Every buyer would like to save on the purchase of licensed programs, but not everyone succeeds in optimizing their costs. This is mainly due to the objective complexity of licensing schemes for most software manufacturers and the lack of proper experience and the necessary qualifications of the buyer. Nevertheless, there are a number of general rules, adhering to which you can significantly reduce your costs of purchasing licensed software.
You can also use the Saas based cloud softwares to reduce the overall premium software cost. If you run a company or small firm where you need multiple software licenses, you should move to SaaS community to find the more affordable and easy solutions.
Special offers from manufacturers and official representatives
When purchasing several licenses at once, manufacturers and their representatives often offer discounts or special corporate packages, purchasing which you can significantly save. Often, when purchasing a specific product, the retailer will offer free installation and even service for several months after purchasing the product.
What you need to know
You can purchase an OEM license only with the purchase of a new computer. Installing such a version of the software on a computer purchased separately from it is tantamount to using illegal programs.
Correct program version
When choosing software, it is necessary to clearly understand the tasks that it must solve, since often a “lightweight” version is sufficient for effective work, and not a “professional” version of the program. “Lightweight” versions will cost much less than full ones.
What you need to know
It is not always profitable to purchase the latest version of the program, because in the process of using it, you may have to additionally purchase updates and fixes for it, while the cost of the predecessor version is significantly lower, and the work is much more stable.
Rental software
By subscribing to the monthly use of the necessary software from the operator (software rental), you can significantly save on the implementation of a new system and the purchase of the necessary equipment. This software usage model is called SaaS (Software as a Service). To learn more about it, you may go to SaaS community.
What you need to know
When renting software, any updates and additions will need to be paid for separately, while owners of licensed versions are often provided with free regular updates from the developer.
Terminal solutions
By using terminals instead of computers, you can significantly reduce the number of purchased licenses since they are installed on the server and not at the end user’s workstation.
What you need to know
Additional server licenses may be required depending on the type of software used.
Alternative software
When using alternative programs, many of which are intended for free distribution (free), sometimes you can reduce the cost of purchasing software several times.
What you need to know
Not all commercial programs have analogues. Also, an additional cost item may be the need to train employees to work with new software.
Thus, to optimize the costs of purchasing licenses requires, first of all, a thorough analysis of the needs of the company, as well as a clear formulation and hierarchy of tasks for the solution of which the software is purchased.
