Strategies for growth are essential for any forward-mobile business. However, with technological advancements comes the need to ditch traditional strategies and embrace modern ones. Knowing the Software-as-a-Service (SaaS) tools suitable for your business growth is a smart growth strategy in this digital era.

SaaS is a driving force in almost every industry and a report has it that the SaaS market is growing at 6.5 times as fast as the world economy. Little wonder there’s a lot of buzz on Software-as-a-Service tools. A great question to ask yourself is: How can you take advantage of these tools to protect and grow your business? The answers are right here. 

1. What are SaaS tools?

Software-as-a-Service tools are applications rendered as a service through the internet. With traditional software, you will need to physically configure the program on your system and maintain the hardware. SaaS is different; you have a service provider who handles the configuration and maintenance of the software, servers and storage for a fee. Most SaaS use the subscription model, meaning you’ll pay as you go.

2. Benefits of SaaS tools for businesses 

It is not smart to jump on the SaaS bandwagon without knowing how they will benefit your business. Made with the best software development technologies, Saas tools solve different problems and you need to be aware of these problems and how the tools can help. Below are some benefits of Software-as-a-Service tools. 

They offer free trials

This is one sweet spot of SaaS. Before investing in it, you often have the option of a free trial that allows you to test the service and see if it’s a fit for your business. This advantage is absent in the traditional model, where you would have invested a fortune in the hardware. With the free trials that most SaaS providers offer, you save time, effort and money. You can also test as many tools as possible until you find a suitable one without investing any money or effort.  

They save cost

Cost efficiency is a major advantage of SaaS. The cost of installation and maintenance of the hardware is taken off your plate, allowing you to invest the money on other essential aspects of your business. The pay-as-you-go model lets you pay for only what you use at a point in time. This improves your operations and gives room for growth.

They enhance accessibility

Software-as-a-Service improves accessibility. Regardless of where they’re located in the globe, businesses can access the software they need for their protection and growth. This access brings options and possibilities, increasing efficiency and productivity, leading to business growth.

They relieve IT teams

Without SaaS, IT teams would be responsible for software configuration, maintenance and updating. The game changes with Software-as-a-Service tools due to a third-party provider handling these tasks. This gives IT teams more time to focus on other vital areas of their jobs. 

They improve business operations

Business operations become smoother and seamless with SaaS tools. The accessibility Software-as-a-Service tools bring makes it possible for businesses to choose from various apps that make running a business easy. These tools offer solutions like automation of processes, efficient customer service, effective internal communication and e-commerce management.

3. Top 06 SaaS tools that will help protect and grow your business 

Software-as-a-Service tools are in categories. The categories are based on the areas businesses need help with. Whether you need financial risk management software or an HR management one, you’ll find a match. Below are some SaaS categories and an example of a tool under each category.

Administration and collaboration tools

For growth, businesses need tools that will make administration and collaboration easy. Traditional business administration and collaboration methods have become inefficient and time-consuming in the digital age. Many software are now available to make business management and teamwork easier and faster. Take advantage of them and watch your business boom.

Google Workspace is more like a toolbox than a single tool. It is a combination of tools like Drive, Sheets, Meet and Docs, among others. These tools are excellent for administration and collaboration. They are easy to use and robust. They are even better for remote work as they help to coordinate teams and projects. What’s more, they’re compatible with practically all devices. 

Computer vision platforms 

Computer vision is becoming more popular and many platforms are springing up with solutions for businesses. A computer vision platform with no code helps your business take advantage of this modern artificial intelligence innovation. Computer vision is an AI technology that operates like the human eye and translates what it sees into data. This tool improves accuracy in data analysis and can be used to take action for the growth of the business. 

Levity is a no-code computer vision platform that makes Artificial Intelligence less intimidating for non-specialists. It helps to eliminate routine tasks and increase productivity in your business. Without using any code, Levity helps you automate all your workflows that involve documents, texts or images. This platform ensures your documentation has all the vital inputs and is up to standard, among other benefits.

Account takeover prevention tools

The growth of eCommerce and online transactions has exposed businesses to account takeover. That’s why account takeover prevention should be a priority for every business. Account takeover is basically online identity theft, allowing a cybercriminal to steal a victim’s address, banking details and social security number. This stolen identity is then used for fraud and scams. Investing in Software-as-a-Service tools that protect your business from this attack is a smart strategy. 

Datadome: This software safeguards your account against a takeover by protecting every interface with a dedicated algorithm. Its anti-bot feature analyzes all requests made to your online services and blocks account takeover threats automatically and in real time. With Datadome, you get a comprehensive classification of the attacks detected and blocked on your website, apps and APIs. 

Sales and marketing automation tools

Sales and marketing are the heartbeat of any business. Therefore, any tool that can improve performance in this all-important aspect is highly welcome. Many SaaS tools now help to automate the sales and marketing processes. Researching the ones that offer the solutions most needed in your business before investing is advisable. Choosing a SaaS option saves time and money wasted on monotonous and less effective traditional sales and marketing methods.

Hubspot: Whether you want to build a website, create content for it, drive traffic to it, convert visitors or optimize your website for any device, Hubspot is your go-to tool. This software allows you to integrate all your marketing tools. With a couple of clicks, you can create landing pages, site pages, blog posts and emails. Also, you can use the templates provided or build your own from scratch. Hubspot hosts your content and provides an effective delivery network that distributes your content globally.

Project management tools

Managing multiple projects and teams simultaneously can be daunting. A single misstep or oversight could cost the company lots of revenue. This is where Saas project management tools come in. These software help you:

1. plan and track your projects,
2. schedule tasks, 
3. manage time,
4.  allocate resources adequately, 
5. communicate and collaborate on assignments.

In addition, project management software enables you to work effectively with a budget and get the desired results. 

Jira was designed to help you manage Agile and Scrum teams, organize your project tasks and capture as well as record software bugs. This tool has three offers: Jira Core for non-technical users; Jira Software, specially made for developers; Jira Service made for IT experts and customer support. With agile views, scrum boards, kanban boards, custom workflows and other features, Jira allows you to manage your projects effectively for smooth business operations.

Customer service and support tools

For your business to be successful, you must find ways to keep existing customers and gain new ones. Customer service and support software facilitate effective customer relationship management. They also help you manage your organization’s interactions with new and old customers. In addition, they allow you to gain insights into the needs and behaviors of your clients in order to satisfy them. This leads to increased sales, improved productivity, better analytics, enhanced marketing and more profits.

Proprofs: This software is hosted on one of the most reliable cloud platforms globally, IBM. This enables your support staff to give round-the-clock service from anywhere in the world. Easy to set up and use, Proprofs does not need elaborate onboarding or training. With it, you can track, rank, tag, allocate and resolve customer requests and issues. 

There are many more Software-as-a-Service tools for business protection and growth than the ones listed above. More research on the options available will guide you on which ones to adopt.  

Protect and grow your business in 2023 with Software-as-a-Service tools 

It’s a good time to strategize for the new year. To do that, consider adopting Software-as-a-Service tools to grow your business and protect it from cybercriminals. Doing this will help you save cost, improve productivity and expand your options. Other benefits you’ll get from using these software include improved business operations and enhanced profitability. Stay abreast of trends in the SaaS world to keep updating your choices.

While some experts believe that cryptocurrencies are nothing more than elaborate scams, others consider them as a future of finance. Cryptocurrencies are a polarizing topic, but it is correct that they have brought exciting innovations to the market.

Developers saw the potential in Non-fungible tokens and blockchain technology as a way of creating virtual world projects such as Decentraland and Metafluence. These projects are designed to bring people together in a virtual world where they can engage in various activities.

There are more than 50,000 people active in Web 3.0 virtual worlds, and the number will continue to grow. Today, we will focus on a particular virtual world called Decentraland and its token, MANA. 

Metaverse explained

The term metaverse has been around for a couple of decades, but its popularity started to grow just after Facebook announced its plans to develop its metaverse and changed its name to Meta Platforms. The first usage of this term was in 1992, in a science-fiction novel, and in the early 2000s, many online communities gathered around such concepts. 

The most important step in expanding the popularity of the metaverse was the development of an online multimedia platform called Second Life in 2003. Second Life has a daily average of 200,000 users worldwide. 

Metaverse is a virtual world in which users can perform a variety of activities similar to the ones in real life but in the comfort of their couch. The features of the metaverse are expanding with the development of virtual and augmented reality technology. In the metaverse, people can connect with each other, possess and trade digital assets, and even have a job.

Individuals passionate about this technology predict that metaverse technology can be used to create a work or school environment, trade with other people, have business meetings, meet people, and engage in fun activities. 

With the development of NFT technology, which was a significant graphic trend, people can own certain digital assets. Many well-known companies in the technology field have decided to invest large amounts of money in metaverse projects. Most notable companies include Facebook, Microsoft, and Epic games. 

Downsides of metaverse 

People have been critiquing certain aspects of metaverse technology. Scientists have tracked how users engage in virtual reality projects such as Second Life and are worried about the addictive potential of such projects and their impact on society. 

In the past, video games such as Minecraft, Habbo Hotel, and, most notably, World of Warcraft were observed by psychologists as very addictive to players and especially to younger audiences. Metaverse goes a step further with its immersion by combining a virtual world with technologies that boost immersion, such as VR and AR headsets and devices.

