Editor’s Note: Founder and contributor Ben Yoskovitz has been involved with SaaS businesses (Software as a Service) for some 9 years. This includes his current startup, Standout Jobs . How to do “SaaS” right has been debated lately. VC Byron Deeter outlined Bessemer Venture Partners’ 10 Laws for Being “SaaS-y”, some of which were quickly disputed. At his Instigator Blog, Ben recently used his own experience to illustrate the good and bad of being a SaaS vendor, and how to do it better.
We’ve abbreviated Ben’s thoughts below, but here’s his whole post:Lessons Learned Running a SaaS Business.
Extending and responding to Byron’s 10 Laws, here are [my SaaS] lessons learned:
1. Monthly or Yearly Payments?
… as Byron points out, smart SaaS vendors will offer discounts for longer term commitments and payment up-front. “Pay me for a full year today and I’ll give you 2 months free…” This is a smart approach. Anything that helps you get money up-front is a good thing because it’s money you can absolutely bank on. Future potential earnings are not set in stone. And the more money you have in potential bookings the harder it is to plan. Continue »
