I learned to code when I was about 15 while still at high school. How far things have come since then.
Building our own since 2015
AI/LLMs have radically changed the game for SaaS (software as a service) over the last couple of years, and its impact is only growing. Our lean development team at Groovy Group has been building apps for our own brands and businesses since 2015.
Historically it’s been due to the custom integrations and workflows our businesses have required. It’s always made sense to buy off the shelf for “solved” problems like customer support, email marketing, and website review management, etc… so most of our attention until this year has been directed at building apps for those problems that aren’t common.
Now however, things are changing.
I predict a great exodus from overpriced SaaS tools, aka the Saaspocalypse.
What we’ve already replaced
It’s never been easier for businesses to build their own native solution for software. We’ve been shipping at lightning speed, and now have an internal company hub tool that houses everything from:
- HR (e.g. BambooHR)
- Ecom dashboards (e.g. Geckoboard)
- Social listening (e.g. Archive.com)
- A DAM (Air.inc)
The advantages aren’t just cost savings (though there are plenty, at least $50-100k annually is my estimate), but also centralisation means more of our team gets access to things faster, easier, and we can connect the dots between data & insights more seamlessly.
Who survives the Saaspocalypse
But it doesn’t always make sense to build your own. I think if a company is either:
- A) Moatified due to factors like network effects (e.g. Shopify’s Shop Pay, where millions of shoppers already have their details saved), regulation that changes constantly (e.g. payroll and tax), or years of history that’s painful to move (e.g. Xero)
- B) A fair price (e.g. Judge.me)
Then they may survive.
Why we’re launching Groovy Apps
Which is why we’re launching Groovy Apps to the public. We’re already building these tools for our own businesses, we may as well make them available to others, and if we do so at a fair price, we have hope of surviving the coming Saaspocalypse.
The first one we’re opening up is Groovy Subscriptions, a Shopify subscriptions app with a flat monthly price instead of a cut of every order.
So, follow along with our journey. For other business owners out there, you’ll be very aware that building the product is the easy bit, the journey of getting customers is where the challenges start, so follow along to see how we fare. You can get each post by email at hellogroovy.com.
I learned to code at 15, and I never expected to see a small team replace a handful of SaaS tools this quickly.