Will custom software integrate into my current systems?

Does your custom software company have a plan to deploy your new bespoke software?

Chances are, when you started your business, you didn’t have a big budget for any custom software.

Which meant you invested your budget as best you could on commercial alternatives which, while maybe not ideal, did the job you needed them to do in the early days.

But as your business grew and your processes got a bit more complicated, you realised that now might be the time to invest in custom software development.

It might be software that will help you solve a particular problem.

Or it might be custom software that will be deployed across your business.

Whatever the situation is, you have one question (at least one, anyway).

Will custom software integrate into the software and systems I already have?

In this blog we’ll run you through the issues and questions you have about integrating custom software into your business so you can feel more confident about making a decision.

Integrating custom software into your current commercial software.

Unless you’re planning a complete overhaul of your business’ software stack, whatever custom software you bring in, won’t be the only software you have.

Which means it needs to work alongside your current software.

Maybe you need some software to bridge a gap between your website and customer service teams.

Or you’re trying to streamline your accounting function or the way you take payments.

The key is to not think about your custom software in isolation.

Start by auditing the software you already have.

This way you can identify exactly what the problem is, and how custom software can solve it.

Once you understand the problem, your custom software developer can ensure that your new software can fit seamlessly with what you already have, rather than adding to your problems.

If you go into this process blind, assuming just because your new software is custom it will work, you could end up creating more problems for yourself.

Integrating custom software into your business processes

What is the process your business follows to complete certain tasks?

Are these processes followed properly? By everyone?

Do some employees follow different processes because they find it easier to work in a certain way?

Are there particular, and regular, problems that come up in the way you work?

These are all things you need to consider when investigating custom software.

Remember, custom software is meant to make your life as a business owner or manager easier.

If it doesn’t do that, it isn’t working.

So, look closely at how your processes currently make your life harder than it should be.

These are the areas you could use custom software.

Now you can start to work out if it’s a viable option for your company.

Integrating custom software into your business (your employees)

This is usually the bit that gets overlooked by businesses investing in custom software.

And it’s also the number one reason most custom software development projects fail.

When employees aren’t bought into the process, and have had no input into the project until it’s already been deployed.

Don’t forget, your employees are the “front line” of your company.

They’re the ones who have most contact with your current software and your processes.

They’re the ones having to work around your software or processes, which creates gaps in your processes, which impacts how you work.

If you want your custom software development plan to work, involve your team from the beginning and make sure they are bought into the process.

You’ll not only get more insight that will help guide the development of your bespoke software, but you’ll also get them to understand why you’re making changes, what the benefits of those changes are, and how it will make their lives easier.

Get help from a custom software developer

We’ve helped businesses of all sizes across all industries integrate custom software into their company.

Whether it was integrating software for a particular task, or overhauling their software stack from the ground up.

If you want to talk to us about how we could help you with your bespoke software requirements, get in touch with a member of the team and let’s see how we can help you.