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Before Buying An Audience Response System - Evaluate
Each Vendor's Support Organization

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Before Buying An Audience Response System - Evaluate
Each Vendor's Support Organization
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| Step 8: Compare Support Organizations |
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| Before you purchase an Audience Response System
you must
evaluate each potential vendor's support organization.
Since this can cover a rather broad spectrum of services, we will
provide a simple list of things to consider below. |
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Is there a help phone number?
If so, what are the hours?
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Does the vendor offer
hardware/software training? If so, will they go to your
office, and at what cost?
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What is the trainer's background?
This is important because you want someone who has in-depth
knowledge of the system you are purchasing. There is no
industry certification available, so it pays to ask questions
about your trainer.
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Will the vendor provide a
technician for your first meeting or two, as a standby in case
things go wrong? If so, what is the cost?
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What is the future of the
audience response software that
you plan to purchase? When is the next planned upgrade?
What will it include? What will the upgrade cost be?
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What is the warranty on hardware?
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Can you rent additional equipment
and manpower to augment your system if needed?
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What is the vendor's relationship
with the hardware manufacturer, and the software developer?
Does the vendor hold a direct relationship, and will the
manufacturer/developer provide alternatives in the event of a
problem?
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| In addition, you need to give thought to who
will be responsible within your organization for scheduling the
equipment amongst your various user groups. Equipment should be
checked out, and in again. Each time the system is
returned, it should be inspected to be sure all components
have been returned. It should also be fully tested and
repacked for the next use. |
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| Lastly, for radio systems, batteries should be
changed once a year and the entire system should be frequency
tuned every two years, under normal usage conditions. |
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| Step 9: Place the Order |
| Now that you know exactly what you need, you've
tried it, and you have asked all of the right questions, go
ahead and place the order. Most important, you need to
feel comfortable with the company you are buying from. |
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| You can expect it to take ten to fourteen days
to receive the system. As soon as it arrives, unpack it, count and
test your keypads and base stations, install the
software on at
least one machine, make sure it supports the number of keypads
that it is supposed to, and notify your dealer immediately if
anything is missing or not working correctly. |
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With all of that done, enjoy your new Audience
Response System! |
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