How to Choose Your ASP

Using an ASP instead of running software suites through your own systems can be a win-win for both you and the ASP. You have software that runs smoothly with no headaches - they have a loyal customer. But using an ASP's services can also be a nightmare if you choose the wrong one. Roadblocks in usage, security issues, integration headaches, the potential pitfalls are many.

The relationship you're going to have with your ASP should last a good, long time. Taking the utmost care in choosing your ASP is the key to forming a healthy, profitable, lasting relationship. But how should you go about evaluating potential partners? This week we asked Prasad Raje, CEO of enterprise automation company Instantis, for his advice. And what he had to say could keep you from making mistakes that could haunt you later.

First: The ASP's Big Three

When you've decided your business could use the services of an ASP, your next question is which one. What vendor from the scores on the market will you hire? Raje says an ASP should perform admirably in three major areas.

"One of the things you want to know is if they will provide a reliable service," says Raje. Take a look at the service agreement the ASP offers. Are you guaranteed a certain amount of uptime? Is it acceptable? Are there procedures such as monthly refunds or release from contract if the ASP doesn't meet those standards?

The second area, according to Raje, is security.

"People want to make sure their data is secure and that the service is not going to misuse their data," he says. When Instantis provides ASP services for its customers, they sign a contract saying the information passing though their systems is not owned by them and therefore they can't buy, sell or leak that information. Any ASP worth its salt should provide similar assurances.

"The third thing is around the performance of the ASP service - actual uptime performance, history around customer references and people who have successfully used the service, and then around some kind of third party certification. Is there a third party that has looked at the service and found it worthy of a high quality standard?" he asks.

Reliability, security and performance will take you a long way. But how do you make sure that what a company is telling you is the truth? That's where word-of-mouth and helpful websites come in.

Finding and Rating Your Vendor

Even finding vendors who service your area of need can be confusing and exhausting. The marketplace seems to change so quickly. But a variety of sites are there to help you with your choice, including, no false modesty here, us!

"Places like StrategyWeek.com would be one place where you look to find industry experts and industry resources for IT information for your business. There are other websites relating to ASP services. There are a lot of resources on the web where people can do self- service," says Raje.

Once you have a list of suitable vendors, you can then get the word- of-mouth on them. Ask for current and former customer contact information from the potential vendors, and contact those customers.

"There's no better way to find out how a provider does than by talking with other people who have used that provider. That applies to whether you're buying an ASP service or packaged software," says Raje.

"It's no different on that point because whether you buy software or an ASP service, it's all about establishing that the provider has a solution that you want, and insuring that the solution will do what you want it to do. Once you've established that, you need to consider things around the ASP service guarantees - what kind of service level agreements they have, what kind of uptime they actually experience, who their other customers are and so on," he says. "You have to measure your provider against a yardstick, not of perfection, but of how close the provider can come to perfection and how much better they can do it versus if you were doing it yourself."

After all, sometimes it's better to implement in-house, but like we said, an ASP can eliminate headaches while saving your resources. It's all a matter of deciding what's best for your business, and doing the research to find out who can deliver. An ASP can be your businesses' best friend - if you choose the right one. And the advice here should go a long way towards that choice.