People that spend too much time engaging in virtual reality might develop a sedentary lifestyle which proposes a significant health risk for individuals. Mental and physical health risks are serious concerns regarding metaverse projects. 

Another important worry regarding the metaverse is the privacy of its users. Facebook was already sued for violating privacy laws and unrightfully trading the information of its users. In the metaverse, players would leave their personal data as biometric data, which can be exploited in the future in many ways. 

Just like social media platforms in their early development led to many people worrying about internet bullying and harassment, the concerts are also relevant to the metaverse. Grooming and sexual abuse are worrying challenges regarding the metaverse. 

What is Decentraland?

Source: https://play.decentraland.org

Decentraland is a 3D metaverse that can be played on your browser. This platform has been in development since 2015, and it was released in 2020. Users can socialize with other people, engage in various activities, and play games, but they can also earn money by creating and selling clothing and accessories for avatars.

NFT technology is used to prove ownership of the land in Decentraland, as people can buy virtual plots of land where people can create whatever they want. In 2017 digital plots of land were sold for no more than 20$, while this number increased to 100,000$ in April of 2021. A virtual real-estate company spent more than two million on land in Decentraland. 

Popular artists such as Grimes and Dedmau5 have held concerts on this platform, while there are many impactful brands that appear in Decentraland or have bought properties there.

Because there is only a limited amount of land that users can purchase, Decentraland is a finite but traversable virtual space. Plots of land, non-fungible assets of Decentraland are called LAND, and they are stored using Ethereum smart contract. 

Decentraland isn’t controlled or maintained by a centralized organization. 

What is MANA? 

MANA is a native coin of the platform Decentraland. It is required for making purchases of LAND and in-game assets such as wearable items and cosmetics. You can buy MANA on a variety of platforms, and then you would need to connect your crypto wallet before making purchases on Decentraland. 

Users in Decentraland can have economic interactions and trade currencies, goods, and services. To make this process as effective as possible, Decentraland offers a system that’s global, instant, and has minimal transaction fees. Through NFTs, it will be possible to track and verify the ownership of certain goods.

LAND explained

LAND is the equivalent of real-world plots of land and is purchased using MANA. MANA is burned when you claim LAND or make an in-game purchase.

The price of every LAND equals 1000 MANA by default. However, LAND purchased by users differs, and users can resell the LAND that they bought for a higher price. MANA token’s price varies depending on the situation on the market. 

Users can gather around neighborhoods to which they relate and create their communities. High-traffic hubs are desirable places for users since many people gather there. LAND that’s located near high-traffic places can be used by individuals or brands to promote their services, products, or events. 

Decentraland features

Just like other projects that have been described as a part of the metaverse, such as Roblox, Decentralend offers its users the to create their own applications and projects. The scripting language of Decentraland will allow users to develop applications of various sorts, video games, and 3D dynamic scenes. 

While many metaverse projects emerged during the glorious days of the bull market, Decentraland has been in development for years. This is one of the first metaverse projects ever, and it owes its longevity to its high degree of decentralization and user-owned content creation. 

Like many online platforms, Decentraland offers its users to communicate using the common text chat, but it encourages immersion by using voice chat with nearby users. To talk with other people, you need to press the microphone button. You can filter the users that you want to address. You have the option to talk to all users, only verified users, or only your friends. 

Decentraland tokenomics

There is a total supply of 2.193 billion $MANA tokens, and the current circulating supply is 1.85 billion. To regulate inflation of MANA, there is a certain amount of MANA burned with every transaction on the marketplace. Whether you’ve purchased LAND or a cosmetic item, 2.5% of the transaction value will be burned. This is the token allocation of MANA:

• ICO: 40%
• Community incentives: 20%
• Development team and early contributors: 20%
• Decentraland allocation: 20%

Approach MANA cautiously 

Metaverse projects spark curiosity in a broad audience. However, not many people are ready to invest in expensive VR or AR equipment to engage in virtual activities. MANA reached its all-time high in the November of 2021, and its price has been decreasing since then. 

There are various contributors to its price, and the most impactful is that we are currently in the bear market. On the other hand, there are shortcomings of Decentraland, which mainly include optimization problems and loading times. The graphics of this platform aren’t very appealing, but the variety of activities that can be performed seem interesting. 

The player base of Decentraland isn’t something to be envious about. Certain video games that have been around for more than ten years have more active users than Decentraland, yet they don’t market themselves around words such as Web 3.0 or Defi. 

If you would invest in MANA with the motivation of earning money, you probably won’t profit, especially with the current market conditions. But if you see Decentraland as a project with a bright future that’s worth spending time on, you might want to invest in LAND or some digital assets that you consider appealing.

Statista estimates that 218 billion mobile applications will be installed by 2020. One year later, the number had risen to 230. It is expected to reach and surpass 285 billion downloads by 2022. Clearly, consumer spending in this sector is increasing. Users will spend $170 billion on mobile apps in 2021. And this figure will only grow over time!

Despite the fact that new products are introduced to the market on a daily basis, some of which are quite innovative, only a small percentage of them generate a profit. It goes without saying that competition is fierce and that rates will rise. Each app store category contains thousands of similar solutions. The main requirement is a seamless user experience. And it’s now impossible to imagine success without careful marketing and user behavior analysis.

We understand how to create a great mobile app that will entice users and provide value to them. But we also understand that producing a high-quality product isn’t enough; it must also be profitable. And now for the tricky part: how do you make money on a mobile app and choose between various monetization strategies? This article from Savvycom Team will look at the best ways to monetize an app in the coming years. You will also learn how to make them work for you and generate profit. Let’s get this party started with the 06 best Mobile App Monetization Models to increase your revenue!

1. Advertising

According to Statista, in-app advertising spending is expected to reach a new high of $327.1 billion this year. It is expected to reach 399.6 billion by 2024. People now spend hours per day on their smartphones. It’s no surprise that many advertisers try to capture their attention there. The following are the most common methods for incorporating advertisements into your app:

1.1. Banner Ads

Banner ads are the simplest to integrate into a mobile application. They are small rectangles with images and text that can be found on the top, side, or bottom of the screen. There are several reasons why this type of advertisement is popular: They are simple to set up, relatively inexpensive, and supported by all platforms.

However, you should be aware that app banner ads can have a negative impact on the user experience. They will take up screen space, so be mindful when adding banners to your app.

1.2. Interstitial Ads

You’ve probably seen similar advertisements. They appear at a specific point in the user journey and take up the entire screen. After a few seconds, users must either close the ad or interact with a CTA. On the one hand, it will capture users’ full attention, but if used too frequently, it can become irritating.

1.3. Native Ads

The name implies that this type of ad integrates smoothly into the UX so that the user’s experience is as seamless as possible. Because native ads do not disrupt your app, they are less annoying than the previous types. They will also be the most efficient for both you and the advertiser in your app.

1.4. Affiliate Ads

If you have partners who want to advertise inside your app, you can implement this model. People who see your affiliate ads will visit your partner’s website and make a purchase. However, because you will only be paid commissions on purchases, not clicks, you must carefully select what to advertise within your application.

Advertising is one of the most popular and straightforward methods of monetizing mobile free apps. If this model works for you, you won’t have to reinvent the wheel or devise a complicated strategy. Doesn’t it appear to be quite simple? However, there are some pitfalls to be aware of.

1.5. Advertising Recommendations

First and foremost, people dislike advertisements. Videos last too long (6-10 seconds is too long), and banners are too large, especially if they are too annoying. Furthermore, they are becoming irritated when they see advertisements aimed at a completely different demographic. Assume an animal rights activist is playing a video game and comes across an obsessive advertisement for a modern e-collar. Don’t you think this user experience is terrible?

Users are willing to put up with ads and forgive the product’s creators in exchange for the ability to use it for free. However, if they notice something that completely disrupts their experience, they will simply stop using your app and delete it.

Some recommendations for integrating ads:

• Make use of adaptive banners.
• Make use of interactive advertisements.
• Allow software engineers to control ads so that they can control the layout and display of ads for users.
• A/B testing should be used.
• Don’t overburden your product with advertisements.
• Turn on ads once you’ve established a large, loyal following (50,000 is okay)

Despite some implementation issues, this mobile app monetization strategy has long been one of the most popular. The integration is fairly simple; users do not have to pay to use the app or some of its content or features, and A/B testing can be used to determine the best ways to place advertisements. When selecting this model, consider how to integrate it without jeopardizing customer loyalty.

1.6. Advantages of Ads

Here are some advantages of in-app advertising that you will notice if you choose to use this monetization model:

• Excellent outcomes – Even though many people confuse in-app ads with web banners, they work slightly differently. In-app advertising also outperforms banner advertising on web pages.
• More precise targeting – Your marketing strategy will be more effective if you show relevant ads to your app users who are willing to click and visit the landing page.
• Implementation simplicity – One of the simplest ways to monetize your app is through in-app advertising. This method is universal because most mobile platforms and apps support one or more types of advertisements.

