Getting Started with SaaS App Creation — Important Features to Take into Account

Getting Started with SaaS App Creation — Important Features to Take into Account

Cloud SaaS applications are replacing traditional business models — users are less likely to pay for a product, and more often for a subscription. Therefore, if you have an idea for an application on SaaS architecture, let’s look at the key features, as well as potential pitfalls of this solution.

SaaS and Its Advantages

As the name implies, using the SaaS business model, developers sell the result of their labors as a service, not as a product. SaaS applications are based on the cloud, which means that users do not need to install them on their devices. And these are far from all the advantages of this solution.

• It is profitable. You, as a developer, can sell your service an infinite number of times. Plus, the developer’s income is relatively stable because users pay a monthly subscription to the application.
• Such applications are easy to scale. Once your application requirements increase, it will be very easy to turn it into a more powerful one.
• They are available to users anytime, anywhere. Cloud technology enables users to access the application, even if one of the network servers is down.
• SaaS solutions have improved security approaches since they are located in the cloud. Cloud service providers, in turn, monitor security issues very carefully.
• The subscription model is equally convenient for both developers and users.
• SaaS app is always updated to the latest version. Accordingly, subscribers get the best user experience and are not forced to wait for updates to be released.

The Main Pitfall — Whether SaaS Approach Is Fitting Your Business

Despite all these advantages, SaaS applications are not a universal tool for any business and user. There are situations when the SaaS approach does not work. It will not work for very highly specialized applications that only a well-defined group of people will use. But it is still a solution for ERP systems, accounting software, etc.

Besides, this is not the best solution if you know for sure that the user’s problem that it solves is short-term and requires a quick solution, for example, convert a file from one format to another.

However, SaaS solutions work great where it is possible to attract a large number of users, and the need to use the application is constant. For example, Dropbox is a SaaS application. This model proved to be fitting this idea as millions of users all over the world daily create, save and share files.

The Practical Part — How to Develop a SaaS Application?

So, if you are convinced that your idea and SaaS architecture is a perfect match, then let’s continue. Here are five steps you need to take at the start of your idea.

Think About Your Users

Before you start doing anything, make sure that your potential users are ready to abandon the traditional model of purchasing software products and switch to the subscription model. Also, you need to find out in advance what users lack in the applications that they use and try to fill this gap.

Look at Your Competitors

Keep in mind that the principle “We will also make it since our competitors have it already done” is not correct. Your competitors may have their own motives for using this architecture, and you, in turn, should make sure that your idea is suitable for being implemented through SaaS. The only way to do this is to analyze the market, competitors and potential users, of course.

Choose Technology

Of course, the development company you will choose will help you to find out the most suitable technologies for your idea.

• As a rule, a client’s part is created with HTML, CSS, and JavaScript with its frameworks.
• To develop the server-side, it is possible to use Node.js, PHP and Ruby on Rails.
• As for the databases, you may choose between MySQL and PostgreSQL.
• Nginx or Apache are the main servers to choose from.

Grope the Best Price

Subscription pricing in the SaaS application is a very delicate point. In most cases, there are several tariff plans, ranging from free to premium packages. The ultimate goal is to turn free users into premium clients, so think about how you will do it from a marketing point of view and how solvent your potential subscribers are.

Find Developers

The most important thing you need to know about SaaS product developers is that this is not the kind of work that can be done once and hidden in a desk drawer. SaaS application requires ongoing support and development. Therefore, when you choose a partner, look for a company with which you will be comfortable working for a long time.

How to Choose a Developer and How Much Does It Cost?

As always, this is the most difficult question. The price of your product will be the final result of the number of hours that developers will have to spend on creating it.

And even though we are talking about cloud technologies, the physical location of the developer’s company remains important. Most likely, you will be forced to pay a lot of money by hiring specialists from America, as well as tremendously cut funds by contacting the guys from India. But there are a few app development price pitfalls you have to be aware of. However, Clockwise found a middle ground and wrote a cool article on developing SaaS applications from scratch, providing it with its expertise and real numbers. Read the full story here and do not hesitate to write your comments and leave reviews!