Researching your Construction Software Vendor
Why it is Important:
A lot of industry professionals will argue that evaluating the vendor of your next construction accounting software package is just as important as evaluating the product itself. Why? Imagine that you’ve purchased the software that you believe will be the perfect software for your company, you’ve installed it on your company’s system, and have trained your staff. Initially, everything is as perfect as you expected. You are completely satisfied with your purchase and believe that you’ll quickly gain a competitive advantage as a result of the new software. Then it happens – a glitch in the software that takes your software from a life-saver to a death-sentence. So what do you do? Call the vendor, of course! This is where the quality of your vendor will becomes the most important thing in your company’s ability to move forward without losing time and money. If you’ve researched your vendor and chose one that is as good as the software that they sold you, you should be up and running again in no time. However, if you haven’t researched you vendor, this minor glitch can quickly turn in to the kind of thing that sets you back days or even weeks.
Given that, it’s important to know what to do to ensure that you select the right software AND the right vendor. There are several things that you need to take in to account when evaluating a vendor – here are a few ideas.
Getting Started:
First, take a look at the product’s website. How many versions of the product have been released in the past? What improvements were made with the release of every new edition? What level of support did the vendor offer for previous versions and has that level of support improved as new editions of the construction software were released? What level of support is still offered for companies that use an older version of the software? Take all of these things in to consideration to get an idea of what kind of support you can expect throughout the time that you use the software. Many companies forget that they may be using the same software 5 years down the road, so be sure to check for what kind of support is offered for companies that bought software from the particular vendor 5 years ago.
Next, do some internet searches on the product and vendor. If you can find some construction accounting software reviews or construction software comparison sites, take a look at them to see how various software packages and vendors stack up. Also look for news articles that mention lawsuits or relatively recent changes in ownership and get as much background information as you can. Both can indicate an unstable organization that may not be able to provide the long-term support that you’ll need. Or, worse, a company that is on its way out of the market, which could leave you up a creek without a paddle down the road. If ownership has recently changed, check to see what impact the change has had on support. It could be better, but it could also be worse.
Finally, check within your industry with other users of the software or independent agencies that provide free construction software reviews. Speak with friends and colleagues that use the software you’re considering and ask about their past experiences. Check online forums for user experiences. Also look to see if the product website has a forum – these can be extremely valuable resources for getting tips and troubleshooting advice from other executives that use the software you’re considering.
The bottom line is that you will do your company a huge disservice if you fail to research your software vendor. The best erp software product in the world will be useless if you can’t get the right support when things inevitably go wrong. Taking the time up front could very well save you valuable time and money down the line, ensuring that you get the most out of this expensive investment.
