Start with the work, not the vendor list
Write one page: the job the software must do, who will use it, which systems it must talk to, and what a good first live version looks like. If you cannot write that page, buy a short discovery, not a build. Sending a vague brief to six companies and averaging the quotes will not get you a comparable set of numbers.
Questions that sort the room
- Who writes the code, and where are they? If the answer is a rotating bench, ask who owns the architecture when someone leaves.
- What have you shipped that looks like this? Adjacent is fine. Unrelated portfolio pieces are not evidence.
- What do you need from us each week? A vendor that needs nothing from you will guess, and you will pay for the guesses.
- How do change requests work? “We’ll just include it” is not a process. A written change path is.
- What do we hold on the last day? Source, hosting, documentation, a way to change a rate without calling you.
Warning signs
- A fixed price before anyone has seen your data or your other systems.
- A proposal that restates your email and adds a technology list.
- Ownership of the code that stays with them, or a licence you cannot leave.
- No named person for after go-live.
Cost context is in how much custom software costs. If you are still deciding whether to build at all, read custom versus off-the-shelf.