1.7. Disadvantages of Ads

When implementing in-app ads as a mobile app monetization model, keep the following disadvantages in mind:

• Promoting your competitors – It is possible that your direct competitors will advertise their goods and services in your application. As a result, they can divert your users’ attention away from you.
• Low level of response – Even if the ad takes up the entire screen, the conversion rate may be low. Because a CTR of 1.5% is considered good for in-app ads, engagement will be limited.

2. In-App Purchases

Another popular app monetization strategy is in-app purchases. A user does not pay to download your product, but they can purchase real and virtual items such as virtual currency, points, stickers, superweapons, or extra lives in a gaming app.

At the moment, only 5% of users worldwide make in-app purchases. Despite their small percentage, their revenue is impressive and higher than what businesses earn from other users: In 2018, Apple announced that iOS engineers had earned $86 billion, the majority of which came from in-app purchases.

You should use the in-app purchases app monetization model if:

• You have a mobile gaming app, a dating app, an instant messaging app, or a shopping app. We are referring to app categories that deal with large audiences, communications, and entertainment.
• Buying items provides something extremely valuable. For example, suppose the number of user’s lives in a game has run out and the user does not want to restart from the beginning. They would rather buy extra lives.

When implementing this mobile app monetization strategy, you must address the primary challenge of striking a balance between paid and free items. Don’t give away a lot of cool stuff for free, and remember that the things users buy should have real value so that they will be willing to spend their money and be happy.

Advantages of In-App Purchases

In-app purchases have several undeniable benefits to offer your company:

• Convenience – Users are not required to leave the app if they need to purchase something, even if it is additional game lives.
• Efficiency – This method of monetization will be most beneficial to games and gamified apps. According to Invesp, purchases made within the app account for 48.2% of mobile app earnings.
• Added functionality – If you choose to use this feature, your app developers and designers will have plenty of room to experiment with the format and appearance of purchases.

Disadvantages of In-App Purchases

Potential disadvantages include:

• The stigma of pay-to-play/pay-to-use – If users notice that you have some items for sale, they may believe that they must buy them in order to succeed in the game or use the app properly. You must balance your app so that purchases are not the deciding factor for a positive experience.
• Commission from the store – Stores charge commissions for in-app purchases (for example, the App Store and Google Play charge a 30% fee), so you’ll need to balance the price to make a decent profit while not scaring away users.

3. Freemium

The term “Freemium” is a combination of the words “free” and “premium.” It combines the ability to download the app for free while also having the option to upgrade to the premium version with additional features.

Some suggestions for using the Freemium model to monetize your app:

• Strive for a happy medium between free and paid features. Users must be able to use the app, at least its basic functionality, for free. However, if there are too many free features, there will be no reason to purchase a premium version.
• You can use advertisements in the free version while recommending a “no advertising” feature in the premium version.

This monetization model is used by many well-known mobile applications, including Spotify Music, Angry Birds, Evernote, DropBox, MailChimp, and Tinder. Tinder generated approximately $21,37 million on Google Play in June 2019 by offering its Plus and Gold versions.

3.1. Advantages of Freemium

What you can expect if you use a freemium monetization model:

• Scalability – Freemium allows a new product to easily scale up and gain more users without incurring additional sales and marketing costs.
• It’s time to put the product to the test – With freemium, your app users will have enough time to test the product before deciding whether or not to pay for additional use.
• Multiple ways to earn revenue – Other monetization strategies, such as ads, can be used in addition to premium features. It will entice users to purchase the premium version.

3.2. Disadvantages of Freemium

The following are some of the potential disadvantages of this strategy:

• Your offer might not be looking very convincing – It’s possible that your users will be unwilling to pay for a premium version. You must consider a feature set that is appealing enough to warrant payment.
• User experience disruption – If you decide to use another monetization method in a free version, users may become annoyed by constant advertisements or purchase offers.
• Delayed Revenue – Because users will begin with a free app and not all will upgrade to a premium version, you will have to wait for app revenue to begin flowing in after you have attracted enough users who are willing to pay.

4. Pay Per Download

For the time being, pay-per-download is the most straightforward method of monetizing mobile apps. However, there are some challenges for product owners. Because users must pay to install an application and cannot try it for free, their willingness to spend money is frequently zero. As a result, 90% of installs occur less than 500 times per day.

When this method of app monetization is appropriate for you:

• When your product has some cool, unique functionality that sets it apart from the competition.
• If you have a strong public relations presence and a high level of brand awareness. Users will be more willing to pay if your company or product is well-known and well-liked, and you are now developing a mobile app.

Let’s take a look at how to make money with mobile apps using pay-per-download:

• Make a clear, catchy description of your product and its screens.
• Create a short engaging video and distribute it on the App Store, Google Play, and anywhere else your app is available (landing page, other app stores, press releases, etc.).
• Create strong brand loyalty by launching an app marketing campaign. Utilize all available channels, such as social media, press releases, targeted advertising, influencers, app ratings, and more.
• Check that the price of a mobile app corresponds to the value it provides.
• Maintain the highest level of quality — the presence of negative user reviews can kill your product.

4.1. Advantages of Pay-Per-Download

The most notable advantage of paid apps is:

• Revenue stability – Pay-per-download ensures that you will be paid when people download your app.

4.2. Disadvantages of Pay-Per-Download

To obtain this single benefit, you must consider the following:

• Brand recognition is necessary – Users are unwilling to pay for something they do not understand. Pay-per-download will be ineffective if you do not have sufficient recognition among your target audience.
• A compelling offer is required – Paid apps should address as many user pain points as possible. Users will choose your competitor if they can find free apps that do the same things as your solution.

5. Subscription

This could be one of the most effective app monetization models. Subscription services provide both free and paid content. This is the most common method of app monetization for drop-in audio chats and streaming services. This model is also used by fitness apps, news portals, cloud services, image and resume creation services like Canva, and world-famous online magazines like the Wall Street Journal, Telegraph, and The New York Times.

When you want to monetize your app, you should use a subscription:

• You have a content-driven application, which means it is primarily concerned with music, video, news, articles, or entertainment.
• Your app has a large number of downloads, or you will attract them.

How to Use the Subscription Mobile App Monetization Strategy to Succeed:

• Allow users to try it out for free for a limited time.
• Provide different subscription plans for your service to your users, such as one month, six months, and a year.
• Reduce the price because a paid subscription period is longer.

According to App Annie Market Forecast, user spending on applications such as news, media, and dating is expected to grow to $34 billion by 2021.

5.1. Advantages of Subscription

Subscriptions are advantageous for the following reasons:

• A consistent source of revenue – You will have a consistent and predictable income flow if you have a certain number of subscribers that is constantly increasing.
• Getting Users – A subscription option will entice free users and keep them in your app long enough for them to subscribe to your app.

5.2. Disadvantages of Subscription

However, a subscription model is not without flaws, which is why:

• Regular updates – Because your users will be paying you weekly (or monthly), they have the right to expect new content from you on a regular basis. Simple bug fixes will not suffice.
• You will still require to release the free version – You will need to show the users what they will be paying for, just as you did with the freemium model. Without a free trial period, your chances of generating app revenue from subscriptions are reduced.

6. Sponsorship/Partnership

One of the most recent methods of monetizing a mobile solution is through sponsorship. To implement this model, you collaborate with a company that compensates you for including their content in the product. This monetization strategy works best if your user base is large. The main challenge here is to find a company whose user base is similar to yours and is willing to pay you.

This monetization strategy is ideal for popular event apps. Businesses and brands—event partners or sponsors—pay to have their content (website links, product lists, etc.) integrated into your application.

Fitness apps can also benefit from this model. Assume you have a fitness app. Collaboration with people (e.g., bloggers) and businesses associated with sports, healthy lifestyles, or healthy nutrition will be appropriate in this case.

This strategy is an effective way to capture user attention and earn money. People are generally loyal to seeing relevant/valuable content, which is the main advantage of this strategy.

6.1. Advantages of Sponsorship

Sponsorships are advantageous for the following reasons:

• Specific audience targeting – Sponsorship ads can be used to touch certain audience groups, which may result in a higher conversion rate.
• Enhance brand loyalty – Users may feel more loyal to the brand due to sponsorship ads.
• Create cross-promotion opportunities – Other products or services can be cross-promoted via mobile apps, leading to higher revenue and user acquisition. 

6.2. Disadvantages of Sponsorship

The following are the drawbacks of app monetization through sponsorship:

• Obtaining Sponsors – Finding sponsors for a new project can be difficult. To generate revenue, you will need to find sponsors who are relevant to your product and have a more or less similar target audience.
• Can be irritating for the users – Sponsorship ads are still advertisements. As a result, you must choose wisely what and how to advertise on your app’s screens.

VDRs are the crucial business solutions used in today’s mergers and acquisitions. Clients, lawyers, investors, business owners/professionals in other fields use data room software to store and share business-critical files and documents. That’s why choosing the right solution is imperative. There are hundreds of VDR vendors on the market, and the process of choosing can be overwhelming.

Free or paid versions are backup/sharing tools that allow you to access your files from anywhere. Protect an external threat with the premium VDR provider. Sure, the provider offers data security features (e.g., protection against unauthorized users, network firewalls, virus protection, and data encryption).

The Importance of the Physical-layer Security

The physical-layer security includes calamity, industrial-grade data centers, and redundancy features. Explore as many security features as possible with two-step verification, timeouts, and access.

