Why opt for certified SaaS software?
There are many SaaS (Software as a Service) publishers, and all of them claim to have the best offer, the best service. Who to believe, and how to compare them? It's a knotty situation for the customer, except when a label comes along to clarify everything. Find all the latest IT trends and news in our dedicated section.
SaaS must offer guarantees
Necessary differentiation
The SaaS mode is a recent phenomenon, and one that many have embraced. As a result, there are now many relatively small SaaS vendors. In France, out of 3,000 publishers, only 15 have sales in excess of €50 million. The others are between €5 and €15 million. Faced with such competition, publishers need to differentiate themselves. Product differentiation has its limits: once the ideal offer has been worked out, everyone will propose the same thing. Price differentiation is dangerous: if margins are cut too much, the business model is threatened. If you don't differentiate by product or price, how can you stand out from the crowd?
Reassuring customers
It's on the customer's side that we need to look. What is holding them back? Two aspects come out on top:
- the security of the service offered: using SaaS means entrusting your data to a service provider, who will then store it with a hosting company. How much risk is involved? How can you be sure that your data won't be misused or lost?
- the long-term viability of the publisher: if the SaaS provider goes out of business, what happens to the data, and will the service be interrupted?
These questions are the main objections your sales force has to deal with. And they're legitimate. To answer them, of course, a solid, well-founded sales pitch is a good start. But is it enough?
The importance of third-party opinions
No matter how convincing you are, no matter how much you smile, there's no substitute for a third-party opinion. It's the same in every sector: in e-commerce with consumer reviews, in pear-to-pear with salesperson ratings. Your prospect who is about to sign is eager for outside opinions. They'll be decisive in their decision. And in the SaaS sector, while customer reviews are important, professional accreditations have an even greater impact.
Labels to prove it
The SaaS landscape is consolidating
Exaegis is a rating agency that issues labels, notably by carrying out a financial analysis of the company. It offers a " trusted third party " relationship between the publisher and its customers. Impartial, it bases its assessment on audits, providing tangible elements for judging the performance, financial health and reliability of software publishers. This initiative reinforces the transparency expected by both end customers and financial partners in terms of business management (financial management, asset management, etc.). This increasingly widespread practice of financial and operational diagnostics is gradually structuring and securing the industry.
Two relevant labels
Exaegis' labels are based on an operational and financial analysis, assessing continuity, security and reversibility risks, with the aim of establishing the publisher's risk profile. Depending on the age of the structure, Exaegis offers two different labels:
- Startruxt label: intended for publishers and startups less than three years old. It is awarded for three years and reviewed twice a year. Here, the operational analysis is based on the following themes:
- market confrontation and initial results
- design quality
- service implementation and delivery
- human resources
- recurring threats
- Truxt label: for software publishers over three years old and with sales of less than €15 million. It is awarded for three years. Here, the operational analysis focuses on these themes:
- sales and customer relations
- service production
- human resources
- quality improvement
- service transfers (integration and reversibility)
- business model - steering, management and administration
Exaegis doesn't just evaluate, it goes further. Once a label has been awarded, it acts as guarantor. In the event of failure, Exaegis provides continuity of service or a financial guarantee to the label holder's customers. A powerful argument to reassure customers once and for all!
A virtuous approach for the publisher
Beyond the impact in terms of image and reliability, labeling is an interesting benchmark for the publisher. You may think you're at the cutting edge, but who's to say your competitors aren't doing better? Benchmarking your performance is a valuable source of information. It allows you to :
- get to know yourself better: you know what your strengths are in relation to others. Your sales force will be better equipped to persuade when prospecting.
- improve: you've identified your areas for improvement, so you know where to focus your efforts.
A positive dynamic is created, uniting your teams around a collective, concrete objective. Players such as Backupia, for online backup, or Talentsoft for human resources, have opted for an exaegis label. So why not you?
Software publishers will increasingly have to show their credentials. Transparency and guarantees are growing demands from end customers. It's a good idea to be ahead of the game and demonstrate your operational excellence and financial health. Even if it means improving your scores as you go along, rather than risking a supplier quality assurance exercise you weren't expecting.
Article translated from French