Finding a reliable software developer and your Ideal Bespoke Programming Milton Keynes company is more difficult than you may think. The market is saturated with agencies and freelancers that make extravagant promises. Without a technical background, it can be very hard to determine who is worth your time and your budget. We’ve put together this guide to help business owners, project managers, and decision makers that are starting from scratch, or who have been scorned in the past, to help them make a more informed decision.

What is Bespoke Programming?

As a client, it is important to know what it is you are purchasing. The “Shopify”s and “Xero”s of the world, as well as your basic CRM, are all mass-produced programs that have been built to satisfy the general population. Bespoke programming, however, is built specifically for you and your company’s specific processes and your employees.

This can manifest as a custom client portal, stock management systems, reporting automation and intra-systems API integrations. Unlike the mass-produced programs that have been built with the general population in mind, bespoke programming is built with you in mind.

When it comes to choice of bespoke programming companies in Milton Keynes, you are in luck. Milton Keynes is home to a surprisingly large tech cluster thanks in part to The Open University and it’s proximity to London at more affordable prices. There is a lot of talent, but unfortunately, the quality is all over the place.

Key Questions to Ask

Can you show projects similar to mine?

A portfolio is not enough. What matters is whether any of that work resembles your industry, your scale, or your technical requirements. Someone who has built marketing websites for years is probably not the right choice for your complicated data processing application, even if the websites look fantastic.

What happens during scope creep?

This is where many projects fail. You agree on a scope, work begins, and the requirements inevitably change. How are you going to charge for changes in scope? A good company is going to have a clear answer to this. No answer is a red flag.

Who is actually doing the coding?

A lot of agencies will have a senior developer in a role that essentially sells the company, but will really have juniors or an offshore team do the work. Neither of these situations is a problem, but you need to know who is going to be doing the work and what the oversight is going to be. Just ask.

What is your level of support after going live?

Software is not a buy it and forget situation. Bugs crop up, browsers change, and your business needs may evolve. What an honest supplier of custom programming services should be able to tell you is what ongoing support would look if you purchased their service, such as a retaining, support contract, or buy as you need, hours.

What’s a Realistic Budget?

Custom work is more expensive than packaged work because it requires more time and more skills to complete work from scratch. If you get a quote and it looks suspiciously cheap, it’s worth asking about it. Something is getting cut, and most common places to cut are in testing, documentation, or in the code that underlines the work as quality.

However, ‘expensive’ doesn’t mean quality ‘good’. There are many companies that charge a high amount, yet provide a poor quality service. It is best practice to get as many quotes as possible, and ensure that the wording and priority in the quotes are equal, to ensure you are making fair comparisons.

Does it Help to Use a Local vs Remote Provider?

Dealing with local vs. remote providers has gotten easier over the years. Many of the development tasks that take place stay the same over distance. Still, there are certain valid reasons to justify using a local provider against a remote provider. Some of the more useful workshops at the beginning of a project need to be more in person, and there is a greater value to using a local provider in times of need greater than what a remote provider can.

There is more than enough activity in Milton Keynes to justify using a local provider, but even more important than distance is being the best provider. Having the best provider is more important than being a local provider, especially if the local provider is only a short distance away.

What Most People Fail to Realise

To ensure a project is a success, there are two skills that must be combined, and that is a combination of a technical skill and a communication skill. The development that results from employing the best developers is a development of a product that actually meets the customers need. These developers are the ones who prioritise asking the most appropriate questions, but they are also the ones who will tell you when everything is in order and they will make the effort to ensure you see.

While assessing bespoke programming providers in Milton Keynes, notice their communication style during sales. It gives you an idea of their working style when you’re three months in and things have taken a turn.

The best provider may not always be the biggest, the cheapest, or the one with the best website. They understand your issue and have the proven experience to effectively address it.