The SaaS industry is experiencing unprecedented growth, with spending predicted to reach one trillion dollars by the end of the decade. Amidst 30,000+ options, selecting and committing to vendors can be an overwhelming process for buyers, especially when many solutions fail to fully meet customer expectations and desires in the user experience or the value it provides.
It’s challenging for software investors, too; amidst the hundreds of software startups all tackling legitimate problems, how can we best identify and nurture the future winners, the ones who we think will truly change how buyers and users leverage SaaS in the coming decades? Leveraging my 20-year career investing in SAAS including six years now at Upfront, I took a step back and attempted to create a formula that identifies key factors in the companies that are providing just a bit MORE.
Introducing FABRIC
That’s why today, I’m rolling out the first version of FABRIC, our framework focused on creating software that more caters to the human experience (i.e. software that doesn’t suck).
FABRIC underpins the development and identification of SaaS solutions that are not only functional but:
FAST: Blazingly quick and efficient
ADDICTIVE: You can't stop using it
BOLD: Transformative, not iterative
REWARDING: Delivering unmatched value and ROI
INTEGRATED: Deeply woven into your systems and workflow
COMMUNITY-driven: Users are part of a movement
Our ambition is to build a community of software builders and funders rooted in a shared language that inspires the construction of exceptional software, prioritizing the human experience, and living to these standards. As more people come together to identify, share and showcase companies with excellence in each one of these areas, the more we think this will permeate and benefit the broader SaaS and tech ecosystem.
What do each of these concepts mean when it actually comes to software? Let me give some examples:
FAST: FAST software offers incredible responsiveness, intuitive design, and simplifies complex tasks, empowering users to achieve their goals swiftly. Think about when someone first starts using Superhuman and can’t get over how quickly they get through their inbox. That’s FAST.
ADDICTIVE: ADDICTIVE software provides a dopamine rush akin to playing video games, offering clear and consistent feedback, and founded on personalization. You want to keep using it. I’m sure most people reading this know that feeling from the first (and second, and third) times they used ChatGPT - you want to go back for more.
BOLD: BOLD software pushes boundaries and challenges the way we’ve always interacted with technology. The best example I’ve seen of BOLD software is our latest Upfront investment Soot.com, which is rethinking the traditional file and folder systems that design, product, and content managers all suffer through. Instead, Soot leverages the power of advanced AI and ML to deliver lightning-fast and accurate search capabilities of image/video/content files, and a WebGL-powered visual layer for content consumption and browsing, transforming the way you navigate and interact with your digital assets. (Stay tuned for much more on Soot!)
REWARDING: REWARDING software acts as a trusted business partner, generating clear ROI. Think Calendly or Expensify here, making it incredibly efficient and a clear return on your time to not have to go through the back and forth of planning meetings or tracking down paper receipts for expense reports. During times where cash is tight, REWARDING software wouldn’t be the first, second or third place you would cut.
INTEGRATED: INTEGRATED software seamlessly connects various systems and platforms to become users' workflow epicenter. Salesforce is the obvious gold standard in integration
COMMUNITY: COMMUNITY-driven software actively engages users, fosters collaboration, and cultivates a sense of identity and pride. Our portfolio company Bevy is all about community, not only helping companies engage their own users but also building community amongst its own users.
Of course, not every company has, or needs to have every attribute. But as more companies can excel in one, two, even three of these areas, we believe it will be a game-changer in how buyers and users interact with, purchase, and evangelize enterprise software that doesn’t suck.
Become a Pioneer in the FABRIC Community!
Today, we roll out FABRIC with the goal of bringing many more founders and funders into the community and conversation. I've joined forces with my friend Omar Johnson, former CMO at Beats by Dre, to attempt to decode the essence of standout software and reimagine what it means to excel in the SAAS domain. Check out the FABRIC website and help us by submitting companies that exemplify any or all of the elements of FABRIC, and actively participate in discussions to help refine the framework. Through collaboration and knowledge sharing, I’m excited to collectively drive innovation and hopefully raise the bar for the software industry.