Britain is celebrating a boom in its economy thanks to the rise of startups across the country. 2016 saw the registration of over 650,000 new businesses, due, in part, to the success of campaigns such as Startup Britain, and 2017 looks set to be one of the biggest years yet. A stable Britain requires stable businesses, so if you are about to launch your own startup, it is worth carefully considering how you are going to protect your business in the years ahead.
Get the gear
A huge number of start-ups begin their life online, and thanks to robust e-commerce websites, premises and overheads are a thing of the past. However, with tough competition in every sphere of industry, you are going to need a unique strategy and reliable technology to get ahead. Off the shelf software is often the go-to solution for new businesses with limited budgets, however investing in bespoke technologysoftware as a service (SaaS) can give you a far more personalised and efficient service that is more affordable.
Startups support
Startups relying on business-critical software as a service benefit hugely from support and ongoing development from the software provider. This means that even the most technophobe entrepreneur will be able to operate their cloud-based software with ease thanks to 24-hour technical support and a user-friendly interface. However, business is business, and if investors pull out or your software developer goes under, you could face being left with inaccessible software and potential data loss.
Protect your investment
With SaaS, the Software User does not hold any source code or data on their own servers, and so is completely reliant upon the Software Vendor to keep the software updated and accessible via their own servers. But what if their servers fail or the business goes into administration? The only way to guarantee continuous access to your software as a service and your valuable data in the event that your vendors servers go down is to invest in SaaS Escrow. This agreement involves three parties involved in the SaaS service; the Software Vendor (Licensor), the Software User (Licensee) and a third-party hosting provider.
Peace of mind for you
LE&AS provide a unique SaaS escrow agreement, AccessAssure, which is designed for businesses dependent on SaaS. This proactive agreement protects all parties against ‘blank screen syndrome’ and loss of service by independently monitoring your software provider and triggering certain release events that ensure your business-critical software is always accessible. AccessAssure can offer at least three months of business continuity to Startups using SaaS, so that all applications and data are available and accessible despite a Software provider crisis.
Peace of mind for your investors
Investing in SaaS escrow demonstrates to your investors that you have considered the longevity of your business and drawn up solid contingency plans should things go wrong. Some investors will actually request that SaaS agreements are in place before they invest their own capital in your business. Join the ranks of other responsible Startups with a robust business plan that includes SaaS escrow to keep you one step ahead.
