SaaS Platform Development Guide: Platform Idea, Cost & Trends
In this evolving technical era, developing a Saas product can turn out to be a strategic move to grow your business. The global Saas market is valued at USD 240 billion in 2022 and is estimated to rise by USD 910 billion by 2030. But in order to create a successful product, you need to understand the best practices required for Saas development, the underlying cost, and latest trends that you can leverage to enhance the functionality of your Saas platform. You will also need to partner with a professional software development company to ensure seamless development and ongoing maintenance of your product. Additionally, in this blog, we will talk about the ideal platform for development, the cost and trends influencing the Saas market.
Saas Application Development: An Overview
Software as a service (Saas) is a modern approach to access cloud-based software development services provided by a third-party Saas provider. Unlike the traditional model, it uses a cloud-based storage system to store the application which is accessible via the web or an API. Instead of downloading and running the application on their own server, businesses leverage Saas providers to handle the hosting and software management on their cloud servers. The provider controls the software’s access and manages the security and operations. Some common examples of Saas products include the office software (G suite), messenger software (Slack), etc.
Types of Saas Software
Saas applications are classified into different categories based on the industries they serve. Here are the commonly used types of softwares listed below:
- Customer Relationship Management (CRM) SaaS: The CRM SaaS app helps organizations in overseeing customer collaborations, sales processes, and data. They offer features such as contact management, lead tracking, sales forecasting, and customer support, empowering businesses to improve client connections and drive growth.
- Enterprise Resource Planning (ERP) SaaS: ERP software incorporates different business processes, including finance, HR, stock administration, and production network activities. These complete apparatuses empower organizations to smooth out their tasks, further develop productivity, and gain continuous bits of knowledge into their presentation.
- Collaboration and Communication SaaS: Collaboration tools like project management platforms, team messaging applications, and video conferencing programming fall under this Saas software. They facilitate seamless collaboration and streamline the communication amongst the employees to enable effective teamwork and enhance productivity.
- Human Resources Management (HRM) SaaS: HRM SaaS stages offer a scope of elements for overseeing worker information, finance, benefits organization, execution assessments, and enlistment processes. These devices smooth out HR work processes and assist organizations with really dealing with their labor force.
- Marketing Automation SaaS: Marketing automation tools help organizations smooth out and automate marketing efforts of a company, for example, email marketing, lead generation, social media management, and analytics. They empower designated and customized advertising efforts, prompting better client commitment and transformations.
- E-commerce SaaS: eCommerce Saas furnish organizations with the platform to set up and run their online stores. They offer elements like stock administration, payment processing, and order fulfillment, engaging organizations to sell items and administrations on the web.
Top Saas Development Platforms
Here are some of the top SaaS application development platforms that have gained immense popularity and also are recommended by the reliable software development company.
1. Salesforce
Salesforce is one of the trailblazers in the SaaS business, and its foundation gives a robust environment to building and sending business applications. It offers a great many instruments and administrations, including Salesforce Lightning, which empowers engineers to make highlight rich applications with an instinctive simplified interface. Furthermore, the Salesforce AppExchange commercial center permits organizations to find and integrate third-party applications flawlessly.
2. Microsoft Azure
Microsoft Azure is a comprehensive distributed computing platform that gives an abundance to the software development company to create robust Saas applications. Azure app service empowers developers to construct, convey, and scale web applications without any problem. It additionally offers Azure Functions for serverless computing and Azure Logic Apps for workflow automation. With Microsoft's broad designer instruments and environment, Azure is an ideal choice for SaaS product development.
3. Google Cloud Platform (GCP)
Google Cloud Platform offers a set-up of custom services ideal for SaaS applications. Google Application Motor works on application arrangement and scaling, while Firebase gives constant information base abilities to building responsive applications. GCP's broad worldwide organization framework guarantees low inactivity and high accessibility, making it an ideal choice for Saas development globally.
