InTouch Systems only build bespoke web based applications (WBA), but other options exist. The principle options are:

• An Off-the-Shelf (or Out-the-Box) System, installed and maintained by the vendor or authorised reseller.
• An Off-the-Shelf System, installed and maintained by an inhouse team.
• A Bespoke System developed and installed by a software agency, often in collaboration with an inhouse team.

Potential clients frequently ask us to explain why we believe that bespoke systems are the best solution. A full answer to this question can be complex, and depend greatly on an organisation's particular requirements. This page aims to provide an overview of key points you should consider, and explanations of why we believe our systems provide the optimum performance for their price.

Cost Saving
Out-of-a-box WBA still require considerable configuration and training expenditure on top of the licensing fees. The total cost of deployment of a boxed systems is usually comparable, and quite frequently significantly higher, that the cost of building a bespoke system. When deploying and maintaining an off-the-shelf system, we frequently find that inhouse teams do not have the necessary capacity or experience, and need to rely on consultants and trainers far more than initially budgeted. This causes prices to creep up substantially higher than the fixed-price project cost of a bespoke system.

Exact Fit to Requirements
A bespoke system will be tailored to your requirements, and your methods of working. An off-the-shelf system will provide a fixed set of features to which you must adapt your working processes. In our experience, more training is required when deploying an off-the-shelf system, compared to a good bespoke system.

Reliability
Boxed systems are sold heavily on the promise of reliability implicit in a big brand name. Regardless of whether or not this is actually the case, it is important to stress that our systems are built on top of open source components that have a huge number of users around the world, and are amongst the most reliable and fault-tolerant systems available. All of the custom modules we develop for each project are thoroughly tested by both ourselves and our clients. In addition to this, we ensure a fast and effective response procedure to any bugs that might be discovered during the operation of the software - something that is definitely not available from the manufacturers' boxed content management systems.

Visibility
We believe very heavily in involvement and extensive communication with our clients. Our clients can watch progress on the system during development. A working prototype is frequently ready at the end of the third week. This allows a gradual introduction to the system, and provides a much greater chance of detecting possible pitfalls with workflow and management as early as possible. An off-the-shelf system is usually installed in its entirety with a steep learning curve, and with no chance for working practices to 'evolve'.

Consistency Across Large Organisations
Systems integrate seamlessly between organisations, and communications are simplified. As our software licensing is on a per server/site basis, cost can be kept low. This can also be true for other systems, but costs (especially licensing fees for distributed systems) increase rapidly as the systems are deployed more widely.

Total Management
InTouch Systems aims to remove as much of the strain on inhouse resources as possible. We work with our clients to fully integrate the new systems - the project is not complete until the system is fully operational. This is rarely the case with off-the-shelf systems. We achieve this focus because our team specialises in the construction and deployment of content management systems. We often find that inhouse teams are excellent generalists, but can be by overwhelmed by the requirements of major system rollouts, reducing their effectiveness for the organisation.