5 ways SaaS can slash $13,000 in law office costs
Over the course of five years, a lot of expenses can be accrued for supposed necessities inside the daily operations of a medium-to-small firm. Learn to cut down more than $13,000 of annual expenses to free up revenue in your business
Just think about it for a moment.
IT personnel, software DVDs, servers and backups, upgrades, over-priced electricity, air conditioning and expensive computers that go obsolete before they’re pulled out of the box—what do all these malignant expenses have in common?
Well, we’ve crunched some numbers, and it’s possible these liability expenses will cost you roughly $15,000 within half a decade.
In 2017 and beyond, enterprising lawyers and paralegals should think long-term about the kinds of things they want to be spending money on during the course of their career as entrepreneurs.
A lot of these expenses can be minimized or avoided entirely with the use of Software as a Service (SaaS). While the concept isn’t new, recent trends in automation and Internet usage have made it a viable option for many careers—lawyers and paralegals are no exception.
SaaS is a delivery model for services that’s here to stay and many professions are utilizing it daily without understanding the broad strokes of how these businesses function.
1. No more IT - Instead of offering conventional software that you can go out and purchase and install at home or at the office, companies selling SaaS don’t actually sell you a physical item—they provide a license, and that license typically comes with included IT service.
One of the many benefits to this is that it doesn’t require upgrades that you need to pay for. These systems are a whole lot less demanding on your devices, also.
Still, it might be necessary to bring a computer into a shop to get it fixed, but SaaS only requires a person to open up a browser such as Firefox or Safari.
2. Cheaper computers get the job done
Not that long ago, lawyers and paralegals alike were almost obligated to buy powerful desktop computers ($2,000+) with lots of memory in order to ensure years of reliable and fast-use.
When the computer broke down, it usually meant having to buy another equally (or more) powerful piece of hardware just to keep business running as usual.
When a user buys into a SaaS, they are able to connect using a thin client accessible from a web browser. So instead of installing and setting up programs, SaaS exists on the Internet and merely requires a user to have a browser.
Consumer-level laptops and desktops are more affordable than ever these days, and no longer do they have to break the bank every few years.
3. It is no longer necessary to buy or rent a server
If you have any long term plans (which you should) to grow and expand your firm over the next 3-5 years, we suggest thinking long and hard about backup and storage.
Many law firms are running their own servers and the costs are quite large if you tabulate all of the associated expenses.
4. Cheap, hassle-free & secure storage
Many Solo legal practitioners are concerned about the storage of sensitive and critical documents and information, and so they should. Not only is it required by law, but it’s part of the job!
For most of you, effective storage solutions on computers is just a way of life, and is certainly not a new concept. Backup drives and computers or physical archives are the go-to for many lawyers and paralegals, but cloud storage solutions are making back-ups less anxiety provoking and also quite a bit cheaper.
SaaS is often integrated with cloud storage services, which allows for you to cut down on law office costs.
5. Reliable outflow of cash
While there are many options when it comes to bookkeeping, legal accounting, and practice management systems, most require a considerable amount of overhead and maintenance in order to get started.
Law firms should never undervalue predictability when it comes to tabulating the cost of doing business.
SaaS practice management, legal accounting and bookkeeping software is a flat monthly rate and it isn’t subject to the same amount of parameters, such as owning your own server or requiring repeat visits to IT professionals in order to maintain a more complex (or outdated) arrangement.
ulawPractice is a perfect example of such a service.
Try it out for free!
Over the course of a single year, uLaw costs a total of $408 but the price is charged in a monthly subscription fee that can be canceled whenever.
With this method, very little money is required up-front ($34 per month) and over the course of five years, the service will cost a firm $2040 as opposed to more than$13,000 in hidden costs for expensive computers, electricity and manpower required to keep a server and archive operational.