Better Buy: Shopify Inc. (U.S.) vs. Zendesk Inc.

If you don't know what SaaS stands for, you're already behind. Companies that offer software-as-a-service -- SaaS -- design cloud platforms with software for customers to use from any connected device around the world. There's no need to download any hardware, and instead of a big up-front purchase, customers pay monthly subscription fees.

That ends up being better for both parties, as customers are more willing to fork over smaller amounts of money at a time, while SaaS providers know that -- in the long run -- there's much more money to be made from subscriptions.

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Source: Fool.com