3 IT Trends Influencing SaaS Products
Software is the heart and soul of any system, and as every IT professional knows, any process is only as good as its software capabilities. With technology growing and expanding its capabilities, your company needs to keep up with the latest trends, especially when it comes to software as a service (SaaS) technologies. SaaS can help keep your systems up to date so you can always perform at your best, regardless of the tough business demands on your company.
While there are many growing software trends today, there are three SaaS technologies you need to focus on today to help your IT operate at their optimum capacity:
1.Artificial Intelligence
What It is
While AI might have been the stuff of science fiction in the past, it is now a reality that many companies are racing to adopt and perfect. According to Stanford University, “It is the science and engineering of making intelligent machines, especially intelligent computer programs.” These machines learn from past data and make decisions based on those data. As more data is added, AI continues to learn from them to make their responses better suited to the task.
How AI is affecting businesses
Processes can be done much faster as machines think for themselves without the prompting of humans. From agriculture, energy, to healthcare, the impact of AI is disruptive as the technology lets industries automate processes and responses to problems. For companies, this means instantaneous response to standard operating procedures, leaving more complex and delicate responses to humans; they free the workforce from dull and tedious work when they could be working on more high-level problems. Any company not employing some sort of AI is missing out on work and cost efficiencies the technology brings. Statista acknowledges AI’s 154 percent growth year on year, signifying that companies are pouring more money into a technology that points the way to the future for many industries.
As a case in point, call centers, which are focused on productivity, are able to do so with greater ease than ever before. As reported by CMSWire, companies such as elMejorTrato.com automate 56.9 percent of their queries; this transition gives them the ability to help their customers get their responses in seconds.
2.API Connections
What is an API
Application programming interface (API) is a growing trend mainly because there are many different programs and software that different parts of an organization use. Marketing software is different from the finance software, and is also different from manufacturing software. With all these different software programs churning out different data that is needed by each part of the organization, companies can’t afford to leave them disorganized. They stand to lose time, money, and effort just in organizing and relaying all that data to one another.
API tells how software components should interact, and the connections aid in the actual interactions between software components. This makes the coordination between systems smoother and creates a more integrated network.
How it is affecting businesses
The importance of API connections is highlighted by the fact that Web APIs alone have grown by 1,000 percent in the last decade, according to The ProgrammableWeb. API connectivity has a high rate of adoption and success for the following reasons: it helps to resolve critical points in the business, enhances customer experiences, increases collaboration in the process, and improves innovations.
Having effective API connections offers companies scalability, flexibility, and agility like never before. Different parts of the organization are able to communicate more seamlessly with one another, transferring accurate business data from different sources in real-time.
Software companies are also taking advantage of this ability to connect other software products from other companies. Being able to integrate with a customer’s other systems enhances the value of the software beyond its singular use. Connecting via API ensures the integrations are always up to date.
Companies like ING have embraced API connectivity to help, not only their organization, but their consumers as well. For example, they created three products for their consumers, namely: Yolt, a personal finance management aggregator; Payconiq, a digital wallet; and a financial service aggregator. As a result, ING was able to help its clients manage their finances better through applications that communicate with each other.
3. Mobile-first Mindset
What It is
In this digital age, the advent of the smartphone has created a whole new normal for the world. People have turned to mobile phones as their first resource for both their work and personal lives. But what organizations have to understand is that mobile devices and screens are different from the traditional desktop, requiring different features and functionalities to be effective and conducive for work. This means that developers need to focus on mobile design and development in order for the businesses that employ them to enjoy a healthy ROI.
How it is affecting businesses
CNBC estimates that 72.6 percent of the world population will use their mobile devices to browse the internet. Many companies are now accepting this as a fact of life, and are integrating mobile computing for workers to connect to critical parts of the business through tablets and smartphones. Because of this, workers feel more empowered and perform their jobs better.
The fact of the matter is, people can no longer put their phones down nowadays. Companies like Typeform understand the power of a mobile-centric product. It created a mobile app for creating forms that were straightforward and simple, satisfying basic user needs. The result was a huge surge in signups from mobile, giving the company a huge wave of clients they were not able to tap before with a desktop-only platform. And while not as robust as the desktop application, the mobile option delivered exactly what their customers needed.
Keep a close eye on these three IT trends that are influencing the development of SaaS technologies. They do promise the seamless integration of work processes, capabilities that can raise productivity, and a platform to tap into a greater market. Ultimately, all these advantages can combine to help you adapt in our constantly changing business environment.