4. Amazon Web Administrations (AWS)
AWS, the market chief in distributed computing, gives a great many administrations for SaaS improvement. AWS Flexible Beanstalk improves on application arrangement, and AWS Lambda empowers engineers to fabricate serverless applications. Furthermore, AWS Commercial center permits programming merchants to offer their SaaS answers for an immense client base.
Note: These are the top platforms for Saas software development and you may consult a trusted software development company to choose the best platform for building your specific Saas application.
How Much Does SaaS Software Development Cost?
On an average, the estimated cost of Saas software development can range somewhere between $50,000-$200,000. Also, check out this guide on software development cost, to get an understanding of the factors influencing the total estimation and complete cost breakdown.
Moreover, there are several factors that can impact and add up to the total cost of your Saas project. The factors include:
1. Complexity
The complexity of your Saas product will impact the development cost. While there are several features such as scalability, payment gateway, and data security that adds up to the cost but if you’re integrating specific functionalities, it will add up to the final project cost.
2. Development Stages
A product comes up through several stages in the development process and a Saas product is no exception. Stages such as strategy building, MVP creation, UI/UX development, frontend and backend development, quality assurance and testing, and deployment. Each of these stages requires specific expertise and will eventually add up to the final cost.
3. Types of Saas Product
The type of Saas product you’re looking to build will add up to the final cost of development. The popular types of Saas based applications include: accounting, CRM, ERP, Martech, and project management.
4. Type of Development Team
The cost will majorly depend on your chosen development team. Whether it’s an in-house team, a freelancer, a local agency, or an outsourced software development company. Remember that in-house development will be costlier as compared to an outsourced development agency. Moreover, the quality of the project and its maintenance will be handled better by a professional partner than any in-house developer or freelancer.
5. Size and Location of the Development Team
The size and location of the development team will also impact the Saas software development cost. If they are located in countries such as the USA or the UK, they might charge extensively as compared to the companies based in India or Dubai. For instance, the cost in the USA can go upto $180,000 while in South Asia the cost will be upto $50,000. Hence, you must consider hiring a partner based globally or specifically in South Asia.
Top Saas Development Trends
1. Artificial Intelligence and Machine Learning
These technologies are changing SaaS applications. By utilizing artificial intelligence and ML, SaaS platforms can offer prescient examination, personalization, and mechanization capacities. Computer based intelligence driven chatbots, for example, further develop client assistance and improve client commitment. Additionally, SaaS products can continuously improve and adapt to user preferences thanks to the ability of ML algorithms to analyze data patterns and optimize performance.
2. Integrating Edge Computing
Since it improves performance and reduces latency, edge computing is gaining traction in the SaaS industry. SaaS providers can speed up response times and reduce network bottlenecks by processing data closer to the devices of end users. This pattern empowers SaaS applications to offer consistent client encounters and expanded dependability, basic variables in the present interconnected advanced world.
3. Security and Privacy Enhancements
With digital dangers turning out to be progressively complex, SaaS suppliers are putting more noteworthy emphasis on security and information protection. Start to finish encryption, multifaceted validation, and high level access controls are only a portion of the elements carried out to defend delicate data. Consistency with global data security guidelines, like GDPR and CCPA, is presently a standard prerequisite for SaaS organizations to acquire trust from their clients.
4. Containerization and Microservices
Microservices architectures and containerization are becoming increasingly common in SaaS development. Containerization guarantees consistency across different conditions and smoothes out the sending system, making it simpler for SaaS suppliers to scale and refresh their applications. Microservices, then again, work with measured improvement, upgrading adaptability, and support proficiency.
Conclusion
While the technology is rapidly advancing, building a Saas product has turned out to be an ideal business empowerment strategy. However, when you're planning to build such a complex and competitive product, you need to partner with a trusted Saas software development company. You will also need to understand the cost of development and the latest trends around this product to create a future-ready solution. With a robust Saas product, you will surely be able to thrive in the digital landscape.