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How To Understand What Software is Effective for Your Business and What Isn't

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Anthony Garza
July 6, 2023
5min
How To Understand What Software is Effective for Your Business and What Isn't

In today’s digital age, businesses heavily rely on software applications to make their business operations and day-to-day functioning faster and more efficient. However, if you don’t carefully evaluate or build your tech stack, the results will be the total opposite of efficiency.

It’s important to take the time to understand what makes a software application effective and suitable for your business, and it’s important to do the necessary actions and make the right decisions to optimize your software subscriptions with maximum effectiveness. To do that, let’s discuss what software is effective for your business and what isn't.

Signs That a SaaS Tool is Worth Keeping

  1. It matches your current business needs.

The needs of a business are ever-evolving, and you need to make sure that your current pool of software subscriptions is actually serving your business’ most relevant objectives. If not, the best way to maximize efficiency is to do a full subscription audit using tools like Talisman. Talisman allows you to instantly generate a report of all the subscriptions your business has purchased along with the costs and departments involved. You’ll also get insights as to each tool’s level of usage, helping you further evaluate its effectiveness.

You need to spring-clean your tech stack to make sure that your core goals are being met, and you’re not wasting your SaaS budget on irrelevant subscriptions.

  1. The subscription cost offers value for money.

Another sign that a software tool is effective and worth keeping is if you’re getting the best bang for the buck. Even if a software tool is relevant to your goals, if the price is excessively high and it’s more than it’s worth, it’s best to find other alternatives that are more reasonably priced.

  1. Regular Updates and Excellent Support

A software provider with reliable customer support can help you with training employees and improving adoption. Excellent support also ensures reliability in terms of bug fixes, performance enhancements, and security patches. Consider vendor support as one of the key metrics when choosing a software tool.

  1. High SaaS Adoption

A big sign that a SaaS product is definitely worth holding onto is if your employees or customers are using it successfully. If it’s an underutilized tool, it should be off the table. If the tool is being used to its full potential, you’re getting value and generating ROI.

Here are some FAQs relating to User Adoption:

  1. How do I calculate SaaS user adoption?

Here’s a quick formula on how to calculate the user adoption rate:

User Adoption Rate = (Number of Adopted Users / Total Number of Potential Users) * 100

For example, if you have a new marketing tool and only 5 of the 10 employees in that department are effectively using the tool, the user adoption rate is only 50%. The ideal score depends on the context of the product, the depth of use, and the achievement of KPIs. The KPIs vary from company to company. But the general rule of thumb is: if the tool is successfully saving you both time and money, it’s a good tool to keep in your arsenal.

  1. How do I know if my software is being utilized by my employees?

The most efficient way to gauge whether or not your employees are using a specific tool is to do a SaaS subscription audit using Talisman. In a matter of minutes, you can generate the most relevant data in terms of subscription costs and utility. That way, you can take prompt action and cancel unnecessary subscriptions to ensure company-wide efficiency.

  1. Do I use two tools that do the same thing?

Redundancy is one of the common culprits of wasted SaaS spend. To ensure that your SaaS budget is fully maximized and your business is not wasting revenue, make sure that no two tools serve the same purpose. Better yet, downgrade to more basic subscription levels if you do not need the features of the top-tier plans.

Conclusion

It’s important to keep your tech stack as effective as it can be. Otherwise, it can’t possibly support the level of productivity and success your organization has come to look for. Maximize solutions that enable you to build and optimize your tech stack in the most effective and efficient way possible.

Sign up on Talisman and do an instant software subscription audit today!