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SaaS Research & Publications
New "SaaS Market Accelerating" , a survey-based report in conjunction with Cutter Consortium.
New "SaaS Market Shifting from Point Solutions to Platform Strategies", a survey-based report in conjunction with Cutter Consortium.
"Top Ten Reasons Why On-Demand Services Will Soar in 2008", a THINKstrategies commentary republished by Sandhill.com.
"Understanding the Financial Implications of the Software-as-a-Service Business Model", a THINKstrategies analysis in conjunction with SaaS-Capital.
"Five Things You Didn't Know About SaaS," bMighty.com.
Triple-Tree CRM Convergence Industry Analysis Report.
"The SaaS Channel Opportunity", a Channel Insider commentary.
"Automated Network Management Tools to the Rescue", a NetworkWorld commentary.
"Telcos Target SaaS Money", a Web Hosting Industry Review commentary.
BusinessWeek: Software-as-a-Service Myths Find more Insights....
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Showplace Sponsors
Absolute Performance
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Greetings!
Welcome to the first THINKstrategies Software-as-a-Service (SaaS) Showplace® Update of 2008!
Although we are only two weeks into the new year, many of us in the SaaS industry already feel that we are well into an exciting new era of this fast growing movement.
An indication of the important shift which is occuring is the amount of attention that SaaS and other forms of on-demand services are now receiving from IT decision-makers, as well as their traditional research advisors. This newsletter will discuss some of the important indicators of this shift.
Another indication of the accelerating growth of SaaS and on-demand services is the rapid growth of the SaaS Showplace. It now includes over 580 companies from around the world offering over 2500 SaaS solutions organized into 80 Application, Industry and Enabling Technology categories!
The Showplace is also generating over 250,000 hits a month and this newsletter is now read by over 8000 IT/business decision-makers, solution providers, investors and press!
THINKstrategies has been a leading advocate of the SaaS movement and a key advisor to a wide array of companies seeking to capitalize on the business benefits of the on-demand model. This Update includes insights from our latest research and from our sponsors and partners. I hope you find this Update valuable..
Contact me if you have further questions about the SaaS market or you'd like to learn more about how you can leverage the SaaS Showplace, become a sponsor or partner, or take advantage of THINKstrategies' consulting services to achieve your business objectives.
Jeff Kaplan, Managing Director
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Latest SaaS Research |
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Over the past three years, THINKstrategies and Cutter Consortium have been charting the growth of the SaaS market by conducting a series of annual surveys that were the first to discover widespread interest and adoption of SaaS solutions among organizations of all sizes.
Our previous surveys dispelled a number of misconceptions surrounding SaaS at the time. For instance, many analyst firms and other industry observers viewed SaaS as a peripheral trend that might appeal to small- and mid-size businesses (SMBs), but would not gain acceptance in large-scale enterprises.
Our latest survey research confirms the growing acceptance of SaaS and examines the shift in the SaaS industry from point solutions to platform strategies.
Click here to read more.
Contact us if you would like to discuss the implications of our research on your SaaS or sourcing strategies. |
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New Showplace Sponsors and Whitepapers |
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Last month, we added Absolute Performance and Empirix to our growing list of SaaS Showplace sponsors.
We are pleased to welcome Kaseya and Oco as our newest Showplace sponsors. Kaseya offers software solutions which automate IT management functions for enterprise customers and managed service providers (MSPs). Oco is a provider of on-demand business intelligence solutions. They have contributed the following whitepapers to the Showplace,
- "Automating and Optimizing Service Desk Performance", a THINKstrategies whitepaper sponsored by Kaseya.
- "Calculating the ROI for Business Intelligence in SMBs," a sponsored whitepaper by Oco.
They join the following companies who have sponsored the Showplace over the past year,
- IBM SaaSpace
- Citrix Online
- Everdream
- QuickArrow
- SpringCM
These sponsors have contributed the following whitepapers and reports,
- "Completing Your SaaS Ecosystem with SaaS-Delivered Monitoring and Management Services," a whitepaper sponsored by Absolute Performance.
- "Service Assurance for SaaS," a whitepaper sponsored by Empirix.
- "Top Ten Things to Know about Data Protection", sponsored by Everdream.
- "Evolution of Resource Management," sponsored by QuickArrow.
- "Is a SharePoint-Based Solution Right for Your Organization?," sponsored by SpringCM.
THINKstrategies also recently published a whitepaper sponsored by Blue Coat Systems entitled, "Leveraging WAN Application Delivery Solutions to Accelerate and Secure Your Software-as-a-Service Capabilities".
You can learn more about these companies and find more whitepapers in the SaaS Showplace Best Practices Portal and the SaaS Insights page of the Showplace.
Click here if you'd like to become a Showplace sponsor, and add your logo and corporate contents to the directory. |
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Latest SaaS News and Views |
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If you have any doubts about the outlook for on-demand services in 2008, read the ten reasons why they will soar in the coming year.
Even Gartner is finally jumping on the SaaS and utility computing services bandwagon. See what we think about their latest forecasts for 2008.
