The Key Benefits of Custom App Development For Businesses

Today’s digital landscape beckons businesses, big and small, to partner with custom web application development companies that offer tailored solutions using the latest technologies. 

Gone are the days when only large corporations and enterprises sought custom applications for their businesses. In fact, most businesses today start talking about the potential for custom-built web and mobile apps around the same time they think about branding or product scope. 

So what changed and why? And what does this mean for the future of small and medium businesses?

In this article, we’re delving deep into the world of custom web application development.

Custom Web App Development In The Era Of Personalization

The truth is, off-the-shelf solutions don’t cut it anymore. Especially when it comes to technology, the argument of affordability and cost-savings is no longer appealing to those invested in long-term growth and systematic success. Businesses today understand that the only way to stay in the game is to offer exactly what their users are craving – personalized app experience. 

Most of the large corporates realized this a long time ago and approached custom web application development companies to help leverage their user data and market research to build platforms from scratch that truly resonate with their customers (or employees for that matter). 

However, today we see even SMEs investing in custom applications right from the start, as they have learned just how valuable it is to build the right assets and infrastructure that support growth. Building web and mobile applications that offer high level of customization, be modified dynamically in response to changing market needs, and are highly secure and fast, is the key to staying ahead of competition in this digital-first world.

What is Custom Web Application Development?

To put it simply, custom web application development is a process of creating tailor-made 

digital platforms or solutions that meet the specific requirements of a business or its various stakeholders. Unlike off-the-shelf software solutions that are created keeping in mind the requirements of a larger, more diverse audience, custom-built apps cater to only a single set of business requirements. 

A common example of a custom web application is an employee CRM application built by large businesses. Creating a bespoke workflow solution that optimizes work productivity and efficiency makes sense especially if you have hundreds and thousands of employees who need to be managed from multiple locations. 

However, today you can see examples of custom web applications all around in the business world, even with the small and medium businesses, that believe in innovating and staying relevant to their user groups. From B2C e-commerce app development to cutting-edge web and mobile app development for B2B services, customization is paving the way for digitalization.

Benefits of Custom Web App Development For Businesses

As the business community turns towards bespoke digital solutions, the demand for good software developers and engineers is constantly on the rise. It’s a pretty good time to be a custom web app development company right now – one that prioritizes problem-solving over pushing services, one that is invested in building a resource pool that has expertise in latest technologies, and one that is not afraid to question the status quo and re-invent itself according to market requirements. 

Partnering with such a web and mobile app development company is probably one of the best strategic decisions that a small or growing business can make. Apart from being able to offer tailor-made solutions that are effective and cater to your specific requirements, there are other benefits to choosing custom web application development for businesses. Let’s explore some of them here.

Optimize Resource Utilization, Become More Productive

The most successful businesses are the ones that have processes that increase their productivity and optimize the utilization of their resources. Custom web applications can go one step further and streamline these processes, making them more effective. Customization allows you to automate routine tasks, eliminate unnecessary functionalities (that often come along with generic software), and help you keep a closer watch on performance metrics that matter most to you. 

For instance, a hardware business that also has both a brick-and-mortar chain as well as an online store, could get a custom inventory management application that keeps track of stock, alerts the brick-and-mortar managers when they run low, and automatically updates the information for their online customers. Such a system not only saves time on manual stock checks but also allows for uninterrupted operations by giving the business enough time to be prepared for peak sales hours.

Offers Better Scalability and Flexibility 

Of the many factors that limit the growth of any business, an important one is limited technological infrastructure. Here, custom web application development offers the best solution. They are inherently scalable and can grow with your business as it evolves. The flexibility to expand functionalities as and when required is one that empowers businesses to take the next big steps and cater to larger audiences. 

Think of a trucking company that offers vehicles on lease. As the business grows and acquires more trucks, more contracts, and expands its routes, it will need an application to manage its fleet, resources, contract renewals, geographical compliance documents, and resources. Building a custom web app that can be used by the drivers, the maintenance team, the project managers, and regional managers, helps the company keep track of its costs and income while identifying growth opportunities.

Get The Competitive Advantage

Today, almost every business is a software business, and the competition is pretty fierce. In such a scenario, custom web application development offers a significant competitive advantage. Customization allows you to work with features that make your solution or service distinct from others in the same industry. Even if you’re offering a solution that is exactly the same as others, a custom web app development company can work with your team to create a unique user experience for your customers, giving them more reasons to stay with you. This is particularly beneficial if you’re a small or medium-sized business that has to rely heavily on customer satisfaction and loyalty to compete against the larger players in the market.

