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Technology Thursday: Why write custom code?

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codingOne of the services we provide at Creative Technology Services is custom development.  Our products range from custom development of themes and plugins for WordPress and other content management systems all the way to complete desktop and mobile application solutions.  However, there are a wide array of pre-built themes, plugins, modules, and applications on the market both for free and at cost that you could use.

So…why would you want to have custom code written at all?

Ask an Engineer

One of the truest words I’ve ever heard about engineering is:

Make everything as simple as possible, but not simpler.

In other words, something that you create and use is not perfect when everything you can possibility do with it is added…it is perfect when everything you don’t need has been removed.

Often, you’ll find products out there that are geared towards providing a solution for a problem or need you have, but they are also designed to be a solution for someone else’s problems and still more for someone else’s need.  This is great for the person who developed the product, as it is useful to more people, but as a user of the product you can often get lost in a bevy of features and settings, or sometimes you have a screen with 50 input boxes when all you really need are 2 or 3 of them.

You find this a lot in products like Microsoft Office…yes, you can do exactly what you need to do with office, but if you never do a mail merge or use custom headers or need tables or drawing functions, then your tool bar has a lot of confusing and unused icons on it.  What’s more, when you’re trying to find a function you need, you have to check through countless menus and setting pages to find what you want.

A custom solution, however, is tailored to your exact needs.  A perfectly written custom solution has the items you use and nothing else, which means your user experience is more efficient.  That translates into less headaches and more productive time for you…which usually directly affects your bottom line.

Strike that and reverse it

Sometimes, however, you’ll find that there are 4-5 solutions on the market for what you need…but none of them does EVERYTHING you need.  Maybe product A can do steps 1, 3, 4 and 6 of your project, while product B can do step 5 and products C and D together can help you do step 2.  Yes, you can get your need fulfilled by using all of these products, but then you have to hop between applications, move files around or convert them for use in another project…or in a worst case scenario:  you have to do the work in one application, then manually reenter the results in another one.

A custom built solution can eliminate the need for multiple applications.  If it’s written correctly, a custom piece of code can move your project from conception to completion.  In some cases, it’s not possible to go the entire way but you can still get as much as possible done with your project in one sitting.  Throw in the fact that the custom written code is designed to work with your project, and you can eliminate a lot of hassle and potential points of failure which leads to boosted efficiency and less mistakes.

Status is everything

And finally, sometimes it’s a selling point for your business that you have something that is designed specifically for the task.  Specialists demand more respect and higher compensation for their time than a general handy man.  It’s no different in the business world.  You can use your custom designed code as both a trust symbol and a badge of honor.

It’s all a way to tell your customer that not only is your company the right one for the job, but you are the best company for the job.

Do you have any custom coding stories to share?  Have you had your life and business made better by custom code?  Do you wonder if maybe you could benefit from custom designed applications and solutions?  Let us know in the comments!


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