Build vs. Buy

Should build software custom suited to your business or buy a commercial off the shelf solution that'll meet most of your needs?

Building software is like building a custom home. You get to specify exactly what is built. You also have to pay a premium. Once you move in, everything is your responsibility to deal with. Same with custom-built software. An app can do exactly what you need it to do. It is much more expensive to build, and you have to pay to have things fixed.

There are two ways to buy software. First, you can get a subscription to a service, say like wix or squarespace. This is like renting an apartment. If you have a problem you can call the management and they will deal with it. Their service might not be the best. It might take a while to get fixed. But eventually it'll get taken care of. Subscription software is similar. These subscription services, have thousands of customers and your issue or problem might show up on their radar. You are more likely going to have deal with any issues or incompatibilities. But it's cheap and can get the job done (mostly).

Second, instead of paying month to month, you can pay once for software. In real estate this might be like buying a townhouse, or condo. You have slightly more flexibility but some additional cost (usually). With software, this might mean that you have ownership over the hosting. You can install plugins. You might be able to customize the look and feel slightly more. But you are on the hook when things go wrong, and there is a little more to learn. This might be something like Wordpress.