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uch like a romantic software, you should ask yourself some
relationship, finding the questions: Can this vendor actually do
right software vendor to what they’re promising? Will this software
be your partner will consist help my business become more efficient
Mof moments of highs and or profitable? Am I expecting too much
lows. And though every relationship from the software? Do we really even need
has its own unique complexities, to switch software, and do we have the
these ups-and-downs typically occur time and resources to do it the right way?
throughout five similar stages. Learning
how to recognize these stages can Taking a step back to figure out the
help you to better determine whether wants and needs of your business, as
you’ve really found “the one” or if it’s well as where you’re at with your current
time to start seeing other software. software, can save you from rushing into
a commitment you might not be ready
for—or worse, making a change that you
1. INFATUATION don’t need. It’s easy to get swept up in
the glamour of the Infatuation Stage,
The Infatuation Stage—sometimes called but you should still ask yourself if you’re
“the Honeymoon Stage”—occurs at the interested in the software because it’s
onset of the relationship and is where new and exciting or because it actually
everything about the vendor and their satisfies the needs of your business.
software seems perfect. You might’ve
heard a sales pitch or started some initial In the Reflection Stage, talk over your
negotiations, and it probably seems like options with your team, especially those
they’re a really good fit for your needs. team members who will be the primary
users of the software, to figure out what
The biggest pitfall with the Infatuation your exact business needs are. You can
Stage is that it’s hard to find a lot of faults then use this feedback to narrow down
in your partner. That’s not to say that what you’re looking for in your vendor
they don’t exist, but it’s so tempting to to make sure they’re truly a good fit.
rush into something new—especially if As sleek as new software may appear,
you’ve had difficulties with other vendors make sure it checks those “need” boxes
or their software in the past—that it’s for your business before you end up
easy to overlook the likely challenges with something that isn’t right for you.
right in front of you. And even if there
are noticeable quirks, it’s easy to assume
that eventually the software—or the 3. REALITY
vendor—will change to suit your needs.
Immediately following the Reflection
Keeping expectations in check during Stage, the Reality Stage sets in—where
the Infatuation Stage can save you from you begin to realize that your partner
later problems and wasted time. It’s may not be entirely perfect in every way.
great to be excited about what could Unfortunately, this stage occurs in every
be, but be sure to still ask questions and serious relationship, and it’s usually the
review options before falling too hard. most challenging to overcome. As a result,
Additionally, stay realistic in managing it’s also where most relationships end.
your own hopes for what software
will be able to do for your business. In the Reality Stage, a partner’s
shortcomings start to become more
noticeable as you compare them to
2. REFLECTION the needs gathered in the Reflection
Stage. For a software vendor, this can
The Reflection Stage usually happens occur in a number of ways: from the
within the first few days of the relationship software maybe not being as sleek
and is a necessary period of self- or user-friendly on every screen as it
assessment and expectation-management. appeared in their promotional material
Before finalizing any decision about your

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