Comparing Software Buddy to The Marketplace – Software Buddy

Comparing Software Buddy to The Marketplace

In this article, we are going to talk about the topic of competition and especially how we, as Software Buddy compare in the software consultancy marketplace.

After all, we have to be realistic and whilst we have an extensive range of skills, there may be some cases where either we may not be a great fit, or your specific industry may be so specific that we feel you would be better suited working with another consultant with more direct experience.

And we’re going to give some shout outs to some of the people who are doing an awesome job in our space which provides you as the reader an option if we’re not maybe the best fit for you.

Comparing Software Buddy to The Marketplace  – Alternative ServiceM8 Partners

If you operate in business and are looking at job management software, for example you could be:

• A home service business
• A small trades business
• A health and beauty business

You can book a no obligation call with the Software Buddy team, but if for any reason we do the scope of your project, but there’s not a fit.

We do not have the capacity in our schedule or there’s just something that sits out of line that means we are unable to assist you, we are more than happy to help you find an alternative consultant for ServiceM8.

The best place to start with this is always recognising that the software we’re dealing with is online, so on the software creators main site, you will be able to find [usually at the footer of the page or in the main menu] a partners link.

For ServiceM8 you can access that here.

So, the best place to start is at the partners link.

And in some cases, some software companies have more partners than others, so it is always a great starting point to refine the search either by geographical area or by specialism of their niche and by whether you can work with them one on one if that’s what you need.

Comparing Software Buddy to The Marketplace – Experience is King

Another option is if you choose to work with an international or even national partner.

By choosing the consultant from the software companies partner directory, you can be assured they have gone through the necessary training for that software and that they’ve taken additional steps to have the software company recognise that they have partner status.

That is so important because especially in a small business, in a growing business, you don’t want the consultant learning on the job about the software you are paying them to help you with.  

It is totally acceptable for them to learn about your business model, as most are different in some operational way or another, but the baseline should always be that they know the software inside out and up to date with the latest releases, what it can achieve and how it can assist you to achieve a better result.

Comparing Software Buddy to The Marketplace – What to Look For In a Consultant

When you’re considering working with a ServiceM8 partner, there are some obvious we recommend you check out before hiring a consultant.

So, in the diagnostic call itself, a couple of key questions to cover and be clear on are:

• Have you worked in my industry before?
• Have you set up ServiceM8 in similar / the same businesses to my own?

For example, if you’re an electrical contractor, or if you’re a beautician, or if you’re an HVAC company,

• What has been their experience already in that area?

Being clear on their experience is going to ensure that if they have a tight fit of experience to your business model, this is going to shortcut the learning.

Look at from this point of view, Just because they are a Certified Partner of ServiceM8 you need to ensure they have the experience in your field because a builder is going to have a different sort of requirement than maybe a Mobile beautician.

These two different business models, whilst fully adaptable to software like ServiceM8 require totally different skill sets and industry shortcuts as they

• Operate differently
• Have different client expectations
• Have different regulations
• Require a different software  setup
• Have different forms inside the software

If your consultant has these little shortcuts in their toolkit, that will help.

So, that’s a good way to look at it in the initial discussion if the consultant are able to

• Talk your language
• Talk about the right certifications in your industry
• Appreciate that it’s not just about the skill of the consultant, it’s also about the skill of the customer.

Comparing Software Buddy to The Marketplace  – Do Your Research

By doing the research, you can be confident and comfortable in your appointment.

Here at Software Buddy, we’ve experienced everything from bricks and mortar businesses, to mobile businesses inc hairdressers, health and beauty services, HVAC service companies to builders, electricians and almost every other small trade.

We’ve got a wide, vast range of experience and testimonials to back them up too.

So do not be afraid to ask for testimonials if you require social proof of experience, as consultants we expect to be asked about testimonials…

A great way to approach this is by asking if they can show you another ServiceM8 account that they’ve set up in a similar type of niche, without giving any data away of course to keep confidentiality.

Consider that here at Software Buddy if this was required we would need permission from the other client before opening up the platform.

Another and more fluid way is to ask the consultant to do with the demonstration set up for your type of business.

This way you also get to assess the software consultants experience and whether it is broader than just the software itself?

So, for example,

• Are they comfortable in accounting software?
• Are they comfortable in payroll software?
• Are they comfortable in time and motion software?
• Are they comfortable in inventory?

So, you’ve got to look at your business and decide what benefits you want to draw out of the consultative process, and look a bit broader maybe than what you’ve initially thought about because consultants do have the experience of hundreds of business behind them.

They’ve probably come across some of these knots and untangled them in other businesses and the last thing we want you to have to do is to reinvent the wheel.

If we can find a better, shorter, faster, more efficient process, that’s what we’re here for.  

The top consultants link things together.

And so they should be very practical, they should be very tactical on how they do things.

A consultant should not just say, “Oh, you should do this,” or, “You can.” They should be challenging and cover things such as “We can solve this with you.”

Comparing Software Buddy to The Marketplace – Know Your Goals

Having a good understanding of your goals is key, at Software Buddy we call those critical success factors, and this avoids people buying software.

That is the wrong way to look at it, the real approach is you need a solution and the software should be a vehicle to help you achieve that distance from where you are now to where you need to get to.

Comparing Software Buddy to The Marketplace – Our Recommendations

We believe as strong and experienced contributors to the ServiceM8 partner community we should also recognise other quality companies that we recognise openly that they do a great job not only with ServiceM8 but also in wider services that they offer.

Firstly, we recommend Hazel Whicher she’s putting some great stuff out there, and Hazel also does digital marketing consultancy as well.

Secondly, there’s also Service Guru. They have put together some amazing add-ons to ServiceM8, this makes it work even better.

We all work together in the partner field, we’re all there to give you the best possible service and improve the ServiceM8 community in the UK.

Comparing Software Buddy to The Marketplace – Ready to get Started?

You can search Service Guru or Hazel Whicher online or visit us online at softwarebuddy.co.uk where you can set up a no obligation 30-minute call with the team here at Software Buddy

In the call, you will establish if we are a good fit and you can put our experience to the test.