Talk to us about your SME software.
A no-obligation half-hour introductory conversation. We listen to your situation, look together at what you use today and give direction you can act on, even if the outcome is that you don't need custom software.
Service · Software development
Custom SME software.
Pragmatic business software for SMEs: a workflow app, client portal, inventory module or reporting dashboard that runs alongside your existing packages. We build what your team genuinely lacks, and leave Exact, AFAS, HubSpot and the rest in place.
Bespoke software that fits alongside your SaaS stack.
Most SMEs have worked for years with a mix of standard packages: Exact or AFAS for accounts, HubSpot or Pipedrive for sales, a bespoke webshop or sector-specific package for operations. On paper, that covers most processes. In practice, people get stuck on the last twenty per cent that doesn't fit neatly anywhere.
This is what we build. We connect to your existing systems, fill the gaps with a targeted application and keep the scope as close to the problem as possible. No platform replacement and no multi-year implementation project, just a workable solution for the bottleneck your team deals with every day. Read also how we approach custom software more broadly.
For SMEs, that distinction matters. You rarely have the luxury of an in-house IT department that can steer a long implementation. You have an owner or operations manager standing alongside it, a few key users who are already fully occupied, and a limited budget that has to be justified by a genuine business case. Our approach for the SME market is designed around that: shorter projects, smaller scope, faster return on investment. We build what demonstrably solves a pain point, not what might theoretically be useful.
Using this way of working, we have built business software for SMEs in sectors including manufacturing, trade, professional services, construction and logistics over the past few years. Each time, we start from what is already in place and add something targeted that makes a difference to one specific process or one clear user group.
Three types of SME software we often build.
Not a catalogue of products, but patterns we see again and again. In the first conversation we advise which type fits your situation and budget.
Workflow app for one core process
An application that streamlines one specific flow: from quote to order, from project request to scheduling, from incoming lead to follow-up. Tightly scoped and focused on the people who use it every day, with clear links to your accounting software and CRM. Think of a production flow in which work orders are created automatically, or a quoting tool in which your sales staff complete configurators that flow straight into Exact.
This is usually our most requested application among SMEs. The application replaces a complex Excel setup or a clumsy part of your industry package and gives your team a workable interface for the process they actually manage. We integrate as much as possible with the tools you already use, so you don't have to check several places.
FormsStatusesNotificationsReporting
Customer portal or supplier portal
A private environment where customers can view order status, documents and invoices themselves, or where suppliers and subcontractors can submit information in a structured way. It reduces email and phone traffic and gives your team peace of mind. Often linked to your ERP and accounting, with login functionality that suits the customer experience you want to deliver.
Customer portals are often a growth step for SMEs. You notice that the number of incoming questions about order status, invoices or documentation grows disproportionately with your turnover. A portal shifts this to self-service and at the same time gives a professional appearance that grows with your brand. For supplier portals the benefit is similar: less email, structured submission, and an automatic check for completeness.
LoginDocumentsInvoicesERP integration
Reporting, dashboard or field service app
Custom reporting on top of data from Exact, AFAS or your own database. Or a mobile app for fitters, sales representatives or warehouse staff that can work offline and synchronise as soon as there is a connection. Often a much smaller building block than a full system, but with high return because it simplifies work directly where it happens.
Reporting dashboards are popular with directors and managers who want more insight into operations. Standard packages deliver standard reports, but the KPIs you truly steer on often sit at the intersection of data from different sources. A custom dashboard combines these and presents what you need, at the rhythm you need. Inventory management modules and applications for SME business processes such as service planning or time registration also fall into this category.
BI dashboardsMobile appOffline-firstData export
What you have in hand at the end.
A working application plus everything needed to manage the software yourself or have another party continue its development. No lock-in.
- The application itselfProduction and test environments, running in your own cloud (Azure, AWS, Google Cloud) or with us. You choose what suits your IT policy.
- Full source codeThe code belongs to you. Including build instructions, an architecture overview and a list of open-source components used.
- Administration documentationWritten for your IT partner or in-house administrator: how to add users, how to run back-ups, how to diagnose faults.
- Short training for key usersTwo sessions for the people who use the application daily, plus an explainer video for new staff later on.
- Maintenance contract (optional)Monitoring, back-ups, security updates and ongoing development for a fixed monthly fee. Or you can have a fixed IT partner handle it. The choice is yours.
When bespoke software makes sense for SMEs.
Four situations where we often make the difference. If you recognise one of them, we'd be happy to talk through what it would mean in practice.
Off-the-shelf packages fall short
Exact or AFAS doesn't cover everything
The foundations are in place, but your core process doesn't fit the standard package. You're getting by with Excel, email and loose documents, and each month it becomes a little harder to manage.
Too much manual retyping
Data lives in four places
An order comes in through HubSpot, is manually entered into Exact, is written down again by the warehouse, and the customer phones for the status. Everything is retyped. An integration or customer portal solves this.
Growth is held back by admin
More revenue, more chaos
You're growing and notice that administration is growing disproportionately. What worked with twenty orders a day using loose tools doesn't scale to a hundred. A focused app makes it manageable again.
