Customers can be tough on technology vendors during the sales process. It is not uncommon for technology buyers to question price, return on investment (ROI), total cost of ownership (TCO), competition, features, future plans, and even company viability. All of this is done to ensure that customers are not only choosing the right technology but that they are choosing the right vendor.

Even in good times, this dance between providers and purchases occurs. Given our current economic conditions, the sale process can be quite brutal for all parties involved. One additional factor that often comes up often in the sales process is third party validation. Third party validation of a product or company can come in a number of forms including customer case studies, analyst reports, press comparisons, and independent testing organizations. Third party validation is very important to technology vendors. Customers can listen to the sales pitch, read the web site and marketing collateral and still come away thinking, “This sounds and looks great, but how can I be sure.” Third party validation answers this question by providing an unbiased independent view on the products, company and benefits.

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