Website-as-a-Service (WaaS)

Website-as-a-Service (WaaS) is a model where your website is sold as an ongoing service rather than a one-off project. It’s a subscription that usually covers the build plus ongoing website maintenance and management.

What is Website-as-a-Service?

Website-as-a-Service is exactly what it sounds like – a website that’s sold as a managed service rather than a project. The ‘as-a-service’ term is borrowed from the Software-as-a-Service (SaaS) principle. Not that long ago, software used to be sold as a physical product – it came in a box with a CD to be installed on your computer. It was a product you bought once and owned. SaaS changed this, and instead you could subscribe to the software and have it stay current with updates and support.

WaaS applies a similar logic to your website. Instead of paying a large sum upfront for a site that starts ageing at launch, you subscribe to a website that is built, maintained, managed and improved continuously over time. The website is treated as a service that keeps working and improving, not just a product that gets handed over.

The distinction matters because a website behaves more like software than static brochureware. A website runs on code that needs updating. It sits in a search landscape that keeps shifting, and it represents a business that keeps changing. A model that ends at launch was never a good fit for something that never stops moving.

How is WaaS structured?

WaaS is structured as a subscription. There is usually an initial build phase, where the site is designed and developed, followed by an ongoing monthly service that covers website management, website maintenance, updates and improvements.

The key structural difference is where the relationship sits. In a traditional arrangement, the commercial relationship peaks at launch and then winds down. With WaaS, the relationship is the product. You are not buying a deliverable. You are retaining a team, and the website is what that team looks after.

This structure changes the incentives. The subscription only makes sense for you and your provider if the site keeps earning its place. So a WaaS provider that’s paid monthly to keep your site working is motivated to keep it working well.

How is WaaS different from the normal setup?

The normal setup of getting a website goes like this: you get a quote, approve a build, launch the site and receive a handover. The website maintenance and management then becomes your problem. You may hire a freelancer or agency to make updates here and there at hourly rates, or they just don’t happen. The website slowly drifts out of date until it embarrasses someone enough to fund a rebuild, and the cycle starts again.

The problem is not the people involved. It is the incentives. In the traditional project model, the agency is paid to finish. Nobody is paid to keep the site sharp. So nobody does.

WaaS replaces the cycle with one team that is responsible for one continuous standard of care. The site is never abandoned, so it never needs rescuing. Website management stops being a reactive scramble and becomes something that simply happens every month, by design, without you having to lift a finger.

What are the benefits of WaaS?

The core benefit of Website-as-a-Service is accountability over time. Someone is always responsible for your website working and improving, and their commercial incentive lines up with yours.

• Website management and maintenance are handled. You get peace of mind that web experts are updating, fixing and improving your website behind the scenes, without you even noticing.
• The site keeps up with an ever-changing tech landscape. Search, AI and web standards, as well as your business goals, are constant moving targets. A team that always oversees your website makes sure your website is keeping up.
• No rot between redesigns. Continuous website maintenance means small, frequent improvements instead of a slow decline followed by an expensive rebuild when it’s too late.
• The site behaves like an asset. Your website is the biggest owned digital asset you can have. It’s your digital shopfront. Regular maintenance with incremental updates compounds, and search engines reward sites that are kept current.
• One relationship to manage. You get one contact who understands your website from the beginning. No wasted time on explaining and re-explaining context and background of your situation. You can rely on one provider to give you all your answers to design, UX, website product marketing and tech development.
• Predictable costs. A known monthly fee replaces surprise ad hoc fix-it invoices and big rebuilds.

Who should consider WaaS?

Website-as-a-Service is generally ideal for:

• Small to medium businesses. Best for owners who value having a professional online presence but don’t want to spend time on it, as you’d rather work on business operations. If you value having peace of mind that a trusted team will look after it without you needing to intervene, this setup may be perfect.
• Startups and scaleups. If you want the best opportunity for your business to show up on AI and search engines, Website-as-a-Service built with custom code may be a great solution. Some providers may offer custom-coded WaaS with built-in SEO and AI search foundations, which means your website will be set up in the best way to get noticed from the very beginning. The subscription part of WaaS means you’ll then have a part-time team that’s always across your site, continually improving it every month. It’s a solid website solution from the start.
• High-growth businesses. If you feel like you’re constantly outgrowing your website and it’s not keeping up with the changes that are happening with your business, this may be the solution. If you have lots of ideas on how you want to present your products and proposition online and want to bounce your ideas off developers, marketers and designers – you’ll get a lot out of it.

How JAM does Website-as-a-Service

We treat your website like a technical product with a roadmap.

At Make it with JAM, all our websites are custom-coded and delivered to clients in the form of a service rather than a one-off project. We see websites as a technical product that needs continual work. Once your website is built, that’s the start of our partnership.

We roll out updates to our clients’ code bases every month to make them better. We check in every month to make sure everything on the website is reflecting the latest in your business. We support your business growth with website product marketing advice, website design, tech development and whatever else is required that’s related to your website. You are subscribing to a part-time website team that gives your website the attention it needs to keep up with your business.

The team behind JAM sites has looked after the websites of Apple, Telstra, Citi and high-growth startups. The same standard goes into your work.

What we think about WaaS

We believe a good website is never finished. It’s revenue infrastructure, and it needs looking after.

The traditional one-off project model treats a website like a printed brochure, one that starts decaying from launch day.

There may be an honest objection to the WaaS subscription – we get it, no one wants another monthly subscription and “why am I still paying for a website we launched last year?” is a fair question. Here’s our answer: The choice is whether you pay predictably, for planned care that compounds, or unpredictably, for neglect followed by a costly rescue.

An out-of-date website costs you.

It costs leads, rankings, and trust, which in turn costs you revenue.

WaaS is simply a different structure that tells the truth about how a high-performance website should operate – an ongoing, live digital asset that requires constant improvements so you can stay ahead of the curve.

Frequently asked questions

What is the difference between WaaS and traditional web development?

Traditional web development involves a one-time project with a significant upfront cost, where the client owns and manages the website post-launch. WaaS is a subscription-based model that includes a newly built custom website plus ongoing monthly updates to the website, management and support.

Can I migrate my existing website to a WaaS platform?

It depends on the features and requirements of your existing website. It also depends on the WaaS provider you engage with.

Make it with JAM has been migrating clients from WordPress to JAM’s WaaS. Chat to us about migrating your website over to JAM’s WaaS.

How secure is a WaaS website?

WaaS providers typically include security measures such as SSL certificates, regular updates, and monitoring to protect your website from threats.

Is WaaS suitable for e-commerce websites?

Some WaaS providers offer e-commerce solutions. However, WaaS is usually more popular with websites that don’t sell online.