Data room administrators and users should be able to manage their documents. Many businesses need customized data room services tailored to their needs. Note: additional unnecessary features sometimes complicate things.

Why do you need monitoring tools? Keeping is necessary if your transactions are heavy with the data room providers. Set up a screen recording feature to record conversations, transactions, or discussions.

Best Virtual Data Room Providers

The data room due diligence is well for your business. Learn how to select the most convenient data room. It’s simple, don’t neglect it!

1. Brainloop

Brainloop is the leading data room provider enterprise. Secure your sensitive documents! Organize secure cloud data storage for enterprises. Brainloop protects its customers’ sensitive data with high applications. Diligent is committed to providing its customers with solutions that can help management teams manage their enterprises securely and efficiently. Brainloop’s customer base includes many private and public companies from various industries on the Fortune, FTSE, and DAX lists.

The company’s customers can rely entirely on Brainloop’s regulatory technology solutions working with enterprise employees. Brainloop offers innovative problem-solving techniques and tools that ensure secure collaboration and effective communication with employees. The Brainloop data room facilitates external collaboration during sensitive transactions, ensuring that internal data is protected.

The quick software’s knack for processing large volumes of information is more interesting. Highly reliable cooperation between users and external business partners is guaranteed. Confidential information will remain so and will be easily accessible to authorized parties. An automatic synchronization feature is also available.

2. ShareFile

The ShareFile virtual data room enables fast and efficient collaboration with sensitive operations. ShareFile provides unlimited viewing access to any number of users.

The analytics section is a snapshot of statistics on the most active users, most viewed documents, longest viewed documents, and most recent searches. The reports record all audit logs, access permissions, data transfers, and messaging.

3. Smartroom

Excellent service and better security. Get a new experience with the data room due diligence! Multiple layers of security guarantee a high level of encryption with infrastructure protection. It’s useful for various business processes: due diligence/mergers and acquisitions, fundraising/other document-intensive activities. Other features: remote deletion and reports/alerts (used to track the invited parties of your VDR).

With SmartLock technology, you can stop accessing certain documents. Use SmartMail to send documents to SmartRoom from your email. Integration with DocuSign is also supported. SmartRoom allows you to upload large volumes of documents in compressed ZIP files. Increase your file upload speed!

4. HighQ

It’s the Thomson Reuters development with the main office in Toronto. The company offers the following services: financial markets (integrated information solutions for professionals in financial and commodity markets), patent expertise, data on brands and management decisions, research activities (solutions for analytics in research activities), taxation and accounting, law, and media. It’s a cloud-based SaaS product for the legal sector, financial companies, and corporations. It allows workflow automation to improve transactions. HighQ’s solutions are diverse. They are file sharing and corporate social media/publications. The data room provider operates in the legal sector.

It targets small-scale partnerships and corporate/government legal departments. Advanced security features include client-managed encryption keys and digital rights management. Users can quickly find the files they need. Increase productivity by integrating Outlook, Office 365, and G Suite! Three plans are available: Essential, Advanced, and Premium. Choose what your company requires.

HighQ easily adapts to smartphones and other mobile devices. It’s all built to help you make the right decisions. Document management features available: add files and folders, email documents to a folder, full-text search, and advanced search options. The secure data room is fully compatible with Windows, Linux, and Mac. Integration with Microsoft Excel is also supported.

5. iDeals

The provider of the best data rooms provides a level of protection and control over enterprise data. Only robust protection for every concerned action! iDeals is suitable for board meetings, fundraisers, legal and financial transactions, and document security. This VDR has data encryption, watermarking, rights management, access control, and activity tracking. File sharing through iDeals is easy, and administrators can control which actions users cannot perform (copy, upload, print, and more). The provider guarantees quality support for iDeals via chat, email, and phone for regular users and new members.

The provider applies state-of-the-art document protection mechanisms with security standards. To protect confidential documents, the founder/co-founder of the company can control access. The platform allows customers to set an expiration date and time. When administrators share files, identity verification becomes available before recipients can view the data.

Other scopes: watermarks, notifications/detailed file tracking. With iDeals, organizations can clone workspaces and move all their folders and files to a new virtual workspace, creating or disabling multiple data rooms. Customize email notifications by changing the color, logo, and brand slogan! The organizations increase brand credibility and gain guest trust. iDeals allows the firms to send/track email attachments to Gmail and Outlook accounts. 

6. ShareVault

Simplify the m&a data room processes! Every action is recorded and then summarized in a report. With bank-level security features and the ability to decide who has access to what type of files, you can securely maintain access to sensitive documentation for your business.

If you ever have a problem with your data room solution, you’ll get proper help from support. With filters and tags, you can get the documents you need. ShareVault integrates with Google Drive, DocuSign, and OneDrive.

7. Firmroom

The FirmRoom platform allows efficient document management and file sharing. FirmRoom provides a subscription to its services with user activity tracking, a detailed audit tracker, pre-notification, and bulk upload functionality.

Track all downloads! Two-factor authentication ensures that access is secure. Group view visibility is configurable with settings for internal/external viewers. You need the PC, phone, and tablet to work correctly.

Summary

Customer support is not just about setting up a data room or basic employee training. Companies intend to work with VDR vendors who choose a long-term partnership. Vendor background checks are a must.

Consider it when you’re comparing the best data room. Choose an electronic data room with transparent and customizable pricing/free trials. VDRs software will help you achieve your goals. It’s your potential investment. Always choose your development responsibly.

Vietnam’s Information and Communications Technology (ICT) sector has an average yearly growth of 9.8% for the last five years with annual revenue of $110 billion in 2019, a 14% contribution to the country’s GDP. Thanks to its growing IT infrastructure, improving logistics and regulatory environment, and business-friendly economic reforms – it is now emerging as an outsourcing destination in the Asia-Pacific region. Therefore, outsourcing to Vietnam has become a strategic option for businesses wanting to cut cost on fixed headcount. 

In this article, we are going to audit the state of outsourcing in Vietnam, as well as publishing a list of 10 best software development companies in Vietnam so that you have a full view of why and how you can hire software development services in this competitive market.

1. Why Outsource To Software Development Companies?

During this pandemic, businesses across the world are cutting down on local staff. Some are deferring their planned IT projects until a more stable time, and some are canceling projects indefinitely. The savior for all such companies is IT outsourcing.

Outsourcing is a business practice in which certain company functions are assigned to outside service providers rather than performed in house. In other words, a company seeks external help or support to perform some of its business activities so it can stay focused on core business goals while saving time and money. In today’s tough scenario, businesses can survive through software outsourcing services – and some businesses might even be able to come out of this pandemic doing well.

The outsourcing industry has been an integral partner in companies’ crisis responses across sectors. Offshore software development to another country such as Vietnam is a smart decision that companies should consider to maximize their productivity in a cost-effective manner. This proven approach has led to many successful projects, as it allows a business to focus on its core competencies. It should be used as a strategy that can really boost a business.

2. Vietnam – Ideal Destination For Offshoring

1. Pandemic Stabilization

Recognizing that its medical system would soon become overwhelmed by even mild spread of the virus, Vietnam chose prevention early and on a massive scale. The country reported one of the least cases in Southeast Asia with minimal deaths. We are also featured in various reputable newspapers for our relentless efforts and successful pandemic countermeasures. This has given businesses based in Vietnam a head start over global competitors at this time.

Update 16/5/2022:

• Over 80% of Vietnam’s population has been fully vaccinated.
• Vietnam has dropped the Covid-19 test requirement for foreign arrivals from May 15
• The recovery rate is 87.5%, while the Fatality rate is only 0.4%

2. Cost-Effectiveness

According to Innotech, outsourcing software development in Vietnam costs 50% less than the rivals from India and China. Anderson Vietnam also estimates that outsourcing per person in Vietnam is only $20,000 per person a year compared to $40,000 per person in India. These figures are convincing enough to place Vietnam as the top future contender for offshore development projects. 

As Indian companies enter the maturing cycle, the cost differential between India and Vietnam will increase even further. The outsourcing costs in India are most likely to increase in the coming years.

3. Potential Workforce

Human capital in Vietnam is witnessing positive trends. Some of the most notable highlights in Vietnam IT workforce in recent years are:

• Top 7 countries in Asia with the highest EF EPI Average.
• Top 5 countries in Asia with the fastest improvement in English skills.
• Top 10 countries in the world with the most engineering graduates.
• Top 10 countries of origin of international students in key study-abroad markets.
• Top 10 countries in Asia Pacific with the highest Human Capital Index.
• Top 10 in regional groups in global attraction and global knowledge skills.
• Top 30 countries in the world and top 2 in SEA countries for basic academic skills.

Moreover, Vietnam has a population of over 90 million people and over 60% of the population is under 30 years of age. With that being one of the countries with a young population, the Vietnamese – or Vietnamese workforce specifically – are perceived to be fast learners, dynamic, innovative, tech-savvy and flexible to changes. 

4. Knowledge & Skills

As the surge of technology is making a significant impact on every generation, more and more STEM majors, schools and academies are opened to encourage the young to invest their talents in technology and relevant sectors and hone their skills. The rapid development in both quantity and quality of IT education in Vietnam provides an extensive supply of software developers for Vietnam outsourcing companies in the years to come. 

