As your business grows, it’s important to regularly assess whether your current software-as-a-service (SaaS) vendor is meeting your needs. Some factors you can evaluate periodically are whether the vendor is able to scale with your business, provide necessary features and offer the level of support that you require — and if the answer is “no,” it may be time to move on to a new provider.
To help you understand whether you’ve outgrown your current SaaS vendor, a panel of Young Entrepreneur Council (YEC) members answered the following question:
“What’s one sign that can help you determine whether or not your business has outgrown a particular SaaS vendor, and what should you do once you make this determination?”
Here’s what YEC community members had to say.
1. The Software No Longer Meets Your Business’s Needs
“Evaluate if the software and services meet your current needs and will be able to scale with your growth. If you’ve outgrown them, research new vendors, compare features and pricing and plan a smooth transition to minimize disruptions. Dig deeper for the total cost of ownership — it isn’t just the ticket price. Add up implementation, data migration, legal and training and other costs associated with the switch.” ~ Devesh Dwivedi, Devesh Dwivedi
2. Service Diversification Becomes Necessary
“When starting, you only need basic software like Excel to manage the day-to-day operations and a small number of customers. However, more customers increase the opportunities for service diversification. This often means a need for more features in business software. Consider specialized and high-value software that comes with cost-saving strategies.” ~ Tonika Bruce, Lead Nicely, Inc.
3. The Costs Begin to Outweigh the Benefits
“One way to determine if your business has outgrown a particular SaaS vendor is by analyzing your usage and ROI. If the vendor is no longer meeting your needs or the costs outweigh the benefits, it’s time to shop for a better fit. Once you make this determination, research other options and make a plan for a smooth transition.” ~ Abhijeet Kaldate, Astra WordPress Theme
4. Inefficiencies Begin to Develop
“One of the most persistent issues that companies are facing is integration with their SaaS applications. With so many different SaaS applications on the market, it can be difficult for businesses to find solutions that work seamlessly together. As a result, many companies are left struggling to connect their various tools and platforms, leading to inefficiencies and lost productivity.” ~ Kelly Richardson, Infobrandz
5. You’re Repeatedly Facing Problems With a Vendor
“We recently made a switch with one of our vendors. This decision was prompted by a major data leakage that affected many businesses and people, and it wasn’t the first time. Fortunately, there were many alternatives available and we switched. If you’re facing problems with a vendor repeatedly, you should take that as a sign that it’s time to do research and switch to a new one.” ~ Syed Balkhi, WPBeginner
6. Other Solutions Are Offering Better Benefits
“One of the best ways to make an informed decision here is to compare the current solution with other alternatives out there. If other solutions offer better capabilities than the one currently comprising your tech stack, then it’s about time you considered a replacement. Once you have made up your mind, the next thing you should do is weigh other options with respect to the features they offer.” ~ Stephanie Wells, Formidable Forms
7. The Vendor Isn’t Innovating
“Check if they are adding new product integrations or features. The best SaaS vendors consistently evolve their platforms to deliver more value to their customers. In some cases, you may be able to integrate their tool with other apps or you may be able to access new features they release, inclusive within your existing license. If they aren’t innovating, it’s likely their competitors are instead.” ~ Firas Kittaneh, Amerisleep Mattress
8. The Pricing Model Is No Longer Satisfactory
“Evaluate how well the vendor’s services meet your changing business needs. For example, if the vendor’s pricing model or feature list no longer satisfies your current requirements, then it may be time to look for other vendors. Once you make this determination, create a list of criteria to compare potential vendors and find the best fit for your business.” ~ Andrew Munro, AffiliateWP
9. Customers Give Negative Feedback
“Are you experiencing feedback from customers that your processes related to software or a derivative of software are suffering? This is an easy way to know that it is time to move on. Also, be communicative with your vendors on the road map that may or may not exist to solve these customer concerns. Vendors may be working on new plans to solve issues.” ~ Matthew Capala, Alphametic
10. The Vendor Doesn’t Provide Enough Customer Service
“I believe the best measure is to assess the customer service you are receiving. If customer service is lacking, it may be time to switch vendors. Once I realize this is the case, I look for other vendors who can provide better support. I also check their security standards, features, pricing and user-friendliness. All these factors play a role in finding the right SaaS vendor for my business.” ~ Blair Williams, MemberPress
Image: Envato Elements
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When running a business, the most effective way to scale up or improve operations is to find the right tools and technology. For a lot of businesses, adopting software-as-a-service (SaaS)—also known as cloud software—is a reliable way to save time and money. But as a business grows and expands, there may come a time when the features and capabilities of a particular SaaS provider are no longer sufficient for its needs. Here are 10 signs that your business has outgrown its SaaS vendor:
1. Your product or service offering has changed. Your business likely began as a small operation that needed basic software to keep track of customers and orders. Over time, as you’ve grown and changed, the demands of customers and the market may have increased, and so, the software now needs to include more capabilities.
2. Your customer base has expanded significantly. This growth has likely increased the amount of customer data you are collecting, as well as the number of customer and technical support tickets you must manage. If your SaaS vendor is not able to provide the necessary scalability, you may need to invest in different software to meet your needs.
3. Your team members have changed roles or have been added. As your team has grown, their demands for access to data, technical support, and management tools have likely grown as well. If your SaaS provider does not provide all of the necessary features to efficiently manage a larger team, you may need to find new software.
4. The cost and complexity of integration has increased. As your operations have become more complicated, your software may not be able to integrate with other programs or services that you need. The additional cost of integrating the software may exceed the cost of finding and investing in new software.
5. You’re seeing a security or data compliance issue. As your business grows, you may have to meet certain regulatory or compliance requirements that your current SaaS vendor simply cannot provide. Investing in different software may be the only way to ensure that your business is compliant and secure.
6. You’re having difficulty getting product updates or customer support. If the features of your software haven’t been updated in a while, or customer support is lacking or slow to respond, you may need to look for a different SaaS provider that can give you better service.
7. Your website or platform has experienced performance issues. If your existing SaaS vendor isn’t able to accommodate the increased traffic to your website or platform, you may need to invest in a platform that can handle the increased load.
8. You’re running into limit restrictions. If you’ve hit the limit on how many users or how much data your existing platform can handle, it may be time to upgrade to a new SaaS provider.
9. Your business processes are more complex. Over time, your operations may become more complex, with more data points, customer segments, and customer profiles. If that’s the case, your SaaS vendor may not be able to keep up with the increased demand for features, tools, or analytics capabilities.
10. You’re having difficulties adding customizations. If you need to customize your software in order to meet the unique needs of your business, your SaaS provider may not have the coding abilities or resources to accommodate the customization. It may be time to look for software that is better equipped to meet your needs.
If your business is beginning to experience any of these signs, it may be time to look for new software options that better fit the needs of your business. Doing so can streamline processes, save costs, and ensure that your business is secure and compliant.
