Custom software development is the process of designing, developing, and deploying a bespoke software program designed to meet the needs of a specific customer. In contrast, organizations have the option to buy off-the-shelf commercial software packages that are designed to meet a very broad set of requirements within one or multiple areas of a business, and hence can be sold en mass in the market. Dynamic 365 and WordPress are examples of commercially available off-the-shelf solutions in the market.
Off-the-shelf software products are ideal to meet the common similar needs of multiple customers whereas, custom software development helps an organization boost its productivity and meet demands that are unique to their specific business model, products, and services.
Custom software can be either developed by an in-house team or can be outsourced to a third-party software development firm. The development process of bespoke software is the same as any other software product. Starting of project outline and documentation of the required features and functionality, UI design and workflows, coding, testing, and final deployment followed by maintenance and regular updates.
The biggest advantage of custom software development is that you can include the latest functionalities and features that can help you get a competitive edge over your competitors. Whereas, for an off-the-shelf solution it depends on the software publisher whether they will release new and latest functionalities and features and at what rate will they be updating their product.
Bespoke development can include creating a software product from the scratch or modifying and customizing an already available open-source software or code.