Sunday, February 26, 2006

NextLogic on demand software.

NextLogic just launched first on demand software or software as a service. It's called SBS - Small Business Solution. SBS is an on demand software for start up companies, sole proprietors, small businesses and self employed agents. It comprises most important functionality for running business like simple contact management and communication tracking, products management, generation of quotations, sales orders, invoices and also receivables and payments. (http://sbs.nextlogic.org)

The objective is to help small companies to run their businesses smoother and in a more organized way, so they can grow in the future easily. We also added mass email and mass sms as value added features, which can help to generate awarness and maybe also extra revenue if used wisely.

On demand software or software as a service is a new approach to software implementation or software "selling" these days. Not that we want to be trendy or anything, but based on our own experience, we see its benefits compared to traditional software and would like to briefly and simply introduce them to our target audience - SMEs.

So, what is software on demand?
There can be many disputes raised if on demand software - software as a service - utility computing software is the same thing or not? There are slight differences but for the purpose of keeping it simple and understandable, we would refer to all these terms as if they would be the same thing as the main principle is the same.

Software on demand transforms the point of view on software. Software is no longer a commodity, a product you can buy either of the shelf as the packaged solution or from software vendor as a customized software solution. Nowadays, you can purchase software as a service and use it only when you need it (or when there is a demand from your side for it).

To give you simple example from life to understand better:
In order to use electricity, you do not buy a powerplant and produce your own electricity, right? You just subscribe to electricity provider and pay for the electricity used on a monthly basis plus some extra cost comes as first time subscribtion fee and some maintenance cost.


With software on demand or utility computing solutions is the same thing - you do not need to buy the whole solution and run in on your own computer anymore and pay for user or other licenses. You just select a software vendor that provides solution you are looking for, the solution can be initially customized for your needs and you can access the solution over the Internet any time you want to and use it only as much as you need to. The rest is the responsibility of the software provider - hosting, maintenance, upgrades, security, back ups, customer support, etc.

Payment structures for these kind of solutions can vary from one standard monthly fee, monthly fee per every user, monthly fee per transactions made, etc. Generally, you have to commit and subscribe to the provider for a minimum of 1 - 3 years.

ADVANTAGES:
- very cost efficient - the savings compared to traditional software purchase can be amazing (lower upfront cost, lower maintenance cost, less headache in managing all aspects of the computer system in house, saved time during implementation, saved on license cost, etc.)
- pro business oriented - upgrades to the solution are provided on a regular basis based on feedback from many business users of the solution
- less risky - if the project fails at least you have not spent so much time and money in it already (which happens to many software projects nowadays for many different reasons)

DISADVANTAGES or CONCERNS:
- security - is a major concern for small and big companies, truth is that nowadays accessing data over the Internet from highly protected servers and through encryption of data and security certificates, etc. that software providers offer in the package, is much safer way than keeping data in your company servers where feeling that data are secure is higher but in reality security of data is much more questionable
- less flexibility - on demand software solutions offered to many companies can easily become "on line off the shelf" solutions where standarization can take over the real need behind company automation, thus you have to be careful that solution that you get can easily be adjusted to your needs and customized, otherwise its not worth the investment either
- service - eventhough provided as a service, many providers fail in providing the real service to rapidly growing number of software users (maybe thats why also salesforce.com is currently loosing many customers daily). No matter how great the idea is, if service is not good, run away from the provider as soon as possible because this concern or disadvantage can prevail all advantages and benefits that on demand software solution can offer to the company (small and a big one too).

Saturday, February 25, 2006

What our software solutions can do for you.

I took some time to think where we actually really fit into daily life of a small or medium sized company. And here is what I came up with. Its a simple structure that "rules" our approach towards our customers.

NextLogic software solutions:

  1. Automate your “business core”.

  2. Automate your “business uniqueness”.

  3. Automate your “business growth”.


Business core” is MUST

Business core is the minimum that needs to be done in order to run the business. You have it and your competitors have it as well.

Business uniqueness” is SHOULD

Business uniqueness is something you have or should have and your competitors would like have too. It is something that differentiates you from your competitors – makes you unique, special and that is the reason why customers come back to you.

Business growth” is WANT

Business growth is something everybody running the business wants, maybe growth size-wise (open new branches) , maybe location-wise (become international organization) or money-wise (increase profits). Growth is defined by each and every organization in different ways, different words but bottom line they want to grow and progress.


1. YOUR CURRENT SITUATION

You do not have enough money to hire enough people so you and your current employees are doing what is must. Because you are doing everything manually, it takes all your resources – people, time, money and you have no time to focus on business unique or business growth activities.


