There has been much discussion in the ERP industry as to whether buying third party software from third party suppliers is a good business practice. One of the most common questions asked is whether these software “Extras” from other companies can hurt or help an ERP company. The ERP world is very competitive, so buying what you don’t need from others can give you an advantage. This is true whether you are buying third-party ERP software, or an in-house upgrade.

• Third-party software distributors are becoming increasingly competitive. They have the ability to offer many more features than their competitors. For example, SAP has over 100 different ways to integrate with other software and can do so seamlessly.
• These companies also tend to be less expensive. If you buy directly from a company, you pay the price of whatever software the original manufacturer sells for, plus some manufacturing overhead. Buying directly from another company lowers this price.
• Many companies sell “upgrades” at an additional cost. When they sell an upgrade, they do not need to pay the manufacturer’s markup. Instead, they have to cover their own expenses. But be careful. Some “upgrades” are actually inferior products that will do more harm than good.
• Another advantage of buying from other companies is that many have existing channels. Your biggest challenge might be convincing the company you buy from to sell to you directly. In many cases, the channel will be your existing sales force.
• And what about ownership? Can you, the buyer, control the company? Sure, you can. You have the right to decide where the money goes and how it is spent. You are the boss. But beware…many ERP companies encourage buying by the seller rather than by the buyer.
• If you buy from ERP solution providers in Dubai, keep in mind that they are selling a product and not a service. So, unless you see a list of services they offer, don’t expect them to give you support should you have problems.
• It’s also a good idea to buy from companies that have been in business for some time specially for SAP Ariba partners in Dubai. The old-timers are likely to have better support and technical assistance than newer entrants.

Once you’ve chosen your vendor, stick to it. Don’t make spur-of-the-moment decisions. Just because the vendor has sold you the most expensive package doesn’t mean you have to take it.