SFA App: Build or Buy?

September 13, 2022

In today's world, where mobile devices have become more affordable and stable, it is essential for every sales organization, big or small, to have an SFA solution to track the day-to-day activities of their sales force. However, choosing the right SFA tool can be a daunting task. In this blog, we will discuss why a SAAS-based SFA solution is the less expensive and more reliable option, using our own Assistive as an example.

Cost: Why a Custom Solution May Not Be the Best Option?

Many companies believe that building their own system will control costs and customize the workflow to perfectly fit their legacy process. However, this assessment overlooks significant costs that must be taken into account when making a decision. For instance, custom developments often compromise on several features that leading SFA tools offer, leading to suboptimal functionality and the need for continuous manual efforts to compensate for it.

Continuous Innovation: A Key Benefit of SFA Tool

Leading SFA companies are conducting continuous research and development to improve the functionality and user experience. They also learn from other implementations to make improvements to the overall solution. A one-time custom-developed solution would most likely never evolve and the organization is likely to be disadvantaged against competitors using best-in-class solutions.

Security and Infrastructure: The Hidden Costs of Custom Solutions

Internet security is a continuously moving target. When doing custom development, a completely secure app is very difficult to build in the first place and ensuring ongoing security without a dedicated and continuous security testing and fixing process is impossible. Developing custom solutions can pose a high risk of security issues, potentially jeopardizing valuable company data and leaving the organization vulnerable to disruptions and downtime. Leading SFA solutions run on highly complex computing infrastructures – ensuring redundancies in processing, connectivity, data backups and power supplies etc. These leading SFA solutions have well-established procedures for disaster recovery and maintain round-the-clock monitoring of their systems, ensuring that in the event of a security breach or force-majeure situation, the systems can quickly recover with minimal downtime.

Customization: Why SFA Tools are More Flexible Than You Think

Every organization believes that they alone have the best sales process and no other entity can convince them to change it. However, getting hung up on minor differences can lead to selecting the wrong tool or creating the wrong system. It's important to embrace change and look outwards to identify and adapt industry best practices rather than being very rigid on the sales process. Most of the tools, especially our own Assistive, can accommodate almost any sales process which has a logical flow of activities.

Make the Right Choice for Your Sales Organization

Choosing the right SFA tool for your sales organization can be a daunting task. However, we believe that a SAAS-based SFA solution is the less expensive option, and also the more reliable and functional one. Our own Assistive is a leading example of a third-party SFA tool with proven credentials that can help your organization grow. If you would like to take a look at our solution and how it can be both cost-effective and fit well with your sales process, please fill the form to book a demo today. Choose the best CRM software in India and take your sales organization to new heights!