Accounting Software Buyers Add Crowd Sourced Research to Info-Gathering Process
When a Controller realizes her company has outgrown its accounting software, all she has to do is yelp.
What yelp did for crowd sourcing restaurant reviews, a growing number of software review sites are doing for the business software buying process. The “yelpification” of software purchases includes research and reviews from real software users.
The majority of buyers say they look at online reviews as part of their evaluation process. A study by Research Now looked at who consults software reviews, when they consult them, and why reviews are important for both software buyers and vendors. They found that:
1A clear majority of buyers surveyed (75 percent) read online reviews before making purchasing decisions about business software.
2Buyers who consulted online reviews during the software selection process were ultimately more satisfied with their purchases.
3Software products that received a mix of positive and negative online reviews were perceived by buyers as being more trustworthy.
Many software review sites make it easy for buyers to sort through software applications and read user reviews. But each online review site has its own recipe for helping buyers identify their best business software options.
G2Crowd
“Buyers spend too much time sifting through spin, reading outdated analyst reports, and sitting through endless meetings,” G2Crowd.com says. Its vision is to "capture the collective wisdom and make purchasing business technology as easy as buying consumer products."
Trust Radius
Helping users improve their choices of product selection, implementation, and usage decisions is the goal at TrustRadius.com. “Every reviewer is authenticated and every review vetted before publishing.” Learning from peers help buyers find better solutions and implement them more effectively, they believe.
Other online review sites, like Find Accounting Software and Software Advice, introduce the live human element to their recommendations They conduct phone interviews with prospective business software buyers. Two of the big software matchmakers each handle the process a bit differently:
Find Accounting Software
"We help you save time and money by recommending the top software for your specific needs," FindAccountingSoftware.com (FAS) says. The service is free to buyers who decide the number of software options they want to evaluate. Developers bid on the chance to be matched with companies who need their software. Based on the information provided by both buyers and sellers, algorithms are used calculate the best fit. Developers bid on leads with the highest rated matches winning the chance to connect with the prospective buyer.
Software Advice
SoftwareAdvice.com (SA) provides detailed reviews and research on more than 1,500 software applications. "Our team of software advisors helps buyers build a shortlist of systems that will meet their needs," The free service for software buyers can eliminate weeks of research and help avoid costly software mistakes, according to the company. Like FAS, they interview buyers, provide buyer's guides, and host online reviews. Unlike FAS, these advisors screen buyers then provide the prospect with their top recommendations. Developers are notified of the match and the sales process begins.
Post a Review
Join the yelpification by posting a SBS software review:
