One of the greatest benefits of having a custom software application built specifically for your business is that it is tailored to your needs and can grow alongside your business and be enhanced accordingly. However, once you’ve made the decision to build custom software you are also signing on to maintain it. Ensuring your software solution remains up-to-date is crucial to its success and security. Therefore, maintenance should be an important factor in the total cost of ownership when assessing your budget for a custom software solution.
The cost of updates is determined in part by how your software is built in the first place. If your software is well-constructed, it should be able to be updated, upgraded and expanded modularly on a regular basis without too much cost. In our current technological climate a well-built system typically lasts 7-10 years before it has to be rebuilt.
Types of Maintenance:
- Changes in your business needs: As your business evolves or customer demands change you will find those changes extend to your software as well.
- Updates in the system environment: As browsers and operating systems change over time minor updates will need to be performed to ensure your website or application continues to run smoothly and remains secure.
- Changes in policies and regulations: Sometimes it is neither the business nor technological landscape that necessitates updates but rather a change in regulations whether they be government or industrial.
Routine software updates typically consist of security vulnerability fixes, bug fixes, and product enhancements- all of which are important and contribute to the overall performance of your software.
Reasons to Update Your Software:
- Security: The most important reason to keep your systems and software up-to-date is security. There are flaws in every system and it is only a matter of time until those flaws become discovered. Even mammoth companies such as Apple and Google have flaws in their code and even have teams of hackers whose job is to hack their own products to find deficiencies before they can be taken advantage of. Ensuring that your running the current version of your operating system, browsers, SaaS applications and custom software all contribute to the security of your information.
- Smooth Operations: Without updates software tends to get buggy. This can become extremely frustrating for all users and undermine the software’s intended purpose; to make life easier.
- New Features: In order to maintain a competitive edge and satisfy your users, whether they be staff or customers, you’ll want your software to have the best features possible.
At Gravit-e the relationship doesn’t end once your software project is complete. We continue to make our development services available to update and upgrade your software to ensure optimal performance. We offer an array of maintenance packages that act as retainers to ensure that we set aside a specific amount of time each month to dedicate to your project. Contact us today to get started and grow.