Many small business owners run their business functions using some sort of spreadsheet. This is cost effective until the business expands. Then the owner is faced with the dilemma of managing business critical information that only he/she can complete.
The process to create and manage this information can be captured and programmed into an MS Access database, allowing the owner to hand this business critical task off to an administrative person with little training. Controls can be added to make the data error trapped and consistent with business rules of the company processes. Customer reports can summarize the data exactly as the owner wants to see it, in order to make decisions.
Off the shelf software can sometimes meet these needs. But often it doesn't quite match the particular needs of the business. This results in training or process modification issues that may not be cost effective or best the for the company.