Cloud services for an average, small and microbusiness in Russia

Main article: Cloud services (market of Russia)

2018: The overview of the market of cloud services for SMMB from HeadWork Analytics

In July, 2018 the expert center of the infrastructure industries HeadWork Analytics (the Expert at the end of 2017 enters in TOP-3 consultants in the field of marketing and PR, according to RA rating) with assistance of TAdviser completed a research of the Russian market of cloud services for an average, small and microbusiness (SMMB).

Support measures also the environment for development of SMMB

In recent years much attention is paid to a segment of SMMB: in 2016 the Government of the Russian Federation adopted the Strategy of development for a small and medium entrepreneurship till 2030 which target reference point – increase in contribution SMMB to GDP of Russia from the current 20% to 40% by 2030, bringing closer to the average world indicators (contribution SMMB to GDP of the USA and Great Britain is about 50%, in Germany and China of 60%, in India 45%).

Among measures there are state supports:

• the right to keep accounting on the STS,
• share of 15% in state procurements,
• right to a state guarantee,
• supervising vacation (release from scheduled inspections for the companies with turnover to 800 million).

The state, banks, telecom operators, the technology companies conduct the system work directed to increase in financial and managerial literacy of entrepreneurs:

• the free training seminars and webinars,
• articles,
• blogs,
• success stories,
• meetings with successful entrepreneurs and
• experts for exchange of experience.

Many companies on the websites have special sections for SMMB with useful tools for business. Among such tools – online services for business:

• cloud software (SaaS),
• virtual servers (IaaS),
• outsourcing of a back office (services of accountants, lawyers, business of assistants) and other services.

Size and dynamics of the market

The market of cloud services for small and medium business makes more than 35 billion rubles, of them 94% – SaaS services, about 6% – IaaS and less than 1% – PaaS. Dynamics of cloud services for SMMB is in range of 40% a year, at the same time there are new segments showing multiple annual growth.

"Speaking about the cloud market for SMB, we speak generally about SaaS, demand for which will remain steadily high, but not strongly growing year-on-year. There are barriers: first, SaaS - it is not always cheap, and it should be solved from two parties: reduce the price of service, for example, other things being equal, cloud accounting should be cheaper than the removed accountant. And to support a small entrepreneurship in the country that the number of new legal entities and SP grew, and already existing entrepreneurs had available funds which can be invested in business digitalization. Secondly, many still prefer to store everything at themselves, it is connected with low, though growing, knowledge of businessmen of opportunities and properties of cloud solutions", - Egor Ganin, the head cloud and Mail.Ru Group business services comments.

Structure of the market

More than a half of the market occupy financial services: reporting online, cloud accounting, services of check of partners, services of drawing of accounts and others. Growth is supported mainly by state policy, partnership and integration of services with large banks, convenience and simplicity of cloud services - there is an overflow from the traditional systems on 1C to cloud.

Virtual PBX occupy a considerable market share – 14%. Drivers of development of cloud telephony are the aspiration of the small companies to lower capital costs of telephony installation, simplicity of installation and connection, desire of heads to increase efficiency of operators thanks to an opportunity to conduct analytics of calls, a large number of integration with other services, an opportunity is easy to scale telephony and also growth of mobility of business and penetration of the Internet. The main restraining factors – presence of already existing infrastructure at the companies, high cost of use of the virtual PBX on long term of operation in comparison with the cost of stationary telephony.

9% of the cloud market for SMMB are the share of a segment of cloud CRM. Drivers of development of a segment is high knowledge of business of opportunities of service, desire of entrepreneurs to increase efficiency of sales and to automate routine processes due to use of opportunities of cloud CRM, existence of a large number of ready integration with other services. The main barriers – unwillingness of entrepreneurs to pay for services, use of free versions and the minimum rates.

The trading companies are the main adherent of cloud services, in the market of cloud trade - online of cash desks and the systems of commodity accounting - is expected a boom in 2018. As the main driver the state acts here: law 337-FZ on obligatory online cash desks for SP became effective on July 1, 2018 and also obligatory marking of separate groups of goods till 2024 which is not possible without trade automation. The market online of cash desks exceeds 30 billion rubles (the equipment, the software and services), only softwares are more than 1 billion rubles.

"Here the state the last few years practically defines everything. In addition to online cash desks the significant driver is an obligatory goods marking. There passed projects on alcoholic and tobacco products, on medicines now, and in plans - nearly everything on what it is possible to paste a barcode. For work with these systems of marking automation is necessary. One more important driver – emergence of the Internet on all outlets in connection with online cash desks that for SaaS too huge plus", - Askar Rakhimberdiyev, the CEO of "MyWayhouse" comments.

"The market which is wildly growing, but according to legislative initiatives. In 2017 about 1.5 million cash desks are registered. But it is those clients who already used cash desks - they or updated the cash desks, or purchased completely new. And this year and in the following will come to the market SP which are not obliged to use cash desks earlier were. It is the market newly created, it from 1.2-1.5 million cash desks will grow to about 4.5 million, it is fantastic growth", - Maxim Mitusov, Modulkassa's creator, the adviser to the chairman of the board of CB Modulbank adds.

