Companies today outsource many of their tools and operations to third-parties, hence why Software-as-a-Service, Infrastructure-as-a-Service, and Platform-as-a-Service have become common terms in business lingo. With all the “as a Service” terms flying around, it can be easy to lose track of the specific solutions you need.

But one that makes sense in almost all cases is a CPaaS. What is it; how does it work; and why should you care?

CPaaS stands for Communications Platform as a Service. It allows you to add real-time communication (RTC) tools to your own business applications and networks. Like many other “as a Service” products, CPaaS is a business platform delivered over the cloud.

Because CPaaS vendors sell you fully supported frameworks, there’s no need to build any backend infrastructure on your part, and you don’t need any technical expertise to get the most out of the platform.

That’s why CPaaS has become popular with small and developing organizations, who now have access to collaboration tools that were previously exclusive to larger enterprises. In fact, CPaaS is one of the fastest-growing communication industries today.

How It Works

In contrast to cloud services like Business Hangouts from Google Workspaces, Communications Platform as a Service by definition works partly on-site. It doesn’t run exclusively through a cloud platform but rather integrates with your internal services.

The main idea here is that you won’t have to invest in your own CPaaS infrastructure. A third-party service provider integrates the right features into your software through:

• Application programming interfaces (APIs)
• Custom code solutions
• Software development kits (SDKs)

This way, you have a customizable solution where novel features can be added as necessary. Client businesses can expand the capabilities of their own networks while still maintaining basic on-site functions.

But you don’t have to worry about how it all works. A CPaaS solution provider will give you the full framework to get started. If you have any issues, you can rely on its technical support. And all of these services are provided for only a simple subscription-based fee.

Popular Examples of CPaaS

Your workplace might already be using CPaaS even though you might not know it yet. Slack is a popular example of a business communication platform that can integrate with your internal systems, allowing employees to share files and talk to each other. Another example is a chat box the web design team implements on the company website to help customers out.

The CPaaS market has grown in recent years, largely driven by recent business trends like the desire to boost the customer experience. For example,

• A help desk might benefit from having integrated video chat as an option for more engaging and personal support.
• Or similar tools can be used to track customer engagement more closely.
• Sales representatives can gain context into a buyer’s journey before engaging in support, such as knowledge of previous support tickets submitted by the client prior to the call.
• An office for professional services can send out appointment reminders automatically through its internal communication software.
• High-security industries like healthcare or online banking can use more robust authentication methods to cut down on identity theft.

Communication is such a universal business process that you might find your own creative use case after adopting a CPaaS platform.

Both CPaaS and UCaaS (Unified Communications as a Service) providers deliver cloud-based communication services to their business clients, but there are a few subtle but important distinctions between the industries.

CPaaS, as described, uses APIs to integrate new features into a business’s pre-existing communication system. UCaaS consolidates all the collaboration tools into a single platform that the vendor sells in its entirety to the client. You can’t integrate UCaaS into an existing application like you can with CPaaS but rather use it alongside your current technology stack.

Which one works best for you? It depends on your specific circumstances. If you want a straightforward, complete package for all your collaboration needs, UCaaS would make sense. But if you need specific features without switching over entirely to an external service and need the additional flexibility of integrations with your existing internal systems, CPaaS is the way to go.

There are many features and benefits to working with a CPaaS partner that make the nominal subscription fee worth the money.

• Saving money: CPaaS is simply a cost-effective solution. The consistent subscription-based business model makes budgeting easier and saves you money in the long run. You won’t have to worry about hiring new developers to build up your own infrastructure this way.

• Customizability: You get to choose which features you want and don’t want to pay for. A CPaaS vendor can add them in through APIs so that they function alongside your current communication system.

• Scalability: Even if your needs change in the future, adding or removing modules can be done with no fuss. As your business develops and grows, you can make sure that your technology stack evolves alongside the changing needs of the industry.
• Benefiting customer service: CPaaS makes the most sense in call center or customer service use cases. It enables real-time communication between service representatives and clients because it allows for an omnichannel experience that doesn’t require both parties to juggle multiple phone numbers and applications to get in contact. The easier you make it for customers to contact you, the faster you can solve their problems and drive up customer retention and satisfaction rates.

Of course, these are just the well-known benefits experienced by many companies of all sizes. What CPaaS can do for you specifically is for you to discover.

Instead of using separate tools and services like FaceTime, WhatsApp, or even traditional telephony, there’s an alternate solution that involves adding those features into your own infrastructure.

CPaaS service providers can deliver the entire framework to you and integrate via APIs and SDKs various functionalities like text messaging, video conferencing, authentication methods, and many more.