SaaS stands for Software as a Service, which refers to a type of e-commerce platform where the back-end source code is owned by the provider, not the e-commerce entrepreneur who intends to open an online store.
A Saas system is different, for example, from an Open Source system, which has an open source, in which each entrepreneur can make the Back-end changes they want, without having to report to the original developer.
The Vtex e-commerce platform is one of the most prominent examples on the market when it comes to SaaS systems. Under its code are implemented small, medium and large virtual stores such as Walmart (which added to a network of retail partners, has more than 1 million items for sale!).
In addition to having a code owned by the supplier, a SaaS platform has the following characteristics:
• Unique code, which only the supplier and partners can optimize;
• Continuous (and free) code optimization by the supplier and partners;
• System framework is shared with entrepreneurs;
• Agility in fixing bugs (made by the supplier);
• Running on a remote server;
• Does not require installation on the virtual store owner's computer;
• The system is not a product, but a service (with monthly payment);
• The entrepreneur (owner of the virtual store) accesses the system via the internet;
• The entrepreneur has no software installation costs;
• The entrepreneur does not pay annual software maintenance;
• Scalability and ease of integration of expansions;
• The Data Center is the responsibility of the platform provider;
• Personalization Front-end flexible (unlike duck platforms);
• omni-channel (which allows the management of multiple sales channels).
Another important characteristic of SaaS systems is that they are updated periodically. Vtex, for example, along with its development partners, creates a new version of its platform approximately every two months, which keeps it modern and able to support the 4 pillars of e-commerce.
As the development and the bulk of the IT is left to the provider of the SaaS e-commerce platform, the entrepreneur can use all his time and effort to think exclusively about the business of the virtual store.