On the other hand, Vietnam students are often appraised for their fast absorption of knowledge, most of them have good to excellent academic background as certified by standardized exams, endorsements from global recruiters, honours and awards. 

5. Vietnam’s Developers Ranking

Skillvalue 29th worldwide in developer skills charts of skillvalue’s report 2018	Topcoder Top 6 worldwide in developer skills charts of topcoder report 2016
Hackerrank 23rd worldwide in developer skills charts of hackerrank’s report 2016	AI Development The first two scientific researches at neurips – top 1 conference in the world about artificial intelligence in canada from artificial intelligence research lab vinai research

Workers in Vietnam have extensive English language training. Because the majority of the software engineers you’ll be hiring are college graduates, they’ll have attended English classes throughout the years and will most likely be fluent in English already.

With that said, it is considerably easier to outsource to other countries when you have solid English communication abilities. If you want to work in software engineering or business process outsourcing, you should have excellent communication skills.

3. Top 10 Software Development Companies In Vietnam

A glance back at 2021 from Savvycom Team

Many organizations would be unable to increase their efficiency and achieve the desired level of satisfaction without software development companies’ assistance and technological expertise. With the ever-increasing technical demands, it’s critical to choose the right company to guide you through the process and help you find the best solutions. Here are some of the top software development companies in Vietnam in 2021 that will find the most cost-effective ways to achieve their objectives:

1. Savvycom

Savvycom is one of the leading Information Technology companies in Vietnam, specializing in providing digital transformation consulting services and software solutions in finance, healthcare, and retail for domestic and international businesses. Headquartered in Hanoi and with three representative offices located in Ho Chi Minh City, USA, and Australia, the company’s mission is to leverage engineering resources in Vietnam and empower businesses worldwide by utilizing the power of technology, becoming a leading IT company in the ASEAN region and beyond.

The company’s successes are reflected in its 100+ endorsements from clients, including Fortune 500 companies, in its receipt of more than 20 international honors and awards, and in its strategic partnerships with technology brands such as Apple, AWS, and Microsoft.

Learn More About Savvycom On:
Savvycom Website	Clutch: #1 Top App Developers in Vietnam #2 Top Web Developers in Vietnam #2 Top WordPress Developers in Vietnam The Manifest: #1 Top 100 Mobile App Developers In Vietnam #1 Top 40 Healthcare App Developers In Vietnam
Dribbble
Behance

2. KMS Technology

KMS Technology is a U.S.-based engineering and services firm with development centers in Vietnam, founded in 2009. International clients rely on KMS Technology because of the high quality of its products and the expertise of its Vietnamese engineers.

KMS is dedicated to making a long-term social impact by partnering with non-profit organizations that provide fair and better employment opportunities for disadvantaged students. In Vietnam, the company collaborates with universities regularly, participates in IT training activities and specialized events, and sponsors scholarship programs.

Learn More About KMS Technology On:

• Website
• Clutch Profile

3. Rikkeisoft

Rikkeisoft provides software services and solutions for clients worldwide, ranging from Web/Cloud Systems, Mobile Applications, Games, and Blockchain to AI, IoT, Business Processing, and Embedded Systems. Eight years after being founded in 2012, they have successfully established three branches around Vietnam and three affiliated companies. They take pride in our mission of building better lives through advanced technology for people. Their vision is to have 10,000 employees by 2025 and become one of the top Vietnamese software development companies in Southeast Asia.

Learn More About Rikkeisoft On:

• Website
• Clutch Profile

4. Positive Thinking Vietnam

Positive Thinking Company is a global independent tech consultancy group with a team of more than 3,500 talented tech specialists on the ground in over 35 cities across Europe, the USA, Asia, Australia, and Africa, they serve clients of all sizes. They believe collaboration betters our world. Their unique open ecosystem model allows us to deliver end-to-end tech solutions. Their services draw on a wide array of expertise, including apps & platforms, security, cloud, data & analytics, hyper-automation, and digital workplace.

Learn More Positive Thinking Vietnam On:

• Website
• Clutch Profile

5. CMC Global

CMC Global is a subsidiary of CMC Corporation with the goal of bringing Vietnamese ICT products, solutions, and services to the international market. We are proud to be the leading company in Vietnam in providing a wide variety of comprehensive IT Solutions & Services, ranging from traditional services to Digital Transformation, as well as Consultancy, to organizations worldwide, having been established in March 2017 as a strategic move by the Corporation to enter the global stage.

Learn More About CMC Global On:

• Website
• Clutch Profile

6. Tpp Technology

In Viet Nam, TP&P is one of the leading, highly diversified, and pioneering IT service providers and investment management firms. TP&P applies its extensive experience and specialized knowledge to various technology startup investment and service provision strategies, including software development, development and cloud management, and business consulting.

Learn More About Tpp Technology On:

• Website
• Clutch Profile

7. Smart OSC

SmartOSC is a full-service e-commerce agency that was founded in 2006. Lotte, Courts, PayPal, Boozt, SpaceX, Smartbox, eWAY, Priceline Pharmacy, Club 21, Delta Apparel are among the company’s more than 500 global clients. SmartOSC has a global presence with 500+ employees and offices in Vietnam, Australia, Singapore, the United States, and the United Kingdom as of January 2017.

SmartOSC provides consulting, UI/UX design, development, and managed services, among other things. The technical and business expertise of the company is based on a few platforms: Magento, Sitecore, Adobe, Hybris, and Kentico.

Learn More About Smart OSC On:

• Website
• Clutch Profile

8. NashTech Vietnam

NashTech strives to create a nurturing environment that facilitates the growth of our employees, professionally and personally. They put effort, determination and ambition into creating a second home for their employees, where everyone is encouraged to be their most authentic self.

Learn More About NashTech Vietnam On:

• Website
• Clutch Profile

9. Orient Software

Orient Software began operations in 2005. Orient is currently one of the leading software development companies in Vietnam. Orient’s strong team of 315 skilled and experienced IT experts collaborate to provide software development solutions to clients with small to corporate-sized businesses worldwide after more than 15 years of providing professional IT solutions.

Learn More About Orient Software On:

• Website
• Clutch Profile

10. Saigon Technology

Saigon Technology Solutions is Vietnam software development outsourcing company focused on delivering cost-effective solutions to its clients. Its customers are located in the US, the UK, Australia, Germany, and the Netherlands. Their services include custom application development, web application development, and mobile application development. It is listed among the top software development companies around the world. Additionally, Saigon Technology Team also provides .NET Core, Java, PHP, ReactJS, Angular, Azure, AWS, microservices, and machine learning. Some of its impressive clientele include Kaercher, Abbott, Panasonic, Topicus, and DMI Inc.

Learn More About Saigon Technology On:

• Website
• Clutch Profile

Here at Savvycom, we notice there are numerous disadvantages to legacy systems. They are challenging to support, upgrade, or integrate with new systems. If we’re talking about making and mataining large-scale app, their maintenance costs can run into millions of dollars annually. However, replacing an old system is complex, particularly regarding critical business processes within an organization. Legacy system modernization addresses this issue by providing several options that will not disrupt your internal operations.

This guide examines six common legacy system modernization strategies and outlines the steps to take before beginning the modernization.

1. What Is Legacy System Modernization?

When we think of legacy systems, we usually think of corporate IT apps from the 1990s or early 2000s. Most likely written in COBOL or Fortran, with an out-of-date user interface. However, neither age nor programming language determines whether a system is outdated. The term ‘legacy’ refers to any software, technology, or system that slows or blocks organizational processes, making it more challenging to adapt to changing market dynamics.

According to this definition, legacy system modernization entails partially or completely updating and replacing an outdated or inefficient system, processes, and applications.

For example:

• Assume you work for an insurance company and are running an old ASP.NET application. 
• The app’s purpose is to manage car insurance claims. 
• Adjusters must take pictures with their digital cameras and load them onto their PCs from SD cards. The images should then be manually uploaded to the site.

The term “legacy system modernization” refers to the process by which an organization’s aging systems are brought up to date and optimized to improve operational efficiencies, address technological limitations, provide a better user experience, and allow for the adoption and integration of other systems built on more recent platforms.

It works if you only have a few cases per day. What if there are hundreds of them? You could start by providing employees with a mobile app, so they don’t have to lug their laptops around. They begin taking photographs, which the system automatically uploads to Google Photos or the cloud. You can also use web app development services to get a flexible, scalable, and mobile-friendly solution.

2. Why Do You Need System Modernization?

Every organization will undoubtedly require software modernization at some point. It does not mean that you must modernize the entire system, but you will almost certainly need some update to remain efficient, respond to market changes, and increase ROI. Let us now look at the reasons for considering legacy software modernization.

2.1. Maintenance and Support

In most cases, the costs of maintaining aging infrastructure outweigh modernization costs. The following are the costs of legacy system maintenance operations:

a/ Updates and changes

A large codebase typically supports legacy systems with numerous intricate functionalities. Because they are monolithic, changing or updating one system module is impossible without affecting other app components. As a result, any required modifications take a significant amount of time and effort, and none of them are inexpensive.

b/ Infrastructure

In comparison to software modernization, legacy system infrastructure maintenance costs remain high. Old data is related to another significant infrastructure issue. It isn’t easy to restructure for increased storage space optimization because it is dispersed across several databases and storage resources. Collecting and organizing historical data to migrate to a new database is time-consuming and resource-intensive.

c/ Staff training

Legacy system maintenance necessitates specific knowledge and expertise due to obsolete technology. While the programmers who created the application may switch to other technologies, finding the required expertise is becoming increasingly difficult. As a result, you should consider employee training, which may require a small portion of your budget.

