various operating systems are available for these devices, like Mac, Windows, Android, and iOS. The more devices you choose, the more cost for custom application development. Moreover, iOS software development is costlier than Android software development. So, it would be best to research which devices your customers are on or going to be on.

ii) Features

If you are creating an app for thousand web pages, that will be costlier than an app of a few pages. Software development cost also depends on the complexity of the features of those pages. Another thing is how often your new features are developed. For unknown and new features, it takes longer time than usual. So, it will cost more.

iii) Timeline

If you have an emergency or hurry, the development team has to complete work within a short period with more resources. Generally, this fast development costs more. Also, if there are bugs or you need improvement after completing development, you have to redo the task. That redo increases the development cost.

iv) Project management methodology

There are many methodologies for the working process of project management. The most common application development methodology is waterfall and agile.

Waterfall is a more traditional project management methodology where you plan from start to finish. You usually get to a pretty firm timeline and also budget when you start.

The alternative is agile, which is a more modern way of running projects where everything's broken up into a weekly to weekly sprint. You have to spend a budget on each step, and if you focus too much on the present step, you may have less budget for the final step. So, be careful if a company follows this strategy.

v) Update and Maintenance

Another major reason that affects the cost of software development is updates and maintenance. After a project has been deployed, you will need maintenance and also may need to update the feature of the front end over time. You may also need server support and user support from the development company. The longer the support is provided, the cost rises.

vi) Development Company

Usually, in first-world countries like USA or UK, software development companies charge more for a project than in the third-world country. Bangladesh, India, and Pakistan provide top-class software development services at a very reasonable prices. So, if you are hiring a development company from these countries, you will get the best quality software within a comparatively low budget.

vii) Technology Used for Development

Technology is evolving every day. If you want to build a custom application with the latest technology, then you have to go to the experts who are always updated with development technology. Updated technologies provide more stability and add value to a company. Hiring top software developers who know the updated software development technology will cost more because they are few in the market.

Reasons Why Software Development Projects Fail

A software development project can fail for many reasons, like any other big project. As the initial cost of developing custom software is high, one should focus on succeeding in the project.

Let's see the most common risk of custom software development and how to avoid them -

1. Not having focused business goals

At the beginning of a software development project, one should define the goals and project requirements. A manager should be aware of the context of the project so that the rest of the team gets clear direction.

For example, the UI/UX designer needs to know what features must be put on the landing page according to business needs.

Employees can do all project tasks accurately if the business goal is clear.

2. Wrong planning and deadline selection

If the goal is specific, then the plan can be appropriately prepared. The plan should include step-by-step working progress and working periods for each step so the project can be finished before the deadline.

The final project completion will see success if there is a step-by-step deadline. Otherwise, the software may have bugs or design issues.

Faulty software can not satisfy customers. So, to give the customer perfect software, a project manager should set periodic times for the whole project. This will also ensure no extra work, hence no additional pressure.

Proper planning and realistic deadline ensure all the employees are on the same page regarding the projects. Also, choosing the right project management tools can streamline workflows and enhance communication, ensuring that the project stays on schedule and meets quality standards.

3. Inarticulate communication between teams

The software development and product teams are essential throughout the custom software building. Requirements and priorities can change during the development of the software. These changes commonly happen in significant projects. So to keep themselves updated with the changes, employees should communicate with each other.

Fruitful communication can reduce revision time and ensure less budget is used. Open communication helps to make priority changes and work modifications.

4. Ineffective project management

Project managers and account managers are responsible for successful project completion.

Project managers of a customized software company deal with the company's internal communication. He can control and manage the software development process and design teams. The account manager does external communication.

Effective project management ensures the successful completion of the development project on time.

5. No user research before building software

People build software to solve a problem. So, knowing what customers want and how they want their problems solved is essential for a software development project.

Proper customer research helps to set constructive project objectives because the research can give data about the customers' behavior, demands, demographic information, and more.

Avoiding problem-creating factors should be the priority while working on a project. If one can avoid the problems, one can ensure that the project succeeds.

How to Choose a Software Development Company?

It is easy to find software companies, but choosing the suitable one for your business from the best software development companies is not easy. You can search on search engines like Google or Bing for "Software Development Company" and get many site listing blogs in the search engine results. Many software company websites are also ranked for this phrase. You can view those search results too.

Before choosing a top software development company for your new or existing project, consider these key points - 

1. Experience

The first thing to consider before choosing any custom software company is "Experience." Suppose the company has experience working with a similar type and sized company like yours; that is an advantage. Moreover, if the company has built the similar software you need, that will be great. A good company has experienced custom software developers.

A company that has worked before with a similar project knows the difficulties and overcomes ways well. So, get the information of the company experience before investing your valuable money in new software development. A company that has not built the similar software you need does not mean that it can not help you with the new required software development.

If the custom development company has the experience, your software development project will be quicker and easier.

2. Portfolio

To validate the working capabilities and experiences, you should review sample works or references of the software development company. If they do not have an online portfolio, get a hard copy from them. You can reach their previous clients and what social media or newspapers say about them. If they give a good review, you can choose them. Always cross-check what they are talking about and what they are providing.