Market growth online of cash desks stimulates also growth of other niches – for example, the systems of financial and management accounting. This market rather young in Russia also shows multiple annual growth. Players of the market see good perspectives for development of this niche.

"We see high potential of growth of services of financial accounting at the expense of the trade sphere, they use online of cash desk, they have an additional desire, need and an opportunity to analyze data. Besides, the level of financial management gradually grows in small business. The entrepreneur understands that it is necessary to count cash gaps, to monitor for the plan fact. In finding solutions and tools it comes to us", - Albert Yanov, the development director of Seeneco says.

High growth rates are noted also at services for communications with clients - online chats, services of joint work, mailing.

"Communications between the companies and clients go to social networks - it is now not just phone and e-mail, the companies communicate with clients both in Facebook, and in WhatsApp, and in Instagram. Communication channels change, often people prefer to write to the companies, than to call. Social networks, messengers are an obvious trend in customer service next several years. Many large American companies already implemented a customer support through Facebook. For example, not bad this process is constructed at T-Mobile", - Timur Valishev, the CEO of JivoSite notes.

{{the quote|"The most part of small business still so far outside these systems, but it without fail there will appear. Because the farther, the more difficult does without them even if it is absolutely small company with two-three of people. Someone wrote to VK, someone to WhatsApp or Viber, and you need to collect all this in a heap, and not just to answer all, but also to plan. And in service everything was included in one film, directly there it is possible to answer the client, to plan some following actions. Who manages to understand it the first, that gets competitive advantage", - Dmitry Goncharenko, the development director of PlanFix says. "Now there are a lot of e-mail services of the mailings of different level different in the price. And in general, all of them feel not bad, the need for them is. We are in an upper price category, our main segment is a medium and large business. Nevertheless, there is such paradox that small business, but configured on growth rather actively would like to cooperate with us. We have clients to whom we at this stage are still expensive, but they want to configure at once everything that in the future they did not need to pass from one solution to another", - Christina Markina, the development director of ExpertSender.} comments }

"E-mail services of mailings are popular generally in the Internet of commerce. If to speak about other segments which not so occupied the Internet, which have offline sales points and offices, to them mailings come slowly. But all the same offline business understands that it is time to take digital communications with the client, comes, tries, and sees advantage and need of service. So the market interestingly changes in terms of the client's portrait" - Yulia Savitskaya, the CEO of Mailigen adds.

The IaaS segment for SMMB reaches 2 billion rubles, grows for 20% a year. In recent years the market received a new wave of development at the expense of an exit of large players, such as Mail.Ru, SberCloud (Sberbank), BeeCloud (Beeline).

"Digits differ, but I agree that now growth around 20%. But, considering the amount of the market, the number of clients of the SMB level, the percent could be even more. Tell that the market in general ripened, still unambiguously it is impossible, especially for a segment of SMB. In terms of saturation, I think, it is perspective even not 5 years", - Alexey Pronin, the head on cloud products and services of security Beeline comments.

Act as factors of market development desire of entrepreneurs to lower capital costs, economy on purchase of physical servers, the increasing mobility of small business, a possibility of light scalability of business. Among barriers – risk of value increase of service because of dollar exchange rate (the equipment foreign), concerns of entrepreneurs to lose information and also that performance will be lower in comparison with own server.

Market trends

Responding to the requests of clients, providers continue to develop the products, do the interface to the simplest and convenient for users.

"We go to simplification. As it appeared, 90% of functionality are not used. Therefore we already made redesign of all block of joint work. It one of the first services in the market, also became morally a little outdated. We "rejuvenated" a product, it became much simpler, quicker, more conveniently, vozdushny", - Dmitry Kharitonov, the marketing director notes Megaplan.

Many large providers develop channels of self-service, aiming to minimize participation of sales department and support. So, for example, Bitriks24 started the self-trainee of the chat-bot based on artificial intelligence by the name of Marta. She answers questions of support, helps with mastering of a product and is available in the web messenger at any time.

"We look towards development of channels of self-service when the seller does not participate in the transaction, the consumer found everything in the Internet, selected everything, clicked, purchased, lasted", - Maxim Nakhabo, the chief of the department of marketing of SKB Kontur says.

One of the main requirements of entrepreneurs to services and strong competitive advantage of provider is a large number of integration with adjacent services, with 1C, mail, the calendar, CRM, the systems of banks. Some providers have more than 100 integration. It does work of the client more convenient and simplifies implementation of service in the existing customer's infrastructure.

The growing mobility of entrepreneurs, remote workers and freelancers dictates a trend on mobility of SaaS services - creation of mobile application or adaptive design. 43% of owners of small business use the smartphone as the main device for start of business operations and services. The principle of 'mobile first' acts on foreign markets – at first the provider releases mobile application, then the web version.

New technologies - artificial intelligence, machine learning, IoT, Big Data and others, find application in SaaS services for automation of routine processes.