In the past, companies had to invest in on-premises infrastructure to be able to leverage different software solutions such as CRM or business analytics.
Nowadays, the rise of cloud technology makes it possible to bring entire business operations and analytics capabilities together through SaaS (software-as-a-service) products.
The SaaS industry has skyrocketed in popularity in the past couple of years and has become a viable choice for companies in a wide array of industries that are looking for accessibility, functionality, and versatility in an evolving, data-driven and highly competitive business environment.
And just like any other industry, the SaaS world is undergoing constant changes and needs to adopt a variety of modern technologies in order for SaaS providers to gain some competitive edge.
When the COVID- 19 pandemic was at its peak, the approach and perception of work changed permanently as remote and hybrid work became the new norm. And with many companies worldwide adopting this new workstyle and continuing to work remotely, the demand for SaaS and SaaS analytics products has grown exponentially.
Trend #1
SaaS products such as collaboration software, video and screen sharing/conferencing tools were some of the early winners, but many other key business applications have followed. In the months to come, companies will continue to bring their workflow and business operations online through productivity platforms, mobile applications, and more.
Trend #2
Another of the hottest trends in the SaaS analytics space is focused on the science of decision intelligence and basing all your key business decisions and operations on hard facts. Data-driven decision-making is not an entirely new trend, but as competition grows, so does its importance. SaaS analytics is not just about being competitive, it is also about making sure that you:
- Optimize your company’s processes and operations
- Improve productivity
- Find and resolve issues faster
- Increase customer engagement
- Find new business opportunities
- Grow revenue
Trend #3
Centralized analytics is another SaaS analytics trend that is on the rise and it also supports the decision-making process. In essence, centralized analytics is a unifying approach of storing and managing business data for analysis in a single location where all your data consumers can easily access. When you centralize all your company data in one location that serves as your ‘’single source of truth’’, all your users will always have access to the most vital business information and KPIs, making it easier for anyone to uncover hidden trends and patterns in data to extract actionable insights.
Trend #4
AI (artificial intelligence) and machine learning capabilities are becoming standard features of all SaaS products aiming to help companies achieve more with less. When properly implemented, these two powerful technologies revolutionize the way users interact with data and analytics and data management by providing AI-powered data cleansing, self-service data preparation, intelligent enterprise data catalogs, data fabric capabilities, and much more.
Trend #5
Also trending in the SaaS analytics space is the rise of low-code/no-code development platforms. According to Reveal’s top software challenges for 2022 report, citizen developers and low-code tools can help meet the demand for building fully functioning SaaS applications faster and with fewer resources. Such platforms don’t eliminate the need for developers or engineers completely but when those developers and engineers have less code to write for the foundation of your SaaS platform or solution, they can focus more of their time towards the development of new innovations that will, ultimately, result in a real competitive edge and business growth.
Of course, there are many other SaaS analytics trends that every company should follow and incorporate, but these are some of the biggest and most important ones. Other SaaS analytics trends that are also worth mentioning include mobile-first SaaS (moving all your SaaS features and functionalities into native mobile solutions), and effective governance through role-based access, authentication protocols, and auditing.
And as these analytical technologies and capabilities are getting more and more accessible and paramount in the business world, companies from all industries and of all sizes should seek to effectively use data-driven insights to make sound decisions at the moment of impact.
About the Author
Casey McGuigan holds a BA in mathematics and an MBA, bringing a data analytics and business perspective to Infragistics. Casey is the product owner for Slingshot, a digital workplace platform, and Reveal an embedded analytics solution. She was instrumental in product development, market analysis, and the products’ go-to-market strategy.
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