How to Build a SaaS Product: Step-by-Step Guide

SaaS?stands for Software as a Service.

?Software as a service or?SaaS?is?a software delivery model where a third party provides host applications and makes them available to customers over the Internet. It?is?one of the three major types of?cloud computing, along with the application as a service (PaaS ) and infrastructure as a service ( IaaS).

SaaS?is a way?of?delivering software applications over?the?internet when a customer requires them. Earlier, companies would have to install the software in their clients’ localized hardware for them to use their applications.

So, this required customers to pay for use?of?the?software upfront, and also for?the?hardware on which?the?software would run. Companies also had to invest in manpower/IT teams at their end to ensure successful implementation?of?the?software and its continuous maintenance.

This was fine as long as companies could afford it. And quite a few could, and this is?the?demand that powered?the?rise?of?companies like Oracle and SAP which became famous for their enterprise resource planning (ERP) systems.

However, their dominance has receded with?the?growth?of?the?internet and cloud ecosystem.?SaaS, which started as a concept during?the?dotcom boom, began to flourish as a business?model?after?the?financial crisis?of?2007 as companies looked to save costs.

Among other most prominent examples of SaaS providers?are the following market leaders:

·??????Salesforce;

·??????Oracle;

·??????Amazon;

·??????Google;

·??????IBM.

One can view?SaaS?as a subset?of?cloud computing. Cloud or cloud computing is a broader concept that involves not just delivering software over?the?internet, but also providing computing and data storage services from a different location (owned or third party).

Architecture of SaaS

SaaS applications and services typically use a multi-tenant approach, which suggests one instance of the SaaS application is running on the host servers, which single instance can serve every subscribing client or cloud tenant. the application can run on one version and configuration across all customers or tenants. although different subscribing customers can run on constant cloud instances with common infrastructure and platform, the information from totally different customers can still be unintegrated.

?The typical multi-tenant design of SaaS applications suggests that the cloud service supplier will manage maintenance, updates, and bug fixes quicker, easier, and additional with efficiently. instead of having to implement changes in multiple instances, engineers will build necessary changes for all customers by maintaining one, shared instance.

Advantages of the SaaS model

The?biggest advantage that?SaaS?enables is innovation. It has basically converted fixed costs?of?companies into variable costs. When capital is scarce,?the?SaaS?model?frees up capital for more high-priority requirements.?The?payment?model?for?SaaS?is typically a per seat, per month charge based on usage. This ensures a more efficient allocation?of?capital, especially for early-stage companies. This also implies that?the?threat for established companies is higher today. If they are not alert, it’s just a matter?of?time before SaaS-using start-up will outwit them.

?10 benefits of using SaaS software.

• Maintenance and Operational Responsibility Lie With the Supplier.
• Simple Implementation.
• Scalability.
• Data Security.
• Access Without Spatial Restrictions.
• Cost Savings for SaaS versus On-Premise.
• Easy Adoption for Employees
• Powerful Data and Analytics
• Supports Business Continuity in Times of Crisis
• ?SaaS is Environmentally Friendly

10 steps to start a software as a service company

• ?Develop a solution for a problem.
• Write up a lean plan.
• Validate your SaaS idea.
• Explore pricing models and initial customer acquisition.
• Establish your brand.
• Make it legal.
• Financing and funding.
• Build your product.
• Develop your go-to-market strategy
• ?Establish metrics for success

SaaS?is an idea whose time has already come and it will impact you. Acknowledge, adapt and make the best use?of?it. Contact [email protected]