Businessware Celebrates 10th Birthday

On the 11th August 1999 most of Cornwall and parts of Devon were plunged into midday darkness as the solar eclipse was seen from mainland Britain for the first time in over 70 years.

In Manchester the eclipse was not very spectacular however it occurred just an hour after the development team had signed off on a new small business accounting software product. It became a symbolic moment for all of the hard work and effort which had gone into the previous 16 months to get this new product to market.

Businessware was the result of a breathless development process which often involved 100 hour working weeks for the development team.

It was the Windows incarnation of Suresoft's original, DOS-based accounting software product range, Sure Accounting, which had been on the market since 1992.

Gareth Connor, co-founder and original designer of Businessware explains how Businessware began. "We were very late in developing a product for Windows. For a long time we considered simply converting our DOS software into Windows but having done our research we made the decision that the right way to do it was to start from scratch. We were under constant pressure from our users to release a Windows version and we knew we had to get a product out there as quickly as possible. To achieve this we put ourselves under tremendous pressure."

That was in April 1998. The completed software product was completed and in beta-test with hundreds of existing users by 1st Februay 1999

"For most of the development process there were just two of us working full-time on the product. I remember most days I'd take a microwave dinner in for my evening meal and work until 2-3 am. I'd go home and then be back in the office again at 9. This was virtually everyday and there were plenty of all-nighters especially towards the end. I remember myself and Nasser [Benashur] were working at 10pm on a Saturday night and getting phonecalls from my friends asking me to go down the pub. With no time to go to the gym or to eat properly I put on over 2 stone in that 9 months! Looking back it was a ridiculous way to live!" Reveals Connor.

Towards the end of the initial stage of development they introduced Steve Higson to begin preparing the marketing for the product. "The developers worked really hard – we all did – but these guys were fanatical, working ridiculous hours. I don't think anyone could have asked more of them."

Within just a few days of the product going into beta-test, it became obvious that the work wasn't done yet.

"We'd promised our customers a beta release by the 1st February and so when the deadline came we simply had to let it go and see what feedback we got. We weren't absolutely happy with it and we'd cut some corners to hit our deadline. It put us under more pressure but it worked out better than had we tried to perfect everything in-house before any type of release. It showed us as early as possible that we weren't altogether on the right track." continues Gareth Connor.

The other developer who'd been working on the product from the very beginning was Nasser Benashur. "The day we shipped the beta to a few hundred existing customers there was huge relief. We thought the hard work was done and that after fixing a few bugs found by users, we'd be ready for full release within a couple of months. We were wrong!"

"We'd developed at such a breakneck speed that we'd cut too many corners." admits Connor. "Over the next few months we literally rewrote big chunks of the product and it made a huge difference. The feedback we got from customers was fantastic and by the time the product shipped for real it was a whole different animal to what we'd released into beta on the 1st Feb."

The long hours were not over just yet however. "By May 99 the product was almost there for how we and our customers wanted it. We just needed a technical writer to come in and produce the manual and the help system. Unfortunately by this time our budget was well and truly spent. I had little choice but to hand the remaining development work over to Nasser and our other developer, Ike, and started writing all the documentation myself. To get this done I worked every hour I could and, as our self-imposed deadline approached, I pulled several all-nighters." Connor reveals.

The work was finally completed and team celebrated by watching the solar eclipse on 11th August 1999. "The eclipse wasn't particularly fantastic up in Manchester but it marked the end of 16 months of intense hard work and a real sense of achievement. It has been a real labour of love for all involved”. Remembers Connor. "The date will always be significant too as 8 years later it was also my wedding day!"

The full product was released commercially and began shipping by the end of August 99.

"To put some perspective to what we'd achieved, in 16 months we'd developed an equivalent product to our DOS software which at that stage had taken over 6 years to develop to that level."

“The product was functionally great and had some features that we considered at the time to be 'killer' and some elements were way ahead of the competition” remembers Steve Higson.

“However, having been pushed for a long time by existing DOS users to get a Windows version out there, suddenly we found that when we asked for money for upgrades, a huge proportion decided they'd rather stick with their DOS software! Weeks on the phone brought a lot around but revenue from upgrades, which we'd counted on to invest into marketing the product, was way below half of what we'd expected.”

