Software that follows your process, not the other way round
Off-the-shelf software often forces you into a way of working that is not yours. You notice it in the workarounds: exports you merge by hand, data you enter twice, a package you use ten per cent of. Custom software turns that around — the software follows your process.
We build web applications that run in the browser and connect them to what you already use, so there stays one place where something is true.
When is custom the right choice — and when is it not?
We ask this question first, and the answer is not always yes. If existing software does fit your process, we will simply recommend it: custom for its own sake costs money without solving anything.
Custom pays off when…
- Your process differs from what standard packages assume
- You have to re-enter the same data in several systems
- You do work every month that a computer could take over
- Your systems do not talk to each other and you are the interface
- You pay per user for features you never touch
Stick with off-the-shelf software when…
- An existing package covers your process well enough
- It concerns a general problem, such as bookkeeping
- You are mainly after a lower price in the short term
- Your process is still changing and has not settled
What we build
Process applications
Planning, work orders, case management, quotation and invoicing flows, approvals. Applications that follow the work as it actually runs at your company, rather than laying a template over it.
Customer and member portals
An environment of your own where customers or members see their file, orders, documents or appointments. It saves calls and emails, and it works outside your office hours too.
Integrations between systems
Reading and writing back data through the API of your accounting package, CRM or web shop. Often the cheapest intervention with the largest effect, because manual retyping disappears entirely.
The comparison that actually matters
Custom looks more expensive because you see the amount in one go. A subscription looks cheaper because you see it per month. Put the right time span next to it and the comparison shifts — certainly as your headcount grows.
| Aspect | Per-user package | Custom software |
|---|---|---|
| How the cost runs | Continues for as long as you use it | One-off investment plus maintenance |
| With more employees | The cost rises with every user | As a rule stays the same |
| Does it fit your process? | You adapt your process to the software | The software is adapted to your process |
| What if you want to switch? | Your data sits in somebody else's environment | Ownership and source code agreed up front |
Being honest: custom software does require maintenance. Software nobody keeps up ages just as fast. That is why we agree maintenance, further development and response times in advance — so you know where you stand if something breaks or your process changes.
Why JAAN
We are a Belgian IT company founded in 2000, based in Zelzate. We do not only build software for clients: SMSBOX, 2Mail and WWW4 are our own platforms, with thousands of users and years of continuous development. So we know from experience what happens to software that still has to run five years later — which is a different craft from delivering something and disappearing.
