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Can the Excel platform still a viable business option in 2014

AusSam74

New Member
Hi, my name is Sam from Australia and I love chandoo.org - so many useful tips especially on dashboards.

I am wondering do you think that Excel can still be used as a platform to produce small business software in 2014?

I have developed an Excel software that is currently being used at a couple of small businesses and before I go any further I am trying to gauge if this could be a commercial option. Yes there are a couple of web based options that do what I have developed a little better only because they can link to SMS/Mobile but other then that my software does everything and I believe that the small business needs and much more simpler. I think some of these web based software can be over complicated and rely heavily on the internet whereas Excel being stand alone and with say dropbox can be accessed from any device.

Any thoughts from anyone? :)

Cheers.

Sam.
 
Sam

Firstly, Welcome to the Chandoo.org Forums

I believe that Excel is still a viable option for small businesses to use to run there businesses from.
Like everything in Excel if it is done correctly you will have a viable platform in which to operate
 
Hi Sam ,

Since you say that your package is already being used by a couple of businesses , they should be the ones to tell you whether your package is good as it is or it needs to improve , either by way of versatility or flexibility.

You have not mentioned what you mean by
before I go any further I am trying to gauge if this could be a commercial option.
Only you can say whether additional investment in terms of time and effort will pay off.

In any software what matters is the functionality and the presence / absence of competition ; all of this only you are aware of ; as long as the functionality is something for which users will be willing to pay , I don't think it really matters whether the package has been developed using Excel 97 or Excel 2013.

Narayan
 
Thanks Hui and Narayan for your replies and comments - much appreciated.

Hui yes I agree I am just not sure how it is perceived in the wider community but as Narayan has mentioned my target market is the only one I really need to worry about.. if they find it valuable and beneficial and it saves them time/money then they will pay for it.

Narayan yes understand your point which you have made well. I really wanted to hear from more experienced software developers on their thoughts, but in saying that this is an Excel forum so the opinions might be slightly biased :eek:p

Narayan there is competition in the market but I feel they are complicated and over "functionalize" the system, all users want is an easy and quick system that allows them to get on with other parts of their business.

One last question all - do forum people believe that a support structure plan of a monthly support/free upgrade fee work for Excel based software or would the pricing of a one off fee be more suitable? I know this very vague without providing more info but again I am wondering if others have had to consider this before and if anyone has recently developed software for the market. If you have I would love to have a look at your website which shows your marketing and pricing structure.

Thanks again. Sam.
 
Hi Sam ,

This is entirely dependent on you ! If you feel that your software provides an acceptable level of functionality , but also offers enough scope for adding not only more functionality but also customization so as to cater to a variety of users , then you are better off going for a support structure plan , since you can be reasonably sure that your customers will need the additional functionality , and they will be willing to pay for it.

On the other hand , if the software takes care of almost everything that a user might require , except for some bells and whistles , and does not offer much by way of expandability , then a one-off fee would be a better option.

Narayan
 
In my experience unless you have gone the whole hog and use a large commercial business system, you can actually get more functionality in terms of ad-hoc reporting from a well setup excel system than most of the commercial systems.
 
Thanks again Narayan and Hui... That makes sense and based on research that I have done with software development it is always a good idea to release software with the basic functionality in the beginning for 3 reasons. 1) it will allow you to get the software out quicker 2) it will cost less and that includes your time and 3) it will then give your customers some value when you do release updates and shows you are still in business.

I like the monthly type support fee.. Have no real idea what that will look like but it could be that I provide 2 -3 options. Software as is with 1 hour support included for how to and q&a, the other option software plus a monthly fee and thirdly software plus a lifetime support pack.. For option 1 I will then charge for updates or consultancy fee...

In terms of upgrades I was thinking of having a link to Dropbox that is password secure and when updates have been made emailing my customers and providing them the link. Does that sound reasonable?

Are there any licensing issues that I need to consider when selling Excel solutions?

Sorry for all the question but appreciate your expertise.

Sam.
 
Hi, AusSam74!

Maybe arriving a bit late, but if you care about your Excel software being cracked/copied/pirated (which is not difficult at all, check this: http://chandoo.org/forum/threads/wh...t-method-to-secure-workbook.11962/#post-70156) then I'd suggest you to move to Visual Studio .NET using Visual Basic as main language. You'll have a first learning and adaptation period that will reduce your productivity, but in the long term it'd get recovered... in part. As you won't find nowadays any other software that let you develop solutions (either simple or complex, but always not secure, highly secure I mean) as MS Excel.

Regards!
 
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