The Importance of Trust When Buying a Software Solution

There are few situations where trust isn’t important. Valuing trust is so ingrained within us that it can almost be taken for granted. Sometimes we only think deeply about trust when it has been broken.

Any interpersonal relationship needs trust at its core, and transactional relationships aren’t too different. We trust that the food we buy won’t make us sick, we trust the appliance we buy won’t break down after a month, and we trust other products to solve the problem(s) they claim to solve.

Software is no different, of course. When we’re making a purchase, we are investing not only our (or our business's) money, but also our time. It takes time to learn a new software product, and to integrate its functionality into your unique context. This applies not only for knowledge base software, but any software product.

As someone who has worked in SaaS Customer Support for years, I’ve developed a bit of an eye for (and a strong opinion on) rating the trustworthiness of a software company. Even if I adore the product itself, there are some red flags that I will not budge on.

I thought it might be helpful to write down all of these trust indicators for folks so they can use them when they’re shopping for new software. We'll cover several categories, which you may prioritize differently based on your needs.

Reputation

When you're trying to solve any problem, it can be helpful to talk to someone who has already solved that same problem. You can learn from their experiences and save yourself a lot of grief by doing this kind of research. Similarly with software, it can help to hear from people who had the same needs that you're seeking to meet with a software solution.

One of the quickest ways to check the reputation of a software solution is to reference software review sites. Capterra and G2 are two of the best—both provide helpful details and reviews from real customers.

The next level of reputation-checking is to ask the company you’re assessing if they can give you some references. Any company with strong relationships with their customers shouldn’t have trouble finding folks who are willing to talk to potential customers. You might even be able to get some advice from the reference on how they implemented their solution in a context similar to yours.

Policies

Here is often where you can find red flags lurking in places you might not have thought to look.

If you look at a company’s pricing page, you might be able to find some of the answers to the following policy questions, but you can also reach out to their Support team to request further clarification.

• Credit card required for trial: Check to see if you need a credit card to start a trial. This isn’t necessarily a red flag, but if they do require one, be sure to check what happens if you forget to cancel your trial. Do they charge you automatically?

• Trial extension: Will the company allow you to extend your trial if you need more time to evaluate their software? Even if you don’t plan to extend your trial, it's nice to know if a company offers trial extensions.

• Refunds: Does the company offer refunds under any circumstances? If so, what is the time limit for asking for one? 7, 14, or 30 days are fairly common restrictions. However, some companies offer no refunds at all, especially on automated renewals, so beware of that. Even if you can’t imagine needing a refund, a company's refund policies can speak to their overall values and level of care for their customers.

• Feature-gating and upselling: Does the product require you to leap up to a new plan just for a single feature? Is their “Success” team really just a sales team in disguise, clearly trying to upsell you? It’s a real bummer when you think a certain plan will do the trick, so you spend a bunch of time getting set up on that plan only to find out that one needed feature (e.g. SSO) suddenly means your budget explodes. You’ll want to check how a product's features are priced and how the plans are separated. You'll also want to do a general vibe check to see if the company has a tendency to upsell or, on the other hand, if they sincerely want to help you find the right plan for your needs.

• Content and reader limits: A lot of SaaS companies limit the amount of content you can add to your account. If a product you're evaluating has content limits, you'll want to check how those limits are implemented. Are there limits only to the file sizes, or are there also overall content limits? Are there limits to the amount of readers (this is especially important if the product requires users to log in)? Make sure there aren’t any sneaky snakes lying in the grass that will increase your costs!

• What happens when your credit card fails: There are many reasons why credit card charges may fail. It can happen to the most responsible among us! For example, the company's accountant may go on parental leave, the company may change credit card companies, the company's billing address may change, etc. Be sure to ask any company you're considering working with how they handle credit card failures. I'm still reeling after hearing about a competitor who locks customer accounts for 30 DAYS after a fifth credit card failure and then permanently deletes the account after the sixth failure. That is wild! Look for a company that will have some patience with you, or at minimum won't be punitive if your card fails.

• Cancellation: It's also important to look into companies' cancellation policies. Do they make it difficult for customers to cancel? Can you cancel in-app or do you have to email their support or sales team to cancel? Do they make you talk to someone live, who then tries way too hard to change your mind? Can you cancel at any time? I want to be sure any software I use won’t try to hold me hostage!

Support

No matter the product you’re signing up for, at some point you'll probably need help from the Support team.

I want to know that when that time comes I'll be able to get the help I need, and that I won’t have to wait weeks for it.

When evaluating software, I recommend reaching out to the Support team a couple of times before signing up. Even if you don’t actually need the help, send them an "easy" question just to see their communication tone, reply speed, and general level of helpfulness. If they don’t talk down to you and they sound eager to help, then you’re probably in good hands!

You might also want to ask about whether they’re able and willing to help with more specific things. For example, many SaaS companies won’t help with any CSS or HTML customizations. Others are willing to try to help with some customizations. Depending on your needs, this may or may not matter, but it could be worth looking into before you subscribe to a service.

Finally, a good Help Center is a great indicator of a company’s desire to be helpful to their customers. Is there only an FAQ page with less than 10 questions on it? If so, that might tell you that they aren’t willing to put the time and money into giving their customers quality self-service options. Thorough and high-quality Help Center documentation demonstrates that a company has a high level of care for their customers.

Other

There are other indicators of trustworthiness that can't be neatly categorized, such as:

• Development process: You might want to ask about a company’s development process. Is it led by customer requests and needs? Some companies develop based on what’s needed to make sales, and not what’s needed by their actual customers. They put all their time into flashy features while the bug reports pile up. Asking about a company’s process for managing feature requests and bug reports from customers can help you get an idea on how much importance they give to their customers.

• Marketing practices: Do their marketing practices make you feel icky? It’s a-ok to compare for companies to compare themselves to competitors, but when a company trash talks others directly, that can be a pretty bright red flag. You should also take a look at their marketing site and see how much they talk about their customers there. If it’s exclusively about the product, then you might be a little more wary of their values.

• Treatment of employees: For me, how a company treats its employees is a huge indicator of how they’re likely to treat their customers. If they're more concerned about saving money on people costs, then it's unlikely they're also going to invest in quality service and care for their customers. I prefer to give my money to a company that is value-aligned with me, and that includes valuing those who work for you. It’s usually not too difficult to get an idea about how a company treats their employees. Their website will often mention if they're a B Corp or if they offer certain benefits to their employees.

• Care for the world beyond profit: Very related to the last point, I like to see if a company is involved in the world outside itself and its financial bottom line. At KnowledgeOwl, we have 4 bottom lines (great service, great software, great finance, and great purpose). We demonstrate our values by being a certified B Corporation and a member of 1% for the Planet. Goals that transcend making money for money’s sake build trust between customers and companies. A company that is trying to be a force for good in the world will likely treat you well and respect you.

• Personality match: I trust companies that present an authentic image rather than a squeaky clean corporate facade. Seeing humor and personality in branding (like cute owl logos!) or interactions with support teams is delightful. When a company allows you to be yourself and have fun while working with them, it builds trust like nothing else!

We've compiled all of these trust indicators into a free comparison tool, which you can access here. We hope using it will help you find software companies that align with your needs and values. Did we miss any trust indicators that you look for? Let us know, and we'll add them to the list!