2. YOUR ACTION TOWARDS BUSINESS UNIQUENESS & GROWTH

You can have a look at our SBS - Small Business Solution that can help you to automate some of your basic processes, so you and your people can have more time to focus on your WANTS. SBS is a software "warming up" exercise. Check it at http://sbs.nextlogic.org

3. YOUR NEW SITUATION

After warming up you might realize that you need more and you come back to us. Within 3 – 4 months NextLogic creates a simple software application for you with features and characteristics you specify. The system reflects the way you are running your business, it is customized for your needs. The system helps you to be more efficient and effective and thus save your resources to focus on your WANTS as promised.


FAQs about NextLogic product

My customers or potential customers always ask me similar questions. I thought of summarising them here too. The rest can be found at our website
http://www.nextlogic.org/index.php?file=faq.html

Frequently Asked Questions about our PRODUCTS & SERVICES:

  1. What is the payback period for the new customized software solution? Is it worth?

For the software that can be finished within 1 - 2 months by team of up to 3 team members, you would have to pay about US$3 - 6,000. Of course prices are being localized. Even a small business can afford such a customized solution because even if the payback period would be 6 months, it will bring the affect and savings for the period of minimum 2 – 3 years when it has to be updated again to reflect your business growth.

  1. Did I have to invest something extra for the Internet connection or new computer?

No, for our solution your old PC would be most probably enough and NextLogic will provide you with server space for hosting of your solution. The server price is included in the annual maintenance price, which is usually 10 - 15% of the development cost each year. It is suitable for initial simple software solution, but might be upgraded in the future if the application grows. Of course, you need to have Internet connection. Our solutions are optimized for Mozilla Firefox web browser, which is available for free.

  1. Do I have to pay everything at once on delivery?

You pay based on iterations. One iteration takes usually 2 weeks to one month. Every month a working application is delivered to you based on the priorities set for the development. Thus, your payment is split into 3 to 4 payments till you get the final solution. The option is also to just “rent” the application from NextLogic and pay a smaller amount every month for minimum of 2 – 3 years.

  1. Do I have to attend some training to know how to use the system? Is it included in the price?

We develop systems that are simple and user friendly. Our philosophy is that less is sometimes more. System reflects what you are doing everyday so well, you will be very familiar with the process and can follow the logic behind the screens very easily. You are also fully involved in the development process and every month you see the application, you can use it, you can test it immediately, you do not have to wait until it is complete. Thus you do not need any extra training after system is completed. In practice, we provide orientation to the software application for 2 – 3 main users of the system for free. Additonally, if customer buys annual maintenance, training for new users is included.

  1. Who is maintaining the system for me, how much extra does it cost ?

System can be maintained by NextLogic as a part of annual maintenance contract for 10 -15% of the development cost.

  1. If I want to add some functionality or features to the system, how does it work?

You will inform us about your requirements, we meet you, discuss the requirements, plan how much time it would take and add the functionality to the system. New features can be added anytime and every new development phase you would pay amount comparable to the price you paid at the beginning. (If the whole system currently has for example 30 main features and functionalities and you require additional 10, you would pay 1/3 of the price you initially paid.)

  1. How is the system licensed? Do I have to buy new licenses for every new user?

The system developed for you is one of its kind. You own the system and can use it for your business. You have a full license for the system, for using it, sharing it with other employees, even installing on another server. What you cannot do is to re-sell the system to the third party. To sum up, there are no user or server license fees on our solutions. Source code is also provided to you.

  1. What if my new employees want to use the system too. Can they use it at the same time?

The question is if more users can use the system at the same time. The answer is yes, system can be used concurrently and all changes users make will be updated in real time.

  1. I can buy an out of the box solution. That would be cheaper and faster, right?

You can certainly do that. Or you could ask any other software vendor to develop a solution according to your needs. There are many options but consider following challenges:

  1. How come then that NextLogic provides customization and still at the affordable price? Where is the trick?

The trick is first of all in the reason of the existence of our company. We have a passion for contribution that brings growth and progress to all and we believe all small or medium sized companies can and should grow. We want to help. In this state of mind, we are trying to find the best way of how to develop the applications to be useful and still affordable. Our secret lies partially in utilizing Open Source resources that we rationally use for the cost and quality benefit of our customers, we also use such a technologies that will be easy to change and moderate when system will be growing (f.e. Java / Ruby).

Also, we apply agile software development approach, which is meant to eliminate double work and mistakes by heavily involving customer into the process of application development. We work with the customer from a very first day and show him regularly everything we develop to make sure that every feature and functionality in the system is wanted, needed and will be used.

We try not to waste our resources (time) and resources of our customers (money) at the same time. Instead of spending months writing long requirement documents or proposals, we prefer simple face to face communication, one page proposal that will cover most important things for the initial phase of the system development because we expect requirements to change over time as system is being developed. We try to stay as flexible as possible.


Sunday, February 19, 2006

Long term partnerships - mirage or necessity?

NextLogic instantly looks for business partners, just like any other businesses I believe. Suprisingly, there are many responses to our long term partnerships initiative. Honestly, I thought it will be more difficult to get a real long term partner with integrity sharing your values and views for the business. So, where is the catch?

