SaaS trends: How will the industry develop?
9. February 2023
7 steps to help choose new SaaS software
Making one’s life easier and helping achieve business goals; that’s what most SaaS tools promise. Is that really the case? Unfortunately, the reality is usually different. The majority of companies report that just less than half of the SaaS tools they use provide any benefit to the business. This can be due to a variety of reasons. For example, business goals and structures may change, or better options may now be available on the market.
Nevertheless, there are actually many SaaS tools that really help companies work more efficiently, save money, and automate processes. Choosing the right SaaS software: with an ever-growing selection of SaaS applications, this is no easy task. After all, once an application has been chosen, it is usually used for a long period of time. Therefore, this decision should be well considered. The worst case scenario is that you decide on an application that remains unused and continues to be paid for, possibly even leading to data protection problems.
To make sure this doesn’t happen to you, we’ve put together a checklist to help you make sure you’re choosing the right Saas software.
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Before you start looking for a new SaaS software, you should first check if there might be applications already in use in your company that meet your needs. It makes sense to include any existing SaaS tools and weigh whether they are still needed or could potentially be replaced with a better alternative.
It is important to set clear goals that you want to achieve with the new SaaS software before you start looking for it. This could be automating business processes, increasing efficiency, or reducing costs, for example. The more specific you are about what requirements the software needs to meet, the easier it will be to find the right solution. Keeping this in mind will prevent the need to change software again. This only causes avoidable costs and disrupts team processes.
3. conduct market research
There are many different SaaS tools on the market, so it’s important to get an overview of the different options before making a decision. To do this, you can use online comparison portals, for example, or seek advice from industry peers. Also, familiarize yourself with the features and prices of the various providers to find the right solution for you.
SaaS payment models don’t necessarily make it easy to plan a fixed budget. Depending on the payment model and the number of users, the actual costs may not match the planned budget. Therefore, you should be prepared for unexpected costs and weigh whether the cost-benefit ratio is right.
Does the software meet all necessary security standards? Data breaches often have serious consequences and cause lasting damage to a company’s reputation. For this reason, the IT team should check, for example, whether the new software meets all the necessary security standards.
It happens quickly that a tool does not meet expectations after all or is no longer needed due to changes in strategy. To find out whether a SaaS software actually meets expectations, you should also consider feedback from users. If you regularly evaluate the number of users and question whether the applications actually offer added value, you can act more quickly and thus also save costs.
It is important that all employees understand the process of implementing new software and execute it company-wide to ensure effectiveness. The same is true for the evaluation process mentioned in point 6. It is important to carefully document this process and make employees aware of it.
Software management tools such as saasmetrix can help keep track of applications used, costs, and usage. This simplifies processes and ensures that the right SaaS software is supporting the business, rather than holding it back with high SaaS costs.
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