Making Sense of Software as a service.

Software as a service makes sense.

Last week I spoke about how the mobile web is a growing concern for your small business.  This week, I wanted to share with you another important trend in business.  Software to the public is being offered as a service.

The software as a service or SaaS, as people say in the technology field, has been around for over fifteen years.  What has changed is the technology has caught up with the theory.  Large cloud servers and access to broadband networks make it possible to perform some powerful computing from anywhere in the world at a low cost.  What this means for you the small business person is that instead of purchasing software like a book now you will subscribe to it like a magazine.

Already, Adobe, the makers of Photoshop have adopted this model.  E₃ systems is using this model for our customers.  We do this for three reasons.  First, the customer is no longer responsible for upgrades they come free of charge with the subscription.  Next the software becomes device agnostic.  It will work on a mobile phone, tablet or PC.  Finally, the user can access the software anytime or anywhere rather than the device they install it on.

When I visit small offices, I notice plenty of old versions of software lying about.  Computers with Microsoft office have versions scattered over the last decade randomly placed on computers in the office.  One computer is deliberately on an outdated operating system because they do not know if the software installed will upgrade.  With software as a service this problem goes away.  When there is a new upgrade it is part of the machines subscribed to the service automatically reflecting the changes.  You as the user do not have to do anything.  The updates just show up on the system.

When a software vendor says something is device agnostic what that are saying is that the software will work the same way on a phone, tablet, or a PC.  It should also work on a PC or a Macintosh.  As a small or medium sized business you should not be bothered with different packages and tools depending on what device you use.  Software as a service comes to the rescue again.  E₃ systems Sully 2.0 service makes it possible to use our software on a mobile phone, tablet or PC with no additional software to buy or install.

Finally, the business world is changing and becoming a 24/7 enterprise; for a small business on the web that means that customers will call for help anytime.  In order to do business in this environment, you cannot spend your entire life in the office so you need to bring the office with you.  This is where software as a service really shines because you can access your information anywhere you have a connection to the web.  This way a customer call on a Sunday does not spoil your entire weekend because you can address your customer’s needs and get back to your family and friends.

Those are the reason we do software as a service.  We understood this trend before it became a headline and we know it will work for you.  Contact us today and find out more.

Until next time.