Decisionet.com: Pros & Cons of DIY

To DIY, Or Not To DIY. That is the question!

The question is simple enough, "Can't I build my own interface to the bureaus?"

Like many questions, the answer isn't as straight forward as it seems. There are lots of things to consider.

The good news is that you can build your own interface to the bureaus. A reasonably experienced programmer with current development tools can, in fact, build their own interface, just like many of our customers and partners attempt to do before they come to us. The real question isn't can you…… it's do you really want to, what are you really gaining from that investment?

The bad news is that building your own interface to the bureaus entails an on-going investment of time and resources that do not provide a direct benefit to your core business, software, or operations.

When building your own interface, you will:

Take the time to learn and code for three separate and different sets of specifications (for Equifax, Experian, and TransUnion), and take still more time to learn and code for two additional sets of specifications if you need Canadian reports.

Take the time to become an expert in the various data formats, notices, and error messages for each of the bureaus.

Dedicate someone (or more realistically many people) to provide support for your new interface to your end users and their particular computing environment, internet access method, and particular bureau-product needs.

Dedicate personnel and resources, on an on-going basis, to the multiple minor (and sometimes major) updates and code changes required by the bureaus to keep your interface current with evolving technical, format, and legislative requirements.

So, you can spend your time, money and resources with the "do it yourself" approach if want to, it is achievable. However, do you really want to adopt all of the additional responsibilities that come with that decision? Is building your own interface to the bureaus the best way to spend your resources?

The best news is that we're experts at what we do, we've been doing it for over ten years, and we want to help. You just can't argue with the facts:

A single interface is easier, faster, and cheaper to code for than three.

A single set of specifications is easier, faster, and cheaper to integrate than three.

An existing support staff that is already familiar with the data and the bureaus is much easier, faster, and cheaper to utilize than building your own support group from scratch.

We’re here to provide a very cost-effective route to high-quality risk information so you can focus on your business, build up profits and expand customer relationships through your core business processes. So what do you say? Give us a call or send us an e-mail and let’s get started.