How to Outsource Your Online Business Needs
One of the most effective ways to save time and money in doing business online is to let someone else install and maintain the computer software you use. Outsourcing refers to the practice of having an outside company provide services for your business, such as web hosting, creating forms, or keeping financial records, rather than installing and running software on your computer.
One of the companies that provide web-based services on an outsourced basis is Application Service Provider (ASP). For example, when you fill out a form and create a web page on CafePress.com, you are using CafePress.com as the ASP. Instead of creating your own web page on your computer, you can use an app on CafePress.com and store your web page information there.
How ASPs Can Help Your Company
You must pay a monthly fee to use the ASP services. You may also incur installation fees, and you may have to sign a one- or two-year contract. In turn, ASPs offer benefits to your company that include:
Create a Shopping Cart/Store: In addition to a website, open an e-commerce store with shopping cart services such as ZenCart, 3D Cart, X-Cart, or another provider.
Shark Tank Comments: Concept comments provide experts who evaluate your website’s design and usability and suggest improvements.
Online Form Creation: FormSite.com is a leader in creating a variety of forms that can help online shoppers provide basic functionality, such as subscribing to newsletters or other publications, requesting information about your goods and services, or providing you with shipping or billing information.
Product View: Arqspin allows you to create 360-degree product photography so customers can see your merchandise from all angles.
Reduced Credit Card Fees: All merchants pay a fee to credit card processors to receive customers’ credit card payments. FeeFighters helps businesses shop for credit card merchant accounts to save money.
In many cases, ASP can provide a software solution and customize it according to your needs. Outsourcing not only improves your company’s bottom line but also helps you get your message across to potential clients that they might never have otherwise reached.
Do your homework before registering
After trying the other software or service you want to hire, you usually need to sign a contract. Read the finer details. Contracts can last from 12 to 50 months; Make sure you don’t get trapped in one longer than you need to. You have a better chance of getting the service you want if you do the following:
Understand pricing schemes. Some ISPs charge a “per employee” fee while others charge a “per seat” fee based on each registered user. Others still charge “per CPU”, which means that you are charged for each device that runs the hosted application.
Determine the start-up fee. Almost all service providers charge a start-up fee, or service implementation fee, when you sign the contract. Make sure the fee covers the installation and any customization you’ll need.
Do not accept any service level agreement only. It is necessary to obtain a Service Level Agreement (SLA), which is a document that outlines the services you expect ASP (or another resource) to provide. Feel free to add, delete or change sections to meet your needs.
Avoid “gotcha” fees. Pricing arrangements are hardly standard with respect to ASP services. Some hidden costs include customizing or customizing the service to adapt to legacy systems. You should ask questions to avoid unpleasant surprises: Is there an additional cost to customize or personalize the app? Is there an additional cost to back up and restore my company data if one of my computers fails?
Make sure your information is secure. Some huge security risks are associated with the transmission of your information over the open spaces of the Internet. Ensure that your ASP takes appropriate security measures to protect your data by asking informed questions, such as: Is my data protected by SSL encryption? Do you run a virtual private network? How often do you backup your customers’ data?