Setting up a SaaS based business venture can be tough and gruesome and only the most experienced SaaS application development companies can help you develop a product that can stand the test of times and bring you the required business uplift you ae looking for!
While developing a SaaS app may be tricky, but with the right expertise you can definitely cater to a much larger audience. What makes SaaS apps such a big success is the ease of access from anywhere and convenience to avail services which are in-expensive and take away a lot of hassle from the user’s end. SaaS market is expected to reach around $133 Billion by the end of 2020 and in current turbulent times of COVID-19 and work from home situation, the demand for products that only require the internet is going to keep on increasing.
However, before jumping on the bandwagon, there are a few things you have to keep in mind:
Marketability of your SaaS product idea:
Sure your idea may out of the blue and one in a million but is it truly marketable or not? This is one of the primary concerns because SaaS apps have to be eventually used by a lot of people addressing a need that needs a solution bringing more ease and efficiency in their current workflow. If your idea does not cut it, then there is probably no point in going through the hassle taking a SaaS application development company on board.
The product should be such that people go out of their way to get it and reap benefits from its usage. Don’t create a product just for the sake of it. Microsoft once made this mistake with Zune. Remember? No you don’t because it was never big enough and failed miserably because of being a low copied version of iPod. Instead of giving any competition, it died out because it could not be marketed and attract users.
So word of advice would be to analyze the demand for the product you want to create way before in the research stages so that you can be saved from any unexpected disappointment later on.
Choosing the right tech stack:
Once you are sure about the app idea, the next most important thing would be choosing the right technology for it. There are numerous worth considering options in the market which can make the choice hard but if you have a little know-how about what is best for your product then you are safe.
Tech stack basically encompasses any framework, tool or language needed to develop an app or web. Just like other products, for SaaS there are also two main components for which you need to choose the right tech stack, front end and back end.
Developing these two back in the day was pretty simple with only a handful of technologies to choose from, but now the case is rather different.
Front end development:
Front end, also known as the client-side is where the entire user interface is developed and other elements which the end-user is going to interact with. For front end many tools and frameworks are popular like HTML, jQuery, JavaScript and Cascading Style Sheet. Within JavaScript Angular and React have also been widely used lately.
Both Angular and React are robust and intuitive which create responsive apps regardless of the platform or server they are used on.
Back end development:
This is the part that the user or the client cannot see and only the owner/developer has access to it. Back end is the core house where all instruction from frontend come and the whole show is run.
There was a time when PHP was the leading technology when it came to back end development however, today, Ruby on Rails and Python have become equally popular if not more. Other popular technologies include MEAN stack, LAMP stack and .NET stack etc.
Choosing the right methodology
Once you have made up your mind which tech stack will be best for you then comes the decision making for the development approach to be used. There are plenty of options and each brings its own benefits to the table.
Waterfall:
The waterfall method or more commonly known as the traditional sequential linear method is basically taking the whole development process one stage at a time. It is ideal for smaller projects. The sequence of these stages is as follows:
- Requirement
- Design
- Implementation
- Testing
- Deployment
- Maintenance
Agile Methodology:
As the name suggests, the methodology focuses entirely on speeding up the existing development practice by skipping steps which unnecessarily eat up more time. It is a very flexible approach which divides the process into mini-projects or sprints.
It revolves around iterative development, rigorously testing each sprint after being completed which leaves little room of error in the project at the end when making any changes becomes harder and more time-consuming. It also allows making product enhancements at every stage early on in the project.
It is a popular approach in today’s world and before choosing the SaaS application development company for your project you must ensure which methodology they will use for your project development.
Finalizing the cost beforehand:
Without trying to sugar coat it and give it you as it is, a good SaaS project cannot be made while trying to save bucks. It is a technical development process which requires a lot of time and effort and subsequently can cost a little higher as well but the resources will be worth it once your SaaS product becomes a hit.
The cost of a SaaS product depends on various factors like the number of features included, APIs used, whether you outsource a SaaS application development company or hire resource in-house to make one for you, many things. Getting APIs integrated in the backend can actually bring your cost down compared to making everything from scratch. Using APIs also helps rapid scaling of the product and eliminates the need of multiple development steps saving both time and cost.
Conclusion:
These are the factors you must keep in mind before taking a SaaS application development company on board for your next project. Cloud computing is definitely on the rise this is a great time to launch great SaaS apps.
