by Susan Andrus, marketing manager
17. May 2010 10:50
I recently found myself cozied up with a cup of coffee and The Guide from MultiLingual. As I was flipping through it, I came upon this great article from Vadim Berman on “Evaluating Emerging Language Technologies.” The premise was reviewing natural language processing (NLP) technology, or to be even more direct, machine translation. That being said, you could replace that particular technology with just about any technology, and much of Vadim’s article still rings true.
“Try to assess the market realistically, and see if the complexity and the costs are worth the niche they are going to fill. Common sense applies, as usual. Avoid wishful thinking.”
After 11 years with McElroy Translation, I’ve played a role in many strategic purchasing decisions that have been made. I have learned a lot about the do’s and don’ts, and though many of these might seem basic, the moral of this story is, as Vadim puts it, “common sense applies.”
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If it’s too good to be true, INVESTIGATE! – Be very wary of “guarantees.” If you have been told that this service will guarantee you a certain number of leads, make sure you understand how those leads are generated and who those leads are. If you are being guaranteed juicy marketing opportunities, such as article submissions, advertisements, or speaking opportunities, find out exactly who your audience is. If you are being guaranteed seamless implementation of a technology that affects your services from the ground up, just turn around and walk away.
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Be a comparative shopper – I don’t care who they are or what they are selling, someone else is doing something similar. Always get at least three to five demos from different companies before making a decision. You will learn a lot about the capabilities of a technology and the ways that you can implement it that you hadn’t considered before.
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Don’t judge on price alone – Whenever you purchase new technology that will have a drastic effect on a portion of your business, there are bound to be hidden costs relating to support, updates, and new features, let alone time, energy, and sanity. If you have fully evaluated several options and it comes down to the top two, that is when price should be considered. But even then, make sure you understand why there is a price difference, quite often you do get what you pay for.
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Define “support” – Exactly how much support comes with this purchase? Don’t assume how much you will need or how much you already have. Make sure the vendor clearly defines the maximum amount of support you will receive for your purchase and any additional consulting fees that may be required.
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Evaluate your resources – What technology do you already have that will be affected by this new acquisition? What plug-ins are necessary to maximize the use of the new technology? How much manpower will you need to support the implementation of the technology? Who will be affected by this change and how? Are they on board?
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Let your resources evaluate the technology – Again, is your team on board? Let those who will be impacted play a role in the purchasing process. Allowing your team to see firsthand what this can do for them prior to making a decision will get them excited about turning this purchase into a successful and useful product. Your team will also take into consideration issues you haven’t thought of, making your final decision much more effective.
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Google ’em! (or Bing ’em if you prefer...) – If you look hard enough, you will find someone who has something to say about the company or technology you are interested in. I once Googled a company that we were going to use and found employees of that company claiming that it was a scam. I never found a bad review by a client, but disgruntled employees are always a bad sign.
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References, references, references – A good salesperson can sell you a subscription to a running magazine the week before Christmas when you neither run nor have the cash for the subscription—not that I’m speaking from personal experience here! I’m sure we all have been bamboozled by a great sales pitch, but when it comes to making a significant technology purchase for your company, check references! If a company has a good product, they should easily be able to give a list of customers who have reaped the rewards of what is being provided. Make sure the references are people who are using the product similarly to how you intend to use it. A reference might recommend the product and company based on one particular feature, but if that reference isn’t using the features you want or using the product the way you intend to, the referral means nothing.
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Negotiate! – Everything’s negotiable, so be creative. With technology constantly evolving and the proliferation of plug-ins, add-ons, updates, and new applications, sometimes the vendor itself can’t be sure what you’re in for. There is always a risk when getting the latest new gizmo as soon as it hits the shelves. Committing to full implementation quickly and offering to become a reference once success has been reached could be worth a lot to the company you are negotiating with. Whatever you do, be confident when entering into negotiations, remember—you are still the customer and they still want to sell you their product.
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Don’t be afraid to walk away – If after doing all of your homework, you are unsure about this product’s effectiveness for your processes or the extent to which it will be used, just remember you don’t have to buy it. There’s little worse than spending a chunk of the company’s bankroll on a product that winds up on a shelf or server never to be used. Make sure your plan for implementation and use is solid and you trust the customer support to help you get it where it needs to be.
If you have any lessons learned from past purchasing experiences, please share by commenting below!
Resources:
Multilingual “Guide to Language Technology 2010”
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