With cloud technology came new and innovative opportunities for many businesses to upscale their operations, offer seamless services, and incorporate digital transformation. From remote server access to migration to cloud infrastructure, there are a plethora of elements related to SaaS Application Development that have helped companies revolutionize their services and processes.

Also known as Software-as-a-Service, SaaS is a cloud-based business model that helps offer application access to users based on a specific subscription plan. Take the example of Netflix. It is a SaaS-based application where users need to subscribe to view the content. In return, Netflix hosts its software on the cloud platform, offering seamless connectivity and remote access.

Keeping this in mind, we have explained why SaaS for startups is beneficial over any other software development model.

Is SaaS A Mere Business Model or a Futuristic Approach For Startups?

Based on the reports from BetterCloud, 85% of businesses will be using the SaaS model by 2025. So, yes, it is more than just a mere business model. SaaS offers more visibility and removes server access restrictions, allowing businesses to host their applications and websites on the cloud network. They don’t need to purchase any hosting network on the cloud. Instead, the business model works on a lease.

One of the significant aspects that sets the SaaS model apart from others is that the applications being deployed on the cloud server can be easily accessed through the internet. If you have SaaS software for startups, you can host it on the cloud network using bandwidth leased from the hosting provider. You have to pay a certain amount to the third-party hosting company, which offers you access to the virtual cloud network.

How is a SaaS Application Different From Licensed Software?

Businesses often consider SaaS for startups to be the same type as licensed software. But that is not the fact. There are considerable differences between these two aspects, so knowing about them beforehand will be more feasible.

In the below section, we have drawn a parallel study between licensed and SaaS-based software.

What Are The Benefits of SaaS-based Applications For Startups?

Cloud can be used in various ways, like platform as a service, infrastructure as a service, business as a service, and so on. But using the software as a service is more beneficial than any other model. There are many reasons why the SaaS development life cycle of apps has proven to be more beneficial for startups than any other software model. The following reasons will help you understand why SaaS is more beneficial:

Reduction In Investments

One of the primary reasons investing in SaaS development services will benefit startups and small-scale businesses is a significant reduction in the overall capital cost and investment. First, companies will only have to buy bandwidth for hosting their applications on the cloud server. Plus, the annual money required to maintain servers and increase uptime will also reduce because the cloud offers more flexibility, seamless communication, and higher server uptime. It will also help migrate the existing business infrastructure to the cloud platform for better performance.

Decreased Time For Software Rollout

Considering onsite or licensed software models, the business must install, configure, and maintain the software on the end users' devices. Different hardware devices will have different specifications, and to match that, the software needs to be robust, versatile, and so on.

Many businesses even have to roll out multiple software versions according to the specifications of the hardware devices. This particular difficulty can easily be eliminated with the help of SaaS app development. It reduces the complexity of application development, and startups can easily roll out the software without worrying about the hardware's specifications, configuration requirements, and more.

Steady and Recurring Income Source

The SaaS application development process will also provide a steady and recurring income source for businesses. For example, when you use the subscription model of Microsoft 365, the billing is done annually. After the first year of use, you will again pay the same amount for the second-year subscription. Therefore, Microsoft will have a steady and recurring income source from one user because it provides the entire Microsoft 365 application suite based on the SaaS cloud model.

The same applies to Microsoft 365 Business, Microsoft Power BI, and several other applications mainly used in companies. Recurring income is one of the primary benefits of building SaaS applications that startups can enjoy, as they won't have to worry about revenues once the software is rolled out.

Flexible Monetization Plans

Most SaaS application development service providers offer flexible monetization or pricing plans for hosting the application on the cloud network. As a startup, you can choose the cheapest pricing model according to your budget plans for hosting the application on the cloud. If satisfied with the features, you can continue with the same tenancy plan or change it on the go as per your business requirements.

For instance, when your application grows and has more users, you might need a higher pricing plan that offers you more bandwidth and a load-balancing limit. That is why SaaS applications are better for startup businesses, as they can choose a flexible hosting plan according to the project budget.

Higher Data Protection and Security Features

The cloud network automatically offers a higher level of security than the onsite servers. Therefore, providing application access to users over the internet using the virtual servers of the cloud architecture will be more beneficial than using licenses for the application or hosting it on the onsite servers.

Certain SaaS software development service providers offer the opportunity to activate multifactor authentication security features in the software for maximum security from the user's end. Data encryption using TLS is another security practice you can implement to protect user data and establish corporate social responsibility after launching the application.

You will also have the option to use a cloud access security broker, or CASB, where you can add more security layers for the application, provided the hosting provider fails to meet the security challenges.

Scalability and Flexibility on the Go

There is no doubt that SaaS application designs are highly scalable and flexible. It means you can change the codes, deploy modifications into the cloud server, and perform any addition to the application on the go. No application must be removed from the server once it gets deployed on the cloud network.

This further increases the uptime and helps businesses to take customer satisfaction and experience up by ten folds. Besides, the source codes are robust, so making changes won't be a problem. So, updating the software according to business growth and customer demands will become easier with the help of a SaaS development company.

Access From Remote Devices

Another big benefit for startups from making an app based on SaaS is that every end user can access it from anywhere. If we look at Microsoft OneDrive as an example, users can access their account from any device, like a laptop or a phone.

They can access their accounts simultaneously from multiple devices without any restriction. That is one of the significant advantages of SaaS applications that businesses leverage to offer maximum flexibility to their end users regarding usage and access.

In the end

With the help of different SaaS application development services, you will have the upper hand in rolling out the software earlier than expected and providing more flexibility and freedom to your end users. It would be best to focus on making the application as secure as possible while using the latest SaaS marketing trends to help you quickly reach a larger audience. Rest assured, managing the application, modifying and scaling it further, and maintaining maximum security for user data will be OK with the SaaS model.

FAQ's

Q1. What is the relationship between SaaS and CRM for the startup?

Several CRM development services use the SaaS server network because it gives them more options for managing customer relationships over the virtual network, cuts down on downtime, and automatically balances the load without slowing down application performance.

Q2. Why are SaaS application development services beneficial for a startup?

SaaS application development services give the startup the chance to cut costs, focus more on improving customer relationships, launch the app faster, and keep security at a higher level. Plus, startups can easily choose a flexible pricing model according to their project budget and change it on the go.

Q3. Which is better: a licensed or SaaS application for a startup?

From these two choices, it's clear that SaaS for startups is the better choice, since businesses won't have to worry about setting up and maintaining software based on the hardware devices used by end users. Also, the pricing models are very flexible, and software can be put into the cloud network much sooner.