No suitable industry package
No software that truly fits
You work in a niche where standard packages are either too generic or too heavy. A tailored bespoke application fits your actual processes rather than forcing you to adapt to the software. For background, read our blog on bespoke software costs.
Not yet sure about a large project?
Test your idea first: a working prototype in 1 day
With OneDayBuild, we turn your idea into something tangible in one day for €1,150, so you can see whether further development is worth the investment. Decide to go ahead with the full build? Then we credit the full cost.
Explore OneDayBuild →How an SME project works with us.
1
Introductory call and problem scan
A conversation in which we ask what isn't working today, where the pain lies and which process most urgently needs attention. We won't sign anything straight away. First we try to understand whether bespoke software is needed at all, or whether a better SaaS choice would be enough. For SMEs this honest conversation matters: you have no room for a project that turns out halfway through to be unnecessary.
2
Scoping and first screen flow
A short workshop with your core team plus a few key users who will use the system every day. At the end, you have a defined scope, a list of integrations with your existing systems, and an initial outline of what the experience will look like for your users. No thick functional design that is half a year out of date before the build begins, just a brief specification that we refine along the way.
3
Build in short sprints
Every two weeks you get a working version you can click through. Your people test along the way, give feedback, and we can adjust as we go. This prevents you from receiving something that no longer fits after a long build period. For more complex integrations, see also our smart API integrations. A business representative sits at every sprint review, not just IT. That keeps the pace high and the scope tight.
4
Go-live and knowledge transfer
A phased rollout to your team, starting with a pilot group and then the rest. At the same time we hand over the technical knowledge to your IT administrator or partner, so you don't need to come to us for every small change. With a fixed handover procedure: codebase, deployment instructions, monitoring and a runbook. After that we can continue to support the system, or we part ways with confidence that your partner can manage it.
Packages we often integrate with.
A selection of the systems we regularly integrate in SME projects. For other packages, we assess each case individually. If there is an API or database access, an integration is almost always possible.
Accounting and ERP
Exact Online, AFAS, Twinfield
Synchronise customers, items, stock, orders and invoices between your bespoke application and your accounting package. Usually through the official API, sometimes through a scheduled export. This keeps financial administration as the source of truth.
CRM and sales
HubSpot, Pipedrive, Salesforce
Linking leads, contact moments and deals in both directions. For example, a new order in your custom app automatically creates a deal in HubSpot, or a closed deal triggers a production order in the custom system.
Productivity and communication
Microsoft 365, Google Workspace
Single sign-on via Azure AD or Google, reading and writing calendars, storing documents in SharePoint or Drive, and automated emails sent from the system. This way your application feels like part of the tools your team already uses.
Payments and invoicing
Mollie, Stripe, Peppol
Online payments from your customer portal, automated invoicing via Peppol or a comparable e-invoicing route, and integration with your accounting package for financial processing. For small and medium-sized businesses this is often an overlooked bottleneck, and one we are happy to solve.
Frequently asked questions.
The questions SME owners ask us before we start.
Do we need to replace Exact, AFAS or another package?
Almost never. Standard accounting packages do what they need to do and are deeply integrated into the surrounding world: accountants, banks, tax authorities. We prefer to build alongside your existing package and connect via API or a similar integration. You only replace what is demonstrably falling short, and we leave alone what already works well.
Can you integrate with our current SaaS tools?
In most cases, yes. Exact Online, AFAS, HubSpot, Pipedrive, Mollie, Stripe, Microsoft 365 and the common industry packages have public APIs that we work with. For systems without an open API, we look at alternatives: a scheduled export, a database connection or an intermediate layer. For details, see our page on smart API integrations.
Can we start small and expand later?
We often recommend exactly that. For SME projects it is usually wiser to solve one concrete workflow first and see what it delivers, rather than building a broad platform in one go. We can then add modules based on what delivers the most value in practice. This keeps the investment manageable and the risk limited.
Who owns the code once we're finished?
You do. We hand over the complete source code, including documentation and build instructions. You can keep further development with us or move it to another party. There is no vendor lock-in and no licensing model on the software we build for you. For SMEs with limited in-house IT capacity, that freedom is an important advantage.
Who maintains the software once it is live?
The choice is yours. We offer our own maintenance contract with monitoring, backups, security updates and a fixed response time. Many SME clients keep this with their existing IT partner or in-house administrator, and in that case we ensure a proper handover and documentation. Both options work well.
What determines the cost of a custom development project for an SME?
In broad terms: the size of the scope (one process or several), the number of integrations with existing systems, and how many roles and user flows there are. For SMEs, we deliberately recommend keeping the first version tightly scoped. Building less often delivers a better return than a broad platform that takes a long time to finish. For a deeper look, see our blog on custom software costs.
Do you also build larger systems, or only SME software?
Both. We also work with larger organisations; see, for example, our pages on enterprise software development and custom ERP systems. For SMEs we adapt the approach: a smaller scope, faster delivery and less governance overhead. The engineering discipline stays the same.