New to SaaS? Welcome!If you’re just starting to explore the concept of SaaS, this is the place to find out what SaaS can do for you, see how SaaS is different, identify questions about SaaS, and learn more about developing SaaS applications. Show What is SaaS?
Software as a service (or SaaS) is a way of delivering applications over the Internet—as a service. Instead of installing and maintaining software, you simply access it via the Internet, freeing yourself from complex software and hardware management. SaaS applications are sometimes called Web-based software, on-demand software, or hosted software. Whatever the name, SaaS applications run on a SaaS provider’s servers. The provider manages access to the application, including security, availability, and performance. Salesforce has revolutionised CRM with our SaaS based product. Learn More: SaaS Characteristics
A good way to understand the SaaS model is by thinking of a bank, which protects the privacy of each customer while providing service that is reliable and secure—on a massive scale. A bank’s customers all use the same financial systems and technology without worrying about anyone accessing their personal information without authorisation. A “bank” meets the key characteristics of the SaaS model: Multitenant ArchitectureA multitenant architecture, in which all users and applications share a single, common infrastructure and code base that is centrally maintained. Because SaaS vendor clients are all on the same infrastructure and code base, vendors can innovate more quickly and save the valuable development time previously spent on maintaining numerous versions of outdated code. Easy CustomisationThe ability for each user to easily customise applications to fit their business processes without affecting the common infrastructure. Because of the way SaaS is architected, these customisations are unique to each company or user and are always preserved through upgrades. That means SaaS providers can make upgrades more often, with less customer risk and much lower adoption cost. Better AccessImproved access to data from any networked device while making it easier to manage privileges, monitor data use, and ensure everyone sees the same information at the same time. SaaS Harnesses the Consumer WebAnyone familiar with Amazon.com or My Yahoo! will be familiar with the Web interface of typical SaaS applications. With the SaaS model, you can customise with point-and-click ease, making the weeks or months it takes to update traditional business software seem hopelessly old fashioned. SaaS Trends
Organisations are now developing SaaS integration platforms (or SIPs) for building additional SaaS applications. The consulting firm Saugatuck Technology calls this the “third wave” in software adoption: when SaaS moves beyond standalone software functionality to become a platform for mission-critical applications. SaaS is one of several cloud computing solutions for business IT issues. Other ‘as-a-Service’ options include:
The payment model for these kinds of services is typically a per-seat, per-month charge based on usage – so a business only has to pay for what they need, reducing upfront costs. SaaS v packaged softwareIn the past, businesses bought and relied on packaged software – from multi-application systems covering spreadsheets, databases and email to specialist packages for particular tasks like project management or business intelligence. Packaged software – the drawbacks
To use sales and marketing as an example, a business may have used on-premises software for CRM.
Learn more about Sales Cloud and the benefits of cloud-based CRM The benefits of SaaS
Increased efficiency and cost effectiveness are the reasons many businesses give for turning to cloud-based SaaS solutions. The advantages include:
The future of SaaS
Cloud computing and SaaS have come a long way in a short time. Increased awareness and uptake has accelerated the growth of SaaS products and led to the rise of SaaS Integration Platforms (SIPs) such as Infrastructure as a Service (IaaS) and Platform as a Service (PaaS). Companies will continue to outsource non-core IT activities to specialist service providers who can do it better. The cloud approach can help companies develop end-to-end integrated solutions and allow them to concentrate on what they do best, leaving a wide range of hardware and software IT issues to service providers. With companies adopting various "aaS" services, long-term relationships with service providers will grow – which in turn will lead to innovation as customers' growing needs are understood and provided for. In the future, high-performance computing will help with a wide range of business uses, such as analysing large volumes of customer data and monitoring application logs. SaaS may be one day be able to help address critical challenges for business such as predicting which customers will churn or which cross-selling practices work best for your business. With the need for high-volume data, software performance and backup increasingly daily, it’s easy to see why so many businesses are choosing to outsource to cloud-based providers. If you’re considering a move to a SaaS platform, find out what Salesforce has to offer for businesses of all sizes. |