I know subscriptions for certain software will persist but is the market drying up for pay as you go software? I'm seeing more companies opt for one time purchases again.
goose
Wait… is SaaS dead?
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Pay as you go is a pricing model, not a category. Companies have been cutting frivolous tools since Q4 2022. If you’re not able to deliver undoubted ROI then you’re going to struggle to maintain instance stability.
Exactly. SaaS is a delivery model for software. Have something essential, you're going to be selling it. Very very few companies wish to have on premise software; that requires infrastructure and personnel they no longer wish to support or manage.
Took me way too much scrolling to find this.
Companies will always look to reduce upfront costs and receive consistent updates.
Companies will always look to reduce upfront costs and receive consistent updates.
all these folks nailed it. SaaS is nothing more than an accounting mechanism. The only thing dying out is nice-to-haves that were built with faulty financials because money was free.
Whats dying are the fluffy non-essential saas offerings. Companies selling platforms that are really just a feature vs a standalone product are feeling the hurt, I imagine.
I’m currently selling HR Software and the leads arent flooding in but there’s still a path to success because it’s still a pretty essential need.
I’m currently selling HR Software and the leads arent flooding in but there’s still a path to success because it’s still a pretty essential need.
SaaS is not dying!
No one company can build all functionalities on their own. Cannot buy it in one go, since that may be pretty expensive and won’t have the flexibility to pay annually or monthly.
Lastly, what will we all do?😂
No one company can build all functionalities on their own. Cannot buy it in one go, since that may be pretty expensive and won’t have the flexibility to pay annually or monthly.
Lastly, what will we all do?😂
Ah. The question behind the question…
Nice to have is struggling in SMB mid-market. Enterprise are still buying, albeit slowly with more resistance
pretty much this even 7 figure arr contracts a drop in the bucket compared to the ROI on a proper business case its much easier for someone at the f500 at get money from another budget than a struggling smb with 1 decision maker to pull it from thin air
If the foo shits really well, even the small to mids are still pulling the trigger. Competition still exists. Nobody wants to get beaten by a better machine.
Definitely not. As Gasty pointed out, that business structure has to be there as the alternatives are not realistic.
So, is the SaaS sales rep a dying breed?
....no
This is a bad question
No sir. Just the ones selling the thing that nobody ever woke up in the morning wishing they had. If it yields efficiency, it gets bought.
Noooooooo. The only thing I’ve noticed is that a lot of companies are starting to opt for full cycle reps apposed to S/BDRs and AE being separate. Not fully adopted yet, but this trend is definitely rising.
Companies that are not operating at high levels (efficiency, delivering results, customer experience, product market fit) will struggle.
Our top earner hit 900k last year, the sales are out there, they just arent falling into anyones lap.
Our top earner hit 900k last year, the sales are out there, they just arent falling into anyones lap.
B2B or B2C? I imagine buying once means cutbacks on certain things, which may or may not be important to certain businesses.
B2C is a model that may survive forever. Low friction, ease of purchase, no commissions.
You don’t seem to know what pay as you go is…it’s often done without a sales rep.
I’m aware.
Then why keep asking if the structure is broken? PLG SaaS companies exist. They still have AEs for strategic accounts. It’s not broken, it’s evolving.
Follow up: if SaaS is alive (as I believe it is), is it the model that’s dying? SDR, BDR, AE? Are we going to see a shift in this predictable sales model?
Are you trying to farm content that people have been writing on LinkedIn for the last 6 months?
A million people have already called out that the old predictable revenue model is likely due for a correction.
The problem has nothing to do with “saas vs one time purchase vs consumption pricing vs etc” the conversation is around the fact that we are in a totally different interest rate environment than we were in the early to late 2010’s. back then investment dollars from VC’s and PE firms were at an al time low cost.
Money was essentially free to obtain, re: all time low interest rates.
Now heading into the mid 2020’s the writing is on the wall, investment dollars are expensive and we’re feeling the hangover of gross at any cost.
Saas isn’t dying, we just have to find ways to be more efficient, that could be by a multitude of vehicles:
- layoffs/ rif/ cut the fat from bloated organizations
- use AI to help less reps produce more
- I’m sure there are a million other ways
A million people have already called out that the old predictable revenue model is likely due for a correction.
