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SaaS Outsourcing—and White Labeling SaaS Solutions—Is Growing
More and more SaaS vendors are outsourcing to remain competitive. Data shows that 59% of businesses outsource in some capacity to cut costs. Additionally, software outsourcing is projected to be on a 10-year growth spurt through 2025 due to how pivotal and widespread SaaS functionalities are for many organizations.
White labeling is a form of outsourcing. However, instead of taking a chance on someone whose experience and effectiveness may not be tested, you’re letting an expert team manage and support your new SaaS solution while presenting it as one of your proprietary applications.
Not Every White Label Partner is Created Equal
The Accelerance Global Software Outsourcing Rates and Trends Guide found that 97% of SaaS companies that outsource “aren’t qualified to deliver the quality and outcomes” companies need. It also found that “performance or fit issues” have caused more than 50% of companies to end outsourcing partnerships.
Finding the correct white label partner isn’t an endeavor to take lightly, especially because it goes deeper than your typical buyer/customer relationship. White label products are presented as proprietary solutions and thus, a reflection of the brand you’ve worked hard to cultivate.
HiringThing Knows the Power of White Labeling
HiringThing is the premier white and private label recruiting solution on the market. We white label an applicant tracking system—recruiting software used to streamline and optimize the hiring process—and employee onboarding solutions for our partners, who use our solutions to serve millions of end users.
We know firsthand the power of the white label modality. We’re passionate about white labeling. It’s an essential part of our business model we think can help tech organizations grow. That’s why we’ve created this guide.
The Goal of This Guide:
The goal of this guide is to help you better understand how to figure out which white label modality works best for your business needs, how to find a white label partner, and how to vet potential white label partners for the most fruitful outcomes.
Table of Contents
- White Label Modalities
- Finding the Right White Label Partner
- Partner Considerations
- The Power of White Labeling
White Labeling Modalities
Many don’t realize that there are two types of white labeling in the world of SaaS. They’re often used interchangeably, but there are subtle differences, and when trying to find a white label partner, it’s important to understand those differences to determine the right modality for your business needs.
White Labeling
White labeling allows organizations to add new products to their tech suites without building them from scratch. White label vendors create SaaS solutions that other organizations purchase and present as proprietary solutions.
Organizations use white label software for various reasons, but it's often because it saves time and money on in-demand new solutions. White labeling allows organizations to add new offerings quickly, expediting their responsiveness to customer challenges with immediate solutions.
Private Labeling
Private labeling goes beyond white labeling, by providing customizations to your solution to help meet specific business goals.
They’re often used interchangeably, but there are differences.
Businesses who partner with private label providers enter a mutually beneficial partnership versus the traditional buyer/client relationship. Since end-users aren’t aware of this behind-the-scenes partnership, it strengthens the brand and scope of the private label purchaser’s product offerings. We offer both modalities at HiringThing, but the bulk of our partners chose private labeling because of the customizations available.
It’s helpful to understand that all private label SaaS partnerships are also white label SaaS partnerships, but not all white label SaaS partnerships are private label partnerships.
Which Works for You?
The helpful chart below will help you understand the difference and choose which modality is right for your white label endeavor.
Since all private label products and partnerships are also white label products and partnerships—but not vice versa—we'll use "white label" to describe both in the remainder of this guide unless what we're talking about only applies to the private label modality.
Finding the Right White Label Partner
This section will outline the steps to form the right white label partnership with a SaaS platform.
Consider Areas of Enhancement
You may already have a new solution you’re looking to white label. If that’s the case, great. You can feel free to skip this step. Other SaaS companies may know they want to expand their solutions and take advantage of the benefits of private labeling but don’t know where to start.
Ask yourself the following questions to determine what new white label solution would most benefit your organization:
- What are your customers' most significant professional pain points?
- What solutions can you offer to help assuage these pain points?
- What will benefit your customers the most?
- What solutions are your customers asking for? What are the challenges they’re consistently asking you to solve?
- Are competitors in your market offering this solution, or would this be a differentiator for you in this space? Conversely, are you the last party offering this solution?
You’re white labeling to expand your solutions and grow your business, so think customer-centric when adding additional competencies.
Once you’ve decided what solution(s) you’d like to white label, it’s time to research.
- What technologies will accomplish your solution?
- How are they used? What is their pricing structure?
- What functionalities do the most competitive solutions have?
- What are users saying about these solutions?
We recommend approaching white label partners with as much knowledge as possible so that you can make the most informed choice.
Our piece Start Building a Multiproduct Strategy, and the multiproduct blog series it’s part of can further help you figure out how to strategize adding new solutions
Find a White Label Partner
The next step is to find a white label SaaS developer you can partner with to bring your new solution and vision to life. While white label developers advertise their products and services, it’s often not as straightforward as procuring a typical B2B SaaS solution. Since these companies succeed by making others look good, they aren’t as overt about their marketing as their straight-to-consumer counterparts.
This doesn’t make it hard to find a white label developer to partner with per se, it is just an added layer to keep in mind.
Search Engine
An online search will probably be where you start. The best thing to do is search Google for “White label + _____ (solution you’d like to white label),” and you should get the top white label SaaS developers for the industry or product you’re seeking.
Review Sites
Review sites like G2 or Capterra are great resources to see what people in the industry are saying about various white label vendors. Sometimes partners will want to talk a little more anonymously so industry message boards, Facebook or LinkedIn groups, or social media chatter can be helpful.