Need further proof that SaaS is satisfying customer needs? All of the companies recently surveyed by THINKstrategies and Cutter Consortium that are currently using SaaS solutions are satisfied with the results.
How pervasive has SaaS become? One of the most recent additions to the SaaS Showplace is the World Fashion Exchange.
If anyone tells you SaaS isn't ready for the enterprise, show them the list of CIOs and senior executives from the following companies who will be speaking about their SaaS experiences at SaaScon,
- Colorado Capital Bank
- The Schumacher Group
- Aviall Services, Inc. (a wholly owned subsidiary of The Boeing Company)
- Shaklee Corporation
- Heidelberg
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The New Showplace Job Board and Other Services |
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As a part of THINKstrategies' continous effort to enhance the SaaS Showplace and support the growth of the SaaS market, we recently added a new Job Board to the SaaS Showplace and are very pleased with the initial response.
In the first 24 hours that the Job Board was available, eleven companies posted 18 openings. We also received numerous messages from Showplace visitors thanking us for offering this free service.
We have also enhanced the Showplace to make it easier for visitors to find SaaS providers on the Showplace, and for SaaS companies to add and update their profiles the Showplace. As a result of these enhancements, the Showplace ranked third in a recent Google search of "SaaS" behind Wikipedia and Microsoft listings, without us purchasing any Adwords or using any other artificial method to raise the site's web presence.
THINKstrategies is also the most highly recognized independent consulting and market analysis firm focused on helping companies understand the business implications of on-demand services. We are helping companies of all sizes adopt on-demand solutions and providers deliver successful services.
THINKstrategies was the first to unveil a SaaS Readiness Assessment Service last September.
We are also proud of our partner ecosystem which enables THINKstrategies to respond to the specific organizational, operational, sales, marketing and financial needs of our clients. In addition to our Best Practices Portal partner, iCentera, our strategic partners include OnDemand Solutions, MarketShare, SaaS Capital and TripleTree, LLC.
Contact us if you'd like help or advice to capitalizing on today's SaaS solutions and opportunities. |
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Upcoming Events |
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Here are the SaaS events coming up in 2008,
- Softletter's Marketing and Selling SaaS Seminar, January 30-31, Atlanta, GA (To save $100 on the registration fee, use Coupon: THINKSAVE100)
- 2008 Ziff Davis Enterprise Channel Summit, February 7, Dallas, TX.
- OpSource SaaS Summit, February 27- 29, 2008, San Francisco CA (To save $50 on the registration fee, use Coupon Code: ts50)
- SaaScon, March 25-26, 2008, San Jose, CA (THINKstrategies/SaaS Showplace referrals using this link will save 20% on their registration fee.)
In addition, I will be moderating a Massachusetts Technology Leadership Council webinar entitled, "Evaluating SaaS Funding Alternatives", on Friday, January 25 at noon. The session will include the perspective of Bill Rurode, EVP and Head of East Coast Business Development for SaaS Capital.
Click here if you missed Makana Solutions' recent webinar entitled, "Sales Compensation for SaaS and Subscription-Based Businesses."
Contact us if you'd like to include THINKstrategies' perspective and gain the promotional support of the SaaS Showplace for your upcoming event. |
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Become a SaaS Showplace Sponsor |
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The SaaS Showplace is made possible by the support of corporate sponsors. In turn, Showplace sponsors gain greater visibility on the Showplace and recognition in this newsletter.
The SaaS Showplace is the fastest growing clearinghouse of information and insight regarding the on-demand software market. The SaaS Showplace newsletter is distributed to over 8000 IT/business decision-makers within SMBs and enterprises; business executives within ISVs, hosting companies, xSPs, resellers and integrators; trade and business press; and investors.
Sponsorship opportunities are packaged and priced to make it simple for SaaS providers and enabling technology vendors to select the right option to meet their marketing and sales objectives within their budgetary requirements.
Contact us if you'd like to learn more about SaaS Showplace sponsorships. |
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About the SaaS Showplace |
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The SaaS Showplace has been established by THINKstrategies to give IT and business decision- makers a simple, easy-to-use directory of SaaS providers and enabling technology vendors, and provide an independent clearinghouse of information and insights to help organizations of all sizes identify the right SaaS providers to address their needs.
The Showplace is also intended to help SaaS providers and enabling technology vendors increase their access to IT/business decision-makers and increase their visibility in the market.
Click here for more information about the SaaS Showplace. | |
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About THINKstrategies |
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THINKstrategies is a strategic consulting firm that focuses on the business implications of the shift toward on-demand services. THINKstrategies helps enterprise decision- makers with their sourcing strategies, IT solution providers with their marketing strategies, and venture firms with their investment strategies in the IT services sector.
In addition to the SaaS Showplace, THINKstrategies has also created the Managed Services Showplace which lists leading managed service providers (MSPs) by Service, Industry and Enabling Technology areas. It also provides the latest news and insights about the managed services market.
Click here to learn more about THINKstrategies. | |
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