What to prepare before asking for a software quote

To ask for a custom software quote you do not need specifications or technical knowledge. You need to be able to explain seven things in your own words: what problem you have and how it is handled today, who uses it, where the data comes from, what other systems there are, what is essential and what can wait, who decides and what would happen if nothing is done.

Whoever receives that can tell you whether the idea is workable and what is still to be scoped. With less, what you get back will be a bet, not an estimate. And if there are points you cannot answer, say so: that is useful information, and it is what the preliminary analysis is for.

Answer each point in a sentence or two. It works just as well by hand, on paper. You can print this page or copy the list into a document.

The problem and how it is handled today

What is holding you back and what do you do now to get around it? Describe the process as it really is, even if it runs on spreadsheets, paper or messages.

Who uses it

Which people or roles will work with the system every day and what does each one do? Include whoever uses it less but needs it, such as someone who reviews or only looks things up.

Where the data comes from

Where is the information you will need today: spreadsheets, programs, emails, paper? What state is it really in, with duplicates or free-text fields?

What other systems exist

Which programs does it have to live alongside: invoicing, management, warehouse, email, banking? If one belongs to a third party, note which, even if you do not know whether it allows a connection.

What is essential and what can wait

Separate what the system is useless without from what would be nice to have. That line decides where to start.

Who decides

Who approves the scope, who uses the result and who could block it? They are almost never the same person.

What would happen if nothing is done

What do you lose, and how much of it can be measured, if in a year everything is still as it is? If the answer is “nothing serious”, perhaps nothing needs building.

• Fill it in with whoever uses the process every day, not only whoever pays for the project: the two versions almost never match.
• If you cannot answer a point, leave it blank and write down what you are missing. A flagged gap helps more than an invented answer.
• Take it to the first conversation with whoever will quote. You do not need to send anything beforehand.

It is what holds back most people asking for a quote: thinking you must first know about technology. You do not, and part of it is exactly what you are given afterwards.

• A brief or a closed list of features. The problem is a better starting point than the solution.
• The technology chosen. The technical approach and its risks are proposed by the studio.
• A screen design: it comes after what has to be solved is scoped.
• Clean data. Deciding which figure is the right one when there are several versions is part of the work, and it is looked at before anything is built.
• Knowing whether building is worth it. Comparing it with buying an off-the-shelf tool is the first thing to do, and sometimes the answer is no.

A reliable quote does not come only from what you write in a form. In return for an estimate that holds up, a serious studio will ask you for four things:

• Time from the people who live the process, in working sessions, as well as from whoever decides.
• Access to what already exists (systems, real data, integrations) where possible, because an estimate built on what is said in a room rather than on what is in the machine falls apart quickly.
• Decisions on time: what is in, what is out and who signs off each phase.
• Part of the data work: deciding which information is the right one and what is left out takes your team’s time.

With the list filled in, the first conversation is for something specific. We do not ask for a brief or a quote to begin: it is enough that you describe the problem in your own words, and we see whether the idea is workable and whether a preliminary analysis makes sense.

Custom software

When it pays off and what we deliver

What do I need to ask for a custom software quote?

A technical document is not needed. It is enough to explain in your own words the problem and how it is handled today, who uses it, where the data comes from, what other systems it must live alongside, what is essential and what can wait, who decides and what would happen if nothing is done.

Why do they ask for so many details before giving a price?

Because a price without a scoped brief is not information: it is a risk that somebody takes on halfway through the project, and it is usually you. Every detail you give reduces uncertainty and makes the estimate hold up.

Do I need to know about technology to ask for a quote?

No. What is needed is knowing your business: how you work today, what holds you back and what you consider essential. The technology, the approach and the risks are proposed by whoever is quoting, and you decide with that in front of you.

What if I cannot answer some of the points on the list?

Leave them blank and note what you are missing: that is normal and useful. If there are many, the sensible step is a preliminary analysis, which turns the problem into a scope, a plan and an estimate before any build quote is committed to.

Do I have to send the list before the first conversation?

No. The first conversation commits you to nothing: it is enough that you describe the problem in your own words. The list helps you organise what you are going to say, and this guide can be read without leaving any details.

How much custom software costs and what drives it

What the price of custom software depends on, how to estimate it rigorously and how to compare two proposals without being sold an invented number.

When the spreadsheet stops being enough

A four-step ladder to decide when to move from Excel or a spreadsheet to a tool, an automation or custom software.