Custom software: ongoing costs and operation

02 — Factors

What drives the price

• Scope and number of integrations. Every additional system that needs to participate costs effort — regardless of how simple the core is.
• State of your starting point. Clean data, existing content and documented processes significantly reduce effort. Chaos is the most expensive cost factor.
• How much new material needs to be created. What you can contribute doesn't need to be invented by anyone. This is the biggest lever you have in your own hands.
• Requirements for design and customization. A solid standard system costs a fraction of a custom solution — and is sufficient more often than vendors admit.
• Operating model. One-time project costs or ongoing support: calculated over three years, this often gives a different picture than the quote comparison.

03 — Contract

What needs to be clarified in writing

• Ownership of data and access. They belong to the client. If a provider won't clearly confirm this, that's the most important information from the conversation.
• Handover upon termination. In what format, within what timeframe, at what cost.
• No minimum term without consideration. Lock-in is justifiable if something is delivered in return — otherwise not.
• What a later change costs. The total cost isn't determined by the project price, but by the hourly rate in year three.
• Documentation as a deliverable. Not as a promise, but as a line item in the proposal.