Many companies create false working experiences and references. They are kind of spammy. Avoid them because this type of company will also be dishonest with your work.

3. Working Procedure

You may only know some of the technical terms. Still, you have to know at least the software resolution, how often they do update their software, what Software Framework (Django, AngularJS, Laravel, Vue.js, CodeIgniter) they are going to use, and the Software Version with changelogs, Compatible Browsers(IE10, IE11, Firefox, Safari, Opera, Chrome, Edge) for the software, what type of coding languages (JavaScript JS, HTML, CSS, PHP, SQL) are used, how often they do update their software and few more things.

If you have any existing software installed in your company and need another system to integrate, consider the upgrade capability. Understand their working procedure so that anyone in the company can maintain that software with compatibility in the future. And if you need fully new software for a new project, you should use the latest software framework and updated language.

A good software company provides proper software development documentation so a knowledgeable person can use or modify that software for necessary purposes. A good custom application development company always aims to provide efficient and cost-effective systems with integration capability.

Before contracting for software development, know the company's terms and conditions properly so you do not have to regret after contract signing. 

4. Stability of the Company

A company that has been working on this software development for a long period with a reputation has more chances to sustain itself in the future. This ensures after-development support and any further upgradation.

Check the company's financial statement, who is the board of directors and what they thought about the company's future growth so that you can ensure a stable custom development company for your precious project.

Many companies hide their financial data, and avoiding them is a good decision. Many companies also take huge investment risks by taking bank loans, which may risk their existence. You can also avoid such companies if they do not have enough risk management capability.

5. Assess company size

There are many companies where your software development project is a tiny piece of work according to their human resource. But they also have a lot of work. And when they have a lot of work, they may only care about some of the projects. Also, there is a chance of wrong output because of poor management.

You should choose a company where the development team understands and cares about your software development project. Many companies may take on new projects more than their current working force. This type of company can never give the best output. So, choose a company irrespective of how big or small their working force is.

The best custom software development company is where the current working force can complete your software development project efficiently until the final implementation.

6. Competencies

Developing custom software depends on more than just software developers individually. It depends on teamwork, the responsibility of each member involved in the project, and good decision-making also.

You have to understand your business needs properly and search for solutions.

Keep notes about what solution you want. If expert project managers are in a custom business software development company, your software will likely be built with quality and budget. Plan before and after hiring a custom application development company to identify every issue and idea that arises around the software development.

Ensure your software is developed for all the environments you want to use. Test the software for those environments and check if the software is up to mark.

7. Better communication

Though hiring a top custom application development company is business work, you have to spend a lot of time with them. If their behavior is good, you will feel more comfortable sharing your ideas, and if any further changes are needed, you can tell that without any hesitation. If you can reach them whenever needed and they respond very sincerely, which means they feel your needs.

If they really understand the importance of creating new software, they will try to deliver the best for you. So, connect with them as much as possible to realize the importance of your project to them.

8. Pricing of the Project

Finally, pricing is one of the elementary factors you must deal with carefully. You can hire hourly, monthly, or contract for full projects. Here pricing means the amount of money involved in every step of software development. You should negotiate each task involved in the software development project so that everything is clear during the working period.

Most companies take some money as advanced and the rest after work completion. This is good practice for both parties. Development companies feel motivated. It would help if you always choose the pricing model that works for you.

Bdtask - A Leading Software Development Company

Bdtask is an ISO-certified leading custom business software development company with over 10 years of experience. It has more than 100 top custom software developers working on various international projects. This company's software development services include FinTech, Healthcare, eCommerce, Automotive, Education, Real Estate, Hospitality, RMG, Pharmacy, Aviation, and many more. Bdtask has more than 10,000 happy clients from over 100 countries. You can see a glimpse of the Bdtask portfolio at the Codecanyon Elite Author profile.

Bdtask has very professional client support before and after software sales. Bdtask has its own design and marketing team too to support your business. People refer to software developed by Bdtask because all the projects are successful, and they are highly satisfied with the service.

• Company Name: Bdtask Limited
• Headquarters: B-25, Mannan Plaza,4th Floor, Khilkhet, Dhaka-1229, Bangladesh
• Founded: 2013
• Employees: 100-120
• Contact: +88-01817584639 | +88-01857675727
• Project Pricing: Not Fixed. After project discussion.
• Core Services: Business Solutions, Blockchain, Hotel & Restaurant, Ecommerce, Education, Health, News Portals, Online Reservations, and more.

Bdtask provides almost all types of software development company to provide web applications, mobile apps, white-label software, and SaaS software, UI-UX & Digital marketing service. If you are looking for any software development project or have business queries, you can contact Bdtask without hesitation.

Conclusion

In this article, we have discussed everything one should know before choosing a software development company and also provided guidelines for selecting one. Software solution ensures your company's success and growth. There is no alternative to software development if you want to survive in the competitive business world. Now that you know how to choose a software company, you can develop an application around the specific needs of your business from the best custom software development company.

Bdtask Limited has a long track record of successful software development. So, make the tough decision of choosing a software company easy and your investment fruitful by considering Bdtask Limited for your software development.