The world shifts and changes daily. With it changes the essence of the word “business”. In the past, it may have referred to brick-and-mortar companies only, but now it incorporates the online businesses too.
Nowadays, all organizations have at least some presence on the Internet. It is based on both the demand of the market and consumers, as well as the opportunities that became available with the growing influence of the World Wide Web.
You may have noticed a drastic increase in the number of online shops, apps, and personal blogs. But how are they made if the majority of people behind those projects do not know to code?
Easy.
There are hundreds, if not thousands, companies providing software development services to businesses and individuals. Their pricing and services vary based on many factors and methods of operation and can accommodate any taste and budget.
How do you choose the best out of them? Which one will fit your project best? Is what company you are cooperating with really that important? Don’t worry, we will answer all your questions soon. But first, let’s talk about the importance of making the right choice.
Absolutely!
You may think any company that provides software development services can do the job. But choosing the company that would fit your project, its requirements, work style, and expectations best is detrimental. It will not only help you complete the project easier but also create a scalable project that will maximize the benefits of the project later on.
Working with a company that does not fully embrace the project will result in a bad experience. They might mess up the project, creating something completely opposite to what you wanted. Or they may just think of short-term benefits, ignoring the long-term goals, and creating a non-scalable product, which you will have to base your business model on.
Approaching the right company is what will determine if the product will be a market-changer or a failure, dragging you down. So here’s what you should look for in the software development company if you want to make the right choice.
There are many factors you need to take into account when choosing a software development company. To help you, we have picked the aspects you should pay the most attention to when deciding which company to cooperate with.
Here are the important things to take into account:
We will go through each of them, to make sure by the end of this article you can choose the company to work all by yourself. Let’s start!
How the company presents itself is really important. Today’s market is fierce and competitive, requiring more and more efforts to fight the market noise.
Look at the branding of the company – its logo, website design, colors. How it expresses itself is essential. It shows how it will treat its client and how prepared it is to start a new “relationship” with you.
Colors and logo will help you understand how the company wants to position itself: the warm colors communicate friendliness; the darker colors might indicate they value professionalism and reliability in providing software development services. The company’s branding will let you instantly identify its approach and decide if they are what you have been looking for and whether you should cooperate with them.
Arguably the most important factor will be finding out if the company provides the services you are looking for.
If a company is providing software development services, it does not mean it is all-powerful. Some of them focus on an aspect of the market they are the most experienced in.
Here are some services a company may want to specialize in:
There are, of course, many other services and each of these have subcategories of its own. But knowing at least what the company works on generally will make it easier to find the right one. There are also enterprise software development companies that will get everything you need in all the spheres with ease, but they are usually too expensive for small and medium businesses.
Well, this point is self-explanatory. You should go through the portfolio of the company to figure out how they have completed other projects. It will shed some light on the project types the company prefers and its capabilities.
You should definitely look for projects similar to yours, either by the market or by the scale. They will most probably mention a timeframe. And having a better idea about the deadlines have hurt no one.
A portfolio is like a signature for a development company – it reflects the true face and skill of the team. It is better than just describing the project with words.
An important role in your decision-making should have the company’s software development process. Even if presented well, the company still needs to prove itself during the conversation with you.
Most probably they will provide you with a quote for the project and approximate pricing so you can decide upon it. Take this quote seriously and read through it thoroughly. It will open up new windows for cooperation.
Request some information about the software development tools and methodology the company uses. Are they using an agile software development method in their work? Will the product be based on a template or build from scratch?
Ask them to include time frames and deadlines. This is an essential point, as the product will not be ready for some time. It may affect your whole business model, and you might have to cease all your activities until a task is complete.
Next, learn more about the company’s customer support and how you can track the progress of the development. It can be done through various websites, services, and tools. One such project management tool is Trello. It is easy to coordinate and track the changes in the tasks.
If they do not have tracking software, ask for a contact person who will inform you about the changes and progress anytime you need. It will be more time consuming, but the reports will be more detailed.
And last, but not least, check out the pricing they offer for the completion of the task. If you have requested quotes from several companies for the same project, compare the pricing and timeframes to see how accurate and market-appropriate is the quote they have presented.
Always check if the company has a customer support team or not. Most of the companies have people who take care of the clients – be it a project manager, account manager, or even the business owner.
Customer care is crucial as, during the development process, you will definitely have questions and comments concerning the flow and deadlines. Not having a person who’s responsible for contacting you or responding to your messages will surely make things harder.
Many companies start cooperation without even thinking about how they will communicate with each other. Sometimes they just entrust their project to the outsourced company and forget about it till the last moment. But while it sounds great on paper, it might end up being a disaster.
Always update yourself on the recent changes and goals that have been achieved. Otherwise, you will get a strange project that you will have no idea how to work with.
Software development services are great but don’t forget to ask for more. The market is saturated, and companies often offer additional services to keep their potential clients from going to the competitors. Use it to your advantage!
Question them about UI/UX design possibilities. Most of the companies have a dedicated designer to create the interface of the product you are looking for. However, some do not. Asking a question or two about this will help you understand the future steps.
Post-production maintenance is another feature that not all businesses might talk about. If they offer the services it means they will keep on troubleshooting the project even after it is complete. For them, it is more work, but for you, it means the team that has worked on the product before will be ready to make changes to it when needed.
The last perk, a software development company might offer is digital marketing services. As a bonus, some organizations provide online marketing services to their clients, usually, at the basic level. It means they might optimize the product for the search engines, set up an advertising campaign, or write content for your blog. It all depends on your request, so don’t be shy.
Following these steps and asking questions will do the trick. Just do a little research before deciding which company is worth investing your resources in.
Look through different software development companies and compare them before choosing THE one. The one you end up choosing should bring the most value to your project and organization.
Don’t feel bad about asking questions and adjusting everything to your plans. After all, you are the client – you are the king.
Maryam Israelyan
Ani Barseghyan
Maryam Israelyan
