10 SaaS Tools for Small Businesses and Their Benefits

2021.05.31 07:21 PM By Joshua Taddeo, Principal Consultant
working with saas tools

Small businesses are one of the most valuable markets for Software-as-a-service applications (SaaS). More companies plan to invest in software over services in the coming years to improve business operations and boost its performance. No one disputes the benefits of SaaS itself; it can reduce capital expenditure, risks, and overall IT costs. More intriguingly, it has proven to be the most cost-effective option for startups and entrepreneurs. In this article, we will look at some of the best cloud-based systems with industry-leading functionality for small and medium-sized businesses.

What Is SaaS Software?

SaaS Tools are software products hosted by a central provider and offer various applications that can increase the agility of a company. By using cloud-based data integration tools, these tools provide the flexibility needed to quickly add new features and find new business solutions to achieve overall growth. SaaS tools often offer only one application but can be used in conjunction with other SaaS products to amplify the effects of building out a software/process ecosystem, starting with a SaaS dashboard tool that you can build yourself, for example, or a marketing automation solution. This allows for more flexibility in terms of the number of applications available to your business, as well as the ability to easily integrate them into other digital tools.

Benefits of SaaS Software

There was a time when you could only use a software application if you bought a license, but not anymore. Ever since the advent of SaaS Software, it has become easier to conveniently use any software. These tools can greatly increase the value of your business and the amount of money your small business should invest in. Now, individual small and medium sized enterprises (SMEs) can take advantage of digital solutions just as large companies do - it is a game-changer. IT experts consider cost, security, and ease of use to be the most important criteria they consider when purchasing a SaaS solution. The benefits of SaaS include lower costs for companies that want to use these disruptive tools, greater flexibility, and scalability.

More Savings 

SaaS software, such as accounting software and acceleration software, can potentially save businesses’ time and money and provide better incentives for upgrades in their business than traditional accounting software.

Affordable

SaaS software is particularly advantageous for small businesses because it opens the door to relatively inexpensive, powerful software that might otherwise be too expensive to purchase. SaaS should give you access to the best enterprise software available on the market today at a fraction of the cost.
using different saas tools

Fair Competition 

SaaS offers small businesses the opportunity to disrupt existing markets through a fair SaaS pricing model. Even smaller companies use SaaS products. For many startups, these SaaS tools never make the difference between starting now and starting down the line. They enter the market and plan to use it in the next few years by learning the right tools as the company progresses. SaaS is now much better suited for use with fair pricing, as well as the possibility of downloading the software for free or as part of a subscription for a certain period of time. In addition to the enormous advantages of SaaS platforms, the growth of the industry is primarily due to the growth in cloud computing. SMEs plan to invest more in SaaS over the next five years, with more than a third of US small businesses operating in the cloud this year. 

Today, 64% of SMEs rely on cloud-based SaaS to boost productivity and growth, and the majority of companies, regardless of size, are seriously planning to invest in a new SaaS application in two to three years, expanding the growth potential for millions of small businesses. Moreover, in the absence of a single point-of-sale (P2P) cloud platform, it has enabled companies to achieve significant cost savings by eliminating the need to install and operate applications on the site. SaaS has become an important part of modern business operations, and these companies are proving that it is the right choice for small businesses.

SaaS Software Businesses Should Invest In

Small businesses are often required to understand and manage the complexity. As you can imagine, a typical small business uses several SaaS services to cover a wide range of business needs. We have compiled a list of the main categories of business-to-business software for growing businesses based on the commonly used SaaS apps.

Business Intelligence (BI) Software

Business Intelligence (BI) Software is a computer application that analyzes business data to gain high-quality insights and understand the health of the company. BI software has become affordable even for companies with limited budgets. It uses a variety of formulas and metrics to measure, compare and relate business indicators. The system also assesses the functionality and performance of employees. Now, the question is, why is this system effective? Well, it is because it has a set of tools that allow it to distinguish between the strengths and weaknesses of a company. 

small business owner using saas tools

The only way for a provider to host its software in the cloud is if the SaaS solution is a cloud service. Popular cloud solutions for small businesses include Amazon Web Services (AWS)Microsoft AzureGoogle Cloud Platform, and Microsoft Office 365. The development of cloud storage has encouraged the use of SaaS, which is used by businesses of all kinds. However, a cloud backup solution for a small business is critical if you have a critical interest in having access to your business data as well as the personal data of your employees.

Accounting Software

When you decide to explore the market, there is a wide variety of software to choose from. With so much choice, it can be a bit daunting to choose the right one, but it’s about money. The ability to predict and forecast costs and the related core accounting and invoicing should be important for any small business. This leads to more efficient and cost-effective business operations and higher productivity. It offers significant benefits to your business, including the ability to easily track due dates and late payments immediately without worrying about dispersions. You can track fee data as well without any fear.  It also automates financial management, helps managers manage their accounting activities, reduce expenses and accurately report financial activities. Ultimately, you will improve the quality of your financial decisions and help improve the financial performance of your company.

