Trends Report

When eCommerce Executives Should (And Shouldn't) Believe Vendor Case Studies

Decision-Makers Need To Distinguish Between Useful Data And Propaganda

October 9th, 2009
Sucharita Kodali, VP, Principal Analyst
Sucharita Kodali VP, Principal Analyst
With contributor:
Brendan McGowan

Summary

Because of the preponderance of point solutions in the online retail world, eCommerce executives are bombarded with numerous vendor-authored case studies that claim to increase a client company's overall performance. Upon closer inspection, however, vendor-authored case studies are generally inadequate for answering important questions from stakeholders. Such questions are various: "How much does the solution truly cost?"; "What is the benefit that my specific company, in its unique vertical, is likely to see?"; "What is the likelihood of experiencing (or not experiencing) that impact?" Thus, to better understand the value of a vendor's product or service, we recommend that eCommerce executives ask 15 questions that approximate Forrester's formal vendor evaluation, the Total Economic Impact™ (TEI) assessment, when reading and assessing case studies. Case studies that can be characterized as weak because they provide little to no information on costs or benefits should call into question the value of a vendor's offering.

Want to read the full report?

Contact us to become a client

This report is available for individual purchase ($1495).

Forrester helps business and technology leaders use customer obsession to accelerate growth. That means empowering you to put the customer at the center of everything you do: your leadership strategy, and operations. Becoming a customer-obsessed organization requires change — it requires being bold. We give business and technology leaders the confidence to put bold into action, shaping and guiding how to navigate today's unprecedented change in order to succeed.