SaaS platforms and MVPs for startups
We build SaaS platforms and MVPs for startups and established businesses building their own digital product. SaaS (software as a service) is software customers use in the browser on a subscription. An MVP (minimum viable product) is the first version of the product that you release to customers. After launch, we maintain the product and keep developing it with you.
What product teams bring to us
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The scope of the first version keeps growing
Every extra feature pushes the launch back and adds to the cost. We help you pick the core process the MVP must support, and plan the rest for later stages.
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The product has to make money from day one
Customers need to be able to choose a plan and pay online. We set up subscription plans with limits, and payments through Stripe.
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Your application needs accounts and licences
You sell a desktop or VR application and need to know who has access. A system of accounts and time-limited licences lets the application check users through a REST API.
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No in-house development team
You need developers most while the product is being built, but a live product needs looking after too. We build it, maintain it and develop it within a set number of hours each month.
The first version of a product should let a customer complete the whole core process and pay for it. That is why, before we quote, we help you decide which features go into the MVP and which will come in later stages. How we prepare a quote and what the price depends on is explained on our custom software development page.
The product after launch
A live product needs updates, backups and the new features customers ask for. We take care of this as part of application maintenance and development, and the Conetso Group team looks after the infrastructure and security. Payments, notifications and data exchange with other software are covered on our system integration page.
Where the product runs
SaaS products often start with little traffic, which grows with the number of customers. That is why we suggest cloud services that add resources automatically as traffic increases. We describe them on our AWS application development page.
What we do
- Choosing which features go into the first version and which can wait
- Screen design for each user role, refined together with you
- User accounts with roles, such as customer, distributor and administrator
- Subscription plans, limits and payments through Stripe
- Time-limited licences and a REST API your applications use to check users
- Admin panel for managing customers, licences and content
- Emails to users, such as form links and notifications
- Deployment in Docker containers on a server with your domain and an SSL certificate, followed by further development
Who it is for
- You have a product idea and want to test it with your first customers as soon as possible
- You are planning a subscription model with a free plan with limits and paid tiers
- You sell an application (for example desktop or VR) and need a system of accounts and licences
- You have no in-house development team, or you only need one while the product is being built
- Your product already has its first customers and you want to add the features they ask for
MVP scope: the customer's whole core process in the first version
An MVP includes the features a customer needs to complete the core process and pay for it. On the Offer Exchange platform, that process means sending a request for quotation, collecting and comparing quotes, and placing an order. Reports, extra features and rare edge cases can usually wait for the next version.
- Core process agreed before the quote
- Extra features in later stages
- Screens designed for each role
Subscriptions, limits and payments through Stripe
A subscription model needs plans, limits and recurring payments. Offer Exchange has a free plan with monthly limits on requests, recipients and products, plus three paid subscriptions that raise those limits. Billing and invoicing are handled by the Stripe payment gateway.
- Free plan with limits
- Paid subscriptions with higher limits
- Billing and invoices in Stripe
User accounts and licences for applications
When you sell an application through distributors, you need one system to manage customers and their access. In INVENTA Licenses, distributors assign customers time-limited licences for individual VR applications. Customers see their applications and licence expiry dates in their own portal, and can request new licences there.
- Customer, distributor and administrator portals
- Time-limited licences for individual applications
- Licence checks through a REST API
How we work
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Consultation and MVP scope
We talk about the product, your customers and how it will make money. Together we pick the core process the first version must support, and we quote for it.
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Contract and interface design
The scope, timeline and cost go into the contract. We design the screens for each role and refine them with you.
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Build and test
We build the product, connect payments and notifications, test every feature and give you a test version to review.
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Launch
The product goes live on a server with your domain and SSL. We set up database backups and hand over the admin panel to you.
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Growth
After launch, we maintain the product and add the features your customers ask for.
Pricing
We quote every project individually, after discussing its scope and requirements.
- MVP or SaaS platform
- Price depends on: scope of the first version, subscriptions and payments, admin panel.
- Product maintenance and development
- Price depends on: server and hosting, backups, required response time (SLA), set number of development hours each month.
Experience
- Offer Exchange is a SaaS platform for business purchasing. Companies use it to send requests for quotation, compare quotes and place orders.
- The platform has a free plan with limits and three paid subscriptions billed through Stripe.
- We maintain Offer Exchange after launch.
- We develop our own SaaS product, Savanna One, a system for manufacturing companies used by food production plants.
Case studies
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Savanna One
Savanna One is our own product: a system for manufacturers that brings the warehouse, production and documentation together. Food producers already use it.
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Offer Exchange
A SaaS platform for business purchasing: requests for quotation, quote comparison and orders, with a free plan and paid subscription plans.
Frequently asked questions
What should an MVP include?
Only the features a customer needs to complete the whole core process, for example sending a request, receiving quotes and placing an order. Reports, extra features and rare edge cases can usually move to the next version. Once the product is live, you will know which features customers use, and we will plan the next stages on that basis.
Should an MVP take payments?
Yes, if the product is meant to make money from subscriptions. Only a payment shows whether customers are willing to pay for the core process.
Can a desktop or VR application check licences in an online system?
Yes. In INVENTA Licenses, VR applications running on Windows check the user and the licence validity through a REST API, and distributors assign time-limited licences to customers in their portal.
What happens when a subscription renewal fails?
Stripe retries the failed payment. Its Smart Retries feature, on by default for new accounts, attempts the payment up to 8 times within 2 weeks. The application learns about failed and successful payments from Stripe notifications (webhooks), so it can, for example, pause the paid plan until the customer settles the balance.
Can customers pay for a subscription with BLIK?
Partly. BLIK is a popular mobile payment method in Poland. Payment providers support recurring BLIK payments only with restrictions, for example on currency and the customer's bank. That is why we keep card payments available for subscriptions, and check the provider's current terms in its documentation before deployment.
Who will look after the product after launch?
We will, if you need us to. We maintain the product, which means looking after the server, backups, updates and security, and we add new features within a set number of hours each month.
See also
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Web application maintenance and development
On a monthly plan, we add new features, install security patches and look after the server. Response times are set out in an SLA.
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System integration and process automation
We connect CRMs, invoicing, online payments and industry systems, so nobody has to retype data by hand.
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Custom web applications for businesses
We build systems for handling orders, quotes and purchases, with separate portals for clients, staff and managers.
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Conetso Group
Cybersecurity
Protection for the networks and servers your applications run on.
From our blog
Stripe subscriptions in a SaaS application: how they work
A SaaS subscription is a whole payment cycle. Using Offer Exchange as an example, we cover subscription states, webhooks, SCA and renewals in Stripe.
What to include in an MVP: the first version of your product
An MVP is the smallest version in which a customer completes the whole process. Using INVENTA Licenses and Offer Exchange, we show what to include.