SuiteCloud is NetSuite’s community of software solutions that are developed by independent third party software vendors. It is the place to go if you wish to enhance NetSuite and distribute your app to customers. The community allows existing or prospective NetSuite customers to find software that is ready to work with a NetSuite subscription. These solutions either enhance NetSuite directly; or they act as an integration bridge between a software vendor’s existing service and NetSuite. A bridge enhances the use of both the NetSuite system and the non-NetSuite software service for customer’s that use both systems.
For example, Prolecto Resources developed a SuiteCloud application for the M5Connect for NetSuite solution. It is a high quality VoIP integration for a business phone system that is hooked up to the NetSuite system, and it essentially helps business customers get their phone calls and communications tracked within NetSuite. With this solution, NetSuite customers can measure the amount of time that a phone call is on hold. The solution is a great example of how a bridge between both systems adds more data to NetSuite and makes the use of each product more valuable.
The benefit of the SuiteCloud environment is that there is a central environment to create and package NetSuite software so that it can be acquired by NetSuite customers. For the software vendor, SuiteCloud provides a way to package and bundle custom software for distribution. For the customer, SuiteCloud provides a way to acquire and enhance their existing NetSuite account. This is different from the traditional way of distributing software — the software vendor no longer creates a bundle that can get out of their control. It can be managed in a way that promotes smooth upgrades, as needed. For the customer, the traditional way of getting software goes away — this typically entails buying the software, downloading the software, running an install program and configuring changes. SuiteCloud eliminates the need to download software. Instead, you are authorized to use the software through a purchase or other acquisition means, and you, as the customer, can go through an install bundle for data, software, and scripts.
All of these NetSuite install bundles modify a customer’s NetSuite account to enhance it through new functionality. As a customer, you will have full visibility into the bundle during the install process so you can determine the action that will be taken to the account. This will help you, as a customer, assess any risks while you can learn about the opportunities the integration brings.
Suiteapp.com is the go to place to find NetSuite SuiteCloud apps. It is similar to the way Google functions as a search engine for everything on the web. Suiteapp.com is a NetSuite provided searchable database that is offered to the public, and acts as a repository for all the NetSuite approved applications. I encourage NetSuite users to browse through the various apps to see what is available that can enhance your NetSuite operations.
Copyright © Marty Zigman 2011
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