consulting
services
Consulting Services for Small and Midsize Businesses
You have a vision. We understand that. We also understand what it takes to make your vision a reality, especially in terms of developing your own software. Building custom software, much like starting a business, requires a balance between staying true to a goal while adjusting expectations in order to make the right, pragmatic decisions. Art+Logic can help guide you through that process.
Developing software, like so many inherently creative endeavors, tends to resist being constrained. That’s where our experience in software development can help us offer you a considered, no-nonsense perspective that will help keep your idea in focus and on target.
Our experience in software development lets us offer you a considered, no-nonsense perspective that will help keep your idea in focus and on target.
Art+Logic began as a small, entrepreneurial business in 1991, and we have worked with hundreds of small to midsize businesses in every stage of product development — from preparing the materials needed for a round of funding to developing software for a successful beta launch. We know the hurdles, not just in software development, but also in establishing the right strategy to get you on the path toward success.
Our consulting services for entrepreneurs and small and midsize businesses draws on our own experience combining the art of software development with the practical logic required to make a software project successful. We do not see art and logic as separate. Rather, we believe that they are inextricable from one another, sharing in a symbiotic relationship that elevates the quality of the software that we build.
In practical terms, our approach means that we can help you bridge the gap between realities and necessities while adhering to your budget. We can also help you develop a schedule that can guide you in making important decisions based on viable goals.
vCTO
How our virtual Chief Technology Officer (vCTO) services can help your business:
If you decide to build your software application with us, we will help you boost your technical understanding of that application, so you can speak authoritatively about your project needs with potential clients, investors, and in-house team members.
If you are still in the process of determining just how ready you are to invest in a custom software development project, we can guide you through that decision by offering:
- A rough roadmap for your application or software project
- Some general market research
- A quick WordPress website, if required — so you can claim the domain you want and also start sending potential clients to a site that introduces your project (while collecting contact information from interested parties)
- A recommendation of which parts of your application can be integrated quickly with 3rd party services
- Insights on how to monetize your application
How well do you know the technology needed to build your software?
Sometimes, our clients are experts in their industry but just not tech savvy enough to know how to build what they need. They have a list of wants, needs, and goals, but just don’t know how to implement a strategy to build the software that can accomplish those goals. We can help you evaluate your business and craft a plan that can revitalize the legacy technology you’ve been using, or we can help you find the right software solution to bring your business up to date — all based on your budget and time constraints.
Recently, a client came to us with a somewhat aging technology base that was used to manage the rather idiosyncratic infrastructure of their web-based business. We helped the client decide whether to start over with a new site and new technology or develop the next generation of their current technology. We helped the client plot a course that allowed the business to maintain its core foundation while setting up a process that was implemented iteratively and with an affordable platform. The client’s business is now positioned well for the foreseeable future.
flexible
We believe in a flexible startup business model that adjusts to your business needs.
We believe that if you stay too focused on a single startup model, that you may risk missing things that are vital to your business development. Our lean approach focuses on helping you uncover the essentials of your business development before committing expensive resources to them. We help small and midsize clients avoid the pitfalls of going too far down a single path that squanders resources without delivering results. Instead, we guide our clients through their business development process from various angles, determining what works and what does not, and coming up with strategies that help prevent headaches later on.
vCTO
Why a virtual CTO (vCTO)?
There are lots of ways to make mistakes while developing software, particularly at startups without a lot of in-house technical expertise. Since it can be very difficult, not to mention expensive, to have an in-house CTO, working with Paul as your vCTO will help ensure that you receive the proper technical guidance to help your idea succeed.
Paul can help you set realistic expectations for developing software and also guide you through the uncertainties that can often stall a project. In our experience, the challenge of developing software introduces far more uncertainty than one is accustomed to dealing with, particularly if one has never done it before. That’s why we scale our vCTO services specifically to your needs, thereby ensuring that we are offering you the right level of expertise to help bring your goals to fruition.
Hiring an in-house Chief Technology Officer (CTO) can be prohibitively expensive.
Our vCTO services can help you get the benefits of an experienced software development professional at an affordable rate. Lead by Art+Logic co-founder, Paul Hershenson, our vCTO services can help you identify your actual software needs while avoiding some of the most common, costly mistakes people make while developing software.
Here are some of the questions our vCTO services can help you answer:
- What is your Minimum Viable Product (MVP)?
- What kind of strategic planning do you need?
- Do you have the right IT for your software?
- What kind of website design is right for your project?
- Have you implemented the right kind of Search-Engine Optimization (SEO) strategy?
- Do you need a social media strategy and, if so, how do you implement it?
- Should you migrate to the cloud?
- Are you ready to develop the software you want?
meet
paul
Over the years at Art+Logic, I always had the most fun working with startups. Large companies are rewarding, but with startups, you really feel like you’re making a difference. I also really enjoy being in the trenches and working directly with clients.
My mission, along with my associates, is to help entrepreneurs and small & medium-sized businesses find practical solutions to their software development challenges. I’ve traveled a crooked path over the years and learned a lot about taking a company from concept to viability. I suspect your path will have twists and turns in it as well. Please get in touch with us via our contact page. Perhaps we can help you find a less circuitous route to viability. We’d love to help if we can.
let's talk
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