skibum - 1:15 am on Jul 17, 2004 (gmt 0)

It depends on how integral this system will be to overall operations as to whether or not consulting would be a good add-on. With some systems there are high-value custom reports that the vendor can add-on.

There is at lest on awesome (IMHO) high end analytics vendor out there who I think built everything inhouse and has no seat licences and integrates email & website tracking.

So, if they don't offer you want you want on your terms its not the end of the world. Also, if the contract is for a year, why not shoot for a month to month renewal after a year-long contract is over. If its a good system and all your data is stored in there, contrat or no, its tough to switch vendors.