Great software starts with a great design.
Mockups, interactive prototypes, and user research that turn a brief into software people actually want to use. We design and validate before the expensive engineering begins.
starts with a chat.
Custom software for the work you actually do.
Good design isn't a coat of paint — it shapes what gets built. Here's the kind of custom software our design and UX work feeds into.
Why design before you build?
Code is the most expensive place to discover you got it wrong. Designing and testing first is how we de-risk the build — and ship software people actually use.
Validate before you build
An interactive prototype is far cheaper to change than shipped code. We test the idea with real users first, so engineering effort goes into the version that already works.
Research-led decisions
We sit with the people who'll actually use the software. What slows them down today becomes the brief — so the design solves the real problem, not the assumed one.
Design that survives the build
The team that designs it is the team that builds it. No throwing a Figma file over the wall — the intent behind every screen carries straight through to working software.
What does it cost?
Design and UX engagements are far smaller than a full build, and most run as part of Discovery — a focused step to get the product right before engineering starts. Here's roughly where they land.
Focused
From $5k
A short design sprint — mockups or a clickable prototype for a single flow or idea.
Standard
$20k
User research plus interactive prototypes across the core product, ready to validate and build from.
Multi-stage
$50k+
Iterative design and research across a larger product or multiple journeys, run alongside Discovery.
Don't want the big CapEx spend up front?
Talk to us about our Bespoke SaaS delivery model — all the benefits of custom software, paid monthly, with full IP handover at the end of the term.
Got an idea but not sure it'll land?
Let's prototype it. We'll turn your brief into something you can click through and test with real users — before you commit to the build.
Built with your team, not just for them.
Every build begins with our fixed-price Discovery engagement. The aim is simple: understand how your team actually works, sketch the solution together, and prove the design before a single line of production code gets written. It's the discipline our clients hire us for.
Talk to the people who use it
We sit with the people who'll touch the software every day. Their pain points are your requirements. We listen for what slows them down today and where a tool built for them would change the day.
Map the work, not just the wishlist
The actual processes the software has to serve: intake, approvals, handoffs, the exceptions. We document them in your team's language, not ours, so everyone agrees on what's being built before anything gets built.
Sketch the screens together
Whiteboards, paper, low-fidelity mockups. Visual conversation surfaces disagreements about how the work really flows in seconds, disagreements that written specs would let slip silently into the build.
Build a clickable prototype
Realistic enough to test. Your team plays with it, finds what's wrong, and tells us what to fix, cheaply, before a line of production code exists. Most surprises surface here, not in user acceptance testing.
Ship, refine, repeat
Two-week sprints. Working software in front of your team continuously. They feed back, we refine, they feed back again, until the tool fits their day so well they'd resist going back.
WHY WE WORK THIS WAY
Visual conversation moves faster than written requirements, and your team can tell us what's wrong before we build it. Mockups and prototypes turn a 6-month spec debate into a 6-week design loop. Cheaper iteration. Fewer surprises. Software your team actually wants to use.
Design that shipped.
Life Supports
Life Supports came to us after a failed Salesforce installation. They manage phone-based leads on behalf of other businesses — poorly suited to common CRMs. A tailor-made CRM and refined workflow saved over 10 minutes per call, letting them scale without adding staff.
AccessIQ
AccessIQ started as an internal tool at the Benchmarque Group and grew into a market-leading SaaS LMS for the Australian training sector. 22,000+ students, 1,700+ workshops, 95% rating their experience 'very good' or 'excellent'.
Broker Engine
Stuck in an expensive Microsoft Dynamics CRM, Broker Engine moved off the platform and saved hundreds of thousands in annual license fees. The result is what many consider Australia's best CRM for mortgage brokers, with a 92% NPS.
The software is a perfect blend of the best of both our companies' thinking. We can't speak highly enough of the work Alliance Software has done.
Marcus Andrews
Founder & Counsellor, Life Supports Counselling
Let's build something
great together.
Every great project starts with a conversation. Tell us what you're working on and we'll figure out the best way to help.
Or call us on 03 9955 7000