Collaboration Software

The collaboration software allows team members to collaborate on various activities and projects. Generally, collaboration software packages consist of tools that reduce the barriers to collaboration between remote and decentralized teams. It has also proved effective in saving time and money and in detecting problems early on.

Website Builder

The Web page creation software allows you to create web pages without manual coding. SaaS Providers let site operators install alternative commercial and open source tools. Complex solutions of this kind are also called content management systems and are available in a variety of forms.

web design software

Marketing Software

Marketing software helps companies improve their marketing operations and expand their reach through profitable and dedicated campaigns. There are many types of marketing software tools and marketing automation platforms, but most are designed for campaign management and resource optimization. Some also integrate email marketing features or social media management features that allow you to integrate your potential customers into social networks. You can use the software to track your customers on FacebookTwitter, LinkedInInstagramPinterest, and other social networks, as well as your company’s other social media accounts.

Sales Software

Sales software is an e-commerce application that is used to standardize the sales process of the companies. There are certain activities like the manufacture of tight leads and conversion processes that need standardizing. This software helps in regards to that. Most sales applications can also be used to process sales data, evaluate performance, manage inventory and run an online store. These types of solutions make it easy to measure key metrics such as sales growth, customer satisfaction, sales volume, conversion rates, inventory levels, and inventory management. In addition, many providers offer lead management and lead tracking tools as well as marketing and sales analyses.

Project Management Software

Project management software programs facilitate project implementation and make it more efficient. They allow you to set more realistic milestones and deadlines and focus your team members on results. You have many options in this category, but remember that you will receive a sales software demo before you subscribe to a plan.

Customer Relationship Management Software (CRM)

Customer Relationship Management Software (CRM) is an application that helps companies build strong relationships with their customers, encourage conversations, and improve sales rates based on customer satisfaction, loyalty, customer service, and other factors. Companies use them to process and analyze customer information, map opportunities from unconnected data, create sales funnels, conduct loyalty campaigns, and much more.


The biggest advantage of CRM software tools is that you can categorize your customers according to their expectations and pay attention to potential buyers. Project management software typically offers you project management tools such as project planning, project tracking, and management.

Email Marketing Software

With trillions of emails sent annually, the emerging claim that email marketing has become ineffective should not be buried. Email marketing remains a marketer’s best marketing method because customers prefer to communicate with them via email. For this reason, email marketing software is one of the most popular marketing tools for small and medium-sized businesses.

Content Management Software (CMS)

Content Management Software (CMS) helps you create, modify and publish digital content online. Most CMS solutions use a web browser to distribute content, while others offer their own web-based GUIs and invite users to create their own templates with pre-made pages. What you should expect from a good CMS is a built-in text editor with high support for HTML, CSS, and JavaScript.

SEO Testing and Optimization Tools

Even with the sophisticated tools of Google itself, you can’t get far without the right tools. You need to be able access a large number of data sources and have tools that make it easy to analyze and sort data you need to stay efficient and effective in your efforts.


Google’s webmaster tools are absolutely essential. They are the most effective tools for businesses to help boost your SEO rankings. These tools allow you to measure everything your viewers and customers do on your site and are best to use in tandem with SaaS and SEO tools. With Google Analytics and Google Search Console, you can monitor your site rankings in Google search results and see how often your site appears in the top 10, 20, 30 or even 100 of the most searched pages. 

seo optimization

You can see the number of clicks, the number of times a website appears in the Google Play Store and Google Maps, and the frequency with which people click on a page. This information, together with search volume data, forms the backbone of most SEO toolkits. Almost every SEO tool such as SERankings, SEMrush, and MOZ uses one of these Google tools. You must ensure that the website is well-suited for search engines. Now that you know a little more about the different types of SaaS tools for businesses that are available to you, you know where to start to be on your way ahead of your competitors.

SaaS Solutions for Small Businesses

To date, more and more small businesses around the world are banking on the SaaS revolution, which is still growing, and mind you; this trend is likely to continue in the coming years. From automated updates to the latest features and tools, there are many compelling reasons to join the SaaS revolution. Do your research on other types of enterprise software for small businesses that fall under these categories so you can find what’s best suited to your business. This will further deepen your knowledge of strengthening this type of enterprise software and help you in your future endeavors. Remember that SaaS tools mainly serve to support and boost a business’s means to its goals. For bespoke solutions with a strategy, consult Universal Creative Solutions today. We are here to serve you through our operations consulting services and ensure you invest in the right ones that help you achieve business success.