Advantages and Disadvantages of SaaS

Software as a service is currently one of the best known branches of cloud computing. It is a type of delivery model in which applications are hosted in the service provider's data center, which is then used and paid for on a subscription basis by its clients. A SaaS application can mostly be accessed using a network connection, although some offline models do exist. Along with its cloud-stack companions Infrastructure as a Service and Platform as a service, SaaS has gained a lot of popularity in the software industry.

The main factor driving the popularity of software as a service is the series of advantages it has to offer to small and medium-scale businesses. It is important for businesses to understand the various benefits and also the disadvantages that SaaS has and make an informed decision before implementing it organization-wide. In this article we have listed the pros and cons of SaaS development for your business operations.

5 Advantages of SaaS

Although SaaS is a major departure from the established method of purchasing and installing software, but it still manages to provide distinguished advantages in a typical business environment. We have listed some pros of SaaS development here -

1. Cost Reduction

   Cost benefits are one of the well-known and most obvious advantages of using software as a service for businesses. The expense of buying and installing the entire software and IT infrastructure in-house is negated when the software is rented from a third-party service provider. The payment is done on a subscription basis which depends on the usage of the infrastructure.

2. Ease of Accessibility

   A software as a service application is easily accessible. A computer and a stable internet connection is all that is required to access and use the cloud-hosted software. Using this method, the application can be easily made available on any remote desktop or mobile phone and used at anytime from anywhere.

3. Effortless Scalability

   Whenever your business grows and you feel the need of adding new users, there is no need to buy additional software licenses or server space for the new users. All you have to do is to upgrade your existing plan or subscription for the SaaS application to accommodate the new users. This also holds in good stead if your business has strong off-seasonal trends, allowing you to cut down on subscription costs.

4. Trouble-free Upgradation

   It is a cumbersome task to upgrade your existing software and hardware to the newer versions. In many cases, businesses do not have the budget or the IT manpower to upgrade software every subsequent year. This in turn leaves the software vulnerable to external threats. On the other hand, when you opt for a SaaS application, this is one burden less for you to bear and removes a significant workload from your in-house IT department. The extra human bandwidth can be used for other tasks such as integration with in-house applications.

5. Highly Resilient

   Since the IT infrastructure and your data is installed and stored in the cloud storage provided by the service provider in a remote location, any damage or disaster of any form to your business premises can be quickly sorted out. The business can be back up and running from any other location which has access to an internet connection easily.

5 Disadvantages of SaaS

Though using software as a service looks to be a very viable option for most of the businesses, there are some downsides too which need to be considered. We have listed some of the cons of SaaS development here -

1. Insufficient Data Security

   This is one of the top concerns for companies who are looking to opt for a SaaS-based application model. Issues such as identity and access management need to be addressed before trusting any third party service provide with your company's sensitive data. Particularly in the case of accessibility from a mobile device, strict measures need to be taken before any kind of sensitive data is divulged to the service provider.

2. Difficulty with Regulations Compliance

   When your business critical data is stored in the service provider's data center, it is difficult to comply with the government's data protection regulations. Your company will need to learn which rules apply to your business, ask the right questions from your service provider, and address any kind of inconsistencies in the process.

3. Cumbersome Data Mobility

   The software as service market is filled with startups, and many of them do not have enough experience to survive in a highly competitive atmosphere. In case of a failure or in an event where you want to change your service provider, it becomes a cumbersome task to transfer your company's critical data from one service provider to another. Therefore, you need to be prepared for such an event with a planned exit strategy.

4. Low Performance

   A browser-based application running on a remote data center may lack in performance when compared to a similar application running from your employee's desktop. Companies therefore need to invest in a fast and reliable internet connection to negate this factor and also use tools for application performance management to know how their SaaS apps are performing over time.

5. Troublesome Software Integration

   When working with an external SaaS service provider to host multiple apps, there might be an integration problem with the existing in-house software. The in-house APIs and data structures might not integrate properly with the external software. As a result, you should always perform compatibility checks with all SaaS applications for better results.

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