How to Save Costs on Custom Software Development for Startups

If your organization designs, develops, and maintains software from scratch, based on a specific set of prescribed requirements provided by the client, then that’s custom software development. For example, developing a mobile banking app that meets the unique requirements of banks and their customers.

Every software development company especially startups will have a challenging question on custom software development, i.e., How much it cost? Custom software development costs may appear extremely high for startups with a tight budget. In reality, it is not as desperate as we think.

There are several ways to reduce the custom software development costs and we may need to take these necessary steps to ensure the project is successful and within budget.

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Different ways to minimize the costs of custom software development

1. Strategic planning

The most crucial step in any project is crafting a plan and sticking to it. It’s a huge risk for start-ups to dive into custom software development projects without good planning. One should always keep a look at the big picture and should not neglect important project details that may keep your startup away from success.

The first step in planning is to make sure what features we need in the software and how these features will benefit the end users. This will help avoid unexpected costs.

Also having a realistic budget in place helps determine the expense at each stage of the project and can ensure that you stay within the budget. In addition to this

• Define the project scope, what you’re trying to build, and why you’re trying to build it.
• Ascertain the needs of the target users through surveys.
• List down the core features that are required to be in the project
• In-depth research on market and business and market requirements
• Define the objective of the project and keep in mind the product, brand and financial goals.
• Plan the priority areas to be implemented to reach the target faster
• Identify areas where the custom software costs can be reduced.
• Once after defining the objectives, track its progress using KPIs and Metrics. This will help you understand whether your project is on track.

2. Build MVP

MVP refers to a Minimum Viable Product where the product is built with only the core features to attract customers and validate the product in the early product development cycle. This is done in order to save money and provide the customers with a working product with core features.

Developing a minimum viable product is an effective and feasible option for startups to cut down the development costs for custom software.

The advantages of building an MVP are

• Cost reduction
• Shorter Time to Market

Since you develop your product with minimum functionality, the development team requires less time to complete it and the cost of the service is less expensive. This will empower organizations to release software to the customers in a quicker time. Hence you will be able to get an idea of whether you are on the right track or should you need to change something to satisfy your customers at an early stage

3. Utilize Open-source software

Using Open source software is a good idea to save money. There are several open source software and it can be customized based on needs. Most of these software are constantly reviewed by the developer community, hence it is safe to use and allows you to collaborate with the other developers.

4. Go Agile

Agile is an iterative approach where application is created and delivered to the customers more quickly and efficiently. Agile gives greater flexibility and helps in cost reduction.

• Flexibility

Developers work in small increments and deliver value to the customers much faster. The agile approach always leaves room for change, hence the product can be changed quickly to adapt to the changes in the market.

• Cost reduction:

Custom software development costs can be significantly reduced by evaluating the product regularly and by receiving frequent feedback on the developed product from the customers. This helps startups to engage the team only in developing the required features. This helps to avoid developing unnecessary features which in turn avoids paying extra money

• Risk Mitigation:

Agile helps in early risk identification so that it can be tackled at the beginning stage.

• Shorter Time to Market:

Agile allows adapting quickly to market changes and delivery of the product in a shorter period.

• Monitor progress:

Regularly monitoring progress helps your startup to make sure the project is on track and to be aware of issues and delays in the delivery. It also helps to make sure the product standards are met.

5. Team Building

Forming an In-house development team requires hiring professionals for various tasks such as project managers, business analysts, developers, testers, etc. Even though, an in-house development team provides greater engagement in the project, forming a team with diverse expertise is a costly affair.

Outsourcing is an excellent option to employ a diverse talent pool from around the world. Building a development team in a low-cost country and using a time and material model will further help in cost reduction

Conclusion

Sticking to the right plan, building the right team, focusing on the right features, making use of open-source software, and tracking the progress regularly can ensure that the project goes on a success track and is cost-effective. Hence startups should always balance the cost and choose the best stack to develop world-class software solutions.

For more information on how to arrive at the best custom software development solutions, reach out to www.payoda.com.

Author: Suchitrha Sudesh