The problem has nothing to do with “saas vs one time purchase vs consumption pricing vs etc” the conversation is around the fact that we are in a totally different interest rate environment than we were in the early to late 2010’s. back then investment dollars from VC’s and PE firms were at an al time low cost.
Money was essentially free to obtain, re: all time low interest rates.
Now heading into the mid 2020’s the writing is on the wall, investment dollars are expensive and we’re feeling the hangover of gross at any cost.
Saas isn’t dying, we just have to find ways to be more efficient, that could be by a multitude of vehicles:
- layoffs/ rif/ cut the fat from bloated organizations
- use AI to help less reps produce more
- I’m sure there are a million other ways
I’m asking a question. Not sure what “farming content” means. I appreciate your insight here. You’ve provided clarity to this topic.
Farming: meaning “lazy posting” there’s been endless chatter all over LinkedIn about this subject
I don’t know. I’ve found valuable insights in the comments. I’m not involved in endless chatter on linked in. Who made you the content police anyway? If you don’t like the post then take a walk.
😭😭😭😭😭😭
Agree with all of this. Granted, @goose worded their questions wrong, but I somewhat get their point of wondering if the S/BDRs and AEs functionality will cease to exist in the next 5 years. Landscape makeovers seem to be common in SaaS (I haven’t been in the workplace during one, just basing it off convos) and there could be a lot less ‘appointment setters’ in the future. Considering the efficient upside of AI, the lower end of the BDRs could be out of jobs as theres just going to be less.
I think if you’re not already full cycle, you may want to insure yourself and go get yourself a job doing so.
Yeah I agree. Can be tough for people just getting into tech sales/sales in general tho.
It's taking a bit of a nap right now. A lot of startups took advantage of the easy money in the 2010s to blastoff. Now that interest rates are higher, those prospects aren't as willing to spend on things they view as "nice to have".
It will never go away, digitalization is here to stay. However for those that don't have as many free dollars in what is perceived as a crunch, it becomes a much more difficult sell.
It will never go away, digitalization is here to stay. However for those that don't have as many free dollars in what is perceived as a crunch, it becomes a much more difficult sell.
no.- Companies stopped buying one time purchases because updates, maintenance and such were all problematic and they aren't turning back - Subscripiton software will only continue to get money if they remain up to date and competitive or else competition will eat their lunch
No
Absolutely not.
Not all. All my deals over a million were SaaS transitioned from on premise
Non essential saas yes
It’s all about moving from CapEX to OpEX.
That’s why software is great. I did see one company that documented their savings by moving away from the cloud and buying data centers etc, and seeing massive savings initially moving off of AWS. I wonder where they’ll be, maybe it is worth it in the long term.
But that isn’t the norm. And I don’t see companies moving back in that direction.
As others have said - it is a combination of the money spigot being shut off. We were in the roaring twenties and now the bill has come due.
That’s why software is great. I did see one company that documented their savings by moving away from the cloud and buying data centers etc, and seeing massive savings initially moving off of AWS. I wonder where they’ll be, maybe it is worth it in the long term.
But that isn’t the norm. And I don’t see companies moving back in that direction.
As others have said - it is a combination of the money spigot being shut off. We were in the roaring twenties and now the bill has come due.
definitely not, its thriving!
Hi, only SaaS businesses that claim to sell a one time purchase offering actually are making their money on maintenance which actually is a form of recurring revenue. Especially since the maintenance is done by the very same company that has access to the source code something others don't have. Smoke screen tactics but still recurring revenue.
Absolutely, the SaaS model continues to thrive, delivering value through accessible, scalable solutions across various industries. However, the rise of PaaS is indeed noteworthy, reflecting a shift towards more flexible, development-focused platforms that empower businesses to build custom applications tailored to their unique needs. This growth in PaaS doesn't diminish the importance of SaaS; rather, it complements it by offering an additional layer of versatility and control for companies looking to innovate and scale at pace. Both models are integral to the evolving digital landscape, each serving distinct but often complementary roles in driving business transformation and growth.
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