Software usage data improves product decisions and cuts revenue loss

Software suppliers are showing an ongoing interest in collecting and understanding usage data to help with both change management and use-based pricing models.

A new report from Revenera reveals that 60 percent collect usage data today and more than 75 percent will do so in the next two years.

SaaS companies understandably lead the way, with 100 percent either already collecting or planning to collect usage data in the next two years. Other deployment models aren't too far behind though, with 68 percent of on-premises and 71 percent of IoT/embedded software suppliers having collection plans.

"Well-managed collection of software usage data provides significant advantages for technology companies. Those who do it well make data-driven decisions, deliver on customer needs, stop revenue leakage and often run a more successful business overall," says Nicole Segerer, vice president of product management and marketing at Revenera. "Many software companies still struggle to collect accurate and detailed insight into usage or are stuck with limited homegrown analyses. As budgets grow tighter and as the need for efficiency grows, software usage analytics is increasingly important."

Among suppliers that don't currently collect usage data, only 29 percent can see if customers are using their software. This number jumps to 58 percent of suppliers who collect usage data, giving them 2x greater visibility into this fundamental metric. Significantly, more than a quarter (27 percent) of suppliers that don't collect usage data have no visibility into common metrics like feature usage, trending usage or version adoption. Fewer than half (46 percent) of all respondents report that pricing is aligned with value, this number improves to 58 percent among companies that are already very good at collecting usage data.

Effective usage intelligence can be used to ensure license compliance. Many suppliers aren't aware of how much revenue they’re losing to intentional or unintentional overuse. 48 percent don't know how much revenue is lost to piracy and 42 percent don't know how much revenue is lost to overuse. One in five suppliers simply aren't sure of the causes of revenue leakage.

The full report is available from the Revenera site.

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