In this second installment of our five-part blog series, we’ll talk about the second reason customers decide to seek out a new system. Let’s get back into it.

Reason #2: Licenses for the current system are expiring or the system is discontinuing

When you signed the license agreement for your current platform, chances are you agreed to a 3-5 year deal. Whether that deal was for a perpetual license or a yearly subscription, a multi-year agreement probably saved you a lot of money. But now it’s time to renew the subscription or the maintenance contract, and the price has increased significantly. If you can’t justify the increased costs, it’s time to look for a new system.

Related to licensing, another reason to look for a new system is that the vendor declared an end to life of the system. The vendor may be leaving the business, selling the software to another company, or will only support a newer version of the system. In any case, the vendor will stop supporting the system in the future, and you need to find a replacement.

What you should consider

You may want to upgrade the system to the latest version, especially if you have been a satisfied customer. Many vendors provide easier upgrades to newer versions and can preserve some or all your existing content.

However, you should do your due diligence and explore the available systems in the market. Other vendors may now offer better solutions, lower pricing, or improved experiences. It certainly doesn’t hurt to quickly evaluate the leading platforms just to see if a new system will be better for your needs.

If you haven’t examined your business or system requirements recently, you should take the time to identify and prioritize your requirements. You may have originally wanted several special features in your current system, only to find out nobody used those features. As time has gone by, your users may be clamoring for newer features that are not part of your current platform. By focusing on your current and future requirements, you can objectively evaluate whether a different platform will be better for you to switch to.

Time may be your enemy when faced with any of these license-related issues. For an end-of-life situation, the vendor may give you a couple of years before shutting off support. But we find customers often delay the platform decision until there’s less than a year available. The same applies to end-of-contract situations. Sometimes you can get the vendor to extend your current contract or license, but you may be forced to find a new system in only a few months.

Here’s how we can help

Perficient’s Platform Selection Jumpstart is designed to guide you through requirements prioritization and vendor evaluation activities in as little as six weeks. These time savings allow you to plan and start implementing the new system before your license runs out. And, stay tuned for our next installation of the reasons to replatform series.

For any other questions, contact our customer experience experts today.