Software Bargaining Tips

Posted by Chris Murphy, Aug 23, 2007 01:24 PM

A Business Week guest columnist offers tips on negotiating for business software. One tip surprised me.

The writer, Gene Marks, runs a CRM consulting company. Some advice will sound familiar, like don't pay list price and play hardball at the end of the quarter. The tip that surprised me:

Better yet, don't buy the software at all until you go live. Shocking! Tell your local partner to install, customize, and train you using their own "not for resale" license. Make sure to pay the partner for their time (that's how they make their money). But don't buy the actual licenses until you're live with the new system.

Maybe it's common practice, but it surprised me. Here's the full article .

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