As a small business owner, you’re continually looking for ways to optimize and streamline your operations. Sometimes, custom software for small businesses can be the perfect solution.
At Airbrush Events, for the past 10 years, we’ve been using Google Calendar to schedule our artists and distribute event details. This includes everything from arrival times, venue addresses, and contact information to party favor specifics.
It’s easy to use and free, but as our business grows, I realized we needed something more tailored to our unique needs. That’s how the idea for TeamHub was born.
Why We Built Custom Software for Our Small Business
The journey of building TeamHub started with a simple question: Can I make something better than Google Calendar for my business? The answer wasn’t immediately clear.
Creating custom software seemed impractical, but curiosity got the better of me. After some research, I decided to take the plunge and invest in this project. The result is an app designed specifically for Airbrush Events, with a supporting backend dashboard.
Our new TeamHub app will be ready in a month or two after a year’s worth of development and a $13,000 investment.
What TeamHub Does
TeamHub does everything Google Calendar does and much more. It’s tailored specifically to our business and includes features no other software offers.
Our administration staff can log into a secure website and input all event details. This information is then seamlessly accessible to our artists through the app.
One key feature is inventory tracking. Our artists take home leftover party favors after events, and we needed a way to track this inventory. TeamHub provides this capability, ensuring we always know what we have on hand.
Additionally, the app helps track deliveries. If someone from our team adds a shipment to the app, the artist will see a notification on their device, guiding them through the pickup process.
Travel itineraries, including flight tickets, confirmation numbers, hotel addresses, and rental car details, are all managed within the app, making it an indispensable resource for our artists.
The Development Process
Developing TeamHub was a significant undertaking. I hired a team of freelance programmers from India through Upwork. The process involved extensive planning, meetings, and discussions.
The team created a wireframe, which is a static representation of what the app would look like. This allowed me to visualize the final product and request revisions before coding began.
The development process was divided into stages, much like how we handle event planning with our clients. After agreeing on the wireframe, the team began coding.
Each milestone required payment, which made the project more manageable financially and ensured progress was being made.
Working with Freelancers
One of the advantages of working with freelancers, especially those overseas, is the cost. The rates were significantly more affordable than domestic options.
However, this comes with challenges, such as communication barriers and uncertainty about the final product’s quality. It was a leap of faith, but so far, I’m very pleased with the results.
A nice thing about using Upwork is that it acts as an escrow account. It holds the funds until the work is completed to satisfaction. This setup provides an added layer of security and peace of mind throughout the project.
A Message to Fellow Small Business Owners
If you find existing solutions don’t quite meet your needs, don’t be afraid to build something yourself. With the right help, you can create a tool that perfectly fits your business.
Ingenuity and thinking outside the box are crucial traits for a small business owner. Whether it’s developing software or coming up with a new marketing strategy, innovation can be the key to success.
Building TeamHub has been an incredible journey, and I’m excited to see how it will transform our operations.
If you’re interested in developing custom software, I’m happy to share more about my experience and guide you through the process. Remember, if there’s no solution that fits your needs, you can always build it with a bit of ingenuity and the right team.
For more information on how to hire freelance programmers or to discuss custom software development, feel free to reach out.
Innovation is within your reach, and sometimes, thinking outside the box is all it takes to turn a good idea into a game-changing tool for your business.