White label software meaning: What is it and why should you use it?
Agency owners are always searching for ways to grow their businesses. Right now, many are looking to software tools, especially since there’s so much demand in the SaaS market (GlobalNewsWire). If that sounds like your business, then you might be searching for white-label software meaning.
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“White label” is a common phrase when forming partnerships with software vendors. This guide goes over the white-label software meaning—what it is and isn’t. With it, you can make the right decisions about the software tools you offer to your clients.
White-label software meaning: What is it?
Some software vendors will say they have white-label software. You’re left wondering, what does that mean? The simple answer is that they offer a “brandable” version of their software.
What does that mean for your agency? You can take the vendor’s software tool and add your own company name and logo to it.
You can then offer the tool to your clients as though it’s your own. When they use the tool, they’ll see your name and logo—not the vendor’s.
The “white label” refers to the practice of filling in the reseller’s name. White-label products are quite common in retail spaces. Manufacturers make products to retailers’ specifications. Retailers can then make this their “in-house” brand by adding their own name and logo to product packaging, and then reselling it as their own (Investopedia).
White labeling for software is similar in that the reseller’s branding is added to the tools. Software resellers and vendors often find this kind of partnership mutually beneficial.
What white-label software is not
You might wonder if all SaaS reseller programs are white label. Some vendors offer white labeling, while others don’t.
The ones who don’t are often the “big names” like Google or WordPress. Chances are you wouldn’t want to rebrand these solutions anyway. Your customers want the peace of mind associated with these brands. Given that, it’s much better to offer Google Workspace, as your clients already trust Google to deliver email.
In other cases, the brand name may not be as important to the end user. In fact, your clients may feel overwhelmed by the number of different tools available on the market. What’s good, and what’s not? Which brands can they trust?
Offering them a white-label solution can take the guesswork out of choosing software. Your clients trust you—and they trust the tools you choose to offer.
Why white-label software makes sense
Now you have an idea of the white-label software meaning. Your next question is about why you should bother adopting it.
Why not offer the tool as branded by the vendor?
White-label solutions give you a chance to build your own agency brand, which is key in the current business environment (Forbes). Your clients see your name and logo on the solution, not the vendor’s. That means you can deliver the software tools your clients need under your own umbrella.
In some cases, vendors may allow you to customize white-label products to some extent. In turn, you can deliver a customized solution that better fits your clients’ needs. Since you've tailored the tool for your clients, it makes sense to put your branding on it.
This also helps differentiate you from other SaaS resellers offering the same tool. It can even differentiate what you offer from the vendor's version.
Benefits of white-label software for the vendor
You might wonder why any vendor would allow rebranding of their software. After all, your clients might turn to them directly if they know who actually made the tool.
In some cases, vendors don’t want to deal with end-user clients directly. They may not have the capacity to provide sales or customer service in the same way your agency can. The more time they spend on end-user clients, the less time they have for improving their tools.
White-label software is a winning proposition for both the reseller and the vendor. The vendor can focus on what they do best, while also getting their software into the hands of more users. Your agency can focus on your strengths. At the same time, you can provide your customers with more of what they need to help deliver better business results.
White-label solutions can improve your revenue streams as well. They can open the door to new offerings or provide added value for your clients. In turn, you might discover new clients, or an existing client may buy more.
A white-label software example
An example illustrates how white-label software benefits everyone.
Suppose you want to offer your clients a platform that they can offer their own customers. They want to offer their customers a place to chat to team members, track tasks, or schedule appointments.
You have two options. You can build this new client portal yourself, from scratch. Or you can resell a white-label client portal that another vendor has already developed.
Making a portal yourself is no small proposition. Even if you have in-house experts, it will still take time to get the portal up and running.
If you choose to resell another vendor’s portal, you can hit the market sooner. You may not need to hire a bunch of new programming and UX design experts either. The downside, though, is that your client—and all their customers—will see the vendor’s branding.
A white-label platform solves this dilemma. The vendor gets to sell their portal solution. You get to deliver the platform to your clients sooner. In turn, your clients offer what they need to provide to their own customers. You provide tools, earn your clients’ trust, and increase your revenue streams. Essentially that's the white-label software meaning and its benefits for everyone involved.
What white-label software tools should you offer?
We’ve reviewed the white-label software meaning explained and gone over how white labeling benefits your agency. The next question is which tools to add to your client offerings.
There is no shortage of choices. Some options include:
- White-label website solutions
- White-label SEO tools
- White-label digital advertising tools
- White-label social media marketing tools
The list goes on. The real question for agency owners is about which tools make the most sense to offer clients. To that end, you’ll want to survey your clients about their needs.
A great first step is often to look at the software solutions your team makes use of in their own work. Are these tools that your clients could benefit from having or offering to their own customers? If so, then you might want to look into white-label partner programs.
Next, think about which SaaS tools would add value to the services you already offer your clients. Suppose you offer reputation management services. Adding new white-label reputation management tools might provide more value for your clients.
If you’re thinking about adding new services, then you’ll want to look at the gaps in your clients’ current coverage. You might already offer social media marketing, but you haven’t yet helped your clients deliver email marketing. White-label email marketing software could be the answer. It helps your clients deliver more for their customers or manage their own campaigns.
Unleash growth potential with white-label software
Understanding white-label software meaning and its importance for your agency is a step in the right direction. White-label SaaS reseller programs let you offer your clients the tools they need.
When they have the right tools, they can succeed—and your agency can succeed right alongside them. Check out white-label software partnership programs and unleash the potential for growth in your business.