Look for Industry-Specific Options When Choosing Software for Your Business

For some companies, general purpose software is good enough for their business. Not every industry is large enough to have software written specifically for it. But for industries where there are specific needs, it’s best to consider software that’s tailored exactly for them when possible. Here are some of the advantages of choosing a software package that’s built just for your kind of company.

Training From Industry Experts

When you purchase software that’s built for your industry, the training will be specific to you. You won’t have to figure out how examples from real estate or lawn care apply to you, for example, if you’re operating a screen printing shop. An industry-leading software company often has consultants on board who have worked in your industry. They can actually help make your entire business better, not just train you on software.

Best Practices Are Built In

Well-written software that’s built for your industry can actually help keep you from making mistakes. A quality online pharmacy management software suite, for example, would be written with HIPAA compliance in mind, and designed to help you send sensitive patient information in a secure manner. Here’s another example: print shop software can include a required proofing step and keep your salespeople from proceeding with an order until the customer has signed off on the proof.

Get Everything You Need in One Package

General purpose software is often focused on one function. Most accounting software doesn’t handle marketing or HR issues. But software written to help you run a particular kind of business is more likely to cover all the departments of the business, like the time clock, the point of sale, and the shipping department. It will handle all of these functions in ways that are appropriate for your industry.

Take Your Business With You

For certain industries, the product or service tends to be delivered in a mobile environment. If that’s the case for you, look for software that provides mobile apps to access the functions you need. In the home health industry, for example, workers need to account for mileage and their location needs to be tracked at all times while they’re on the clock. This ensures they’re in patient’s homes when they say they are. An app on their phone can provide all these functions, and sync the data with the main software database.

Look for a solution specific to your industry when selecting software. You’ll get a better solution, and often avoid investing in multiple software packages.