Tradeshows
Tradeshows are a great way to connect with the best white label developers in your industry. Meeting representatives from the white label developer in person also allows you to ask any additional questions if this is your first private label venture.
Networking
Ask around to those in your industry and see what they’ve white labeled in the past. Additionally, industry-specific message or chat boards are vital for gathering information about what white label solutions are available.
Partner Considerations
Finding the correct white label SaaS partner is critical to make sure your white label endeavor is successful. This section will explain how to find white label SaaS partners and what considerations you should make while evaluating potential partners.
Industry Reputation
Is this a high-quality product? Has it helped out other businesses? While many white label partners won’t want to divulge that they white label, an excellent white label developer can provide examples of how they’ve helped businesses with specific facts and figures, even if they can’t name their partners.
“HiringThing’s white label capabilities account for approximately 90% of our business—that’s the kind of stat you want to see when exploring industry reputation.” -Joanna Campa, HiringThing Director of Marketing
Similar Values and Visions
Once again, this isn’t simply a purchase but a strategic business partnership. Find a white label partner whose organization has values and visions that align with your own.
Focus on Value, Not Price
Now, we’re moving onto a different kind of value, the monetary kind! One of the biggest takeaways from this year’s Global Software Outsourcing Rates and Trends Guide is to focus on the value a partnership can bring to your organization, not the price. That’s important to keep in mind when evaluating potential partners.
As the guide says, “A team of highly skilled and experienced developers will deliver better results more quickly than one with simply low rates but limited expertises. A good development partner will be able to help you realize your vision by offering up technical architects, product owners, and building accelerators to help you create solutions quickly and efficiently.”
Transparency
Since you’re looking for a strategic business partner, you want the relationship to be as transparent as possible.
- Ensure company-wide transparency: During the consultation stage of your burgeoning partnership, you want to make sure all the experts at your company can speak to their counterparts at the white label developer. Ensure you access the product team, engineering, marketing, sales, and customer service. It should be a red flag if you aren’t able to speak to all departments in your new partner’s company.
- Make sure your demos or trials are all-encompassing: You should be able to play the part of a potential user when you demo software to learn how everything works. You’re trusting this white label partner with the success of your business, so it’s a red flag if you’re unable to see how any of the user’s journeys work.
- Ensure contractual transparency: Don’t be afraid to ask questions and thoroughly read any contracts before signing. A good white label partner isn’t trying to pull any punches and should be able to walk you through the partnership terms in a meaningful way.
Support
When you sign up with a white label partner, you’re not only getting their technical solutions but expert support:
- Does your white label partner offer robust services and support?
- Do they have a clear method for onboarding you as a white label partner and your customers as end-users?
- Will they work with you to train your staff so you can start marketing and selling soon? Do they have resources to help you learn?
“It’s especially pertinent to have the involvement of the product team early and often. A white label solution can be a robust product add and will ultimately need to end up on their roadmap to create the most fruitful partnership.” - Colette Luke, HiringThing Director of Product
If a white label developer isn’t offering support, you’re better off going in a different direction.
Communication
If communication isn’t timely or transparent during the sales/consultation process, that might be a good indicator of what it will be like during your partnership. Remember, the SaaS white label developer is helping expand your business, but you’re also helping to expand theirs. Communication should never be an issue and should always be a two-way street.
Demo the Solution
After you find the right partner, make sure they can provide a solid demonstration of how the product works and ensure that it will work for your business model and customers, whether this is an in-depth demo or trial run.
Things you should look for during a demo include:
- User experience: Will it be easy for employees at your organization to use the product? Is it intuitive?
- End-user experience: Will this new solution provide a delightful experience for your customers?
- Integration: It’s also important to ensure that your private label solution integrates smoothly with your other solutions and the tools your customers use, so it doesn’t become a headache for them.
Per the previous section, look for transparency, support, communication, and values during your demo. You won’t necessarily leave a demo having every question answered, but you should leave a demo understanding that the product will work.
A Clear Go-to-Market Plan
A good white label partner will be able to talk you through your go-to-market plan during your discovery phase. Some things to ask include:
- Will they provide marketing or sales support?
- Do they have a go-to-market playbook you can see?
- How have their partners achieved success? Up-sell? Value-add? Combination of both?
- Do they have recommended pricing structures?
- What do they think the messaging around your new solution will be?
Now, you’re obviously free to create a marketing plan of your own if you’re confident in the ability of your team, but remember, your potential white label partners are experts on their product and can help.
“Here at HiringThing, we offer a pricing model called Flex. With Flex, our channel partners’ clients are provided with instant access to a recruiting solution while having the autonomy to select a plan level that works best for their hiring needs. On this program, it’s less about selling and more about educating the clients on the power of their new solution.” -Joanna Campa, HiringThing Director of Marketing
The Power of White Labeling SaaS Solutions
We hope you’ve come to understand the value of finding the right white label partner. The right partner can take your business to the next level and is key to setting this endeavor up for success.
About HiringThing
HiringThing is a modern recruiting and employee onboarding platform as a service that creates seamless talent experiences. Our white label solutions and open API enable HR technology and service providers to offer hiring and onboarding to their clients. Approachable and adaptable, the HiringThing HR platform empowers anyone, anywhere to build their dream team.
