Get smart with SaaS

Any of these software worries sound familiar?

“Will my software still work if I get a new server running Windows 2008? Will I have to stay with Windows 2003 forever?”
“If I add this software to my system, will it conflict with the database system I already have?”
“Who do I call if my critical line-of-business application goes down? How much is this going to cost me?”

Whichever way you slice it, software support is a big pain for SMBs. Major software failures are supremely frustrating, costly, and worst of all, they’re difficult to anticipate. Furthermore, each piece of software you run adds to your baseline IT costs, as you need to maintain your own infrastructure to power the applications you use. Wouldn’t it be great if you could keep all the functionality of the software you use, but somehow offload the support and upkeep of that software from your system entirely? Well, in many cases, you can.

That’s what SaaS is all about!

SaaS stands for software as a service. Even if you are not familiar with the concept, you probably use SaaS every day. Ever used Google? How about web-based email? When you’re bored do you fire up Facebook to play a little Farmville? All of those are examples of SaaS.

The key feature of SaaS is that you do not need to purchase and run the software on your own. Instead, you pay a subscription fee to have access to the software service (or in many cases, like Google, the service is free). To access the software, you just run a lightweight client program but the actual SaaS application lives on the vendor’s own server—you never see it, you never touch it, and you never have to worry about it. All the costs of running the server, backing up the system, keeping the system up-to-date—these are the vendor’s problems!

Google is, again, a great example. How does Google index the web? Where do they store their data? How do they deliver it across the internet? For the user, it just doesn’t matter! All that matters is that Google delivers what you need, you are happy, and you come back and use it again next time.

Imagine if your business software was as easy to use and as reliable as Google. If you’ve ever had worries like the ones I listed at the beginning of this article, moving to service-based software is something that might give you a lot more peace of mind.

SaaS also offers some great financial flexibilities. With SaaS you only pay for what you need and you don’t have to anticipate back-end costs, like adding additional servers if you grow. Furthermore, with SaaS you avoid large setup costs. You have a fixed and reliable monthly cost for each SaaS application you use. Pretty nifty!

For skimmers, here’s a quick breakdown of the advantages of software as a service!

Technical advantages

Lightweight clients: easy to use, easy to deploy
Minimal infrastructure upkeep required
Flexible, portable clients—including web-interface and mobile support in many cases
Limited compatibility issues with specific hardware or software systems

Financial advantages

Pay for what you need, when you need it
Isolate and regularize software costs
No additional capital expenses

Service advantages

Support is included in the service (in most cases)
Vendor is incentivized to provide quality ongoing support
System is always up-to-date; evolves with clients’ needs

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