10 ways Software Development Consulting benefits your Business

A few days back, I was talking to a friend who is an entrepreneur planning to move his business to digital. He was telling me how he was researching the software domain, what it takes to become a digital entrepreneur, get a competitive advantage, etc. I asked him if he had hired a custom software development agency for consultants to help streamline the process. To my surprise, he said No and that he was getting all the information from the internet and several software entrepreneurship boot camps.

Now, while I am all pro for primary research, when it comes to something as vast as the software domain, there’s only so much that Google and courses can teach you. While it can get you an understanding of the best technologies and approaches, and high ROI marketing activities, a software development consulting firm will tell you the whys specific to your business, find plan Bs when the anticipated outcome is not reached, and make you a lean business.

The conversation I had with my friend made me realize that there are so many entrepreneurs who believe in going solo and not taking guidance from people who have been in the software business. And that made me feel how important it is to promote the need for partnering with a software development consulting company. This article has been a result of that realization.

I hope that by the time you reach the end, you would have an understanding of why it matters to partner with a software consulting company who has an experience of working with multiple brands and industries.

What is software development consulting?

Software consulting is an approach where the company’s software needs are analyzed and the best technology set is chosen to ensure high operation and delivery success. The software development consultants or firms provide technological solutions to the different problems a business faces, while also helping them create a roadmap of the digital journey.

They mostly come in useful for companies that have limited technical understanding and they need outside opinion when making business decisions, specially around the introduction of new technology or their existing system’s updation.

The roadmap of software development consulting

Software development is a multi-step process. It starts with the consulting agency getting an understanding of the client’s needs and market, and then building a product that would get them closer to achieving the goal, in addition to providing them with constant maintenance support.

On a stage-by-stage level, this is how the roadmap of a software development consulting process operates –

Discovery

It is impossible to initiate the creation of any sound software product without gathering an understanding of what the business does, the market it is targeting, and the approach to make the process efficient.

The idea of the discovery stage is that the consulting agency sits with the client’s team to get an understanding of how they operate, what they expect from the product, and how it translates into a technical architecture.

The result of this stage is often finalization of features, technology, and the development roadmap.

Design

At the back of the vision and features finalized in the previous stage, the app wireframe is prepared. This wireframe or prototype is a visual representation of the software and its many features, transitions.

These wireframes are then shared with the client and upon their go-ahead, full-fledged mockups are made and transferred to the developers for frontend and backend development.

Development

This is the stage where the development process starts. Here the developers make the wireframe clickable, create features, add integrations and next-gen technologies to make the software future-centric, and make it secure. Moreover, the software consultants, at this stage, ensure the product is hack-proof and glitch-free.

Throughout the stage, the clients are kept in the loop on real-time tracking project management tools and communication apps.

Delivery

Once the software is built, the consultants, after running a thorough quality check, launch them on the devices and platforms that the clients envision them on. Post-deployment, they hand over all the codes, files, and data to the clients, ensuring that they adhere to the NDA formalities.

Additionally, the consulting agency allocates a support team to help the clients maintain and manage the software post-launch.

Now that we have looked into what is a software development consultant, the many benefits of partnering with a software consulting business, and the roadmap of software development consulting, there remains a challenge.