Difference between generic software products and custom software development?

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The software industry has seen unprecedented growth with the growing dependence of people on software for their daily purposes like entertainment, gaming, finance, accounting, banking, health and much more. In this regard, software development companies in USA have taken advantage of this demand and have provided valuable and user-friendly software.


Most of them are involved in custom software development. However, the generic software product is still used in businesses all over the world. So, what’s the exact difference between generic software products and custom software development?

Well, in defining this difference, it is necessary to define what generic and custom software really is.

Generic Software

Generic software product can easily be defined as a stand-alone systems which are developed for an open market, and their development is controlled by the various development organizations.

Custom Software

Custom software can easily be defined as commissioned systems developed by a specific customer, and the development is controlled by the organization of the customer.

Now that we have defined both of them in brief, a comparison between both of them is that generic software product development differs from the custom software development majorly in the intended and targeted users as well as functions developed for those users which will be inculcated within the software. Let’s now define what generic product development and custom software development are in order to compare them further.

Generic Software Development

It is actually undertaken by the business which owns the corresponding resulting product. Generally, this particular product has an actual and reliable requirement in the market developed over a time period and is fit for most of the company needs. Also, full stack web development services develop generic software at their own expense and then set is as a premium product to the customers. Then this particular generic software is finally ready, set to utilization and also available in the market.

Custom Software Development

It is essentially done as a custom development or work-for-hire project for a given client. The list of all of the requirements, along with the idea of the product, as well as need and money for development, are provided by the client or customer. Generally, it certainly takes quite a long time to develop a good custom software product.

Now, let’s discuss the difference between generic software product and custom software development.

Difference between Custom software development and Generic software product development

Since customized software offers functionalities that meet the business requirements, it is proved to be much more useful in comparison to any generic software product. It is vital for a software product development company to know these essential differences between both. Let’s compare the requirements, features, and characteristics of custom software with a generic software product.

1. Use Exclusiveness

a. When it comes to exclusiveness, the generic software product is developed for the open market.

b. In the case of exclusiveness for custom software, it is a one-of-a-kind system solution developed for a particular client.

2. Requirements and Updates

a. In the case of generic software, updates are carried out as per a particular plan which is defined by the requirements of the market. Also, a generic product is essentially made as per future updates.

b. In the case of custom software, the changes and updates are done whenever the customer or client needs them. The requirement of the customer can easily be fulfilled when the customer actually asks for it. Custom software is essentially made as per the time, budget as well as the needs which are defined by the client.

3. Control

The major and crucial difference between both of them is control over the entire development process.

a. In generic software product development, the development is controlled by the corresponding software development company.
Even though the client actually acquires a license in order to utilize the software, the product owner can always make any changes and even remove a few features which may be useful for the client.

b. In the case of custom software development, the process is controlled by the client or customer. Only the customer has the decision-making authority on what to do with the developed product.

4. Development Cost
a. When it comes to cost, a generic software or off-the-shelf software is generally affordable. However, there might be a few hidden costs. For instance, you may have to pay extra costs to implement the software and also set it up.

b. In the case of custom software or the tailor-made software, the cost can be quite high since the customer is getting a unique product. However, a competitive advantage that the customer acquires over its competitors certainly outweighs the heavy investments made in its development.

5. Total Number of Functions

a. Generic software generally consists as many functions as it can because of its vast usage. For this particular reason, these functions are essentially made quite simple. However, at the same time, the customer may hardly ever use most of these functions.

b. Custom software development is actually focused on the features which are required by the customer. It is certainly less user-friendly than the generic one. But for a particular specific kind of user for which it is made, it is quite obvious how to deal with the custom software exactly.

6. Functionality

a. In the case of generic software, it has the functionality which is designed to solve a specific and particular problem for different entities in that given vertical.

b. In the case of custom software, it has the functionality which is made to resolve a problem for a given specific entity.

7. Architecture

a. In terms of scalability, generic software should be highly scalable. Products might need to actually pivot during the lifecycle according to the business requirements of full stack web development services.

b. In the case of custom software, the architecture has to be balanced between the current client’s actual requirements and scalability.

Conclusion

With the advent of the digital age, the software industry has witnessed growth by leaps and bounds. Generic software has become the mainstay of many businesses and people’s lives too. However, custom software development has picked up the pace with software development companies in USA bringing the latest products which are targeted to the latest requirements of specific users.

In the end, it is essential to remember that if you choose the right software product development company, you can certainly achieve highly cost-effective services as well as timely deployment along with dependable support. Also, you will even get updates whenever you require them and also receive the user satisfaction that you deservedly desire. The difference between generic software product and custom software development will make it easier for you to choose which type of software will be better for your business.

Source: https://dev.to/chirag191094/difference-between-generic-software-products-and-custom-software-development-13bh

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