“It was very disappointing.” continues Connor. “We'd known all along that our budget was solely for development and we would have to generate revenue from upgrades to market the product. We were not just confident but completely expectant that 'if we build it they will come!'. Unfortunately they didn't. At the time we felt the majority of our existing users had let us down, especially after all our hard work. We'd given them what they wanted and asked for but for whatever reason they hung onto their cash.”

“We needed an avalanche of upgrade sales to fund the marketing of the full launch of the product. While over 50% of users did eventually upgrade over time, it trickled in and without the proper budget we never managed to give the product the full launch and marketing campaign it deserved. New sales were consistent but flat. It was a real shame.” reveals Higson.

Disappointment at the less than impressive sales performance saw Higson leave in early 2000. "Without the marketing budget it was difficult for me. It would have been tough anyway but I had to admit I was, under the circumstances, not the right person for the job and I left. I wished the guys all the best. I had a tremendous experience working with people with that level of dedication. They deserved better."

"Steve did the best he could with what he had and we got some decent exposure from his work but he was used to working with a decent budget to launch a product and that wasn't available. He wasn't the marketing guy for bootstrapping a product.” says Connor.

The product received several extremely positive reviews in the media, many predicting that the product was a new market leader-in-waiting. A Version 2 was released in mid-2000. However by the end of 2000 things were looking bleak.

"You can have the best product in the world but if only a few know about it then it's very difficult to realise that potential" explains Connor. "We lost our sales staff and funding for replacements wasn't forthcoming, so it became a vicious circle. It was very demoralising. The business was moving on with other projects and even the original team now had to divide their time between Businessware and other projects."

In 2001, with sales dropping, the decision was made to withdraw everyone from the product. Prices were dropped and all marketing was driven entirely through an automated web-site. This was at a time when the internet was a long way from being the mainstream way small businesses sourced or purchased accounting software.

"The product wasn't as profitable as it needed to be however I disagreed strongly with the decision to effectively drop the product and so I made the decision to leave the business." says Connor who left in mid-2001.

Over time, to everyone's surprise, the product actually did quite well and sales were stronger than anyone expected. With the level of software being purchased over the net increasing month-on-month it became clear that Businessware could perhaps be a viable and successful player in the market.

At the beginning of 2005, Gareth Connor met with the managers at Suresoft and discussed the viability of relaunching the product.

"I was actually beginning to consider my own accounting software start-up and looking at recruiting some members of the original Businessware team when I started having some informal chats with the people at Suresoft about the options available to them with the product. Without even trying to market the product, sales were increasing 40% year-on-year. It wasn't exactly setting the world on fire but they wanted to know my opinion that if the right focus and impetus were put behind it could it be successful." explains Connor.

“My opinion was that the internet had changed everything about the way a product was marketed. The brick walls and obstacles that we faced back in 99 and 2000 trying to market the product the traditional way had been broken down and there was much more of a level playing field. I thought it was the perfect time to launch a new product.”

After several months of discussions, Connor was asked if he would be interested in returning to lead the project to relaunch the product. He agreed and in mid-2005 he returned to head the product's revival.

Over the next few months the product was developed, given a new user interface and readied for relaunch. In early 2006 the product was relaunched as Businessware and the rest, as they say, is history.

Despite it's past turmoil, Businessware has seen a successful turnaround since it's relaunch at the beginning of 2006 with an ever-growing user base of small businesses. And the future?

"Our focus must now be on striving forward consistently to achieve our long term goals. Our vision is to see Businessware be a leading player in the small business software market delivering an increasing level of valuable business solutions to customers which help their small businesses win. To achieve this there must be unfaltering progression in all areas." outlines Connor.

10 years on and Businessware is going stronger than ever. Despite the challenges it has faced there has always been a strong belief in and commitment to the product and the concept behind it that highlights the dedication of the small team of people involved, both then and now. There is no doubt this will continue into the next decade. The future is bright for Businessware.

Happy 10th Birthday Businessware!!