Long term partnership became another well sound business buzz word that is being misused in many unethical ways nowadays. It is sad but it is true. I still believe in every single entrepreneur that comes to me offering long term partnership and I trust them they really mean it, BUT we have learned our lesson too. Of course, not every partnership needs to turn to be a perfect one, but if too many of them end up in the same scenario, then we have a situation to think about.

From our own experience, we have learned that many "smart entrepreneurs" use long term partnership phrase to get certain products or services at a very cheap cost in the initial stage for a sake of long term partnership. It always sounds very nice and promising. Have you ever come across people promising you big projects and contracts in the future but first you have to prove how good you really are by giving them something for free or at your cost price? And how many times you invested hours and days coming up with solutions hoping for long term benefits and revenues, which never came at the end?

Long term partnership can only work, and now we know, if both parties are willing to share and invest equally all resources (time, money, knowledge, skills, etc.) from the very beginning. We still believe long term partnerships and partners are inevitable for the success of our business, we just have to be more careful in selecting our partners.

Our "selection process" is very simple. We "only" have few criteria our potential furure partners have to meet:
1. share the values that we share for our business
2. share the investments and outcomes equally from the very beginning

Customer support 24/7 - promise or reality?

My customer from Malaysia went to Africa for one week to train their staff there on the software we have developed for them. That's something we really love to see happening because first hand feedback can be obtained very easily this way. Unfortunately, my customer got so nervous from that simple training he was supposed to do that he forgot many things about the software, even features he personally requested.

Suddenly, he was writing me email saying that there are many bugs in the software and he has a presentation in 1 hour for all managers. We exchanged few emails and I realized, its not bugs but just simple problems in business flow he is facing. Somehow, he did not understand what I was trying to tell him over email. I believe a bit of stress can do wonders. So I took him on skype as I thought it would be more efficient conversation. It was about 10pm in Malaysia when we started to chat over skype as he didnt have mic to talk and Internet connection in Africa was a bit slow.

As there was no training manual cause the application was really small and simple, I had to navigate him over skype through some basics. I managed to quicky screenshot the application and send it over to him so he can see how search screen should look like when trying to get some results, etc. He was immediately trying and after half an hour of intensive "chat" everything seemed OK. This was first country where our software was supposed to be used and beginnings are always more difficult. However, I realized how different it is when customer just browses through the system and confirms that everything works fine (which is a responsibility of a client to go through and final test the solution) and when real users try to use it for the first time. Suddenly, so many things come up we have not seen before. Once again I realized how important our agile software development approach is in developing proper software solutions that work for end users.

Nevertheless, my customer went for the presentation and after one hour I got last message from him that everything went fine and there were no bugs or errors of any kind during the final training with managers. I felt releaved. Its not that just we are promising 24/7 customer support, we actually really do it. Not talking about the fact that at the same time I was navigating another customer in Singapore though his system too. All thanks to Skype.

Saturday, February 11, 2006

Stories I hear daily

In the position of marketing and sales person I meet customers, partners, people daily. I listen to them and trying to learn, to see where we as NextLogic can fit, can assist.

There is one story that I continusoly hear from people I meet (especially in Malaysia), which is very hard to respond to, because I myself know its so true.

The story goes something like this:
"We have tried IT before, we invested lots of money, we built our website, CRM and then the IT guy dissappeared and our website and data got lost with him. Then we tried again, this time not a freelancer because it was so hard to follow up with them and there was no support, instead we tried small IT company. After few payments and not delivered work, they also dissappeared. We don't trust IT and IT companies anymore. Its safer to keep everything manual in paper books. We don't even want to try again."

I believe every industry has story like this. There are many companies that just do not take the responsibility given and spoil the image of the industry in general. But many times the problem is on both sides. If IT partner is not selected properly (or any business partner), even if you mean to spend just little money at first, dissapointment would come sooner or later.

I know it very well from our personal experience. We also had partners that cheated on us and were very unfair. What to do with this situation? I always tell these people who tell me these stories one line from my favourite song - Fool me once - shame on you, fool me twice - shame on me. It might not seem very IT related, but I believe, it is generally life related and can be easily applied in business too.

Companies, no matter how small they are (and especially small ones) literally cannot afford to get fooled twice in one area of business. They should be proactive and study and learn how to make it differently and better the next time. However, there are only few entepreneurs like that and those usually turn to be our best customers if we find them or if they find us. Its a perfect match when we find each other. Thats this famous 20% that creates 80% of your business, which is perfectly OK, because you create a value to them they see, understand and are willing to pay for.

The rest is 80% of "IT heartbroken" companies and entrepreneurs who are not willing and able to open up and listen to what honest IT companies have to say and thats our daily struggle. But, of course, we fight and are willing to spend more time on educating them, its our duty and we are happy to fulfill it. Some businessmen call it charity and stress to focus on profitable customers only, for us its a philosophy of our business life or long term investment of our time and resources believing that things and people can change.

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