Time and again I receive emails from people who are interested in hiring me for their iOS projects. The most traffic comes from the fact that I run a quite popular Youtube channel called AzamSharp. One thing to note about these emails is that it is loaded with the word, Simple. Most of the emails starts with I need a simple app and my favorite This should be very simple.

I believe software development in the only profession where your customers will constantly tell you how easy your job is. I truly do not believe that they talk the same to their doctors or dentists. Here is a little conversation between a patient (customer) and the doctor if they treated the doctor like a software developer.

Doctor: Sir, you have kidney stones and you will need a surgery
Patient: That should be easy to fix right! I mean just cut me open and take out the stones. Problem solved!

But of course the actual conversation between the two is more like this:

Doctor: Sir, you have kidney stones and you will need a surgery
Patient: Is there anyway to check if this is covered by my health insurance?

* Assuming that the patient is located in United States

Anyway, my question is why the same people who do not argue with their doctor have the audacity to argue to the bones to the software developers. I believe it comes down to bit and bytes, I mean literally bits and bytes. When you visit a doctor you get a treatment and care which cures you, when your car breaks down and you go to a mechanic you get new tires, new engine or new whatever! But when you go to a software developer all you get it bits and bytes. People cannot touch bits and bytes, people cannot feel bits and bytes. Also, there is no farm that grows bits and bytes which means you can produce the same thing over and over again.

I believe Kickstarter is a prime example! Most of the projects that are successful on Kickstarter provide a physical item to their users. In other words users are more excited to hold and feel their purchase. It gives them a sense of comfort to think that you (seller) do not have the item anymore.

Of course not everyone is the same. And that is why we have seen massive success of the iOS games like Farmville where you set virtual good for real money. I still don't know who buys that stuff but apparently a lot of people do.

Then there are people who will argue that they can get the same work done for 1/10th of the price by using some off shore company! NO you cannot! Good developers cost money whether they are 10 feet away from you or 100,000 feet away from you. Paying off shore developer $15/hour does not mean you will save money, actually on the contrary it will end up costing you much more. Cheap off shore developers are like an old car. You got the car for $500 but now it needs maintenance every single day. You were better off spending the money and getting the new car. I am in this industry for quite some time now and I am *yet* to see a successful off shore project performed by people who charge $15/hour but then I also believe in miracles.

Unfortunately, I do not think that people will ever realize that how much work is put into creating great software applications. But I do believe that serious customers will only choose serious developers.

Hopefully, in the future the customers/clients will realize that software development is a complicated profession which should be treated with respect.