By definition, a SaaS product is software as a service that usually aims to synchronize or streamline an existing element within a company.
The internal politics of budgeting are complicated within any organization, so GoSpotCheck created this short article to help you find resources to boost your business with a SaaS platform.
Buying a SaaS product is similar to buying a subscription (like Netflix) – no additional resources are needed for the software to work, and there is no extra hardware. Therefore, business implementing a SaaS product can manage a lot of technical items in-house.
It’s important to find the value a SaaS company can bring to various departments within one organization. Often, a tool can be leveraged within multiple aspects of a single business – helpful in a fight for budget dollars. For example, a mobile data collection tool can help verify promotional compliance – which may free up some of marketing’s budget.
Is there anything your company doesn’t need anymore that could be a driving force for the reallocation of funds? Many businesses still use a share point server, which has to be managed by IT personnel. Generally, hosting a server in-house, and providing the funds for maintenance, is an outdated practice that consumes resources.
As the number of SaaS companies continues to grow, finding the right product becomes more difficult for businesses searching for a SaaS platform. We created a list to help you find the product you need, by asking the right questions.
SaaS companies usually offer services based on a price model that differs from many which currently exist. The basis of a SaaS pricing model can be dependent on many factors, including number of accounts, square footage or number of field activities. Here are some questions to help guide you towards a basic understanding of pricing.
- How does the SaaS platform base pricing?
- What features do you offer?
- Does the product charge for data or data storage?
- Can you do a free trial?
More than likely, your SaaS tool will give you thousands of data points. You need to understand how the data is aggregated and stored. Below are a few questions to collect answers about data initiatives.
- How is my data going to be hosted? Is it secure?
- How do I get my data back? In an Excel sheet, by email, or through an online dashboard?
- Can data be shared? If you are a retailer, do you want to share data with your brands? Ask about data sharing capabilities.
- Does the product offer advanced reporting? You may have a need for custom tables and aggregated data.
Finally, we recognize that most traditional IT rollouts can be daunting. Often, companies searching for a SaaS platform assume there will be lengthy training, revisions and server implementation. This is not true with a SaaS product. Here are some additional questions we gathered from our employee knowledge base and FAQs.
- What are the steps to implement this software?
- What are some major obstacles other customers have dealt with regarding onboarding?
- What customer support do you offer? Are professional service fees added on?
- Can you give me use cases regarding how your product has been beneficial for existing customers?
GoSpotCheck is committed to helping all our customers and potential customers find a product that satisfies their needs. If you want to know more about how our SaaS platform operates, click here for our product overview.
