Why a “ready-made solution” is often more expensive than a full technical specification

Why a “ready-made solution” is often more expensive than a full technical specification

When a business chooses between a ready-made solution and development with detailed technical specifications, it often seems that ready-made products save money. But is this really so? At JimmyNeuron, we often see how a client has doubts, but in the end chooses development according to specifications, which turns out to be more profitable than a ready-made solution. Why? We'll tell you in this article.

“Boxed” solutions do not always suit specific business tasks

In the development field, a ready-made solution is a pre-developed product (program, website, system) that can be immediately implemented and used without additional changes. This solution does not require design, configuration or coding from scratch - the product is immediately available for use. For example, it allows you to launch a website in days, not months) and start working immediately. Includes a standard visual and a basic set of features suitable for typical tasks. In addition, a ready-made solution is usually cheaper than custom development.

But there is a nuance: versatility sometimes plays a cruel joke. Such solutions are aimed at the “average” user. As a result, you may find that you are missing some important features or lack the ability to show off your personality.

For example:

• You bought a ready-made CRM system, but it can’t generate the reports you need or doesn’t connect with other services you use. Then you will either have to pay extra for modifications or buy additional services - and these are extra expenses.
• You bought a ready-made online store in order to quickly appear online and start selling online, and then you found out that the purchased template is aimed at selling components for special equipment, while you sell flowers. From a mechanical point of view, everything works as it should, but visually...

Each company is a separate world with its own processes and features. Ready-made solutions usually offer standard work patterns that may not suit you. And you will either have to change your processes to fit a ready-made solution, which can reduce work efficiency, or spend money and time adapting the product for yourself.

A ready-made solution is difficult to customize

If you want your product to reflect your brand's personality, an off-the-shelf solution may not be suitable. Such products rarely provide wide opportunities for customization - which means your website or application may look too “standard” and not attract customers.

When you develop a product according to specifications, you can take into account all the details - from design to user experience. This will further help attract and retain customers. For example, there are many ready-made solutions like IIko or 1C, but we chose to make a custom mechanism for the customer’s processes. But more on that another time.

Growing problems

The business is growing, and the ready-made solution may turn out to be too “rigid” and unable to expand. As a result, when you need new features or functionality, you will either have to look for another solution or pay for an expensive upgrade.

For example, implement complex telephony processing mechanics or connect the UKEP module for internal document flow within a closed loop.

If implemented in addition to a ready-made solution, this can be very expensive, because It is far from certain that the architecture contains the necessary parameters for integration.

If you initially develop a product according to specifications, then you can build into it the possibility of scaling - take into account that the company will grow, and the system must be ready to increase the load.

Unexpected expenses

At first, a ready-made solution may seem cheap, but then you may face additional costs:

• payment for more advanced functions (the same UKEP mechanism);
• money to connect the product with other systems (telephony connection);
• costs of training employees to work with the limitations of a ready-made solution (ready-made solution = ready-made processes, remember this);
• losses due to the fact that the solution does not quite fit your processes.

Developer dependency

With a ready-made solution, you are completely dependent on the developer: if he stops supporting the product or sharply raises prices, you could have serious problems.

One of our recent cases - a client came with an expired license for a template from one well-known integrator of ready-made solutions. Since the license was not renewed for several years, the security mechanisms of the ready-made solution were not updated, which ultimately led to a large number of different vulnerabilities and constant attacks on the site by bots. A relatively cheap off-the-shelf solution turned into one big vulnerability in just a few years.

And if you are developing a product according to specifications, you may have access to the source code - and you will be able to more flexibly resolve issues of support and updates. Or choose a reliable contractor to further support the project.

Benefits in the long run

Yes, development according to technical specifications may cost more at the first stage. But in the future it can save you a lot of money and time:

• business processes will become more efficient;

• you won’t have to spend money on improvements and integration of third-party services (or you will still have to, but in a much smaller volume);

• It will be easier to adapt to changes in the market.

Choosing between a ready-made solution and development according to specifications means choosing between speed and individual business needs. Off-the-shelf solutions may seem attractive due to a low initial price, but can end up costing more and limiting growth. And development according to specifications will help you create a product that will work exactly as you need and contribute to the growth of your business.

You can choose an option that is convenient for your project, and we are ready to help - we will analyze your goals, deadlines, budget and offer the optimal solution.