Most organizations use a wide range of software solutions to manage their operations. Unfortunately, while software can help you do everything in your business faster and more efficiently, it can also mean a significant loss of money if the expenses are not managed. 

Many small and medium-sized businesses suffer losses every month, but they often prioritize increasing revenue over reducing costs. Many businesses are losing money due to software as a service (SaaS) subscriptions that are not fully exploited or sometimes not used at all. 

In order to effectively manage SaaS software, IT managers need to be able to easily review existing subscriptions, provision and revoke employee access, monitor software usage, onboard new employees, adopt new software services, and monitor cybersecurity to protect your business. It is a lot to ask, especially for larger organizations. SaaS subscription management tools can put all the tools IT professionals need to do this effectively right at their fingertips.

The following article will clear up some of the most frequently asked questions regarding SaaS subscription management tools. 

What is a subscription management tool?

SaaS subscription management software is the tool that SaaS subscribers use to manage subscriptions in their organization. This includes keeping track of each Saas product, billing and payment information, retention of existing users on different plans, software, cloud, and licensing.

The analysis of your subscription services includes how much you spend, which departments should be charged back when they expire and renew, who utilizes them, how they’re being used, and where they reside in your company. All this is part of the process in SaaS license management.

 

SaaS management is often divided between the different departments of a company, such as a sales and marketing team using Salesforce. Still, it’s being managed by the executive team and paid for by finance. 

Along with these benefits, a SaaS Subscription Management Tool also provides advanced features such as detailed analytics and customer support tools to fill the gap of functions not included in smaller SaaS software and often only offered by larger SaaS companies.

What are SaaS subscriptions?

Subscription-based services belong to the cloud computing category of products or services that are offered on a recurring fee basis. SaaS (Software as Service) subscriptions provide access to software via the internet instead of installing applications locally. As a result, a SaaS service can be accessed by users from anywhere with an internet connection – either at home, work, or traveling worldwide. 

Is subscription the same as SaaS?

No. SaaS is an abbreviation for ‘Software as a Service,’ which refers to any application (software) hosted by its developer and made available online. The user accesses this service through the Internet without installing anything locally, making SaaS applications particularly convenient. There’s no need to update or upgrade them regularly like traditional client-server software. How does Subscription Management Software Work?

Any subscription management software includes a database or a way to gather information about all the SaaS software that your organization uses and the SaaS subscriptions that go along with it. SaaS subscription management software consolidates all SaaS user accounts and their respective information, as well as automates payment-related processes such as invoicing and renewal. The usage tracking of those licenses, as well as the chargeback to all the departments who are using SaaS applications in their own daily work, is also done by the SaaS subscription management software.

As an example, the SaaS Subscription Management Tool by ROBOT4IT automates SaaS software users’ workflows (onboarding and off-boarding), SaaS billing, SaaS subscriptions management, SaaS application integration, and SaaS application licensing. It notifies administrators about the status of accounts and when it’s time for their renewal. The tool also provides detailed analytics on each of your SaaS subscriptions to know more about where they’re used the most or if they are not being used at all.It also reports on what features your users prefer or are not utilizing. 

What is Dunning in subscriptions?

Dunning is a SaaS billing process that involves sending out invoices to SaaS users at the end of every month. Dunning also includes email reminders for them to pay their monthly subscription fee before it expires, as well as additional services such as credit card or direct debit payment processing.

Why is SaaS subscription management software important?

A subscription management system may help you organize and manage all of your subscriptions and their associated parts.  Medium to enterprise-level organizations typically find they have a lot of SaaS subscriptions to manage., In order to effectively make sure your business is not overspending on unused software and make certain your subscription plans match your usage levels, it might be time to consider a dedicated subscription management solution.  

Our  ROBOT4IT, which hyperautomates processes in order to give you unprecedented levels of control over your SaaS licenses, can help you to save both time and money.

Contact us today for more information about how we can help your organization save money and increase efficiency in managing your SaaS subscriptions.