The consumer-led subscription economy is the new normal.
The technology industry is currently in the middle of the biggest change that it has experienced within the last 50 years. The catalyst for this transformation has, in many ways, been the emergence of new ways that consumers access technology and technology solutions.
Selling subscription software is the new normal, as evidenced by the proliferation of services like Netflix, Amazon Prime, Apple Music, etc.
As consumers, we are moving away from wanting to own things; we want flexibility, we want choices, and we want to avoid obsolescence.
As these trends evolve and become more common, there is a lot of confusion in the enterprise technology and services industry about what “subscription-based-offer” means.
This paper provides a foundational understanding of:
- Subscription-based business models
- Common definitions of subscriptions and XaaS
- Difference between traditional sales offers and selling software as a subscription
- The concept of XaaS, with a specific focus on their impact on sales organizations
It is important to recognize that there are critical differences depending on which sector of the technology industry you are in and the content of this paper is tailored toward software manufacturers. I’ve also created a similar paper designed for Hardware Manufacturers and Technology Services Providers.