Software as a Service Explained for the Rest of Us
When someone explains Software as a Service or Cloud Computing to you – do you have one of those moments where you hear the words, but can’t make sense of what they are saying? Here is an analogy that virtually everyone can understand.
We all understand the cost of buying and maintaining a car. Today, people can either buy or lease a car. In both cases, some repairs are covered under warranty or included in the lease, but there are still costs involved to operate and maintain it. Not to mention the hassle of selling or trading the car in when you need a new one. What if a third option were available – Car as a Service?
In this model, you would pay a flat monthly fee to use the car. All maintenance, repairs, and even upgrades are included. Fuel, oil changes, standard maintenance, unexpected maintenance, body shop work, etc. are all included in the monthly fee.
To top it off, when the manufacturer comes out with a time tested new model, your car will automatically get exchanged for latest model at no additional cost. No need to sign anything and go through the hassle of signing a new lease – the new car would be delivered to your home or office, all your personal belongings in the car would be transferred to the new car, and the old one would be taken away.
You might be thinking that this still sounds like nothing more than a fancy lease. But it’s actually very different. In addition to covering all maintenance expenses and model upgrades, there are no long term agreements or commitments. If at some point you no longer need the car, you simply turn it in at the end of the month and the payments go away.
Now let’s say that you have 5 employees and got each of them a car under the Car as a Service plan. These same benefits would apply to all of your employee’s cars as well. If 2 employees leave, simply return their cars and keep the rest. Your monthly fee will immediately be adjusted accordingly. You only need to pay for the cars as long as you need them. You always know exactly how much to budget each month because there are never additional expenses for fuel, maintenance, or repairs. And you never have to worry about your car getting old because you will receive a new model every few years.
If Car as a Service really existed, would you entertain this option the next time you need a car? If the answer is “Yes”, then you need to consider Software as a Service the next time you need to buy or upgrade any software applications or computer hardware.
Ready to learn more about Software as a Service? Read our article on What is SaaS.
Interested in finding out what business applications are available with a Software as a Service option? See our extensive list of Product offerings.