2.2. Security

Legacy systems are vulnerable to cyber attacks, malware, and harmful programs. If you’d relied on a software solution for years, hackers would have had plenty of time to learn your code and identify flaws. According to a study, 60% of small businesses fail within six months due to cyberattacks. The average cost of a cyber attack on a small business is $25,612, including monetary loss and brand reputation.

Even if your solution is custom-made and you have the resources to support it, adding new fixes necessitates additional security funding. While IT security will always be a concern, many vulnerabilities can be addressed by upgrading outdated software and enterprise security protocols.

2.3. Integration and Compliance

Third-party APIs are used by modern enterprise software to add business value. Third-party services (and their APIs) can be used to track transactions, plan routes, share data, confirm users, and so on. Legacy systems, unlike modern software solutions, lack integration capabilities and necessitate a significant amount of customization and coding time to connect to third-party software.

Compliance is another reason to consider legacy software modernization, which is especially important in heavily regulated industries like healthcare, politics, and finance. For example, the General Data Protection Regulation (GDPR) has been in effect for several years, but many businesses still struggle to comply with it.

2.4. Lost Business Opportunities

Scaling or improving your IT infrastructure will always incur costs whether you invest in a new cloud-based solution to drive business growth or in the upkeep of your current legacy system to keep it running. On the other hand, investing in obsolete technologies leaves less room for innovation. You cling to outdated software, ignoring new opportunities in favor of capitalizing on new technologies and business models.

This places you in the background, giving your competitors more opportunities to outwit you. Investing in software modernization will enable you to move forward with novel digital products designed for improved client experience, improved backend maintenance, and shorter deployment times.

2.5. Organizational Agility and Efficiency

Most businesses that rely on legacy systems lack the organizational agility to meet market demands. Meanwhile, agility is at the heart of software modernization. Agile methodologies, such as Scrum, Kanban, and Lean Development, accelerate IT service delivery due to their iterative nature and lack of paperwork and control. Even though legacy system modernization is a complex process, aligning with modern IT demands is critical. Furthermore, outdated software is inefficient, resulting in lower employee productivity.

3. So, When Will You Need Legacy System Modernization?

When is it appropriate to modernize legacy systems? Unfortunately, there is no standard answer because it depends on various factors. First, you must gain a complete and fundamental understanding of your current systems, assess your business performance, and determine whether your existing technologies are sufficient to address your long-term goals.

To help you, we’ve compiled a list of five questions to ask before modernizing legacy systems:

• Can your existing systems accept and process data from internal software and partner systems in various formats?
• Do you need to modify integrations to connect to new applications?
• Are you able to deal with increased data volumes from new applications quickly?
• Can your current IT systems detect and correct data processing errors?
• Is it more expensive to maintain outdated infrastructure than to modernize it?

If none of the answers above satisfy you, it’s time to consider legacy software modernization.

4. Modernization of Legacy Systems: Step-by-Step

Modernization does not always necessitate a comprehensive overhaul of your IT infrastructure. However, it does necessitate an honest evaluation of where digital change is required.

Before we get into legacy software modernization options, let’s examine what research and preparation you’ll need to conduct to prepare.

4.1. Establish Your Software Modernization Objectives

Simply switching your COBOL/CICS environment to Java will not solve all of your problems. It is preferable to link modernization initiatives to your business and technology goals, such as scalability, additional features, and faster time-to-market.

Modernizing billing software and connecting it with a new e-commerce system, for example, could increase customer happiness while decreasing service costs. This is because fewer customers need to contact the company regarding billing issues.

Depending on your business, market, and goals, you can determine how legacy system modernization could affect revenue, market share, customer experience, and other factors.

4.2. Recognize the System’s Current State

The next step is to assess how well your present system is doing. This will assist you in developing an initial roadmap for modernization and prioritizing the apps that need to be updated.

Begin by inquiring about the infrastructure of your system:

• How are resources allocated?
• What are the chronic resource issues?

Performance:

• How is the software now functioning?
• How does it usually perform?
• Is the system generating any errors?
• Which ones are they?
• What is the end-user experience like?

And how it will affect your business:

• What effect does the system’s performance have on your revenue?
• How much time do employees spend using the app?
• What effect does the app have on conversion rates or order value?
• Do errors or downtime affect customer service costs?

You and your team can decide on a system modernization approach once you have a complete picture of your system’s performance, UI, infrastructure issues, and codebase.

4.3. Decide on a Modernization Strategy

It’s time to put all of your data to use and decide on a modernization strategy. Of course, if you’re working with a software development firm, they’ll evaluate your system and recommend the optimal strategy. Still, it’s a good idea to familiarize yourself with all your possibilities. These are six methods for modernizing outdated systems. However, only three rehosting, re-platforming, and refactoring involve modernization.

5. Software Modernization Strategies

Although rewriting or replacing may be the first thoughts that come to mind, legacy software modernization should be done on a case-by-case basis. As a result, when planning modernization, it is critical to examine all system nuances upfront.

The analysis must include:

• Existing IT architecture
• Technology
• Functionality
• Risks
• Complexity
• Cost

The final strategy for software modernization will be determined by the challenges you wish to address and business/performance objectives.

5.1. Encapsulating

Encapsulating software entails using and growing application features by enclosing their data and functions and making them available as a service through an API and encapsulating a system with third-party APIs limits system access to match the data and workflow of current systems engaging with it. You could, for example, integrate the system via an API into a general UX platform so that its information is shown in a format that consumers can easily interpret to deliver optimal UX.

Encapsulation can alleviate the short-term pain of bad UX and make a legacy system behave like a new one. The issue is that it does not solve the major problem with a legacy system: maintenance overhead.

5.2. Rehosting

Replacing entails switching to another package solution that meets your company’s needs. It is sometimes more advantageous to switch to a different system than to upgrade the current one. You cannot utilize the present business logic when replacing, but some level of re-engineering, customization, and rewriting business logic may be required.

Still, modifying a product can be tricky and dangerous. It, like rewriting, should be considered only when sustaining an existing legacy system becomes problematic owing to staff or hardware constraints.

5.3. Replacing

This abbreviation means migrating the system to a new physical, virtual, or cloud infrastructure with no changes to the code, features, or functions. It may make sense, for example, to migrate an outdated system to a cloud or SQL-based environment.

Moving to the cloud makes the system more adaptable than on-premise hardware and increases data security, reliability, and continual updates. Moving to SQL-based x86 architecture systems results in cheaper purchase costs and less stringent cooling and space requirements.

The rehosting technique is less expensive and risky than re-engineering (which might take years to complete). However, the business logic is preserved; thus the system continues to function as before.

5.4. Replatforming

Developers leave the software virtually unchanged, retaining functionality while adapting to a new platform. The purpose here is not to rewrite apps; we have the rebuilding technique. Instead, systems are modified so that they may run in target contexts such as cloud-based ones.

Developers convert an existing system component to a managed service (such as a database service) with no changes to the business logic. It could, for example, mean a shift away from commercial databases and toward horizontally scaled open-source data repositories and services.

5.5. Refactoring

Optimize existing backend code without affecting front-end behavior or functionality. Refactoring is used to solve technical issues and improve the features and structure of a component. Companies can maximize cloud cost efficiency by re-coding specific sections of their current system to use cloud-native features fully.

5.6. Re-Architecting

Re-architecting means completely rewriting the app’s code to migrate it to a different architecture. You can completely use the new and improved features of the existing platform by modifying the code. For example, you can transition from old monolithic architecture to new microservices architecture.

This could be a decent idea, given IDC IT predicts that by 2022, 90% of all new apps would use microservices designs. Microservices, they argue, will improve the capacity to develop, debug, update, and leverage third-party code.

5.7. Rewriting (Rebuilding, Redesign)

Rewriting entails creating a new system from scratch that performs similar duties. It could be an excellent alternative if your clients require more than what your present system can give. When the expenses of maintaining an old system exceed the price of rebuilding it, this system modernization option makes the most sense.

For example, your team may recreate the functionality of a monolithic app as a cloud-native microservice operating in a cloud-native environment. While these methodologies differ, they all have one thing in common: they all necessitate a detailed examination of your interconnected components, systems, and applications. This is because you cannot update one legacy system component while disregarding the others.

6. The Challenges Of Legacy System Modernization

Modernizing legacy systems is a complicated process in which new complexity emerges regularly. As a result, when you decide to upgrade your software, you should consider these factors.

• Risk Management: Before modernizing your old system, assessing all financial, security, and operational concerns is critical. However, in other circumstances, defining the criteria for making choices and reaching an agreement among stakeholders may be difficult.
• Restrictions on Data Management: Access to existing data is essential for successful legacy system transformation. To avoid inefficient and worthless information entering a modernized system, you must clean up the data and enhance the administration rules.
• Resistance to Business Transformation: Modernization of legacy software extends beyond IT, improving business processes and efficiency. However, if the organization rejects the changes, rebuilding operations, and retraining staff may impact overall productivity and team morale.