Frictionless Integration With Your Business Ecosystem 

So maybe you started your business with a set of digital tools, processes, and platforms that have been working fine until you have to scale. In such a scenario, finding a generic web application that can be integrated flawlessly with your system of tools and databases can be a challenge. Here custom web application development companies can help you by designing platforms using technologies that fit into your business ecosystem like a glove. 

Custom web applications are the ideal solution for businesses that have to deal with multiple CRMs, ERPs, or data analytics tools due to regulatory or compliance requirements. A tailor-made solution ensures there’s no data loss, security gaps, or efficiency issues while switching to larger platforms that can support your growing business.

Puts Your Data To Better Use

Businesses today are becoming more data-driven than ever before. With the right set of tools for collection, analysis, and reporting, leaders can make strategic business decisions based on their customer behavior, market trends, and changes in socio-political arena that have the potential to impact the industry. Admittedly, there is some level of data analytics skill involved in such activities. But with custom web application development, even smaller businesses can streamline their data collection, management, and reporting to a large extent.

By integrating analytics and reporting tools, custom applications have made it possible for even smaller companies to leverage insights from years of unfiltered data to open up new business opportunities, or optimize existing operational channels.

Get On-Going Support and Maintenance 

Unlike software companies that sell generic applications, custom web app development companies usually provide direct access to their technical and support team, and make sure that your platform is continuously monitored for any bugs or upgrades. This allows you to focus on the more important aspects of your business and leave the technical maintenance side of operations to them. Not only is this time-saving, but it also means you can save on IT support staff hiring and management costs.

Steps in a Successful Custom Web App Development Process

Every custom web application development company will have its own process for building successful solutions, tailored to their clients. However, there are a few basic steps that almost everyone has to follow to make their application relevant, reliable, and market ready. Here’s an overview of the 4 essential steps that companies must cover in order to create custom web and mobile applications.

Step 1: Requirement Gathering and Planning 

The first step is to get a thorough understanding of business requirements and client expectations. This is achieved through information-gathering sessions focused on understanding the problems being addressed and identifying the target audience. Based on your team’s responses and data collected from market research and internal databases, the app development company will then define the scope of work, the timeline for completion, and the financials required. 

Step 2: Design and Prototyping

At the next stage, the development team will ideate and offer an app concept and design, which will then be presented to you for approval. If the concept sounds solid, they will move forward to create a prototype that allows you to see and interact with it.

Step 3: Development

Step three involves the actual development and will begin only after you give the go-ahead on the prototype. The entire development process could in itself be broken down into phases based on the complexity of the project and the number of features to be included. Web and app development companies usually depend on project management tools to ensure the development is progressing promptly. Such tools allow you to get a proper understanding of the process and track the work being done.

Step 4: Test and Deploy

Testing is the next step in the development process. Most application development companies follow an Agile-DevOps methodology, in which testing and development happen more or less parallelly. This allows developers to understand the issues in real-time and keep improving on them without waiting to finish the entire app development. Once the QA team gives the green, the application is shared with your team for their final review. In most cases, the client also gets a round of testing done by its stakeholders and a select user group. It is only after clearing multiple rounds of tests that the custom web application is finally released to the market.

Custom Web Application Development At Expeed Software

As one of the leading custom web application development companies in Ohio, Expeed stands out as a true technology partner that can offer businesses the right guidance and support for building reliable software solutions.  At Expeed, we bring expertise, innovation, and a customer-focused approach to the table. Our team of experienced consultants will work closely with you to understand your business objectives, challenges, and expertise. We know that no two businesses are the same. So, whether it’s a bespoke e-commerce platform, an intricate CRM system, or an efficient project management tool, our solutions are designed to fit your business like a glove.

We follow an Agile methodology and believe in continuous collaboration with our clients. What it means is that you’ll always be in the loop throughout the development process, taking your feedback and suggestions along the way, and making sure that the final product truly reflects your vision and exceeds your expectations in terms of performance and efficiency. We also believe in fostering long-term relationships with our clients. One of the reasons why many businesses see us as a trusted custom web app development company is our commitment to quality as well as our excellent post-deployment support and maintenance.