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"Tribeca Film Festival's experience is an excellent example of the true business value of Web Content Management delivered as a service. The organization needs a WCM solution that not only supports the business, but also scales to meet demand that can be uneven."

Mary Laplante, Vice President and Senior Analyst
The Gilbane Group

What is Software as a Service?

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Similar to the consumer Web services you use every day (Yahoo! Mail, Facebook, Twitter), SaaS is a way of delivering enterprise applications as a service directly over the Internet. Instead of installing software on your local network or hard-drive, SaaS applications run on top of a vendor’s own infrastructure and are accessible through a Web browser. As a result, SaaS customers own no hardware or software. They simply pay a monthly subscription fee for the application and hardware they use. The SaaS provider is also responsible for ensuring the security, performance, and availability of the application.
True SaaS companies have very specific attributes including:

Multi-Tenant Architecture:
In a SaaS environment, hundreds of companies share the same code base and hardware infrastructure “in the cloud.” Consequently, huge economies of scale are achieved, resulting in the elimination of hardware purchases and maintenance costs.

Ease of Use:
SaaS applications are modeled after easy-to-use Web 2.0 consumer applications. User interfaces are extremely intuitive and simple to use. SaaS users can often master a sophisticated application in a matter of hours.

Frequent and Easy Upgrades:
A SaaS application is built on a single code base shared by all users and maintained by the vendor.  SaaS upgrades happen seamlessly since there is no new software to install. Unlike traditional, installed software solutions, a company’s IT team no longer has to maintain multiple versions of the same software. What’s more, SaaS application features are released frequently in response to constantly shifting market needs. Traditional software vendors are typically on an 18-month development cycle between releases. With installed software upgrades, additional installation costs are required in the form of professional services.  Most SaaS companies regularly upgrade their software throughout the year, making new features instantly available to all subscribers. Since there is no software to install, there are no additional fees.

Transparent Pricing and Lower Initial Costs:

Since SaaS applications are provided on a monthly subscription basis, there are no hidden fees or backend charges. Without hardware and software-license overhead, initial costs are much lower.

Global Access:
Because they’re browser-based, SaaS applications can be accessed by a variety of devices from any location in the world.



Know Before You Buy:
The Ultimate SaaS Web Content Management Checklist


BUYER BEWARE:
Knowledge is power. Many companies are trying to ride the huge growth in SaaS popularity by claiming to be true SaaS providers. Do not be fooled. Please use this handy SaaS checklist when interviewing potential Web Content Management vendors. If they answer “no” to any of the questions below (unless otherwise marked), they are not true SaaS WCM providers:

  1. Does your company host the CMS application?
  2. Does your company host websites?
  3. Can I host my own version of your company’s CMS behind my firewall? (Note: If the vendor says “yes,” they aren’t SaaS)
  4. Does your company automatically upgrade the system at regular intervals?
  5. Does your company fix bugs as part of the service?
  6. Can non-technical users publish content without coding or contacting IT?
  7. Do I need to use a certain operating system?
  8. Does your company’s software have to be installed on my PC or MAC? (Note: If the vendor says “yes,” they aren’t SaaS)
  9. Can I access your company’s CMS anywhere in the world via an internet browser?



All SaaS Web Content Management Vendors are not the same.  To make a truly educated purchase, here are the questions you must ask when comparing SaaS WCM vendors:

 

  1. Does your company provide multiple datacenters?
  2. Does your company provide a disaster recovery plan as part of your service?
  3. Are Staging, Development, and Production environments provided as part of your company’s service?
  4. Is your company’s CMS dynamic? (Translation: website pages are not hard coded and it’s easy to do redesigns or move content items around as needed)
  5. Does your company provide a Service Level Agreement (SLA)?