If you’ve not got an Instagram business account, then it’s sad to say, you’re behind with the times! There are plenty of organizations out there that now have social media feeds in order to stay current with the times and connect with their audience over the internet.

Having an Instagram account isn’t enough though, as it takes a lot of work and effort in order to get followers and build up an engaged platform. Optimizing your account is a good way of getting it noticed but how do you do it without having to spend a lot of money on expensive software?

This guide will walk through the steps that are needed to optimize your Instagram business account and why this practice is important for your business. Hopefully, by the end of this article, you’ll have all the tools and knowledge you’ll need to make use of this popular social media platform for your business in 2022.

1. The importance of optimizing your business Instagram

To put Instagram into perspective when it comes to other social media platforms, Instagram currently has around 200 million monthly active users. Facebook only has around 43 million per month in comparison.

Tiktok and Twitter are still two of the biggest ones for drawing in millions more active users but with 57% of Instagram users accessing the platform every day, it’s important to pay attention to its importance of it for your business.

1.1. Delivers more reach and engagement

When optimizing your account, you enable more users to see your content and to engage with it. Reach and engagement are two major influences on the success of your platform and it’s something that needs focusing solely when it comes to building your platform. 

By using the right methods to get your Instagram business account noticed, you could end up helping deliver more reach and engagement to your profile. That can hopefully convert to new followers and ultimately, conversions!

1.2. Instagram is one of the biggest platforms in social media

There are around 1 billion active users on Instagram currently, which is a lot of potential leads to take advantage of. Since its creation, there have been multiple platforms created off the back of the success it’s had, Tiktok being its main competition.

On average, people spend around 53 minutes per day on Instagram. That’s a significant amount of the person’s day and could be a great opportunity to utilize as a business.

1.3. Improves sales potential

Improving sales is one of the main reasons to optimize your social media platforms, including Instagram. With two-thirds of the total Instagram user base being 34 years or younger, it’s essential that you’re utilizing the potential buying power within this age category.

Millennials and Gen-Z generations are more likely to purchase online because they’re very much used to shopping online nowadays. Shopping on Instagram or buying products through brands they’ve seen on the platform, is something many will feel comfortable doing.

2. Five ways to optimize your business without expensive software

Now that you know the importance of optimizing your social media accounts for business, how do you go about it? Not every business has the marketing investment to spend money on expensive software. With that being said, there are lots of ways to optimize your profile without having to spend much at all.

Below, you’ll find five ways to optimize your business on Instagram without having to spend too much money on achieving the end results you’re after.

2.1. Interact with similar accounts and regram with UNUM where applicable.

When it comes to social media platforms, it’s easy to focus on your own account when a lot of reach and engagement relies on being sociable with other profiles too. As a business, it can benefit your account greatly by interacting with similar account types to your business and with those who would be most interested in your products or services.

A lot of business accounts nowadays are doing something called ‘regram’ which has been adapted to other platforms like Tiktok, which now has its own feature called ‘repost’. It’s essentially taking the post from one account and reposting it on your own. 

Many accounts have used viral news posts to piggyback off the engagement that it’s received through the original outlets. It’s something that you don’t want to do too often but it can certainly help with boosting your engagement and reach every so often.

To regram on Instagram, there’s a popular tool called UNUM that many use for this feature. They have a helpful guide on how to regram on Instagram if it’s a feature that you’ve not tried before and have very little idea of how to use.

When looking for the right profiles to interact with, use Instagram’s recommendations on the discovery page. This is a collection of profiles and content that Instagram feels you’re most likely to connect with. You can also look at accounts that use the same keywords that you’ve been using via the search bar.

2.2. Analyze any new content you create and make notes for improvement.

Part and parcel of creating content online are taking a closer look at how it performs once it’s been published. When it comes to the digital market, the trends are constantly changing and what was a popular form of posting on social media two years ago is likely to have changed greatly over the two years since. 

With that being said, every time you do post, it’s worthwhile analyzing that content to see how well it performed. Thankfully, most social media platforms, including Instagram, has its own analytical dashboard that you can use to assess each post.

This free feature means you don’t need to spend more money unless you’re looking for software and tools that have more detailed insights. With Instagram’s analytics dashboard, you get essential information like the reach the post achieved and where the audience you’ve reached is located.

For suggestions on analytics for deeper insights into your social media platforms, a good one is Sprout Social. Not only does this provide detailed analytics but it also acts as a content scheduler, making it easier and more efficient to post content daily.

2.3. Utilize your bio with the right keywords and hashtags.

Your bio is one of the first things that people see when coming onto your profile. That means you want to make everything in that top fold of the page, the most engaging and eye-catching content possible. From your picture to the information within the bio of the profile, it’s all important to make use of in order to keep the user on the page.

Take a look at your picture and if it’s enticing enough for your page and more importantly, is relevant to your business. Be sure to take a closer look at the keywords you could be using in your bio and find keywords that are more relevant to your business branding.

Make use of any links you can add to this section too, as well as any hashtags that you might deem relatable to your brand. It all helps in getting your profile noticed and for it to show up on your algorithm more so. 

2.4. Post consistently and know the right times to post during the day.

When it comes to posting the content, a lot of it can depend on when you post. Thankfully, we have a lot of automation at our fingertips, meaning you can post content without having to be at your desk to press publish.

Platforms like Later are a great tool to use when you need to pre-schedule content ahead of time. To know about the best time to post, it’s important to spend some time monitoring and tracking your own content via Instagram analytics.

While there are generic times when you should post online, these timings aren’t really specific to your audience’s geographic locations and general viewing habits when it comes to going on the platform. So an article might suggest the most popular times to post are at 4 pm on a Monday afternoon but your audience might not even be on the platform at that point.

It’s worth analyzing your previous posts and when you posted them to calculate the best time from the top 5 posts within the last week or month.

2.5. Engage with your comments and follow back where you can.

Comments that you receive on your posts should be engaged with as quickly as possible. As a business, you want to interact with your customers because it helps to build a relationship between you and that individual. If you’re not responding back, then the user is less likely to return to your profile to interact.

To engage further, it’s good to follow back accounts where you can. Don’t get caught up in needing to show you have fewer people than you follow versus the number of people who follow you. If they’re an account that’s engaged with your profile and does so on a regular occasion, follow them back!

Utilize Instagram for your business in 2022

If you’ve not already got an Instagram business account, then now is better late than never to start one. Look at how you can take your current business account and elevate it to new heights with the right strategy and tips.

Simply having a Website is not enough! It needs to look good and present information in a clear, accessible way. More importantly, your website needs to be able to create a solid first impression and make your users feel like they’ve found “The right place to be.” Otherwise, you’re competing for the same audience’s attention alongside another few hundred businesses. And we all know clearly that it’s an exhausting game of cat and mouse.

In short, the importance of keeping a website up to date is this: With the majority of people spending more and more time online, regular well-executed updates can help your business grow and lift it to the top; a lack of updates, consequently, can bring you down.

1. Outdated Theme and Technologies

Nowadays, technology is a rapidly developing and constantly changing field. Web standards shift yearly, dictating new tools and technologies for building a good website. What was trendy yesterday may not be next week.

The goal of any new tech stack for building a website is to make websites better, faster, simpler, lighter, and more secure. And suppose you upgrade your website to adopt these new technologies. In that case, you’ll be sure to provide your users with the best possible service and user experience that result in a good reputation and profits.

The bottom line here if it’s been a while since you’ve built your site, it might be the time to start looking for a new website design and a more modern template that is accompanied with the latest technologies.

2. It Doesn’t Reflect Your Brand

This one might seem obvious, but after many years of working with multiple clients, we still feel compelled to point this out. If you make only minimal changes to your brand, you will either need to update your website or add a new section to reflect them. This will help you, among other things, to attract your visitors’ attention to these changes no matter big or small.

The dial is turned to eleven when you’re introducing major changes to your business strategy. Your website is ultimately the face of your brand and the first thing potential customers will notice about you and your business. So, it’s vital for this face to always be in sync with your business and send out a stunning first impression to all users.

3. You’re Not Attracting The Right Clients

Design trends change a lot more than you can imagine, and while there’s a certain “Je ne sais quoi” to appear old-school in some niches, being old and outdated isn’t the same as being old-school or going retro. If you don’t keep your eye on your design, you’ll start losing customers and stop attracting new ones as time progresses.

On the other hand, if you redesign a website for your business from time to time, especially when the current trends are relevant to your business, let’s just say your are giving your website a new decoration every christmas, halloween, etc. You are sure to pull in new customers even those who were “just passing by.”

With that said, perfect design aren’t only about color themes and shapes. Although global preferences change in these directions as well, website design is about so much more. For example, in recent years, the designers at Savvycom have been heading towards the uncluttering route, reflected in our own website designs for the clients:

• Cleaner and more straightforward websites that work seamlessly between all devices and screens are all the rage right now.
• Motion UI is also gaining more and more traction.
• Ensure all your content is consistent, including colors, fonts, and icons.

