How to pick the best CLM platform for your business using analyst insights

Most first-time buyers of Contract Lifecycle Management (CLM) platforms are infrequent purchasers of technology. Many hail from somewhere in the legal, legal operations, or procurement departments and have often dedicated their valuable, limited time to something other than working out how to evaluate, select, and implement software. As a result, being given the task of finding the exact right CLM platform for your organization can be a challenge.

Fortunately for everyone, there is a whole class of organizations and individuals whose primary (if not sole) purpose is to provide guidance and make the whole software selection process much smoother and less painful: analysts. 

That said, there is a near-infinite universe of analysts available to software buyers, from enormous, globe-spanning organizations that trade on public stock markets, down to one-man-bands that bring their specialized knowledge and deep experience to very specific situations. In fact, the broad range of analysts out there can end up becoming just as dizzying as the original goal of working out which CLM tool to choose. 

Here are five handy tips on how to best utilize analysts when selecting CLM platforms: 

1. Build your initial shortlist using the largest analysts

It should come as no surprise to find that the biggest analyst firms (such as Gartner, Forrester, and IDC) are able to dedicate the greatest resources to researching, analyzing, and reporting on the markets they cover. Their evaluation processes and published reports are extensively and carefully curated to eliminate bias, delivering the most accurate guidepost to the providers you should have on your initial call list.  
 
Look for CLM platforms that reliably show up near the top of the list across these three large reports. Different methodologies from different analysts means you may not find the same provider in the top spot, but you can expect to see the same ones appear in the top three or four everywhere. 
 
An important note: Most experienced software buyers use these reports at the beginning of their selection process – but not so much at the end. Analyst reports tell you the right folks to talk to in general, while the evaluation process should help you discern which CLM solution is right for your unique environment. 

2. Read (but don’t entirely trust) user review-based sites 

Consider them the Yelp of software reviews. These are the user-generated review sites, designed to show you reviews of people who have actually used the software. (Well-known examples of these sites include G2, Gartner Reviews, and Capterra.) These user-review sites operate on the principle that people who have actually experienced the software in question are best positioned to let you know how the system functions post-implementation. 
 
There’s a lot to like about these sites, but do proceed with caution – the reviewers may be compensated by the site for their contribution, and may not have a full picture of why the system was selected in the first place. For instance, when Customer Relationship Management (CRM) software was first introduced, many salespeople hated it because it devalued their personally-owned Rolodex and required them to track and forecast their pipeline in far more public ways than they were used to. Suffice to say, their CRM reviews would not have been kind! 
 
Finally, look for a range of realistic, varied responses in any site you use: just like on Amazon, if everything is a rave with five stars, there’s probably something fishy going on! When reading the comments, choose reviews that are in the middle (2 – 4 stars) to see what, in particular, caught their eye as a deficit. And always remember to change the listing order from Recommended to Most Recent to get a better sense of what’s really going on, so the site can’t prioritize the best reviews. 

3. Use a real-time inquiry at the beginning of your CLM tool search 

Many business organizations already have a relationship with one (or more) of the top analyst firms, with access to the experts just a phone call away! And those who don’t have a relationship with an analyst firm can typically gain access to one for a relatively modest fee. 
 
Even if you must pay for the analyst’s time, it may be an investment worth its weight in gold, as the analyst can help you to tease out what matters to you most in your selection process and provide you with guidance on which CLM providers are the likeliest match. 
 
Tip: Start with the global analysts rather than the smaller outfits. A smaller firm, by its very nature, will tend toward an accumulation of information about a smaller number of vendors, meaning their guidance may be less broad.

4. Consider using a boutique analyst firm to help with your RFI/RFP 

Smaller firms should not be pushed out of the process – they are the perfect people to help you structure and execute your CLM search and selection process! These smaller firms often employ experienced professionals who have done exactly what you are doing many times before and are adept at persuading vendors to answer your questions directly. 
 
Where the global firms are the natural go-to for getting an extensive view of the market, smaller firms are the right source of advice and guidance for matching your CLM vendor requirements to your shortlist. 

5. Remember: analysts know the market, but they don’t necessarily know you (or your business) 

It may seem obvious, but it’s worth stating: analysts have their own set of opinions and knowledge, but they don’t intimately know the specific challenges and goals of your unique organization.  

They do extraordinary work in helping you to crystallize your key needs into a well-written RFI/RFP, which can then help you narrow down your list of possible CLM providers. But once the answers to your questionnaire are complete and you’ve settled on a short list of two or three vendors, it’s time to ask yourself a key question: who will be the best partner for me long term?  

Once you select a CLM platform, you’re going to be working side-by-side with them to implement the system, gain user adoption, and further develop your CLM maturity over time so you continue to derive ever-increasing value from it.  

In conclusion

Selecting software is a process of ever-narrowing focus: first you cast a wide net, with global analysts, to find an appropriate universe of potential fits; then you zero in, with the help of a boutique analyst, to come up with the shortlist of vendors that offer what you need; then you use your own intuition and judgment to settle on the one vendor to work with for the future. Ultimately, it is your judgment that must reign supreme, because it will be your accountability and reputation on the line. And, after all, you know your business best. 

Choose wisely, and happy shopping!

You might know what green flags to look for when shopping for a CLM platform. But what about red flags to avoid? Read our blog to find out.