Friday, December 19, 2008

What will help drive the success of the Software as a Service Model

As the Software as a Service model grows and more companies roll out products for the market, two needs will need to be addressed. Where can the consumer find the different services and how can I communicate across platforms?

Today in order to find services for my business, I have to do random searches and seek out the platforms that can help drive my business. There isn’t a place where I can go to learn about multiple service offerings that can make my business more successful. A consultative selling environment for multiple services will significantly increase the growth of the Software as a Service model. Businesses will be looking for a central destination where they can learn and purchase services that touch every aspect of their business. This aggregation platform will be a highly effective way for Software as a Service providers to expand their market reach. By aggregating services, you are creating “The Business in Box” which becomes very appealing to the channel. No longer do they have to go out to multiple providers to sell services, they have one solution that offers multiple products. As the channel adopts the aggregation platform, further market reach is obtained which should drive greater exposure and far greater sales.

With the market growth will come a need for the services to communicate between platforms. Businesses will want their CRM trading data with their digital marketing solution as they budget their marketing programs through their financial application. A middleware product that can exchange data across platforms will greatly increase the migration to Software as a Service. Not only will the service offerings greatly increase productivity, but the sharing of data will create a better managed environment which will drive greater efficiency. Salesforce.com is moving in this direction with their App Exchange program, but a broader solution is needed for services that are not associated with Salesforce. There are a number of great solutions out there that target one aspect of your business. A middleware product that creates a more robust solution across individual platforms will greatly increase the adoption of the Software as A Service model.

There are a great many models being explored today in the Software as a Service market, but I believe these will create the greatest impact. In the end, it is how meaningful the improvement is to the user experience that will create the biggest wave in growth.

1 comment:

Unknown said...

partner portal management software are being acquired by many companies including those big ones to help them minimize the time spent in dealing with other people/channels.