The Owned Software Test
If you stop paying, what is left?
Five questions. Answer them about the system your business actually runs on: the register, the jobs, the books, the customer list. No form on this page. Score yourself.
Mostly left column = you rent your business. Mostly right = you own it.
If you stopped paying today, would the software keep running?
Rented
No. Access ends with the subscription.
Owned
Yes. The work stops, the software does not.
Could you hand the whole system to a different developer tomorrow?
Rented
No. There is nothing to hand over. It is their product.
Owned
Yes. The code is yours to give to anyone.
Do you hold your own records: every customer, ticket, and dollar of history?
Rented
They hold them. You get an export button and a prayer.
Owned
You hold them, in a database that belongs to you.
If the software company vanished tonight, would your business open tomorrow?
Rented
Not on that system.
Owned
Nothing changes. It is your property.
Does the software fit how YOUR business runs, or did you bend the business to fit it?
Rented
One size for everyone. You adapted.
Owned
Built around your actual operation.
Scored mostly rented?
That is not a character flaw. Until recently, renting was the only door a normal business could afford. It is just no longer the only door. Nobody rents you your own business back.