Most established businesses already pay for software. The question is whether those subscriptions still match the way the company works.
Off-the-shelf products are built for a wide market. That is useful when your process is common. It becomes expensive when you are paying for features you never use, while the one workflow that matters is still handled in a spreadsheet.
Custom software is not automatically better. It is better when the process is specific: quoting that follows your product rules, a portal your customers actually log into, or an internal system that replaces a stack of disconnected tools.
A practical test: if staff spend more time working around the software than inside it, the product is no longer serving the business. That is usually the point to look at custom software development rather than adding another subscription.
If you are weighing the two, start with the process, not the catalogue. Map how an enquiry becomes a quote, an order, or a job. The gaps in that map tell you whether you need configuration of an existing product, an integration, or software built around the operation. See our notes on software development if the work is a product, or business systems if it is operational software.