4. Improve Loading Speed

“Time is of the essence.” I guess by now, everyone understands what that means. No one will stay or have enough patience to remain on a website that takes ages to lead. In fact, slow loading speed is the number one contributing factor that would result in a high bounce rate.

Many things affect page loading speed. One of them is, of course, the way the page is coded, to be more specific: heavy, unoptimized images, underpowered hosting, and even an old, poorly performing theme. Other causes include cluttered UIs, and an overabundance of unnecessary or unoptimized links can also be a nuisance if left unchecked. If you check out the latest trends in web development technology, you’ll see that a great deal of them are aimed at making pages load faster. Website updates that employ new technologies can lower your website’s bounce rate and improve your SEO ranking.

Aim for a loading time under 4 seconds. If you’re unsure how quickly your site loads, use tools like Pingdom or GTmetrix, or the more popular Page Speed Insight to check how long it takes for your site to load and which files or elements on the site are the troublemakers. Poor testing results mean you will have some work to do in order to improve performance.

5. Security

It’s all about data safety nowadays. Users’ personal and financial information is often digitalized and stored on website servers. For example, your medical history is likely stored on the servers of your healthcare provider. Outdated security measures will more than often be under threat by hackers. That’s why Blockchain Technology is all the rage these day, since your information is yours and yours alone.

Moreover, all the user data contained in it will be compromised. They can even be stolen if you don’t keep up with the newest means of data protection. Regularly updating your website and content management system (CMS) is necessary. If your website uses custom-built security, see that it’s compliant with the latest standards on the market.

6. Flexibility & Mobile Responsive

If your website doesn’t have a mobile version or isn’t mobile responsive, you can just throw it right away and start making a new one. According to Statista, in 2021, Mobile accounts for approximately half of web traffic worldwide. In the second quarter of 2022, mobile devices (excluding tablets) generated 58.99 percent of global website traffic, consistently hovering around the 50 percent mark since the beginning of 2017 before permanently surpassing it in 2020.

Granted, in some countries, this number will be lower. But it will be much higher in others, for example, developed countries. This trend has led to what we now call mobile-first website development. As the name suggests, it’s when websites are created for Mobile initially and with the User Experience optimized for Mobile Users and are later adopted to desktop browsers.

Even if you have a separate mobile app, your website needs to adapt to mobile screens; otherwise, you face the fact of losing potential customers. If your business has been around for some time and your website is several years old, be expect to optimize it for Mobile ASAP. Since old technology didn’t allow for mobile optimization, old sites may be displayed incorrectly on mobile devices with a variety of screen sizes and resolutions.

7. Improve Your Search Engine Rankings (SEO)

Let’s start with the basics. Do you have a blog? Well, you should, as it’s a powerful marketing tool for SEO to drive more traffic and users to your website through keywords, internal links, and backlinks.

Google’s search engines or any other search engines love good, updated content. Every time you make an update to your site, Google and other search engines crawl and index your pages. Thus your site ranking gets recalculated. If you keep your content updated and of good quality that is made for SEO purposes, you increase your chances of getting noticed on Search Result pages. Pair that with a charming, good-looking website, and you’re guaranteed more attention.

But then again, when should you update your websites for SEO? Well, major changes to Google’s search engine algorithms happen approximately every half a year, so you can start with tracking those. But smaller changes to Google’s algorithms can happen at any time. Sometimes, we see iterations every couple of weeks; other times, there are several months of calmness before the storm.

Changes in search algorithms can affect your website’s ranking in search results, so it’s important to refresh your website regularly if you want to rank higher than your competitors. And it’s challenging to comply with all the new demands by search engines if you’re using older technologies.

So, what about the actual content? How often should you update content on your website? Well, depending on your business type, the answer will be slightly different. However, most search engines rank frequently updated sites higher than those that only produce 1 or 2 articles per month.

At the same time, when you think about the importance of updating website content, it’s essential to consider the quality of content and your SEO strategy. Regularly updated but poor content will result in the fastest downfall, both with the visitors and with search engines – for example, Google’s Panda algorithm can lower the rankings of websites in search results for keyword stuffing (overloading text with keywords that lack proper context) and for low-quality or repeated content. There is no saying that you won’t be penalized for using tricks which are often called “Black hat” in SEO.

Google’s algorithms have been particularly demanding about the quality of content. Enough so that the company has created principles for websites to comply with if they want to keep high rankings in search results:

• Beneficial purpose – Websites should be created with users’ interests in mind.
• E-A-T (Expertise, Authoritativeness, Trustworthiness) – Websites should be trustworthy, the content and site itself should present relevant expertise. If there’s anything that seems too sketchy or potentially harmful, Google will lower the site’s ranking.
• YMYL (Your Money or Your Life) – Content that touches upon information which can impact big decisions among readers (news, medical and financial advice, legal advice, etc.) must be written by professionals within the given field.

8. Incorporate Cool Apps & Integrations

There is an abundance of plugins and third-party web apps that can be integrated into a website today to enhance its performance or to better engage with the users. For example, it is always beneficial to add more pop up and call-to-action at the right time and the right place that would increase your chance of a successful conversion. And one of the major reasons to redesign your website is to add such plugins. We have listed a few examples of possible integrations for your outdated or future modern website:

• Social media
• Google Analytics
• Banners
• Payment gateways
• Reservation/booking systems
• Ecommerce plugins
• Content management systems
• Photo Editing App

Adding plugins also sometimes means updating your code, design, and technologies to make the website work seamlessly. It does sound like a lot of work, right? But a necessary step if you wish to stay ahead of your competitors (or at the very least not lag behind anyone).

9. Maintain a Favorable Bounce Rate

This is extremely important. Just imagine! You’ve been pouring your heart and time into creating meaningful content for SEO and marketing that brings a lot of traffic to your website. Yet the second they access your homepage (or any other page), they bounce right off of it – then you have a major problem of losing leads and potential clients.

A high bounce rate indicates that you’re doing something wrong, either with content, the navigation of your website which is also the tenth reason on our list, or overall look and feel on your site. On average, a bounce rate between 40 – 70% is considered OK (keep in mind that this varies depending on your industry).

10. Website Ease of Use

Usability, or User Experience, is the art of making your website simple, user-friendly, and above all, easy to use. Understanding your customer’s online behavior gives you insight into what works and doesn’t.

No one would want to spend time on a website that takes ages to learn how to use. Make it simple and effortless for your users so they will stay; make it difficult, and they will leave at first sight of something hard. Some of the most basic and proven usability tips include proper use of taglines, intuitive navigation, and concise content, and strategic use of visuals.

• Avoid confusing features or functionality.
• Do links and buttons appear clickable, as they should?
• Does the website flow logically?
• Is it abundantly clear where important information can be found? If not, your website has not been designed for usability.

Major Signs That You Need To Update Website Now

With all of that said and done, how do you really know that it’s time to update your site? It’s not like every website owner, including yourself, is well-versed in design trends and understands in-depth user flow and behavior; most are already busy leading a business and don’t have time or sufficient knowledge to follow the technology curve.

Luckily, there are a few small indicators to evaluate a site’s performance. Here’s a list of parameters that might show you it’s time to find a trusted Web Development Company to update your website. You can check these parameters using Google Analytics, Page Speed Insights, or any 3rd party services. Keep in mind that you need to check them regularly to keep your website alive and kicking.

Measurable Signs

1. Bounce rate – The bounce rate is the percentage of people who see a single page of your website and then close the tab. Too high a bounce rate means your UI/UX and content are going to need a makeover as soon as possible.
2. Page loading speed – If the pages on your website take too long to load, users will go look for what they need elsewhere. People often have neither the time nor the patience to wait around when there are a plethora of choices out there. However, there are different ways to measure loading speed and many services that can improve that.
3. Time On-Site – The amount of time users spend on your site indicates the quality of your UX design and content. The optimal on-site time depends on the particulars of your website. Considering time on-site as complementary to the bounce rate is generally recommended.
4. Leads and conversions – Well, if you are running a business already, then these terms shouldn’t sound strange to you anymore. Leads are your potential customers, and conversions are the numbers that represent the leads that have completed the desired action (e.g., submit their email through a contact form). If you’ve seen a severe drop in either leads or conversions, it’s a sign that people aren’t finding what they’re looking for on your website or simply are lost on the website. This can be due to old content or your site being difficult to navigate. Either way, it’s time you freshened it up.

Unmeasurable Signs

Moving on to a list of unmeasurable things that indicate you should update your website according to our expert’s advice at Savvycom:

• Your website is simply too old – You should update your website every few years. For example, 05 years seems to be the ideal choice for most businesses. UI/UX, technology, and content are also on the list of things you need to keep fresh, even if you don’t have many competitors.
• Having no mobile version and/or your website isn’t responsive.
• Your website still uses HTTP – All reputable websites have already moved to HTTPS, the secure version of the standard HTTP protocol. It’s essential to use HTTPS if your website deals with any kind of sensitive data.
• Making changes is challenging – These days, websites are built to make updating content more effortless than before; modern platforms are built to be flexible using the simple drag and drop method. So that people with little to no coding knowledge can create the perfect website for their businesses. If making even the slightest update takes time and effort or even requires contacting a third-party vendor, it’s a clear sign you need to reconsider things.