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The Three Ring Test

What is the Three Ring Test, you ask?

It's the most acccurate way to guage how quickly your potential LIMS vendor, or any vendor for that matter, will get back to you. All companies everywhere promise the best service and the quickest call back time, but do they deliver? Some do. It's so unfortunate to be promised quick call back and/or turnaround time from a LIMS vendor, only to find out later on that you've been hornswaggled. If that's happened to you, please accept our condolences. Once you've gone through the immense process of implementing a LIMS it's too late to reverse the process, and the worst case scenario is when you encounter a problem or two, requiring immediate attention, but the person or persons that are able to help you are not available.

How can you be sure, BEFORE you commit to a LIMS implementation?

Here are a few suggestions:

Ask the vendor. Everyone knows how honest sales reps are. *
Ask for at least 5 references. The vendor will be sure to add in the unhappy customers, won't they? *
Search the Better Business Bureau. *

* That was today's little stab at humor.

Okay, here is the acid test:

Call the company in question. How long does it take before a human being answers the phone?

We strongly advocate any LIMS vendor who is able to pick up the phone within three rings.

Does that seem to be a little unreasonable? It shouldn't. Unreasonable is spending thousands on a new LIMS and then being dead in the water for hours or days. Think of how much of your revenue is at stake!

Have you ever lost your way in a call center? Do you find that frustrating? What's worse is having to go online and fill out a job ticket to get support. By contrast, just imagine being able to call a toll free number, instantly speak with a human being, whom you may even know on a first name basis, and then have them be able to immediately either resolve your issue over the phone or dial into your system remotely and solve your issue quickly!

Now that's tech support on steroids!

To be sure that you will have that level of service, try calling a vendor's help line, if they'll even give it to you. Call them during the day. Call them in the evening. The goal should be a friendly, human voice within three rings or less. Make sure to call them back many times. This small investment of time can give you a very clear look at what to expect from a LIMS provider, after you sign on the dotted line.

That's the three ring test! We hope that this advice will help you in your acquisition and/or replacement of a LIMS solution.