SaaS eCommerce is For Small Businesses, Right?

Wrong. A common misconception of SaaS (Software as a Service) platforms are that they cannot be used in larger enterprises; however, modern SaaS platforms have continued to improve, meaning they’re more technically proficient at hosting larger infrastructures.

It is true that SaaS is not necessarily going to work for all businesses. If your business is a large international enterprise that requires complex customisations and has multimillion-dollar fulfilment automation, then most SaaS platforms would not be able to support the level of customisation needed. In these circumstances, a self-hosted platform would be the better option. However, this is not to say that SaaS platforms don’t have a lot to offer for other large enterprises, such as those with annual revenue ranging from $50 million to $1 billion, provided that they have sizeable investments, and that they manage expectations for what a SaaS platform should and shouldn’t be used for.

Essentially, a SaaS provider is chosen by smaller businesses that want to set up an online store in a quick and professional manner. It’s also perfect for those businesses that would rather offload the hosting and management of their online store in order to remain focused on the front end of the business. It’s also highly cost-effective. The benefits of modern SaaS platforms can also be extremely beneficial for already established businesses.

Faster Uptime

On-premise solutions can’t compete with the typical 99.99% uptime record with SaaS platforms.

Protection

Hosting your online store with a SaaS provider means that any DDoS mitigation is handled for you, protecting you from an attack. This protection is far better than what most self-hosted providers can deal with.

PCI compliance

As an eCommerce store, you’ll be handling a lot of sensitive data. Ensuring credit card information is securely dealt with is an extremely beneficial aspect of having a SaaS provider, and means that you don’t have to deal with this crucial, yet time-consuming part of the business.

Managed peak periods

Often during peak periods, self-hosted platforms can’t keep up with traffic and consumer demand, but with a SaaS platform, there are highly experienced teams that are well-trained in handling high-demand periods.

Automatic updates

Your SaaS provider will ensure all the latest updates and patches happen automatically so that your on-site team don’t have to keep on top of it.

Flexible theme updates

SaaS platforms are specifically designed to produce a quality checkout experience. Your provider will ensure to stay on top of new developments, but the shopping cart frontend templates are also extremely flexible, and can be customised with a quick turnaround.

BigCommerce

Making the transition to an eCommerce platform such as BigCommerce, will mean that your business will be handled by experienced professionals. Not only that, BigCommerce offers integrations with other SaaS platforms, meaning your site is constantly up-to-date and there are a wide variety of built-in features that tag along with the platform, such as an easy-to-use CMS.  Utilising BigCommerce as a SaaS provider means a greater and smoother journey for your business to grow.

There are obviously many benefits to choosing a SaaS provider for your business, not just because of the fast setup and launch to an enterprise level that you just won’t get with a self-hosted, on-premise platform. Of course, the self-hosted option does have its own advantages, allowing for complete flexibility and customisations, where you can also manage your own development. Therefore, it is completely down to how you wish to manage your business and whether you want full access and flexibility, or whether you would prefer to have a SaaS provider handle many aspects of the back office.

If you would like more information on utilising a SaaS provider for your business, get in touch with us here.