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Over the past couple weeks, we've seen some interesting IPO filings from on-demand software players. There is NetSuite, as well as Constant Contact.In light of the success of Salesforce.com (NYSE: CRM), it's a good bet investors will be interested.
So to get some insight, I talked to the CEO of Centive, Mike Torto.
Founded about ten years ago, the company uses on-demand applications to help companies with compensation management.
How are things going at Centive?
We've just completed another fantastic quarter, and year to date we're winning about 70% of the deals we compete in. We have over 80 customers representing almost 13,000 subscribers, and we're two weeks away from the 5th major release of Centive Compel®. By any measure – most customers, most subscribers, most product awards, most mature solution – Centive Compel continues to be the clear leader in the on-demand sales compensation market.
Looking at Constant Contact, any interesting takeaways?
Gail Goodman and her team have done a phenomenal job of providing high-value marketing tools for businesses of all sizes, but in particular for small and mid-sized companies. Small and mid-sized businesses are often challenged when it comes to applying technology to business problems; traditional enterprise solutions are either too expensive to purchase or too difficult to implement without significant demands on their limited IT staff. Constant Contact, like most SaaS vendors, makes purchasing technology solutions a business decision, not an IT decision.
Investors are warming to the SaaS model, and I believe Constant Contact will look attractive as they have both the name recognition and the stable, predictable revenue stream that institutional and private investors value. Also, as opposed to traditional enterprise software companies, SaaS vendors clearly have the greatest growth potential
Expect more public offerings for on-demand players?
Absolutely. There are already several success stories with SaaS company IPOs. As the SaaS market continues to mature and encroach on markets owned by traditional software vendors, the appetite for investments with these vendors will continue to grow.
Tom Taulli is the author of various books, including the Complete M&A Handbook and the EDGAR-Online Guide to Decoding Financial Statements.
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