Small and medium sized businesses (SMBs) today have more power to select technology and tools for their companies. But a recent survey conducted by Comparz found that business leaders are often overwhelmed by the technology purchase process. Comparz surveyed more than 80 small business leaders, many being CEOs or high level executives at companies with $1 to $5 million in revenues across a wide variety of industries.
The fact is that over 73% of businesses select a new software or service providers at least several times per year, if not monthly. These tend to be high dollar, high lock in decisions that deserve a great deal of attention before a decision is made. As an example, if you select an online backup solution and then 6 months later, one of your employees has a computer crash with data loss, this is not the time to realize that the backup solution you selected did not actually backup every file type on the computer.
The process is further complicated by a lack of useful resources. Only 20% or less of SMBs found vendor websites and conversation useful. So what are SMB’s looking for? Over 90% of business users said that user reviews and user ratings and rankings would be the strongest help in making vendor decisions. In addition, 84% indicated that decision guides outlining what to consider when purchasing a solution and would be useful. They also seek a community where they can chat online with similar buyers.
According to ReadWriteWeb, a combination of user reviews and expert guidance seems to provide the right mix: http://rww.to/qFEozi. As Comparz, continues to develop its site according to user needs, please comment on this blog to provide your feedback on what works best in your vendor selection process, share your experiences via creating reviews on our site, or email us at This email address is being protected from spambots. You need JavaScript enabled to view it. with more ideas.
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