Software as a Service (SaaS)

Software as a Service options a hit with businesses

Offering much of the functionality of standard solutions -- without the big upfront investment -- Software as a Service (SaaS) solutions offer businesses an attractive new method for finding software solutions. Rather than licensing applications, buying whatever equipment is needed to run them, tuning the applications, debugging the install, training users and maintaining the code, SaaS customers buy access to applications over the Internet. All patches and version upgrades are done by the independent software vendor (ISV) who hosts and sells access to the application.

For ISVs, on the other hand, the SaaS market is tricky. While the SaaS subscription pricing model is popular, it’s still a difficult way to make a profit. Subscription-based revenue places severe constraints on cash flow, limiting the capacity of SaaS providers to invest in their internal development and support capabilities.

SaaS forces shift from product to service support

To maintain a competitive advantage, SaaS companies must have develop highly differentiated solutions quickly and effectively -- and keep enhancing them. They must shift from delivering a product to offering a service, a step which requires a different set of development, delivery, sales and support skills than they’d needed before.

These and other challenges are increasingly driving SaaS companies to third-party service providers like Netspective for software development, delivery and support services to augment their in-house capabilities. As consultants, we help you marshal the resources you need to stay competitive in this fast-evolving market.

How Netspective can help ISVs

Netspective partners with ISVs as an extension of their in-house teams to deliver the full range of services from research through design, development and QA/testing to technical support and remote monitoring and management of the SaaS infrastructure. We act as a ‘single window’ for ISVs to accelerate their development processes and continuously improve the quality and effectiveness of their solutions.

The advantages that Netspective brings to ISVs include:

• Substantial reduction in time to market
• Significant reduction in operating costs
• Strengthening of their service delivery competence
• Improving their customer support capabilities
• Enhancing customer base
• Increasing revenues