TALKING

Furthermore , the proliferation of low-code / no-code platforms in the region is expected to make it easier for businesses to customize their SaaS solutions to meet their unique needs , further driving adoption .

Overall , the SaaS landscape in the APAC region is likely to continue to evolve and consolidate in the coming years .

3 . Deep-tech capabilities as cloud services will earn increased adoption

In APAC , companies looking to advance their Digital Transformation agendas are expected to experiment with new technologies such as AI and Blockchain as cloud-based solutions . Offered over the cloud , these technologies will become more widely accessible and easily deployable , making it easier for businesses in the region to adopt and integrate them into their operations . A significant amount of research and development in areas such as Machine Learning , computer vision and natural language processing is expected to improve the customer and employee experiences offered by modern SaaS applications .

In addition to improving the customer and employee experiences , these technologies are also expected to help businesses in the APAC region equip their sales teams with powerful sales enablers , such as trend anomaly detection , productivity recommendations and predictive analytics . As a result , the adoption of AI and Blockchain in the cloud is likely to continue to grow in the APAC region in the coming years .

4 . Extensive localization as a means to win in diverse markets

New B2B markets for SaaS will continue to emerge as businesses across Southeast Asia tweak and fine-tune their cloud strategies . SaaS vendors will need to adapt their offerings to fit the diverse expectations of each market across Southeast Asia .

Product or service localization , aside from regional language support , should also include adaptation in terms of product design and navigation , ease of use , GTM strategies , service delivery , after-sales training , implementation support and more .

5 . Data privacy and security

Every B2B SaaS vendor sits on two different but equally valuable data piles – one involving confidential info about its customer organizations and another belonging to the customers of the customer organizations .

In South-East Asia , legislation is coming into force in almost every country to protect both business and individual personal data . As such , SaaS vendors

Overall , the increasing use of these technologies is expected to drive the development of more advanced and sophisticated SaaS solutions in the region . will need to invest more in an array of data security and privacy areas such as data center security , regulatory compliance , DevOps security , internal communications , privileged access control and privacy-enhancing technologies .

Additionally , vendors who can boldly make a public declaration that no customer data will ever be monetized to serve their own revenue needs will rise in brand value and trustworthiness in the eyes of the end-user .

Whether it ’ s a small business or a multinational corporation , the competition to digitize is more intense than ever . Amid this , there is no space for unnecessary complexity – especially if it hinders rather than facilitates business . p

38 INTELLIGENTCIO APAC www . intelligentcio . com